Mohican Haunted Schoolhouse Review (2022)

We’ve learned over numerous visits that some areas of this very long walkthrough, perhaps inevitably, feel light on actors. But we have also come to know that the sets drowning in details and overstuffed with props often help to carry the people-less scenes along.

The cast on hand included a morbidly motley crew of terror types: Vampires, plague doctors, crypt keepers, clowns, zombies, medical unprofessionals, scientists, chainsaw clowns, pigheads, spooky school staff, spider queens, peeing clowns…

A few of the first characters we met had nice extended speaking parts delivered in peculiarly entertaining voices for a theatrical start to the proceedings – namely the doorkeeper, the cemetery master, and a mossman in the first laser swamp maze.

Interactivity marked the performances, manifested differently by character. The mad scientists capered about their lab crazily, others menaced in silence (looking at you, stare contest schoolteacher), some stalked or lurked or crawled, the nurse brandished a plus-sized syringe and a clown clicked a huge pair of shears at us.

MHS is located in Perrysville, about 20 minutes from Mansfield in north central Ohio. Free parking is available on grass and gravel. GPS reliably delivered us to the haunt’s doorstep, plus there was a sign out front.

Staff was friendly and helpful. Clear signage directed us to the ticket booth and from there we easily proceeded to the adjacent queue area. There were a few stairways to negotiate. We found several places inside the attraction with helpful arrows to indicate the next direction, much appreciated since the team leader often loses his way inside haunts.

There was a sheriff on site, indicating safety is a priority. MHS maintains a superior website and Facebook page.

The hearse sitting out front and free climber skeletons hanging around on the outside walls of the building gave it away that we were about to enter a haunted attraction.

Just inside the entrance, a security checkpoint and hallway were appropriately lighted and decorated. From there we were directed right around the corner to the ticket stand.

And thus we came upon the glorious queue locale. In what we believe used to be the gym (scary enough for those who recall the horrors of PE), photo ops and props lined the walls, and overhead monitors played a B&W creature feature starring Vincent Price. Just the ticket for getting into a fright fun mood.

As was walking up the stairs to the attraction’s entrance, we got our first taste of the evocative artwork painted onto many of the walls by local, if we’re not mistaken, usually student, artists.

And then we got to the ticket taker, fully done up in makeup & costume and accessorized with a hideous doll. We chatted a while with this delightful greeter, who then permitted us entry.

Immersion inside the attraction was helped immensely by the building itself, which is obviously an authentic old school structure. The incredibly involved sets also helped out, as did the outstanding audio and some talented handling of transition areas, even between unconnected scenes. At the end we had a short walk to the gift shop, a suitable final destination.

As mentioned in the summary, the whole place was full of handmade props that are a delight to look at. MHS presented many great looking and varied sets: Cemetery and crypts, spider lairs, toxic waste sites, heinous kitchen, delivery room, nursery, and school sites such as a locker room, nauseating cafeteria kitchen (yes that checks out), and the worst bathroom ever. The best for us was the mad scientist’s lab featuring a Frankenstein’s monster like corpse ready to be revived and a fun high flaming beaker, and the classroom full of creepy kids chanting the ‘London Bridge’ nursery rhyme.

MHS showed off a crazy collection of animatronics, including a charging wild boar, sprinter tarantula that popped out of a box, and a staked vampire convulsing in undead throes in its coffin.

Laser swamp? Sure, but why not two! The pair of maze-like laser swamps were accentuated by taunting actors who kept popping up and disappearing through the large rooms. We went through an especially disorienting vortex tunnel and saw a lamp whose base was a severed head. But really there’s no listing the perpetual parade of props, it had us shaking our heads in satisfied disbelief.

MHS seasoned its soundtrack and sound effects stew with some distinctive flavoring. We heard creepy organ music and some ‘aural landscape’ style droning throughout, accented by touches like the unnerving phone that rang when we walked into a room, carnival music, a guy thumping on a door and screaming ‘let me out’ all through the basement, an actor yelling through a speaker right behind us on the wall, air raid sirens, a ‘red alert’ buzzing alarm, random screaming, and chainsaw revvings (but the real saws were outside). All very effective.

Special effect attack awards go to the surprise water (we hope) spritzes from the pregnant lady and clown. You’ve been warned, but they’re gonna get you anyway!

So, what phobia ya got? MHS will probably poke it, whether it’s spiders, doctors, babies/pregnancy, clowns, darkness, graveyards, rats & rodents, nuclear waste, old age/infirmity, vampires, mutilation, and oh about a dozen more. Some special mentions: In the basement, the creepo who spilled out of a doorway and crawled on the floor after us for a good 20 feet, and the contortionist girl both really got us good; and the spider mistress appeared to materialize out of the dark, totally surprising the group leader. Also a surprise was the still, entirely webbed up spider victim who started writhing and talking.

As one member of our group walked past a door, a burly brute reached through an opening at the top of the door and took a swipe at the team member’s back …and came up with a handful of air. The first teammate was oblivious, but the trailing one got treated to a cinematic moment right out of Scooby-Doo.

Instead of coming at us, the zombie janitor started out his scene with his back to us as he walked away from us toward the far end of the room, pushing his mop. So we ended up creeping up on him. Then he unexpectedly popped up in the next room, turning the tables again!

MHS dusted off the finale that’s familiar to haunt fans all over, but with multiple actors operating their machinery with some verve. And after the last couple years have yielded a weird spate of non-finales elsewhere, we appreciate the attempt at a pulsating final scare wherever/whenever it happens.

We got schooled for 38 minutes. Versus the $30 general admission, the MPD ratio (minutes of in-haunt entertainment per dollar) ended up at 1.27.

This walkthrough beat our last time by 8 minutes, a very impressive showing and making it for certain one of the longest haunts we regularly visit. The crew clearly did a lot of work expanding the show, making rooms more twisty & turny, etc.

Fast pass is available for $40. There’s a $6 discount on general admission and fast pass online, so that’s definitely the way to go. Online you can also get a group rate of $21 with 15 people or more.

You can spend a good long time checking out everything in the queue and the gift shop, just know this is a very traditional ‘go through the haunt’ place without dance parties and axe throwing – no doubt a big plus for some.

Keep an eye out on the MHS Facebook page for special events like a creepy car show and haunted market. And in season, score a visitor’s pass to wander the halls of this school specializing in prop-packed edumacation of a hauntriffic nature!