Grafton Haunted School House embraces spooky side of historic landmark

A historic Grafton landmark is embracing its spooky reputation this Halloween season. Through Halloween weekend, the old Grafton School House will be rebranded as the Grafton Haunted School House.

The eerie attraction is in its second year of operation at 1111 Elm Street, an address that owner John Minor Jr. said feels like fate.

Its on Elm Street. Its just like a scary movie we created on our own, he said. Its meant to be, 100%.

Minor walked News 5 through the winding corridors of the former school, including a waiting area lined with lockers, repurposed classrooms, a cafeteria and a kitchen now full of macabre props, live actors and sound effects.

You can expect a lot of jump scares, dark hallways, things lurking around every corner, he said.

The school served more than 200,000 students during its lifetime, from 1936 to 2005. Minor said paranormal investigators have claimed to find evidence of real hauntings at the historic building.

"All kinds of shadows, windows opening, doors closing on their own," he said.

Scare actor Chelsey Butler said her stepmother attended the now-closed Grafton School and spoke of eerie experiences. As a live actor in the haunted attraction, Butler said she even gets spooked sometimes.

"There's nights when I get a random cold chill and I'm just like, 'I'm in the warmest part of the building,'" she said.

The thrill of the scare is something Minor and his actors live for.

"Halloween's always been a passion, since I was a little youngster watching Tales of the Crypt with my mom," Minor said.

He operated a homemade Halloween attraction out of his familys Columbia Station garage for several years. Minor Manor, as it was known, impressed even the biggest horror fans.

"I walked through a couple times and I'm like, 'Oh my God, this is awesome,'" said Patrick Smith, who helped with Minor Manor and now works as a scare actor at the Grafton Haunted School House.

In early 2025, a house fire destroyed Minors Columbia Station home and forced him to move, leaving Minor Manor behind.

"I was never expecting it to happen to me and my family. Definitely devastating. But it brought us to a better place, got lucky enough to find this," Minor said.

A connection through his landscaping business told him about the vacant space at the Grafton School House.

"I think I have a lot of people above me, watching over me and making this happen for me," Minor said. "So Im just staying passionate, and pushing forward and moving along.

The Haunted School House is in its second season, and Minor hopes it continues to make an impression.

"This is really bringing the community in. We've had a lot of people excited, lot of good memories being made and it's been nothing but a blessing here," he said.

The Grafton Haunted School House is open on Thursday, Oct. 29, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. for a more family-friendly experience with lower sound effects, no fog and no jump scares.

For the attractions final weekend, its open Friday and Saturday from 7 p.m. to midnight and Sunday, Nov. 1, from 7-10 p.m. You can find more information here.

Catherine Ross is the Lorain County reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @CatherineRossTV, on Facebook CatherineRossTV or email her at [email protected].