If your Halloween night plans could use a little extra fright, there’s a local stop worth adding to the evening route — a hand-built haunted house in Park City where towering creatures and eerie hallways wait behind the front gate.
The mind behind the build is Elliot Caulder, who has been creating his own haunted house since he was 12 years old.
According to his mom, Julia, he has loved Halloween since he was 2, and every year he asks for decorations instead of Christmas or birthday gifts.
“This is not an exaggeration,” she said.
Now, at 18, the once-small project has become a full walk-through experience that neighbors look forward to every year.
Admission to the haunted house is free, but any donations collected are given to Spirit of Children, a nationwide initiative that supports child-life departments in hospitals. The program funds resources, therapy tools and Halloween celebrations that help make hospital stays less frightening for kids and their families.
This year marks a special edition of the project for Caulder as it will be the final creation before he heads to college.
“It’s not quite finished yet, but we have a lot going on over here,” said Caulder about his process last week. “On Halloween night, we’ll have scare actors around and a bunch of animatronics out.”
Guests are welcome to drop by anytime from 4:30-11 p.m. on Halloween night and walk through as many times as they’d like, but an online RSVP can help save a spot and reduce wait times.
Visitors will begin their walk-through on the haunted trail entering through the “gate of souls” at the front yard. The path leads into a farm scene where a 15-foot scarecrow looms over the walkway. From there, guests wander into the graveyard, lined with tombstones and guarded by a vampire, a reaper and a 12-foot skeleton perched above.
After the graveyard, the trail reaches what Caulder called a demon-themed zone, marking the transition toward the more intense portion of the haunt held inside. Before stepping into the garage, guests who prefer to skip the scarier moments can exit here and finish their visit outside.
For those continuing, the haunted house section awaits. The garage is transformed into a twisting, low-light maze filled with tight hallways and surprises. A final hallway stretches deeper into the room and eventually funnels back out towards the front of the house completing the experience.
“I’ve been into Halloween since I was about 7,” Caulder said. “It’s always been a passion of mine.”
Over the years the attraction has grown more complex as Caulder’s skills have grown. He has learned to repair animatronics, taking them apart to rebuild the circuitry and reprogram their movements. Many of the characters shrieking through the yard or moving around the room inside the garage have been re-engineered by him.
One of his favorite projects is a figure that appears to be burning, thanks to a fog machine he incorporated into its frame.
“I spend basically all year round fixing animatronics, soldering circuit boards, all that kind of stuff,” Caulder said. “It’s a lot, but I think it’s really, really worth it.”
Much of the project comes together in the final weeks before Halloween, and the scale means Caulder is constantly solving problems through late August to the end of October. Special effects makeup and design have also become part of his yearly ritual. On Halloween night, he and a team of siblings and friends transform into creatures hidden inside the maze.
What started as a passion project has also become a way to bring the neighborhood together. The effort behind the haunted house goes far beyond custom props.
“Seeing people come together through it has been the main thing. Every year, more people show up, and it feels good to create something that builds community. I’m really proud of that. It keeps me going and makes me want to make it bigger and better each year,” he said.
Though the setup can be demanding, Caulder enjoys the creative challenge. As he cuts wall panels, designs sets and fine-tunes lighting late into the night, he knows the effort is worth it. And now that a community has formed around his creation, he isn’t the only one counting down to Halloween — neighbors also look forward to the haunted house each year.
“When we first moved here in 2018 and put everything out, everyone was like, ‘Whoa, what are they doing?’ Now we’re just known as the Halloween house,” he said. “Word has spread, and it’s amazing to see how excited people get. We’ll have people come through who say they look forward to it every year, and that feels pretty special, going from just our friends at a Halloween party to people actually coming over because they’re excited for it.”
Next year will look a little different. Caulder is preparing to study computer science in China, where he hopes to build on what he’s learned from modifying animatronics and creating immersive environments. He wants to explore possibilities in film and theater, someday working with special effects.
Before he leaves, though, there’s one more chance for the neighborhood to wander through the haunt he’s built. Caulder hopes to see around 150 to 200 visitors this year, but he’s happy with whoever shows up. The work has already paid off in his favorite way — by creating a place for people to share in the fun of Halloween.
The haunted house will be open at 2981 American Saddler Drive on Halloween from 4:30 to 11 p.m. RSVPs can be made at deadendhaunt.com.