Have You Ever Heard About or Experienced the ‘Hat Man’ Ghost in Wisconsin or Illinois?
I was today years old when I learned there may be a ghostly Hat Man on the loose in Wisconsin, and it's all thanks to a question I saw in the Strange Wisconsin Facebook group. The post simply said; "Thoughts on The Hat Man? Have you seen him? There are theories about this presence, but what do you think?"
Sure, that question alone doesn't seem too scary, but the experiences and sightings people talked about in the comments certainly are! Here are a few that really gave me chills...
A group member named Nicole said;
I’ve seen him once when I was in my early 30’s. I saw him a couple of days after my cousin passed away from Suicide. I never looked into what he symbolizes because it freaked me out so much.
Another member named Dave said;
Spent from the time I can remember ( 4 or 5 years old ) until I was about 15 seeing him in my bedroom at the foot of my bed just standing there broad brimmed hat and all. He wouldn't be there every single night, but more often than not.
Denise said;
I had just gone to bed and I saw a shadow man dancing on my wall. I watched him for a few minutes and suddenly it seemed to know I was watching and it faced me with a quick turn of the head, as if startled. It glared at me with glowing red eyes and I felt such malevolence in that stare that I screamed for my mother.
Ok, I think you get the point now. These 'Hat Man' stories are pretty regular, and after doing a quick Google search I learned that The Hat Man doesn't only roam in Wisconsin either. He terrorizes people all over the United States and beyond.
The Hatman Project
Encounters with this ghostly Hat Man are so widespread that they inspired an entire website called The Hatman Project which is full of stories and experiences with The Hat Man from all over the world. I wish I could tell you I was brave enough to read some of them, but I am not. I can tell you that the most recent story was just published on August 9, 2022, though!
Is The Hat Man Real?
No one may ever know if The Hat Man is an actual spirit of a person that passed long ago or why he is continuing to haunt this world, but several sleep experts say they think he might be a vision caused by some sort of sleep paralysis. He also seems to haunt more children than adults and usually chooses people who are going through or survived some type of trauma.
Either way, I'm freaked out. Have you seen The Hat Man before? Share your story with us now by sending us a message on the app!