From the Fort Garry Hotel to Fort la Reine Museum, why ghost stories endure in Manitoba

The Winnipeg Paranormal Group uses a Ouija board during a ghost tour at Fort la Reine Museum in Portage la Prairie, Man., in October 2025. (Facebook: Fort la Reine Museum)

Strange feelings at a Winnipeg hotel. A house filled with spirits. Voices of children lingering in a pioneer house.

These ghostly stories continue to strike a chord, inspiring books, podcasts and tours around Manitoba.

Jas Flamand has co-hosted the Giving up the Ghost podcast for seven years, sharing ghost stories from Manitoba and beyond to keep them living on.

“I thought it would be a nice way to invite people to tell their stories, the stories they know from their small towns, their neighbourhoods,” she said during an interview with CTV News.

Flamand’s podcast also allowed her to partner with the Winnipeg Paranormal Group, going into homes and places where strange occurrences are happening.

“We want to make sure that everyone feels comfortable in their home,” said Ashley Barnes, co-owner and lead investigator with the group. “That’s supposed to be your safe space, so that’s what we want for everybody.”

Haunted Manitoba

Kelly Smith, co-owner of the Winnipeg Paranormal Group, said Manitoba has been known as a hotbed of paranormal activity since the 19th century, noting prominent names interested in the spiritual realm, such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, visited the city to experience it for themselves.

“I think the mixture of cultures that we have here really lends itself to that as well, because a lot of people have deep spiritual beliefs, so they’re more open about it than a lot of other places where there’s still so much of a stigma attached to it,” she said.

Flamand says Winnipeg’s history, including old buildings and its status as a travel hub for other cities, also contributes to the city’s ghostly reputation.

“There was some upheaval at the turn of the century, and I think a lot of that energy kind of remained,” she said. “It’s still here with us to this day.”

One of the more infamous places believed to be haunted in Winnipeg is the Fort Garry Hotel, the site of several ghostly legends. The most infamous is Room 202, where a bride allegedly died by suicide and continues to haunt the room.

“I know from people that I’ve spoken with, there is like an energy in there,” Flamand said. “Some people get sick.”

For the Winnipeg Paranormal Group, Fort la Reine Museum outside of Portage la Prairie, Man., has been the place where they’ve seen the most paranormal activity.

“We’ve done several group events there, and we’ve had validating stories across all the groups,” Smith said.

According to Barnes, some people on the tours have reported hearing children’s voices, received messages from spirits through Ouija boards and experienced lost time during parts of the tour — a sign of paranormal activity.

Why do these stories persist?

Through it all, Flamand and the Paranormal Group believe there is a simple reason why we’re captivated by ghost stories even to this day.

“I think it’s just the unknown,” Flamand said.

“People want to connect with the other side. There are three types of people; there’s the people that believe, the people that refuse to believe, and then there’s the people that want to believe, but they want proof,” she said.

Smith says people often wonder what happens after you die.

“We want to know if we’re going to move on to something else, to somewhere else. What happens after death?” Smith said.

“We do get asked to speak to groups of older people who are probably wondering what’s going to happen as I move through this realm. Anybody who has experienced the death of loved ones, they want to know what’s happened to them,” she added.

“They want to know that they’re okay.”

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