Fabrication or Fact? The Chilling Legends of Taiwan’s Top Three Haunted Houses

The fury of the bar girl Nana—Keelung Haunted House

In Keelung’s prime real estate area at the intersection of Ailu Road and Zhonglu Road stands a dilapidated yet still imposing three-story Western-style building. This site, once home to the former “Maggie Bar,” is also known as the “most expensive haunted house in Taiwan.”

In the 20th year of the Republic of China (1931), mining tycoon Lin Kaiqun, eager to flaunt his wealth, spent a fortune constructing a three-story Western mansion in the bustling district. The entire building used imported materials and was designed and built by renowned architects hired at high salaries, making Lin Kaiqun’s Western mansion a local landmark.

Later, after Lin Kaiqun moved out, the mansion was rented to painter Ni Jianghuai. After Ni moved out, the location’s convenience led to it being leased and transformed into “Maggie Bar,” catering mainly to American soldiers. Owing to its great location and quality service, Maggie Bar became a lively spot every night, filled with lights, music, and revelry.

At the bar, there was a bar girl named “Nana” who, having become pregnant by an American soldier, wanted to return to the U.S. with him. However, love proved scarce in the entertainment world, and she was cruelly rejected by the soldier. In retaliation, Nana plotted arson—not only killing the soldier but also causing dozens of bar girls and customers to perish in the inferno, shocking all of Keelung.

Since then, ghost stories about Maggie Bar have multiplied. Some claim to see shadowy figures of men and women dancing together at midnight, or to glimpse Nana’s charred face peeking from a window and beckoning to passersby. With the bar sealed shut and left to decay after the incident, the mystery deepened. All kinds of rumors have made Keelung Haunted House a household name across Taiwan.

According to a local Keelung resident, Mr. Zhang, many locals know the Keelung Haunted House has remained unoccupied due to property disputes. Coupled with its location in a busy area and the abundance of positive “yang” energy, some even set up street stalls nearby, so they don’t find it particularly frightening. However, another person, Ms. Luo, revealed that Keelung’s rainy and humid weather means that passing by the haunted house at night can still conjure images of the horrific fire, sending chills down her spine. As for going in to explore? Absolutely not.

The woman in white with long hair on the fifth floor—Xinglin Hospital

“An abandoned hospital, empty except for shattered glass medicine bottles and discarded medical supplies scattered on the ground, with the sharp stench of formaldehyde filling the air...” If the Keelung Haunted House in a busy district is considered “Taiwan’s most expensive haunted house,” then Tainan’s Xinglin Hospital is undoubtedly “Taiwan’s largest haunted house.”
❘Xinglin Hospital, officially known as Xinglin General Hospital, opened in 1975 and shut down in 1993 due to falsified medical records. To this day, the hospital building remains standing and has not been demolished.

▲ Xinglin Hospital is touted as Taiwan’s largest abandoned haunted house (Photo / Provided by Orange Dog)

Thanks to its background as a hospital, Xinglin Hospital is home to a wide array of ghostly legends. These include the spirits of the deceased appearing in patient rooms, the ghost of a former cleaning lady who continues to mop the halls even after death, claims of people seeing a woman in white smiling coldly by a bed through a telescope, and tales of numerous restless souls in the basement and morgue, with an unidentified elderly man reportedly seen on the fifth floor... These various oral traditions have cemented its status as “Taiwan’s largest haunted house.”

Due to the abundance of legends surrounding Xinglin Hospital, many people form “dare groups” to explore its interior. There are even photographers who specifically bring models here for photo shoots. As a result, the hospital now, besides its abandoned wards, medical equipment, and specimen jars, sometimes also features props like ghost money and fake bloodstains, adding to its eerie atmosphere.

Some netizens believe that because many people visit Xinglin Hospital to explore, the screams and strange lights people hear are merely psychological effects of living people scaring each other. However, one person who went ghost hunting, Mr. Huang, revealed, “As soon as I went in, I felt extremely uncomfortable and just wanted to get out as quickly as possible...”

Oh… who’s that person behind you?