Houdini Museum

The only museum in the world devoted entirely to Harry Houdini, and it's inside a 150-year-old house with its own dark history — a murder, a suicide, and an electrocution all happened here. They still hold seances in the psychic theater.

The Houdini Museum in Scranton is the only building in the world devoted entirely to the legendary escape artist Harry Houdini. Created by Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brooks, who began collecting Houdini memorabilia in the 1970s, the museum houses artifacts from their personal collections and items given to Brooks by his father, who saw Houdini perform. The exhibits were displayed for 15 years at the Magic Towne House in New York City before moving to Scranton, a city with its own Houdini connection - the magician performed at the Palais Theatre (now the Ritz Theater) in 1915.

The Pennsylvania Department of Tourism selected the Houdini Museum as one of the ten most haunted events in the state. The museum features the story of a murder/suicide/electrocution that occurred in this 150-year-old historic home, and visitors can explore the darkest nooks and crannies of the century-old building. The museum's Haunted Séance offers a paranormal psychic experience complete with a "ghost guarantee" - if you can duplicate any of the sounds, touches, ghosts, and other phenomena that occur during the show, you'll receive $5,000 and free tickets.

The séance tradition connects directly to Houdini himself. For a decade after his death, his wife Bess held a séance every October 31st attempting to contact her husband. She passed the tradition to Walter B. Gibson, who performed it until his death in 1985, then to Dorothy Dietrich, who brought it to Scranton and continues it online annually on Halloween.