Show notes
Is Preston Castle Haunted?
In this episode of Ghostly, we head to the tiny Gold Rush town of Ione, California, to explore Preston Castle — a red-brick, Romanesque Revival reform school with a dark past and a reputation as one of the West Coast’s most active haunted locations. Built to correct troubled boys, the castle instead became the site of beatings, escapes, and at least one unsolved murder. Decades after it closed, staff, tour guides, and paranormal investigators all say the same thing: it never really emptied out.
History of Preston Castle
- Established in 1890 by the California State Legislature as a progressive reform school for juvenile offenders; the cornerstone was laid December 23, 1890, in front of roughly 2,500 spectators
- Built in the Romanesque Revival style — considered the finest example of that style in the Mother Lode — using bricks manufactured at San Quentin and Folsom prisons from locally quarried sandstone
- The first wards were accepted June 13, 1894, and the school officially opened July 1, 1894; electricity arrived the following year via a water-wheel-powered Pelton dynamo
- At its peak, the school held around 800 wards, employed 200 staff, and worked roughly 1,000 acres of surrounding farmland across some 50 buildings
- Discipline behind the scenes was harsh: public lashings, isolation, military-style drills, and “dunking baths” meant to treat lice were all part of daily life for the boys sent here
- The school closed in 1960 when the state opened newer facilities, and the castle sat vacant and deteriorating for more than 40 years
- Local preservationists fought off demolition; the nonprofit Preston Castle Foundation leased the property in 2001 and took full ownership in 2014
- Today it’s a California Historical Landmark (#867) and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the Foundation running public tours and events on-site
Reported Paranormal Activity
Visitors, staff, and investigators have reported disembodied footsteps and voices, sudden temperature drops, physical touches ranging from a light brush to a hard poke, and cameras or recorders draining batteries or glitching with no explanation. It’s earned Preston Castle a spot on nearly every “most haunted place in California” list out there.
The Ghost of Anna Corbin
The castle’s most well-known haunting centers on Anna Corbin, the head housekeeper who was like a mother figure to the boys at Preston. In February 1950, she was beaten and strangled in a basement storeroom. Three separate trials followed — and nobody was ever convicted. Locals believe her spirit still can’t leave, and that she’s the one still walking the basement, and the halls, checking on “her boys.”
The Infirmary
Widely considered the most consistently active room in the building. The infirmary treated wards who fell ill, and some — including 8-year-old Grant Walker and 20-year-old Nicholas Hamilton — never left. Visitors report figures standing at the infirmary windows that vanish the moment they’re noticed, along with faint voices and movement in a room that should be empty.
The Basement
Beyond Anna’s room, the basement as a whole has a reputation as the heaviest, most unsettling part of the castle — cold spots with no source, shadow figures along the walls, and a dread so strong some investigators refuse to go down at all.
On Camera: The Ghost Adventures Investigation
When the Ghost Adventures crew investigated Preston Castle, they captured EVPs including “I don’t know,” “talk,” and “get out of here,” along with mist and orbs moving near their own heads on camera. More than one crew member came out of the basement with fresh, unexplained scratches — and Zak Bagans reportedly behaved so differently down there that the rest of the crew wondered if he’d been influenced by Anna herself.
Spirits of the Wards
Some of the castle’s activity is tied to the boys who lived — and in some cases died — here. Reports include child-like laughter with no children around, faint crying, and small shadow figures darting through the halls. Two names recur often in the lore: Sam Goins and Herman Huber, both shot by guards during separate escape attempts in the early 1900s.
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Music for this episode was performed by Michael Rivers
“Pat Facts” and “Ghost Story” themes by Mondo
“Time for a Debate” theme by Gail Gallagher gailgallaghermusic.com
Sources for this week’s episode
Preston Castle Foundation — History
Preston Castle Foundation — Tours
The Harsh, Eerie History of Preston Castle — Merced County Times
The Preston Castle: A Tragic Blend of Mystery, History, and Horror — Calexplornia
Historic Haunt — San Joaquin Magazine
Preston Castle — Haunted US
Preston Castle Ghost Stories and History — BeyondHaunted.com
The History of Preston Castle — Paranormal Legacy
Preston Castle (episode) — Ghost Adventures Wiki
Preston Castle: A Paranormal Investigator’s Paradise — 209 Magazine
Preston Castle — Haunted Reform School — Hauntpedia
Ghost Hunt: Preston Castle in Ione, California — Ghostly Activities
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