So what makes a haunted house look haunted?

We went down to the architectural crypt to find out what design features make a building go bump in the night.

There are a few obvious styles that tingle your spine and widen your eyes, namely Victorian-era and Gothic Revival. To keep this scary story short, we’ve created a checklist with some skeleton key characteristics to look for.

Haunted house checklist:

Mansard roof + widow’s walk — as seen on the “Beetlejuice” house
Rustic vibes, like heavy timber, natural stone + large fireplaces — like the Overlook Hotel in “The Shining”
Ornate gables, asymmetry, pitched roofs — like The Haunted Mansion ride at Disney
Prominent towers and turrets — as seen on the The Pink Palace from “Coraline”
Located on a hill and/or with a wraparound porch
Mimic human faces — like “Monster House” + “The Amityville Horror” house
Lack domestic features, i.e. void of curves, arches, vaults or domes — think of “House On Haunted Hill”
Pointed arches, spires, flying buttresses — see Hogwarts castle
Large and stained glass windows — like Whipstaff Manor in “Casper”

With this list in mind, let’s step through the creaky front doors of these three buildings in Nashville. Watch your head for cobwebs.

Miles House

This two-level brick house in the Edgefield Historic District has a storied past. It survived the East Nashville fire of 1916, served as the Nashville Female Seminary (1870-1879), and was lived in at various times by riverboat captain J.W. Lovell and by the family of retired Circuit Judge Roy A. Miles. Though it sustained fire damage in 1977, the house was added to the National Register of Historic Places and now houses a law firm.

Downtown's Customs House is located at 701 Broadway. | Photo by Antony-22 via Wikimedia Commons

Customs House

Built in the late 1800s in the Victorian Gothic style, the Customs House was used as a post office and held area offices for the Treasury and Justice Departments. Although it’s undergone multiple renovations, its distinctive Gothic lancet windows and triple-arch entrance remain. Today, a private firm leases office space inside.

Metro Water Services occasionally offers tours of the Omohundro plant and other locations. | Photo via Metro Nashville

Omohundro Water Treatment Plant

There’s nothing scary about Nashville’s drinking water (Metro Water earned a “perfect score” on its latest report), but the 1929 plant’s arched brick galleries and terrazzo tile floor laid in a diamond pattern would steal the scene in any ghostly movie — if it weren’t supplying a vital resource, of course. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.