SLOAN’S KEY WEST GHOST TOURS • EXCLUSIVE AFTER-HOURS ACCESS
America’s Most Haunted Firehouse
Investigate Key West’s Historic Firehouse No. 3 After Dark
Begin with the haunted history of Key West’s old Firehouse No. 3,
then explore the station after dark with paranormal investigation equipment.
AIR-CONDITIONED • 2 HOURS • 13 GUESTS • EQUIPMENT • BOOK & BEVERAGES INCLUDED
Choose Your Night
America’s Most Haunted Firehouse is limited to just 13 guests per investigation.
Select a date below to check availability and reserve your place.
2-hour experience • Equipment included • No paranormal experience necessary
Inside America’s Most Haunted Firehouse
Built in 1907, Key West Firehouse No. 3 served generations of firefighters before becoming the Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum. After the doors close to daytime visitors, the historic station becomes something very different.
Your two-hour experience begins with our signature 45-minute AudioPhonic™ Tour, created and narrated by Key West author and ghost historian David L. Sloan.
With the museum dark and only a flashlight to guide you, you’ll move through the historic firehouse as cinematic music, atmospheric sound, and true stories from its haunted past unfold around you. It’s designed to feel less like listening to an audio tour and more like stepping inside the story.
Then the headphones come off, and the firehouse is yours to investigate for 75 minutes using the paranormal equipment provided for you.
No actors. No staged scares. Whatever happens inside the firehouse is real.
Why is the Firehouse So Haunted?
More than a century of life, death, duty, and loss is tied to this building.
Key West Firehouse No. 3 opened in 1907 and remained an active fire station for generations. Firefighters worked here, slept here, gathered here, and in some cases never really seem to have left.
The property also carries an unusual connection to the dead. Beneath the Mamey tree beside the station are the cremated remains of former Key West firefighters, creating an unusual burial site directly on the museum grounds.
Over the years, museum staff, visitors, paranormal investigators, and our own guests have reported unexplained voices, footsteps, shadow figures, objects moving, and encounters with personalities that seem strangely connected to the firehouse’s past.
Some of the spirits have names.
Others are still mysteries.
The Spirits of Firehouse No. 3
Some of the unexplained activity at the old firehouse has become associated with people who once knew the building well. These are three of the personalities you may encounter during the investigation.
CHIEF HIRAM FULFORD
The Horseman
Chief Hiram Fulford was killed when his horse became spooked and overturned his carriage. Today, Fulford’s spirit is encountered in the old feed shed, where he seems to remain close to the horses he loved and cared for.
FRANK
FONTIS
The Man in the Mirror
Frank Fontis was Tennessee Williams’ gardener and later operated a museum in Key West. After Frank was murdered there, dozens of his artifacts eventually came to the Firehouse Museum. We believe Frank came with them. Guests still report seeing him appear in the bathroom mirror.
CHIEF B.F.H. BOWERS
The Chief Who Came Back
After losing reelection as fire chief, Benjamin Franklin Bowers shot a woman in the face. He was never held accountable and eventually disappeared from Key West. More than a century later, unexplained activity at the old firehouse suggests the chief came back.
Bum Farto: The Chief Who Vanished
Joseph “Bum” Farto was Key West’s flamboyant fire chief, arrested in Operation Conch and gone without a trace by February 1976.
His name still hangs over the old firehouse. So does the question guests sometimes leave with:
Did Bum really disappear, or is his spirit haunting Firehouse No. 3?
During your investigation, use the paranormal equipment to see if Bum has anything left to say.
Your Investigation
You don’t just hear the stories. You get time inside the firehouse to investigate them for yourself.
45 MINUTES | The AudioPhonic™ Tour
Bring a fully charged smartphone. You’ll use your phone during the 45-minute AudioPhonic™ Tour. Headphones and phone adapters are provided.
Explore the darkened museum by flashlight as David Sloan guides you through its deaths, mysteries, personalities and reported paranormal activity with an immersive cinematic soundtrack. Along the way, you'll discover where the strongest activity has been reported and which areas you may want to revisit during your investigation.
75 MINUTES | Investigate the Firehouse
Then the firehouse is yours to explore. Move through the apparatus floor, bunk room, stables, feed shed, and other historic spaces using paranormal investigation equipment provided for you.
Bring your curiosity.
The rest is waiting inside.
Take a Piece
of Key West Home
Every VIP guest receives an autographed copy of Ghosts of Key West by Key West’s paranormal pioneer, David L. Sloan.
The book explores the island’s haunted history, legends, and supernatural stories, making it a fitting keepsake from your night inside America’s Most Haunted Firehouse.
Your autographed book and complimentary beverages are included with the experience.
Equipment You Can Use
No experience necessary. We’ll show you how everything works before you begin.
Investigated
by the Pros
The firehouse has been investigated by some of the best-known teams and personalities in the paranormal world.
What Guests Are Saying
Real guests. Real experiences. Real reactions from inside America’s Most Haunted Firehouse.
Frequently
Asked Questions
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Not at all. Beginners are welcome. We’ll introduce the equipment and show you how to use it before you begin your investigation.
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Yes. Bring a fully charged smartphone. You’ll use your phone during the 45-minute AudioPhonic™ Tour. Headphones and phone adapters are provided.
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Yes. Spirit boxes, thermal cameras, dowsing rods, pendulums, trigger objects, and other investigation tools are available for guests to use.
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No. There are no actors, staged scares, or manufactured paranormal effects. Whatever happens during your investigation is authentic.
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Paranormal activity can never be guaranteed. Every investigation is different. Some nights are remarkably active; others are quiet. Either way, you’ll explore one of Key West’s most unusual historic buildings after dark and conduct your own investigation.
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Yes. The firehouse is air-conditioned, making this one of the few paranormal experiences in Key West where you can investigate indoors in comfort.
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Attendance is limited to 13 guests, giving you room to explore the firehouse and conduct experiments without a large tour group around you.
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America’s Most Haunted Firehouse is a two-story historic building with more than 4,000 square feet to explore. Inside, guests may investigate the engine room, bunk room, chief’s room, extinguisher hallway, and the haunted staircase. Outside, the investigation may include the Mamey tree graveyard, feed shed, and a vintage fire engine you can step inside. The engine room also houses a 1929 fire engine that guests can sit on.
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The Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum is located at 1024 Grinnell Street in Old Town Key West. It is easily reached on foot or by bicycle from much of Old Town.
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Yes. The firehouse has a wheelchair lift. The standard experience includes one flight of stairs up and down, but guests who need the lift can contact us in advance so we can confirm it is operational for their visit. Guests may also choose to investigate the first floor and outdoor areas only.
Sloan’s Good
Time Guarantee
We want you to leave with a great story.
If something within our control keeps you from having a great experience, let us know within 24 hours of your visit. We’ll listen, take it seriously, and work with you to make it right. That might mean another experience, a credit for your next trip, a refund, or another solution that makes sense.
We can’t guarantee ghosts, UFOs, paranormal activity, or island weather. But we can guarantee authentic history, compelling storytelling, and a team that genuinely cares about your time with us.
That’s Sloan’s Good Time Guarantee.
Ready To Investigate
America’s Most Haunted Firehouse?
Two hours. Thirteen guests. One historic firehouse after dark
Equipment included • No experience necessary • Advance reservations required