How One Ghost Walk Became a Multi-City Haunted History Brand
The Story Behind American Ghost Walks, from Madison to the Caribbean
Before American Ghost Walks operated in more than 10 destinations across the U.S. and Caribbean, it was one guide walking groups through downtown Madison with a stack of newspaper clippings, historical archives, and a simple belief: the best ghost stories are the ones that are actually true.
In 2010, Mike Huberty founded Madison Ghost Walks, a small tourism company built around a deceptively simple idea: dig into the city's documented accounts and local sources, then tell those stories in the exact spots they took place. On the streets, after dark, with the buildings themselves as the backdrop. The promise was 100% true stories. Every narrative pulled from real research, local interviews, newspaper records, and verified accounts. No borrowed legends. No recycled scripts.
From One City to Ten Destinations
As demand grew, Huberty realized the same research-driven approach could work beyond Madison. So, he partnered with local researchers, historians, and storytellers in each new city to uncover the stories unique to that place. The expansion followed the same process that built the first tour: go to the city, dig into the local archives, conduct firsthand interviews, and build something genuine to the destination.
Today, what started around Capitol Square stretches across 10+ destinations, and each one carries a completely different haunted character. In the French Quarter of New Orleans, guests walk past centuries-old courtyards where documented hauntings have been reported since the 1800s. In Old San Juan, the stories unfold in fortified colonial streets where Spanish-era history and Caribbean folklore overlap. On Hollywood Boulevard, the glamour of the Walk of Fame gives way to the darker side of the entertainment industry's past. Along the Maine coastline, fog-wrapped harbor towns carry maritime ghost stories passed down for generations. And in Hawaii, Alaska, Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the same process applies. No tour is a copy of another.
The People Behind the Stories
Ask anyone who's been on an American Ghost Walks tour what stuck with them, and it's almost always the guide.
Allison Jornlin, the brand's Tour Developer, has spent more than 20 years investigating strange phenomena. She received the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference's 2016 Wisconsin Researcher of the Year Award and developed Milwaukee's first haunted history tour in 2008.
Tea Krulos, who leads tours in Milwaukee, is an award-winning journalist, author of five non-fiction books, and founder of the Milwaukee Paranormal Conference.
In Puerto Rico, Leopoldo Rosso brings more than 30 years in the tourism industry and has visited over 135 countries and territories.
And in Lake Geneva, Rita Moore, a lifelong local, traces her love for this work back to a ghost tour she took in New Orleans at 18.
These are researchers, authors, and local experts who chose this work because they believe these stories deserve to be told well.
From Local Tours to National Television
In 2023, Mike brought American Ghost Walks to ABC's Shark Tank, appearing during the Halloween "Sharkoween" episode. He's also been featured on the BBC and TRVL Channel's In Search of Monsters, and co-hosts the See You On The Other Side podcast, covering pop culture and paranormal themes.
More than 15 years in business. Over 15,000 guests served. A 4.9-star average from 2,847+ reviews across destinations. Tours operating in 10+ cities across 8 states and 2 U.S. territories.
The Core Hasn't Changed
Today, American Ghost Walks operates across the United States and Caribbean, but the mission remains the same: uncover the stories most visitors never hear. The destinations have multiplied. The team has grown. The brand appeared on national television. None of it changed what those first guests in Madison signed up for: real stories, sourced from real history, told by real people in the places they happened.
Every city has its own haunted history. Most of it never makes it into the guidebooks. Find out what's hiding in yours.
