USA's 'Most Haunted Lake' Has Claimed 700 Lives Since 1956

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In recent years, a supernatural frenzy has been sparked by a lake in northern Georgia, US, that has developed an eerie reputation.

An area with a troubled racial history has an artificial lake called Lake Lanier built upon towns and graves.

The lake sits 40 miles northeast of Atlanta, between the Georgia cities of Cumming, Gainesville, and Buford, and is named after author, poet, musician, and Confederate army veteran Sidney Lanier.

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As part of the River and Harbors Act, which was passed in the 1950s with the intention of enhancing and fortifying rivers all over the United States, it was created.

Even though the lake was created to help the Atlanta population, which needed a water source and access to hydroelectric power, its development was marred by social injustice and a troubling building method that involved displacing inhabitants to make room for the water body.

During the five years it took to finish building it, Lake Lanier forced families and businesses out of a largely black neighborhood and moved around 20 cemeteries.

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As a result, the lake's bottom was covered with "ghost towns," complete with intact tombstones and abandoned streets and homes.

If you've ever seen a horror film or read a gothic novel, you may be aware that it is never a good idea to construct anything on top of a person's final resting place.

Naturally, it didn't take long for urban legends about the lake's haunted reputation to start spreading, and one person even went so far as to file a petition to block the lake in order to stop fatal events.

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The stories that surround the lake make reference to several paranormal occurrences while also attempting to explain the numerous accidents that have made Lake Lanier one of the most spooky places in the US.

The lake has killed 700 individuals over the course of the seven decades since it was built in the middle of the 1950s.

Despite its reputation for being dangerous, the lake was not intended for enjoyment, regardless of any supernatural tales associated with it.

Since the lake floor is currently covered in buildings and debris in its deepest areas and the water is draining, accidents are more possible as bodies, boats, and cars approach the surface. There's more, though. 

The congested lake floor also makes it much more challenging to search for the missing victims than it would be in a natural lake.

However, there is a myth of a ghost known as The Lady of the Lake haunting Lake Lanier if you are indeed looking for a thrill. Locals claim to have seen a woman in a blue dress pacing the area, and others speculate that it might be one of the two ladies whose remains were discovered in the lake in 1958 after a car disaster.