So this island is completely cut off from the outside world. That alone is enough to prompt some crazy stories. Our new promo for our site….

 It wasn’t the most dramatic thing that happened to me in that house, and not the scariest either. But there is no forgetting it.

I was in the kitchen, washing dishes. It was late, around eleven at night, and I thought everyone else was asleep. I used to help out with the housecleaning, because I had rented a room from my ex and her husband because I was on the skids, and this was all I could afford. Mike, the Ex’s husband, came in for a drink and kicked the dog’s plastic water bowl, sloshing the water on the floor. I told him I would get it since I was going to mop anyway after the dishes were done. I picked the bowl up, refilled it, and before I set it down, swept the floor, moving the bit of puddled water over to the pile of debris destined for the dust pan. The floor dried in minutes, I set the bowl back down, and went back to the dishes.

I heard a noise behind me. I turned and, on a steel wire baker’s rack, a can of mixed nuts was on its side, rolling back and forth as if someone had it between their hands, rolling it from one hand to the other. But the last time I had seen it, the can had been upright. I began to feel apprehensive, and I put the can back down on its bottom, and went back to the dishes. This time I heard the plastic bowl with the dog’s water being dropped. Nobody was in there with me, so I was shocked when I turned around and saw the bowl lying upside down on the floor.

I stared at it. I didn’t move. It didn’t register that there was no water on the floor, all I could feel or think of was that the hairs on the back of my neck were standing straight out…

Finally I bent to pick the bowl up.

I lifted it–

–and all the water came rushing out of it!

The next night, I was alone in the living room late in the evening again, and an empty red plastic party cup was kicked– it had laid there on the hardwood floor all night–across the floor. Something was trying to get my attention. It accomplished that but was never able to get any message across except to frighten me.

It was early in 2004, and my ex had just received a letter of notice of foreclosure. I guess someone didn’t want us to leave.

This was not my first time living there. In 1983, it was owned by my ex-wife’s parents, and I had just become unemployed. During this stay I learned that the house was haunted, and that when they had bought it in 1972, it hadn’t taken long to figure that out. I heard several stories, some creepy, some not, and it seemed like whatever was there didn’t pose any kind of threat. It was no big deal to them.

The focus of the haunting at that time seemed to be the basement and the steps coming up from it. At midpoint there was a landing and an outside door, and it, like the rest of the house except for the living and bedrooms, was cramped and had a low clearance. Even at a paltry five feet, seven inches, I would hit my head if I didn’t remember to hunch over. Also, the basement, as with the upper floor, was adorned in a once-rich wood wainscoting, at it lent the place an eeriness. I never did like being in the basement, but back then, I had no idea why.

At that time I seem to have been very closed to the spirit world. Things had happened to my wife down there, and one story she told from when she was a kid was enough to chill anyone to the bone…

She was having a party, and there was a bar down there where they could sit on bar stools and have refreshments and listen to records. For whatever reason, she rolled up a small slip of paper and inserted it into a small hole in the wooden wall. As she was still holding it, a finger extended out from the hole, pulling the paper into it. She screamed and ran upstairs, the party officially over.

At around that time, her brother had some type of harrowing encounter outside in a small garage in the back yard. It was free-standing and independent of the house, and was very old. He has never honestly said what it was that happened, but his mother told me that he had come in, hysterical, saying something about a “man with a tail” jumping out the window and vanishing. They tore the garage down after that, and for years, all that remained of it was the wall footer and the slab of concrete floor.

Later, in the early 90’s, living there again because I had lost yet another job, my wife and I now with two children, it seemed like the paranormal activity increased. One night, in a new job, I was sitting at my desk and my daughter called. She had heard footsteps on the basement stairs and for some reason nobody else was there with her. I told her to call her mother immediately because she was closer. It turned out, of course, that nobody was there. Just the phantom footsteps.

One night, working the graveyard shift, I happened to get off early. I arrived around 3 a.m. and walked across the grass toward the front porch, crossing over the lateral sidewalk. I stopped dead, smelling the suddenly strong scent of perfume, as if someone wearing a lot of it had just crossed my path. I vaguely remembered having smelled it or something very similar before, in my childhood: It was a very old perfume, probably no longer made. To this day I call her “The Perfume Lady,” and I sensed no danger or malice around me, but, as I’ve said, at the time I was not as sensitive as when I was a kid and certainly not as I am now.

My marriage ended badly in 1994, and I left the house yet again. I never dreamed I would return to do anything but visit the kids, yet here I was, in ten years later, back. My ex’s father had passed on, and her mother moved out to a mobile home. My ex, being a good friend by now, rented me a room when they needed extra cash and I needed a place. My landlord had increased my rent to an intolerable level, I couldn’t pay, and it just worked out that way.

It was this house I was in when the helicopter incident happened (see my blog on cursed objects) and I’ve also discussed two other incidents in other blogs. One was when I seemed to step into the body of a man up the street who was doing something he shouldn’t have, and the other was the demonic dream wherein my head was cut off. Interestingly, both of those, the real vision and the dream, took place at exactly the same corner of the house. I find that significant since I don’t believe in coincidences.

At the end of the summer of 2003, I noticed that nobody, myself included, wanted to go to the basement. I helped to do laundry down there, but suddenly, it was as if I was being watched every second, by something malignant, and I could never get out of there fast enough. So, of course, running up the steps, I banged my head on the low ceiling and probably incurred permanent brain damage.

As it grew closer to time to vacate the house, and I was helping them pack, the activity seemed to drop off. I was sure The Perfume Lady knew we were leaving, and she was scared. There was something else in that house with her, and she didn’t like it. She didn’t want to be alone.

Finally the day came to take the family dog to the pound to drop her off; they would not be able to keep her in their new place. I was chosen to do the dirty work, and why I accepted, I will never know. Annabelle was a mixed golden and some other handsome breed, and she may have been the prettiest and sweetest dog I have ever seen. I hated what I was going to do.

The first time I took her I couldn’t get her in, the shelter was doing free rabies shots. So a week went by before I tried again. Annabelle loved riding, and I had taken her here before to get her shots. She was always fine, but on this, her last trip, she knew something was wrong. She ran all around the minivan, hopped into my lap, nearly making me have an accident, then ran around the back some more, and her breath was rapid and frantic and very steamy. I’ve never seen a dog so upset. I’ve thought ever since that whatever was in the basement was with us that day. Either that… or she just somehow knew she wouldn’t be making the return trip.

Several times during my stay in the house, I was alone at night. I would hear talking outside, in the dead of winter, chattering as if a group of people were having a lawn party outside. Each time I got up, went out onto the back deck, and there was nobody there. Well of course not, it was very cold outside and pitch dark, and there weren’t even any neighbors outside.

When moving day came, I helped my ex move their stuff, and then I was all alone in the house. The next day I was going to go with my daughter to her house for a while, and I spent my last night there alone, in the dark since the electricity had been shut off. Incredibly, the night passed without any incident.

But the story doesn’t end there.

The house was on the market from mid-to-late 2004, when a contractor purchased it. At first he planned on renovating the house and flipping it, but he found nothing but trouble. Mysteriously, the county would not issue any type of permits for building or remodeling, and for some reason, my ex was getting his mail at her new home. During this time, the house was repeatedly broken into and vandalized, further complicating things. Word had spread in the neighborhood that it was haunted, and the old gray formstone did nothing to dispel that.

In January of 2005 I saw the house for the last time. I was driving in the area and felt pulled toward it, an irresistible urge just to drive by. I went there and actually sat there for a minute, looking at it. In the driveway was a backhoe, but I had no idea what it was for. It was parked, and since it was still dark at that time of morning, nobody was around.

The magnificent wood deck in back had been ripped up by thieves after the expensive lumber, weeds were everywhere, and some of the glass was gone from the old windows. It was sad, and I had done nothing but put myself in a bad mood by going there.

The backhoe had been there to demolish the house. Not long after my last visit, it was torn down and carted off in roll-off dumpsters. The contractor had run through all of his funds, then dumped the land. The house had been astride three lots, and three homes were built on them, completed by summer of 2005. The lots were small, but three huge houses went up, being built tall instead of wide, with three stories apiece.

For the next two years, I dreamed about the house on many occasions, all horrible nightmares, all taking place in the basement.

In the dreams, the basement led around a corner to a previously unseen corridor and a huge stainless steel vault door. The door led to Hell, and always, someone was there in the basement to tempt me to open it.

At least a few times, I did. I always avoided walking past it though, until I found one night that there were things between the door and Hell itself, and each time I went in, I wound up being chased through a sprawling industrial complex, like a huge chemical plant with many buildings. One time, though, after the long walk through the modern looking corridor on the other side of the door, I found myself at a gate in an airport, and through the windows saw a jetliner crash on takeoff, landing upside down and stopping beside the runway.

The dreams were terrifying, and always I knew that the corridor and the vault hatch only existed in the spirit world, but what made that realization of no particular comfort was the certainty that if I ever really reached the end, I would never come back.

I had no idea at the time, but the house was the subject of more nightmares than just mine. Mom, my ex’s mother, as well as my ex and both our children were also having similar dreams. Something was holding onto us.

I never figured out what it was, because after a point, the dreams stopped. I believe it was because at least one of the three new houses was haunted by whatever was in the basement, and it had made itself known to the people who lived there. I think they possibly had a cleansing done, and the malevolent entity left the area. When it let go of that land, we were all cut off from its reach.

As far as houses go, it never was much to look at.

And as far as haunted houses go, well, it wasn’t much in that department either. I wish I had been more considerate to The Perfume Lady, though, and tried to help her move on. I’ve found that there are increasingly more cases of hauntings where ghosts are being held in place by demons, possibly the very ones who affected them in life. It is not uncommon to find both in the same dwelling, but rarely in the same room. Why that would be, I don’t know. I still think it was she who had tried to get my attention just before the end. It makes me sad I didn’t listen more closely.

The house sat at 101 2nd Avenue, South, in Glen Burnie (Ferndale) Maryland. It existed from 1927 to 2005. It’s gone now, and that’s definitely for the best.

“a shadowy train of flying horn and bounding hoof has passed noiseless as an apparition”

I spent two days reviewing and researching including a visit to the Saxton church where Lord Dacre was buried together with other remains including the most recent.

According to the Eric Heinz of the University of Bradford Archaeological Unit, the remains were confirmed as four males, late medieval, Towton-era war dead. Items such as spur rowels, bodkins, leather straps, and crescent moon cap badges, confirmed the dead as Lancastrian men-at-arms with allegiance to the Percies. The soldiers had suffered a brutal death. There were multiple remains of arrow injuries and shattered bones. One man had a smashed skull probably from a war hammer blow to the head.

The area in which the human remains were in line with the major retreat of the Lancastrian forces – moving due North to wards the Old London road and Tadcaster, trying to cross the River Cock. The men were probably ambushed close to the river crossing in the Cockford Farm area.

Battle of Towton Monument

I spent some time connecting with the scene. It was a raw, cold day much as it had been all those years ago. I clearly sensed their struggle and ultimately their death. I was overcome by a spirit, an angry and disturbed presence that revealed to me an image of a white lion rampant.

With some more research I disscovered that it was the forces of John Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk that turned the battle for the Yorkist side. The Duke himself was absent, being ill. In his stead Sir Walter Blount and Robert Horne commanded his forces. The crest of the Norfolk was a white lion.
Robert Horne, a Kentish captain and Sheriff of Kent, died at Towton.

“I regret the loss of my father the Duke of York and my brother the Earl of Rutland, and my dear friend Robert Horne of Kent.” The message from Edward read, “The Lancastrians lost their best Lords, while the Yorkists lost no one of note save Robert Horne of Kent.”

November 8^th 2009

I was surprised when the Vicar of Saxton church contacted me. After all we are on widely divergent spiritual paths. He had heard of me through some Sussex friends and felt that I was qualified and decent enough to help him with his particular problem.

A ghost.

The Vicar was a stout soul and not easily disturbed but he was clearly unnerved by his predicament. Saxton is a tiny village just south of Towton, the site of England’s bloodiest battle and the end of the Lancastrian cause in the Wars of the Roses. Whenever archaeological human remains are found they are usually given a Christian burial in the grounds of Saxton church. Tom Pelton, owner of Cockford Farm, discovered human remains while digging footings for his new barn. The local authorities quickly determined that these were not recent remains and archaeologists from the University of Bradford were summoned to review and record the findings. Once their task was completed the remains were solemnly buried in Saxton.

Google Earth: Towton Yorkshire

Tom Pelton first saw the “ghost” while out for an evening walk, moving amongst the trees by the river. He called out but with no reply. It was dressed in a disheveled blanket and moved with a lurching, unsteady motion. And then it was gone. Since then, almost nightly, the figure had been seen by members of the Vicar’s flock. The appearances were becoming more threatening and causing much concern. It was clear that the ghostly appearances were closely connected to the discovery and removal of the human remains near the farm.

November 10^th 2009

I travelled to Towton, spending some time at the Rockingham Arms, and walked the mile or so due West along the Old London Road, which, in many parts, was little more than a greenway. After a leisurely walk I followed the River Cock to the burial. The site of the remains was about a mile north of the battlefield itself. Tom Pelton mentioned a badge that had been found: a crescent moon cap badge. This suggested that the remains belonged to Lancastrians belonging to the Percy clan. This was supported by the location, as the battle turned against the Lancastrians many had fled and been cut down as they tried to escape towards Tadcaster. The area itself was heavily disturbed both by the footing work and the subsequent archaeological excavation but there was most definitely a presence – cool, wet and dark with a deep malignancy.

Appearances of the Towton Spectre

1. October 30^th 2009 – Cockford Farm – Tom Pelton: a disheveled figure in the woods
2. November 1^st 2009 – Old London Road – bus stop – 2 locals: cold presence, metallic taste, feelings of dread, a figure (in armor?)
3. November 2^nd 2009 – Green Lane – temporary farm worker: walking home, is touched by something malignant, tells his tale and leaves the area
4. November 4^th 2009 – Mill Lane / A162 – 2 teenagers: overcome with fear from a ghost, one individual is touched resulting in “burns” on the forearm
5. November 6^th 2009 – Dacey Tree on A162 – Owen Barnes: runs car off road  to avoid pedestrian “in rags”. No such person is found.

…where Tam O’Shanter met the Devil

The haunting involved spectral creatures, disembodied voices, unbelievable violence and even resulted in the death of John Bell — all at the hands of the infamous Bell Witch.

Also make sure to check BlackCatMambo on YOUTUBE No nonsense telling of the non-Hollywood true story of the BELL WITCH Parts 1,2,3,4- You’ll love it!

Manteno State Hospital was one of two mental hospitals in Kankakee County. It has been the subject of several television shows and numerous investigations both professional and amateur. In 1939, the hospital was the scene of the “Manteno Madness,” a typhoid epidemic that resulted in the deaths of 47 patients and staff. Closed for decades, the hospital has been slowly divided up and sold off, until only a few of its buildings remain abandoned.

Manteno State has been one of the most popular issues of the Legends and Lore of Illinois to date. Download the entire issue, featuring the history & hauntings of Manteno State Hospital, the adventures of The Fallen, Paranormal 101, trivia, and much more:

Only $1.35

Have people been trying to get in... or out?

The hospital is now a shell of its former self.

Soon, this place will be just a memory...

Lights dance on the walls in this, the scene of the "Manteno Madness"

Interested in abandoned hospitals? You may also enjoy our issues about:

Ashmore Estates in Ashmore

Sunset Haven in Carbondale

Bartonville (Peoria) State Hospital

A friend of mine was showing me some pictures of this old house in a small Ohio town of Utica.  The sad thing about the whole situation is the place is scheduled to be torn down.  It’s hard to believe that a small town wouldn’t want to protect it’s history.

The place has the look of a perfect haunted house, but since I know so little about it, and since it has been empty for so long, who can say.  The current owners say that the house would take over $100,000.00 to renovate, the roof leaks and I heard that the someone had went through the floor also.  The odd thing is it has new windows.  It’s a real shame that the house wasn’t cared for since it is such an interesting architectural style.  If you look closely at the front of the house you can see that it had been built in additions. It may have been a quaint little farm house once.

This is just one of those issues where I wish I could do something to preserve the old place.  But since I can’t go in it’s really hard to tell what all it really needs.  Coming up with the time and money also doesn’t help. Anyway,  Enjoy the pictures.

NOTE: This is a poem from Stripmine, a book of poetry and essays I’m publishing online and in print. I’m doing some limited-edition books–each one is one-of-a-kind, unique, hand-lettered titles, heavy paper, textured inserts, signed and numbered, etc. They are available for $50. Email gregorypurvis@live.com for details. “Blur” is written “in character” and relates a conversation I had in 1987 in Tuscaloosa, though it is set in a haunted area of southeast Atlanta, near East Point, where I was born in 1969.

BLUR

(copied verbatim from the remains of another fugue-state/unknown date.)

Some conjure woman my mee-maw knowd                                                                                                                                                        On the East Point BlueBird                                                                                                                                                                                          She say to catch me a black cat and kill it quick n clean                                                                                                                             And do it four more time                                                                                                                                                                                          and four more still til that cat hiss he last                                                                                                                                                         Kill him one more to make it nine life gone                                                                                                                                                    And then she say:                                                                                                                                                                                                      take the long bone and wrap it round tight                                                                                                                                                    With bright red ribbon                                                                                                                                                                                              like pretty women wear in they hats                                                                                                                                                                     So I sit in front of the old pharmacy over to Peachtree,                                                                                                                               Closed up like a tick for ten years                                                                                                                                                                       And it rains and rains and Lord God we pray                                                                                                                                                 you stop Before 40 days pass this time                                                                                                                                                                   I hold that bone close                                                                                                                                                                                                and keep the rain off best I can                                                                                                                                                                     Waiting for a ghost— And some do pass by                                                                                                                                                      But they the wrong kinds:                                                                                                                                                                                   Gaunt-gray predators with brown teeth                                                                                                                                                           like crooked caramels                                                                                                                                                                                                   A nondescript nobody:                                                                                                                                                                                              mind up there on the high shelf                                                                                                                                                                              With the crystallized methamphetamine                                                                                                                                                      Some tall Spaniard girl/boy in hotpants                                                                                                                                                            Them lips painted cotton-candy pink                                                                                                                                                                Tan that come from an aerosol can                                                                                                                                                                 Pouts and smiles at all them wrinkled cadavers                                                                                                                                               In they scuffed shoes and gravemoss on they sleeves,                                                                                                                        driving them big old DeSoto’s                                                                                                                                                                                  In their last loop-de-loops                                                                                                                                                                                  Them smiles never slip                                                                                                                                                                                               So which the ghost I’m waiting for?                                                                                                                                                                      The rainy night dissolve like                                                                                                                                                                                       a still in a hot stop-bath                                                                                                                                                                                   Pictures thin-out nice in monochrome                                                                                                                                                            Like moon on old concrete                                                                                                                                                                                    Still waiting                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Still Waiting still                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Maybe I’ll shake this old bone                                                                                                                                                                                  At this fading old street                                                                                                                                                                                               See what new ghosts turn up

Though the Amityville house is most famously linked to the Ronald DeFeao killings in November of 1974, it was originally used to house Native Americans that were insane, sick or withering. Those Indians were buried on the property, obviously from less than peaceful circumstances. Did these Indians, buried on unconsecrated ground, lend to the later strange tragedy that would make this house so famous?

Ịn the early morning hours of November 13, 1974, Ronald DeFeao fatally shot his father, two brothers and his sister. All were found in their beds, face down, and despite the neighbors’ houses being close together, no one heard screams or noises. Mr. DeFeao claimed that ghosts were present during the events and had goaded him into eliminating his siblings though his original intent was just to executing his father.

The home at 112 Ocean Avenue eventually went up for sale and was later purchased by George and Kathy Lutz for $80,000. Though they were told by the realtor about the tragedy, the Lutz’s were so enamored with the home, pool, garage and 4,000 square feet of waterfront that they immediately made an offer.

The next 28 days are the events that led to the book and movie, Amityville Horror.

 Moving day should have been a clue when the leashed family dog tried to flee the property, jumped the fence and hung himself. Though the dog survived the ordeal, this was an ominous sign of things to come. What followed could not have been fluffed up any more by Hollywood itself. The Lutz’s claimed that keyholes oozed goo, the toilet water turned black, and nasty smells started to permeate the house. Septic problems? George started to get sick and lose weight but if it was a general septic or well problem, the whole family would have been affected, especially the children.

Later on noises entered the house. The front door slammed on its own and footsteps pattered about the house. George also stated that ’static’ noises could be heard. When he investigated the downstairs area where they thought the source was, he found the furniture moved and the carpets rolled back.

At the suggestion of friends who said they too had experienced ghostly experiences, the Lord’s Prayer was recited room to room. That’s when the noise went from static to full blown words including one screamed phrase, “‘Will You Please Stop!”

As if that wasn’t enough to motivate this family to leave the home immediately, entities gathered strength and started making themselves physically present. Kathy claimed that she felt a presence embracing her from behind. The family claimed they could see eyes peering at them through the windows at night. When they would investigate all they would find were hoof tracks accompanied by the odd squeal. Other sightings included a little boy on the second story landing and a dark cloaked figure. Their daughter Missy then developed a ghostly friendship with someone by the name of Jodie. Missy claimed that Jodie was an angel and could change shapes. Ominously, she said that Jodie had told her, “You’ll live here forever.”

The departure from the home is a bit ambiguous but the way George tells it, the house almost felt like it was coming alive with flexing walls and groans. They decided to make a very quick departure to Kathy’s mother’s house during a very stormy night.

After the Lutz’s fled, they requested paranormal investigators, Ed and Lorraine Warren, to visit the home. The Warren’s went to the house along with a Duke University professor and the president of the American Society for Psychic Research. Their reports included strong clairvisual and clairaudial messages from the ghosts dwelling in the home, air that seemed to “solidify” and Ed claimed that he saw, “shadows along with thousands of pinpoints of light” which was down in the cellar and those shadows tried to push him about, scaring him out of his mind.

There was not a person at the investigation that didn’t declare the place felt of utter terror. Lorraine declared that the strong-hold from the ghosts would be too severe to ever dislodge. So wretched was the feeling that the Duke Professor rumored to have passed out from fear.

Whether or not facts of this case were stretched or a complete hoax all together, it still remains one of the most frightening and sensationalized ghost stories of our time.

I don’t know if your anything like me, but this is the season that creates the desire to visit old forgotten graveyards.  Ever since I can remember, there was something so compelling about this, that I just had to do it.  When I was in Elementary School in Lexington, Ohio, I had a field trip where our homework was to make a chalk grave rubbing on paper.  I never forgot the name, William McKinley.

I just recently took a little trip to this cemetery and shot some pictures.  Much to my dismay, my camera’s memory card was full, and I was left empty-handed, or had I thought.  I then realized that my cell phone was good for more than just a jabbering device, so I went to work.  Lexington’s cometary is very old, it has some great gravestones that date back to the 1820’s with Revolutionary War Veterans buried.  The cemetery is well-kept.  During my shoot I was the only person there, with the exception of an elderly lady who was sitting in her car for a while in the back of side of the property.  It wasn’t long before she left, I was then alone.  I took quite a few pictures of the fine stones that fill this cemeteries grounds.  Toward the end of my shoot, a mini van had pulled in, however, I was pretty much done, and proceeded to leave.

Later that evening I uploaded the pictures to my computer and was looking over each of them, and found the strangest thing.  A figure of a man walking with his hands behind his back.  There was nobody there, and I never shoot a picture at a graveyard with someone alive in it.  Although, I know there was nobody there, the skeptics may say I probably wasn’t paying attention and caught someone in the picture.  That’s fine, I don’t really care to know what others opinions are, but knowing what I feel is enough for me.  I have the picture posted here for you to see. I will also have it on Flickr because it is hard to see what I’m talking about on the blog here.  Decide for yourself.

Spirits walking the earth after their lives passing is a very controversial subject.  I believe it’s true, but many refuse to believe what they don’t understand or have not witnessed.  I don’t believe they are here to do harm, but just lost between dimensions feeling like they have not finished an important task.

This building in all its glory was never built as a home but was erected in 1875 by Tinsley & Co. to be the Knox County Infirmary.  A good friend of mine had introduced me to the place only a few months ago.  It’s one of those places that leaves you in awe the moment you set eyes on it.  It stands tall in the small town of Bangs in Knox County Ohio, however sits abandoned and has for quite a few years now.

The building For the longest time had been the home to the poor and needy of the area.  This would make one believe that a cemetery should be nearby.  I have heard no evidence of this.  Knowing that this place had been the home of so many, it leaves the mind to wander, it could truly be a house of nightmares, not just because it was used as such not so long ago for the fun of a Halloween scare, but just for a lot of lost or misplaced souls.  Rumor also has it that during the period it was owned by the local church college students were killed in an elevator that broke and crashed to the lowest level of the building.  Looking at the place, it just looks haunted with its dingy bricks and enormous Victorian appeal.  Although you are not allowed to trespass to the inside, you can walk the grounds and feel that you are not alone.  Many pictures were taken by friends and myself in the darker hours, and strange orbs can be seen in many of the pictures as well as some strange shadows of figures in the windows.  Knowing many will argue that orbs are dampness picked up by the camera, you can decide that for yourself.

The Infirmary is a registered historic building, the question is, when will something be done to put it back into its glory?  Is it really haunted?  Is it just naturally Creepy?  Find out for yourself.

I did not dress up for Halloween this year. Not surprising given my dearth of creativity when it comes to costume ideas (and general dislike of the tradition as a result). What I did celebrate, however, was my favorite part of the holiday, the focus on ghosts and hauntings. While I’m not so much obsessed with ghosts, the whole historic aspect of it I find thrilling. Last Halloween, I did a pub crawl of some of New York’s favorite haunted hot spots.

This year, I’m thinking of some of the other haunted places to visit. Every major city, it seems, has its own host of ghosts, and every place worth its salt as a travel destination has a tour to explore them. I’ve been on ghost tours in San Francisco and Edinburgh and New Orleans, to name a few. They are often cheesy but always fun, and the beauty of them lies not so much in the scary factor (for me at least) but for the glimpses of history they provide.

Most recently, I visited New Hope, one of Pennsylvania’s oldest (and arguably quirkiest) towns, where they have their cadre of spooks and spirits who add a little local color to an already colorful place. On a ghost tour of the town we learned about Joseph Pickett, a painter who only received acclaim following his 1918 death, after his wife had auctioned off much of his work. The quirky Mr. Pickett is said to have shown those who made fun of his work but painting one of his landscapes on the outside of his home. While the building has been painted over today, his ghost is said to remain. This is the sort of local color I love, and the ideal ghost story, one that unearths a bit of a place’s history in relation to its sights.

For more fun “haunts” check out Budget Travel’s list of haunted walking tours.

a list of haunted houses and haunted places…

1. Balete Drive Cubao Quezon City
2. Hospital Ruins, Bunkers and Malinta Tunnel, Corregidor Island
3. Manila Film Center Pasay City
4. Ozone Disco Club Quezon City
5. De La Salle University (DLSU) Manila
6. Miriam College Quezon City
7. University of the Philippines Diliman (UP Dlliman) Quezon City
8. University of the Philippines Baños (UPLB)
9. Ateneo de Manila University Quezon City
10. San Jose Village Muntinlupa City
11. The University of Santo Tomas (UST) Quezon City
12. Old Stone House in Tiaong Quezon Province
13. Claret School Diliman Quezon City
14. Rizal Park Manila
15. Deplomat Hotel Baguio City
16. Clark Air Base Hospital Pampanga
17. Red House Bulacan
18. Central Philippine University (CPU)
19. Manila City Hall
20. Alabang Star Mall

Join us on Saturday, October 31st from 1-4 pm for all kinds of Halloween fun

Get a glimpse of one of Pam Kinney’s books by checking out this trailer for her book” Haunted Richmond”

Pamela K. Kinney,

 author of :

“Haunted Richmond”

&

“Haunted Virginia”

And

Kathy Seaman,

Author of :

“The Secrets of Cooley Lake”

All about “The Secrets of Cooley Lake”:

What does lie deep beneath the lakes and townships of our world? Oh sure, there are caverns, ponds and more lakes.

What lurks beneath the ground of Cooley Lake has brought murder, chaos and mystery to a small town in Wisconsin. For fifty some odd years, the people of Forge Bend were disappearing, mostly the fishermen, and for years they were chalked up to just drowning.

A most traumatic affair took place during the Fourth of July festival that changed our world forever.

Will you ever feel safe in your beds again? Will you be the first to stick your hand under your bed or be the first to take a peek?

Life does exist beneath our Earth without the sun, life that no one in their right mind had expected.

 Join us for a chilling afternoon of supernatural celebration.  We will provide some tantalizing tidbits, a potion or two and sweet treats for all. Bring the kids by for some early trick or treating &to get your own Halloween goodies!

Pamela & Kathy will be signing copies of their books and talking with fans.

Join us for this haunting event!

*can’t make it to the event? Give us a call at (804)368-7736 to pre-order your books and we will make sure they get signed for you so that you can pick them up at your convenience.

For more information about this and future events, visit us at: 

                  www.simplepleasuresbooksandgifts.com

Philadelphia and Suburban Philadelphia have a rich haunted history, including many “real” ghost sightings. For centuries, ghosts have visited historic locations throughout the city and ….

Keep Reading >>

I took this ordinary shot of the tree behind me because I wanted to catch some leaves falling, on camera.    Look in the middle of the tree trunk at these 2 leaves.

Hey. I’m naked here….

 really?  sort of.  kind of…

 doesn’t fit the profile for all these categories.

 just wanted to see what would happen…

drunkblogging.  not reponsible for misunderstandings. heeee…

 heeee. catch you laters… I will put better ones i promise. 

 WHEn I was naked…   

 not important.  hahahahaha. 

yeah it IS me.  I was like all newborn and junk. 

   okay. 

So it’s like the only good shot i have today but tommorrow i will get a better shot.  srsly.

and this is like my WTF shot.  you like?  at least i don’t get paid by commerce bank to walk around in this pandar suit. hahaha.  I always wanted a picture of him/ her/ it… doo dee dooooo~. 

note to you:  I wish I was like all up in your koolaid and stuff.

Here you will find virtually all things relating to and dealing with Halloween including…

Music — Movies – Ghost Stories

Facts – Legends – Myths

History — Traditions Around The World

Legendary Haunted Houses — Actual Ghost Towns

Haunted Places & Attractions — Halloween Safety

Simply click on each link to take you directly to each site. The first five links are located directly within this blog — the last seven are links to excellent sites outside of this blog around the net.

• Halloween Themed Songs: The Ultimate Playlist

• Fascinating Facts Legends & Myths About Halloween

• Halloween Traditions Around The World

• Best Halloween Movies For Kids

• The Real Story of Halloween – History.com

• Halloween Movies – Official Website of Michael Myers

• Halloween Ghost Stories
  

• Haunted Houses Across America

• Find Haunted Attractions, Places & Ghost Towns

• Halloween Safety Guide

___________________________________________________________________________

Now, I know this is not exactly post related but I got very excited about this.

Yesterday my friend drove me to the derelict shell of West Park Mental Asylum in Epsom as part of her new photography project. As you approach this ominous looking building you become overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the place. It is just like a haunted house found in films.

http://www.abandoned-britain.com/PP/westpark/1.htm

The endless empty corridors, the cavernous floors with gaping holes and the abandoned equipment once used by medics and kitchen staff. The walls are all covered with peeling paint that creates a marvellous shaggy texture throughout.

Treading through the darkness we would often come across dead ends or rooms that were too dangerous to enter. All the time I felt like someone was watching us; it had a very oppressive feeling as you walked down the winding passages.

The spookiest parts were a room in complete darkness with a window of light shining on a solitary wheelchair and the padded cell.

We were only there for a few hours but it is so large that you could easily get lost and spend a good few days documenting the place. I wouldn’t recommend exploring on your own.

Here are some photographs I took on our visit.

Ah yeah, we most certainly believed in the supernatural at a certain point in our Pinoy lives.  Here’s a list of haunted places in the Philippines:

1.  Diplomat Hotel, Baguio City

The Diplomat Hotel

When you encounter the Diplomat Hotel in Baguio City, you find a former seminary dating back to the early 1900?s. During World War II, Japanese occupying forces were responsible for the beheading of numerous nuns and priests. After the war, the location then became a hotel. An awkward feeling is noticed when entering the rooms. The rooms are quite large, displaying dimly lit sleeping quarters and Bibles on the side tables. During the night, guests, clerks, as well as bellhops, claim to hear the sounds of the dead. This has even been reported to occur during the day as well. Some have spotted headless apparitions wandering about the corridors, where some have even gone as far as to state that they saw ghosts carrying heads on platters. It is also believed that outside the hotel is just as scary as the inside. 

2.  Malinta Tunnel, Corregidor, Bataan

Malinta Tunnel

In Corregidor, there are hospital ruins and old bunkers that were left behind from World War II. Some claim to have heard the sounds of moaning ghosts, as well as unexplainable footsteps. The Malinta Tunnel in this city is said to be the haunting ground of an unknown spirit in the area.

3.  Central Philippine University

Central Philippine University

In Iloilo City, you will find the Central Philippine University, which was founded by missionaries from America. During World War II, the Japanese murdered the missionaries. It is said that some of their spirits haunt the school. Other ghosts that can be found throughout the university include a female ghost that can be seen jogging on the track by the football field; odd occurrences in Ruby Hall; and a female ghost that haunts Valentine Hall.

In the Korean horror films Wishing Stairs, Phone, Dead Friend and Bushinsaba it is young girls that are the center of the paranormal peril. We witness several kinds of fem-fatality like girls who harm or kill by physical bullying, those who go to extremes to feel loved and others who dangerously play with the occult to exterminate their rivals. These in-depth tales of the evils that girls that girls do is apparent in one particular story about a Student rivalry in Korea. This earns frightening tale earns the top spot as a really haunting urban legend.

The Student Rivalry Ghost.

This usually begins with an explanation that girls in Korea can be very cruel to one another. Especially the students of this all-girl school where everyone competes for the coveted top spot on the grade results.

Rhim is a young girl who is always manically depressed due to her rank. No matter how much she studies she is always rated 2nd in the class. However the girls that don’t study at all give her a hard time about never taking the first place. They begin to tease her that she should sleep with her professors and tell her shes useless even though their own ranks are way below hers. In various renditions of the tale the teasing is even crueller the girls tell her she is poor and will never get into college. They begin to badmouth her family saying they should beat her for not being able to get a scholarship. Instead of fighting back Rhim goes up to the school roof and cries. The bullying girls are led by the highest ranking student called Choi, who is actually a daughter of the schools beneficiary. It is because of Choi, that Rhim is getting a raw deal. Choi principals daughter is not smart at all but somehow she places number one every time there is a standardized test.  Other teachers begin to notice the inconsistency with the test scores and want an investigation. However Rhim is nowhere to be found and it is the end of the day.

One Girl Dies.

Variation 1:

Rhim is still on the roof and is unaware that there are several teachers on her side. She is so busy with her sorrow that she contemplates jumping off but she cant do it. Suddenly the Choi appears on the roof and apologies to Rhim about the test scores, she asks Rhim to stop crying because her father will lose his job. Rhim is livid about Choi asking her for pity and pushes her over the edge to her death. Rhim looks over the edge and sees the Choi who is face is bleeding and has a broken her neck, she screams at the sight and calls for help. A week  later Rhim is now the number one student, no one questions Choi’s death because of her fathers embarrassment during the investigation.

Variation 2:

Choi falsely consoles Rhim and asks her to look out to the setting sun. As she tries to glance at the sunset Choi pushes Rhim over the side.  Choi looks over the edge and sees the Rhim with a broken her neck and has blood allover her mouth and eyes.  Instead of calling for help she runs away and hides. Now that Rhim is dead there is no investigation and Choi’s number one standing is safe. There is also no investigation either leaving her father to manipulate test scores until she graduates.

The Scary End.

Endings for Choi.

The investigation into the allegations on Choi’s father changed the test scores have come about. Now she has to stay late at school to complete a series of scores that the teachers now have bombarded her with. The teachers are still suspicious of Choi so they have decided to test her as much as possible. Choi complies with this because now her father drinks at night and her mother has left the home. She rather be at school with books than in her sad household.

She is in the classroom and the wind from the roof picks up. She shrugs off the sound as bad weather and tries to study. Suddenly there is a tapping at the window and she looks to see a body falling from the roof. She goes to the window and opens it to see what fell. There is nothing there. She closes the window and in the windows reflection behind her is the girl she pushed a month ago all bloody and neck broken. Choi turns and sees no one, she runs out of the school in a panic. She feels that there is a ghost following her. Every day she gets more depressed and ragged looking. She now refuses to come to school alone and her once good friends tease her but comply to hang with her in the classroom. As she is studying in the classroom nightly her grades begin to improve on her own. Her friends laugh and tease her at her new found intellegence. There is noise from the roof so her pair of her friends go to investigate.

Choi jumps at the sound of the wind and puts on her headphones. She tries to wait for her friends but the lights go out. Her friends begin to come down from the roof and enter the now well lit classroom. Choi isnt there but they see someone fall out the window. They run to the window and nothing is there but as they look up at their reflection they see Choi and Rhim’s faces all bloody and broken. As they turn they face both ghosts and then the lights go out.

Endings for Rhim.

Rhim is now the top student. For extra credit she stays late to help the teachers grade papers. Everyone is her friend now although they are secretly jealous of her now found popularity.  Suddenly there is a wind sound coming from the roof.  Rhim knows that the wind is bad during the autumn so she shrugs and tries to study. Suddenly there the lights go out and she hears someone down the far end of the hallway. Big Clomping footsteps are coming towards the classrooms near hers. She hears a girls voice as the classrooms sliding door opens, the otherworldly voice says “She’s not here”. Rhim cannot recognize the voice but hears  as the door slides shut and “I will try the next one”. Again the voice and sounds gets louder. A classroom Door opens in the hallway “She’s not here” door slides shut “I will try the next one”

Rhim who is at the teachers desk suddenly gets the urge to hide. She goes under the desk by the wall surly no one will see her if the desk is close to the wall.

Her classroom door slides open. The girl closes her eyes “THERE SHE IS” The ghost says. As she opens her eyes to get a look at the door she sees the ghosts bloody face looking right at her because she ghost is levitating upside down.

The ghost says.. “come with me to the roof there is something I need to show you in the view”

Modern Ending for Choi or Rhim

The girl who is left is in the classroom alone and there is a wind sound coming from the roof. She shrugs and tries to study. She falls asleep and then is woken by someone shaking her. No one is there but the desks in the classroom are arranged funny. She fixes the desks and goes back to study. It is late and its dark outside. She puts all the lights on so there will be light in the hallway. She goes to her locker to get her the box of lunch she did not finish. On her way she passes the stairs the roof door is open. She closes the roof and goes to the locker.

On her way back the roof door is again open. She now is thinking its the weather opening the door. She slams it shut and the slam sounds like a scream. Shes a little spooked and goes back to the classroom. As she is snacking and studying her back begins to hurt. She rubs her neck only to realize there is a second hand massaging her as well. She looks up and it is the girl she pushed so long ago.