Exploring the Abandoned Indiana State Sanatorium

For Historical Information about the beautiful Indiana State Sanatorium please check out our previous blog post: Haunting Beauty

When Indiana State Sanatorium opened up for paranormal investigations I booked as soon as I could whether we found anything or not in the way of evidence I wanted to be one of the first to try. We were a little nervous going in but the buildings and property did not disappoint. The night was filled with slamming doors, sounds of foot steps, and disembodied voices. We had the property for 19 hours and wanted to make sure we made every minute count. 

We decided to leave audio recorders in several buildings so that even while we weren't there we could collect evidence. First we left one in the Superintendent's House because we thought since that building was separate from the others that was the one we were most likely to miss or spend the least time. We also left an audio recorder in room 509 of the five story building. There are rumors about a potential patient suicide in that room though I did not find a death record to confirm it. At the nurses station in the center of the nursing home we left an audio recorder and motion activated trap camera. One of the audio cameras did pick up some strange noises and I wish I had enough video cameras to leave with each audio recorder. 

We then began systematically exploring the buildings starting with the admin building.  This building would have contained dr. offices, x-ray, and the morgue during the tuberculosis days and I assume into the nursing home time.  In the five story structure we started by marching up to the fifth floor and then walked each hall. We stopped and tried several Estes Method SBOX sessions but every time we did there would be noises from the hall that would distract me away from the session.  We both came to the conclusion that the reason we were hearing disembodied voices and doors slamming may actually be because the location is so new. When we go to places like Waverly Hills Sanatorium the spirits are used to investigators and the equipment that we carry. But at Rockville I was turning on the SBOX and asking them to communicate and I have no way of telling them how to use it. So we weren't getting responses on the SBOX but we were getting slamming doors in the hall. We also got some of the clearest disembodied voices we have ever heard. To the point where there were several times when we stopped and basically called out "you won't be in trouble just let us know you are here." No live person ever showed up and it was 30 degrees out so I don't think anyone was roaming the halls and woods of the sanatorium. It was overall a very cool experience. 

I really can't get over how cool it was to walk around the buildings seeing the remnants of lives that just moved on without notice and leaving so much behind. But also considering it has been just over 10 years since the building was abandoned the amount of places where nature had found its way in to the building. There were several points where vines were growing through the window frames. 

Speaking of windows when reviewing video we did have one strange moment where we noticed the words "Never Alone" written in the condensation of a window. Then there is the sound of a door slamming and as we turn a figure moves across the window. I slowed the video down here I don't believe it is reflecting from us.

figure in the window

After exploring the five story we then walked through the nursing home walking to the center nurse station and from there going left and right down the arms before finishing back through to the admin building. We did stop at the nurse station again for an Estes method SBOX session. At this point we went out front of the admin building and looked up at the beautiful night sky. Meg set up her camera to take some long exposure night sky pictures.

We then systematically walked through the Superintendent House, checking on our recorder when we approached it again. We stopped for an SBox session Estes Method in one of the upstairs bedrooms. Let me take a moment to talk about what we mean by Estes Method. This Method is called Estes because it was first used at the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park Colorado by Karl Pfeiffer, Connor Randall, and Michelle Tate. One person wears noise canceling headphones and listens to an SBOX or Spirit Box. A second person asks questions with the hope that spirits will be able to manipulate the radio waves to give an answer.  The advantage to wearing the noise canceling head phones is that the person listening to the SBox does not know what question was asked and so their brain can't try and make sense of the noises to get an answer. Sometimes the person listening to the SBox is also blindfolded which helps focus on attention on what is being heard through the headphones. I think a good session is somewhere between 20-25 minutes. 

Once we finished the loop of all the properties we stopped in the commercial building to warm up before again repeating that pattern. It meant we were moving a lot only stopping at a few spots for an extended time but the goal of this visit was to explore the property and then on a future visit we would be able to focus on specific areas. We again stopped for an SBox session in the five story and at the nurses station. This is the video from our SBox at the nurse station.

After  completing this loop we returned to the commercial building to take a nap before going out and investigating again. But first Meg sat down and read a children's story. The commercial building is a newer building but it stands where the children's ward would have been during the tuberculosis days. Reading a children's story is something we like to do in places said to be haunted by children because the hope is we give some entertainment or comfort to the spirits and maybe something that would seem familiar. 

After sleeping we got up again to explore and now in the light of day you can really see how cool the buildings look. 

This next video is a compilation of a lot of the evps, disembodied voices, and strange noises that we recorded through out the night. I used our photos of the property to show off the beauty of the property.  

Finally here is the full video of all evidence collected. 

Also in a growing series of what I call "what paranormal investigations really look like" here is some of our shorts showing funny moments or sarcasm from the night because, to be honest, when you are walking around a property at 2am it is much less screaming at hearing a demon and way more enjoying the quiet and the company and being sarcastic.... at least for us.

"choose your own adventure"

Sarcasm!

Thank you for reading and watching. We do plan on going back and this time I think we will spend more time in the Superintendent's House. Being separate from the other buildings we spent the least amount of time there but we had a lot of activity on the recorder that we left there. 

If you have enjoyed this please consider subscribing on the following platforms. We do put up evidence as we find it on tiktok and we have been using youtube shorts as well .The full videos will always be put on youtube but that is one of the last things we will do when finishing evidence review. Follow on facebook or twitter to see what investigations we have coming up. Currently we are working on evidence review from our stay at the Thomas House in Red Boiling Springs, TN and that will be followed by evidence review from The Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. This was a return investigation and our first multi night investigation. We spent two nights at the hotel in the most haunted rooms. Here is our original blog post from our first stay: Visiting the Crescent for the first time

For all social media links please see this post: Socials

Part 2 Harriman TN: The Investigation

This is Part 2 of our blog about Harriman Hospital in Harriman TN. For the history of the hospital/town please look back at Part 1.

We arrived in Harriman a few hours before the investigation in order to walk around the building and take some photos outside. While there had already been several investigations at Harriman Hospital this day was the official Grand Opening. We knew being a public investigation we would have little control over when and where we investigated so we did not go into the investigation with plans, rather we saw it as an exciting opportunity to get in to a new location, to scout for when we do eventually return for a private investigation, and also meet the special guests Richard Estep and J. B. Coates. 

The event was well organized starting with an introduction and history of the building, moving on to the always appreciated pizza, and finally the investigation. Meg and I were in the red group (there were four groups which would rotate through the four different designated locations). Volunteers brought each group to their location while other volunteers were specifically assigned to the location to help facilitate investigating. I will say that part of what I like most about public investigations is having people of all different skill/knowledge levels. Some people had their own equipment and others were along for the ride looking to learn about investigating.

As stated above since this was public Meg and I didn't have any specific plans. For the rest of the post I will share some links to short videos I uploaded on TikTok of Evps and notable interactions. At the end will be several Youtube videos with video from the night including an angry spirit turning off Meg's camera, me being pushed, and a fantastic Estes Method Communication with a child spirit named April.

Our first stop was in the A3 Hall:

As we were walking in the hall we recorded an evp that sounds like a child's voice saying "Hear Me."

"Hear Me" EVP

Once we reached the hall our group broke off exploring down the main hall and nurse station as well as a second hall. Most of our investigating was at the nurse station because  it is believed a nurse named Joanna haunts that location. Joanna worked for years at the hospital and sadly passed away of a heart related ailment at the hospital. After her passing her fellow coworkers would remark that they felt her presence still.  Furthermore just days earlier a video was shared from that nurse station of a dark shadow figure moving in and out of the camera's view. 

Several in the group thought they saw shadows moving but we did not  record any shadow figures however when teasing that someone was sitting in Joanna's chair we recorded an EVP.

"Get Out" EVP

Meg also at one point used her experience of being in the hospital to take a moment to thank Joanna, and any other staff who still remain. 

"Me too" EVP

The second location we went to we also got to investigate with special guest J. B. Coates. While sitting outside the morgue of the hospital we conducted an Estes Method session using the Spiritus App. While one member of the group sat in the morgue isolated the rest of us were in the hall outside of radiology.  Earlier in the session a spirit had said to stop filming. At the time I turned off one video camera but Meg still had her body camera and I eventually turned my video camera back on.... then this happened.

"Beep" Spiritus Estes Method

Our third location was outside the recovery room where Billy and Tonya from the Nightstalkers were waiting to help guide the interactions. 

At first we sat in the hall listening to the building before breaking off in to the recovery room to use our SBox. Meg put on her headphones and closed her eyes as she listened to the box and I stood by the desk. As I was standing against the desk I felt a push on my right shoulder and moved forward a little. I asked if someone was with us and Meg responded "hopefully" and then "I can see you." Here is a short clip and the full exchange will be below in the youtube video.

Pushed from behind

The fourth location was split between the operating rooms and a hall said to be haunted by a child spirit named April. There Terry, Chris, and Steven from Mid-Tenn Paranormal were waiting.  We began in April's hall with an S-Box session where Meg took the headphones and blindfolded herself as well. This is just a moment of the exchange the whole session will be in the youtube videos and is definitely worth the watch!

Accurate answer from April

I tried to upload one video to youtube but my computer is not cooperating so it will be four separate videos.

Video 1: This is part one of our Estes Method communication with April.

Video 2: You guessed it- part two with April.

Video 3: Part three with April and some really fantastic interactions.

Video 4: This video is a compilation of our different experiences in Harriman Hospital and includes some evps, Meg's camera being shut off, and me being pushed in the recovery room.

Thank you for watching please like and subscribe we are on facebook, twitter, tiktok,  instagram, and youtube.

A visit to the Ancient City

Ever since watching Ghost Hunters "Haunted Lighthouse" episode in 2006 we knew we wanted to visit the St. Augustine Lighthouse. Jay Hawes and Grant Wilson pioneered paranormal investigations on TV and brought it to the attention of a much broader audience. Many today would not be where they are if not for this show. 

In January we got to visit the St. Augustine and the Lighthouse for a quick trip. We knew we could not stay long and we wanted to use this chance to explore the eventful history of the city and Lighthouse that inspired many to join the paranormal field. 

The History of the Town:

In 1565 the Spanish crown sent Pedro Menendez de Aviles to destroy the French held Fort Caroline on the St. Johns River in what is now Jacksonville, Florida. On the feast day of St. Augustine of Hippo (August 28th) his crew spotted land and on September 8th he claimed the land in the name of Philip II and named the city St. Augustine in honor of the Saint. 

In 1586 Sir Francis Drake, an English privateer and explorer, brought the Anglo-Saxon War to St. Augustine. At the sight of his fleet approaching Governor Pedro Menendez Marquez ordered the residents to evacuate. Drake's forces seized some artillery, robbed the garrison, and razed the town to the ground. 

In 1686 pirate Robert Searle sailed his ship, the Cagway, to St. Augustine. In the fight 60 citizens were killed and Searle and his men raided storehouses, churches, and the homes of the residents. After this and looking at the history of attacks on the small settlement Spain began building the Castillo de San Marcos on the western shore of Mantanzas Bay to defend the city.

It was completed in 1695 and is the oldest masonry fort in the continental US. In 1702 James Moore, Governor of the Carolina Colony, moved to attack St. Augustine. After a 58 day siege and still no progress taking the fort Moore's forces set the city on fire and retreated.

In 1740 James Oglethorpe governor of Georgia again tried to take the city and fort but again they held on and the fort did not change hands.

At the end of the Seven Years' War Great Britain, France, and Spain signed the 1763 Treaty of Paris and in that Treaty Britain finally took control of Florida including St. Augustine. Control was short lived though and through the 1783 Treaty of Paris Spain regained control of Florida. Spain maintained control for 40 years before signing it over to the United States. 

As more settlers came to the area skirmishes increased between them and the Native Seminole, Creek, and Miccosukee people. There were three Seminole Wars with the longest being the Second War between 1835 to 1842 during that time American settlers forced the Natives first to a four million acre reservation in Florida and then to Oklahoma.  During the wars Seminole prisoners were held in the Castillo de San Marcos.

In 1861 the American Civil War began and Florida ceded to the Confederacy. In 1862 Union troops took control of the city and held it for the duration of the war. 

Today it is also known as the Ancient City....

It has been raised, sacked, sieged, burned, and fought over by the Spanish, French, English, Pirates, and both the Confederate and Union armies. Its place as the oldest European city in the United States is evident in the architecture of its oldest buildings.

Pictured above is the original gate of the city built in 1739. Those gates withstood 150 years of raids, regime changes, siege, and a Civil War. 

In 1883 St. Augustine would be changed forever when Henry Flagler came to visit the Ancient City. Henry Flagler, co-founder of the Standard Oil Company, came to the city in 1883 and spent the winter in the more temperate Florida sun. He liked the town and saw room for growth. In 1885 he formed the Florida East Coast Railway which he would continue to build upon for years: at first buying existing railroads and then beginning to lay his own track. He saw the east coast of Florida as an area ready for growth and a great escape for wealthy northerners looking for some place to visit and relax. 

By 1887 he also completed work on two large luxury hotels the Hotel Ponce de Leon and the Hotel Alcazar.  He used Spanish Renaissance Revival and Moorish revival architecture to keep the old world feel of the city. Soon tourism would become the primary industry of St. Augustine. Wealthy northerners would come for the winter and many others would stop in St. Augustine before continuing to other luxury resorts further south. The invention of the car and increased popularity of family road trips and brought families to St. Augustine for fun vacations. 

Today St. Augustine is still a popular tourist destination. Walking through the original gate you enter into a series of buildings that have been reconstructed to their original look. They are filled with small boutique stores, restaurants, and a lot of ice cream shops! 

The History of the Lighthouse:

When the Spanish had first settled at St. Augustine they built a watch tower or beacon at the end of Anastasia island that was documented by Baptista Boazio in 1589 when he drew a map of the area showing the raid of Sir Francis Drake. 

In 1737 they upgraded the wooden structure to one made of coquina, a rock composed of fragments of shells from various shellfish. In 1780 the tower was noted in a Jacques-Nicolas Bellin engraving  "A Plan of the harbour of St. Augustin." 

In 1824 a new tower was built on Anastasia Island and in the early 1850s it was upgraded to a Fresnel Lens which improved the range of the light. However tragedy struck in 1858 when the Lighthouse keeper Joseph Andreu was on scaffolding to white wash the Lighthouse. The scaffolding gave way and the keeper fell to his death. He was buried in the Tolomato Cemtery, Catholic Cemetery, in St. Augustine.

His distraught wife, Maria Mestre de los Dolores Andreu took up the role of lighthouse keeper and became the first Hispanic-American woman to serve in the Coast Guard. In 1861 at the start of the American Civil War the prized lens was removed by Confederate sympathizers and hidden to avoid Union forces from taking control of it. The lens was not restored until 1867. Around this time Dr. Allan Ballard, who owned the property and the Lighthouse sold the property to the government partly out of fear that it was going to fall into the ocean and because the state told him if he did not agree to the price they would take the property.

As erosion continued to threaten the Lighthouse a new structure was started in 1871 and completed in 1874. During the building of the Lighthouse tragedy struck. Hezekiah H. Pittee was the superintendent of Lighthouse Construction and moved with his family to St. Augustine. In 1873 three of his children and a local friend were playing in a rail car that was used to bring supplies to the worksite. As the rail car approached the end of the track the brakes failed and the children were thrown in to the sea and pinned under the cart. Mary age 15 and Eliza age 13 as well as their friend were drowned before they could be rescued. Only four year old Carrie was rescued from the accident.  

On October 5th 1874 William  Russel, who served as light keeper at the old and new Lighthouse lit the new first order Fresnel lens. It could be seen between 19 and 24 nautical miles depending on the weather. The new tower was well timed as the old one fell in to the ocean in 1880. The ruins still exist underwater and is currently an archeological site. 

In October 1875 William Harn after a career in the military where he lead troops in several major battles including Gettysburg became the light keeper until his death from tuberculosis in 1889. 

In 1901 Peter Rasmusson took over as light house keeper and has the longest tenure of any keeper at 23 years. He and his wife Mary frequently had visitors to the Lighthouse from Flagler's hotels who would stop by to see the 165 foot structure. In a memo sent to the Light-house inspector in Charleston SC Rasmussen listed the increase in visitors over several years.

The tourists came from Flagler's hotels using the wooden bridge that was built across Matanzas Bay connecting St. Augustine to Anastasia Island and the Lighthouse. In 1904 it was renovated to allow for a trolley to run over the bridge further facilitating tourism.  The Lighthouse did close to visitors from February 6, 1917 till after the end of WWI when Peter received orders in the name of national security. A few years later in 1924 Peter Rasmussen retired from his role of keeper and John Lundquist, who had served as an assistant keeper previously in 1893-1901, became the head keeper. 

In 1936 Cardell D. Daniels was the keeper at the Lighthouse when on March 1st it was electrified. The Lighthouse keeper would no longer have to make the long trip up 219 steps to the top carrying buckets of oil or kerosene. 

In 1981 the Lighthouse and Keepers' House were included on the National Historic Register and became protected buildings. In 1994 thanks to the hard work of the Junior Service League of St. Augustine, the Keepers' House and Lighthouse were opened to the public as a museum and for the first time ever visitors could climb to the top of the Lighthouse. 

And finally as mentioned above, and what started this journey for us, in 2006 the tv show Ghost Hunters, about a team of paranormal investigators, filmed their highest rated episode at the Lighthouse. During the episode they captured on camera a shadowed figure peering over the rail in the Lighthouse.

The Paranormal History:

The whole area of St. Augustine has a deep history filled with turmoil and strife. Th'e historic city gate, Castillo de San Marcos, old Huguenot Cemetery, and the old Catholic Cemetery stand today as reminders of that past. Specifically there are several stories on the Lighthouse property. The first is the possible ghosts of Maria and Joseph Andreu. When Maria heard about her husbands death she ran to the top of the Lighthouse and cried. Then as the story goes she heard a voice tell her to 'take up the light' and she recognized that voice as her husband. Maria is rumored to have been seen on the grounds by visitors to the Lighthouse and numerous pictures have been taken of a woman in white with long dark hair at the top of the Lighthouse. Joseph is often thought to be one of the possible inhabitants seen as a shadow figure in the Lighthouse. 

Another possible spirit is Dr. Allan Ballard, the previous owner before the state took control. It is said upon hearing the low price offered he replied: "I will never leave this property." 

There are numerous stories of playful spirits and children's voices as well as wet footprints in the Keepers' House. These could be the spirits of the two young girls who drowned in the accident.

The smell of cigar smoke in the Keepers House is sometimes attributed to William Harn and other times Peter Rasmussen. Both men could also be the figure captured on film by the Ghost Hunters or it could be William Russel, the first keeper who is seen standing to the right in this photo.

Our Findings:

While we did not do a full investigation we did take lots of photos and I looked around with my Seek Thermal but did not see anything strange. We did take this awesome photo which shows the shadow of the Lighthouse cast on the overcast night sky, not paranormal but very cool looking.

And while we were at the top about to come down we both heard a male voice despite the fact that at the time there was only us and one employee who was female in the Lighthouse.

The Huguenot, Protestant Cemetery, and Tolomato, Catholic Cemetery contain graves of some of the earliest residents of St. Augustine including several of the Lighthouse Keepers. Both are only open one Saturday a month so we know we will be making at least two more trips to St. Augustine to see those locations. Each time we plan to explore the Lighthouse and the city more.

Travelers: Lotz House Overnight Investigation

Johann Albert Lotz was born in 1820 in Germany where he worked as a master craftsman woodworker. In 1848 Johann moved to the United States, first stopping in New Orleans where he met his wife Margaretha. Shortly after that they moved to Franklin TN and bought a small plat of land from Fountain Branch Carter. There Johann built his showcase home. The house is two stories and features four large columns in the front reflecting the Greek revival style. Inside he built three fireplaces of varying degrees of woodworking to show his skill. He also built a magnificent walnut railing on the staircase with the first post being a piano leg. On the top he carved his name and the year. Everything from the cabinetry and furniture in the home could be used to show potential clients his range of skill.

 Johann and Margaretha had five children of their own Paul, Augustus, Matilda, Julius, and Julian. Also living in the home were Margaretha's two children from a previous marriage, Joseph and Amelia. It's a beautiful home and location sadly the family would not be able to enjoy it properly. Years later on April 12th, 1861 the American Civil War began and the Lotz house would be at the center of one of the bloodiest battles.

Before the battle Julius and Julian passed away from either sickness, drowning, or possibly poison by playing in a creek that had been contaminated. Sources are unsure but I believe they were 3 or 4 years old.

The Union army under the command of Major General John Schofield arrived in Franklin around 4:30am on November 30th. They began setting up their position with their backs to the Harpeth River while repairs were done to the bridges that would allow them to cross and continue north to Nashville. They had been moving all night as they tried to reach Nashville before Confederate General John Bell Hood could cut them off from the 30,000 reinforcements that  Major General George Thomas had waiting in Nashville. Due to over confidence and a failure of command or orders being followed (it is unclear) the Union army was able to pass by Confederate troops at Columbia and Spring Hill. This set up the two sides for a meeting 12 miles further at Franklin.

On the morning of the battle the family woke to discover thousands of Union troops. The river however was impassible at the time because of recent rain fall and they could not cross until repairs were done to bridges. With no choice the soldiers began fortifying their position and preparing for battle with over 20,000 Confederate troops. The Carter family, hurriedly sent a message for the Lotz family to come to their home and shelter in the cellar.

Almost 12 hours after the Union troops had arrived in Franklin Hood and his army also arrived in Franklin. Some say Hood was angry at his commanders and troops for allowing the Union to pass in the night and so ordered his men to battle immediately. Others say it was not anger but determination to prevent the joining of two large union forces from meeting in Nashville. Either way this would start one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War sometimes referred to as the Gettysburg of the West.

At some point the Confederates broke through the Union line and brutal hand to hand combat began around the Lotz and Carter Houses and gardens. The Union troops were able to hold their defenses and by 11pm both sides were exhausted. Hood and his men pulled back to regroup and rest. Schofield and the Union took this chance to continue their march to Nashville. Technically that left Franklin in Confederate control but it was not a victory. The Confederate side had 6,252 casualties with 1,750 killed. Among them were six of Hood's Generals one of which was Patrick Cleburne who was arguably one of the best division commander's on either side and today has a small park just a block from the Lotz House named for him.

This was the most exciting investigation we have had so far. We left knowing we had good communication and probably one of the best S-Box interactions we will ever have. But beyond the evidence we collected one thing that stands out in our mind is how much the staff and especially Thomas Cartwright love and care for the spirits. It was evident in every interaction Thomas had whether it was the others using dowsing rods trying to communicate with Eula Lee Carothers or with Mark using his GeoPort.

While we waited for the whole group to arrive Meg and I split up and began taking photos inside the home. Meg went upstairs and was taking a series of photos in the "red room". In her fourth photo a figure can be seen in the back of the mirror. In the following video I go through the photos and then attach the real time audio recording. 

Later in the night one of the Lotz House employees told us that there are numerous reports of seeing soldiers in that mirror.

After Thomas gave a history and tour of the home we began investigating. I left stationary cameras in the downstairs gift shop, the stairwell, and the upstairs "red room." With those areas covered we went upstairs to the "children's bedroom." There we used our EMF detector to try and communicate with any spirits present.

Every investigation before this we would leave and be like "nothing much happened but we will listen to the recorders and see what we got." Not this one! We had three of the best S-Box interactions we have ever seen! Really I can't see how they can get much better. To explain what we were doing our S-Box or Spirit Box sweeps very quickly through radio stations so that words of sentences heard are across multiple stations. Meg was listening to the S-Box with noise cancelling headphones so that she could not hear my questions. At one point in this first session I thought we were communicating with several Civil War soldiers. I asked what other battles they had been in and after a few moments Meg listed three cities that also had battles. I asked what state they were from and a few moments later she said a state. She couldn't hear me and I was floored by how accurate the responses were. It took every bit of constraint to not stop and tell her how awesome this was going. I uploaded the whole S-Box session on youtube as well as a short version where I took out the long pauses between questions because I realize some people don't have 20+ minutes.

Full version:

Short version:

After investigating in a few other rooms we returned to the bedroom where we had such a great S-Box session and tried again. This also did not disappoint. This session was again quite long so I have condensed it in this video. One of the high points of this one was when I asked the soldier if they were here as a hospital. They responded with the word "ether" and then when I asked about their injury they answered "foot" and "they took it". Meg also had the word "sick." Also she heard the phrase "General Hood Killed us." Now before the battle the Union troops moved through the night past where the Confederate army was and were spotted by scouts. According to some accounts Hood says he gave a command to attack but others said no command was given. As I said above overall the battle was a loss and the army of the TN never fully recovered. We also got responses asking for a priest which may have been from a soldier named Willard Tolliver who the staff has identified even researching to find what unit he may have served in.

S-Box Session 2: 

Speaking of Hood we also heard a response on the GeoPort that a different group had brought that was possibly about General Hood:

We had a third S-Box session but this time it was at the end of the night and most everyone else had stopped investigating so we played the S-Box out loud since it would not interfere with other investigations and we had several other people in the room with us investigating. 

We also made contact with past residents of the house. We were upstairs trying to reach out to Johann Lotz and we received an answer from the Geoport:

And finally in this compilation we possibly made contact with Thomas Carothers.

Since we were making contact with soldiers Meghan decided to read an A.E. Housman poem about soldiers.

Overall this was an amazing experience that has us excited to return. When talking about the paranormal I often say I know I will never have any evidence that will convince a skeptic but this maybe the closest I can possibly come with the photo and S-Box sessions. 

Another reason we love the home though was, again, the staff. Everyone we met not only loved the location but they respect and care so much for the spirits that still reside there. I think that helps foster communication. 

A walk through Waverly Hills Sanatorium

When we first decided to give paranormal investigations a try one of the first locations we went to was Waverly Hills Sanatorium. We hoped our second visit would be a private investigation that would allow us to investigate the building alone. However we decided to return for another public investigation to become more familiar with the layout and make a plan for our future private investigation. The first two hours of the night was a detailed tour. The whole group was split in half and we were in the group that started at the morgue. Our tour was given by Jason and Josh. As we walked around the building they shared stories of paranormal accounts, history, and their own experiments and experiences. It was a great tour that gave us a lot of information about the building and those who still reside there. Jason seemed to care deeply for the residents which showed through the stories he told. Josh offered his help to the group and shared his current experiments and different plans that he had to investigate the building.  He invited anyone to take part in his experiments.

We had some specific plans and as soon as the tour ended we got to work. We walked along the first floor to the morgue where Meg slid on to one of the storage tables. 

As I was setting up the stationary camera another group had wandered to the morgue. One jokingly said "Are you going to lock us in" to the tour guide and while he answered we hear another voice say "Yes"

Once Meg was settled I left to walk down the entire length of the body chute. Let me tell you that is a walk I think I only need to make once. The passage way has steps on one side and a ramp on the other. Staff could walk back and forth on the steps and use the ramp to move a cart back and forth with supplies or deceased patients. Walking down the chute was fine except for one moment when I stepped into a giant spider web. Coming back up the chute is no joke. I tried to walk on the ramp for a bit because I thought it would be better then tackling the steps again in total darkness. The ramp was slippery and as I walked it felt like I was being pushed backwards and towards the wall. And that wasn't anything paranormal it was just the slant and grade of the ramp. Overall the walk was uneventful except for when I walked right in to the before mentioned giant spider web.

Another area we planned to visit was the fifth floor. Half that floor served as the children's ward with a playground on the roof. The first time we visited Meghan had read a children's story and we planned on reading another story by the same author. Meg settled down with  our light up catballs that we first used at the Lotz house in front of her.

At one point while Meg was reading a small light appeared next to her knee and then faded away which I will have at the end of the blog in a compilation video. 

I started taking a video of her reading but then moved on to explore the rest of the floor. The fifth floor is one of the most visited floors because of room 502. There are many different theories about what happened outside that room and on that floor. In 1933 a nurse was found hanging from a light fixture and many questions still continue today. When we were first here we had an EVP, Electronic Voice Phenomena, that said "hanged". This time looking back at my photos taken with my IR camera I believe I have a figure looking back through the window into the area. I had taken two photos in a row.

Photo 1:

Photo 2:

Close up:

The night was a clear night so Meg left her camera taking a picture of the stars while she read the story.

The rest of the night was going to be simple. We would walk each floor twice first by walking up the solarium and then back through the dark center hall. It was on the fourth floor that Jason's tour really had its biggest impact on me. We were all stopped at the stairwell looking down the hall and you could see the shadows moving back and forth across the hall. Now the shadows in Waverly are very active and there are good reasons why people so often report seeing shadow figures... they do interact with you. Jason told a story about how after Waverly had closed a geriatric hospital had been opened up and there was terrible abuse and neglect. During a visit in 1981 a fire marshal mistakenly exited the elevator on the fourth floor, the building was only cleared for occupancy up to the third floor. There the marshal found "the forgotten ones" as Jason called them. As we watched their shadows move back and forth Jason told us he promised to tell that story to every tour and that they would not be forgotten again. As we listened back to our recorders we think we have an EVP from that hall.

A few minutes later we had another EVP that sounded different on both recorders. In this video I play one recorder, then the other, and finally both at the same time with the audio over each other.

With each investigation I feel like we really get to delve in to different theories about hauntings and the history of locations. With this investigation the idea of Egregores kept coming to mind. It was fresh on our mind because shortly before we went Meg had been reading a magazine article with Adam Berry and Amy Bruni commenting on the subject. The theory of the Egreore is that by continually telling the same story it can actually be brought into existence. For example one of the most popular "ghosts" of Waverly is a young boy named Timmy who is said to play with the many balls that can be found throughout the building. While there may very well have been a boy named Timmy at some point there were hundreds of children that lived at Waverly at one point or another. Is the ghost child really named Timmy, maybe? Or is Timmy a creation of the story telling. 

There were several moments were we tried to empathize with the patients and medical professionals who lived and worked at Waverly. One way was acknowledging that we have names like Timmy or Lois Higgs who people will go and ask for them but that there are many others who we don't know the names of that lived and died at Waverly.  

At the end of the night we stopped across from where the old cafeteria was and I read a poem by Robert Frost called Desert Places. There we think we have another EVP.

For more clips (including the light while Meg was reading) watch this compilation.

Going through evidence review is long and boring at times. It involves listening back to hours of recordings or just watching videos of nothing happening. But finding an EVP or something strange in a video is worth it. Also it is worth it to know that we are being as thorough as possible. We both carry recorders so that we can verify what we hear on one with the other. In one instance it really paid out. While listening to Meg's recorder we thought we had an intelligent answer; however listening to mine we heard the same sound and it was me going through my bag.

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Travelers

Growing up Meg and I had a lot of strange unexplained experiences and stories. As a result when we moved to TN we decided to try our hand at Paranormal Investigations. So first we went to the Crescent Hotel in Arkansas and Waverly Hills in Louisville.

Both were fantastic experiences so we added some equipment and went out to Shiloh and Vicksburg.  

Having had success and really enjoying the investigations we decided that we were going to continue and take a step up by going to a location that we could really deep dive in. So we booked a night at a house in Hartford City, Indiana which had been featured in the tv show Paranormal Lockdown. The episode had really stuck in our minds and the location was very intriguing. So we began researching the home and taking the stories we had heard and evidence we had seen from other investigators and matching them with newspapers and public/historic records. 

Afterwards we looked for local groups that might be willing to take new members but didn't have much luck.

Then we booked two tickets to a public investigation at Historic and Haunted Octagon Hall in Franklin Kentucky. There we were talking with a couple who had shirts for Paducah Paranormal. We asked about how they found and joined a group and they said they didn't they just made their own. So we took their advice and decided to make our own group. 

The name Travelers made perfect sense. We love road trips and exploring different locations. Not only that but with a Paranormal Investigation we are talking about interacting with the spirits who lived in the past. Travelers are looking for connections and experiences with the world around them with an openness and curiosity for the world.  And that is what we hope to do as we figuratively travel through place and time.

We know that we will never have a video, picture, or recording that will convince a skeptic but that isn't our goal. Our goal is to learn about the people who lived before us and the locations they visited. I want to understand how or why we are able to communicate with them and what was life like for them. 

Now that we had a name and a goal next we needed a symbol. Meg took care of that combining our Irish and Italian heritage and her love of folklore. She started with the Ash Tree, the tree of Life in Norse Mythology. Under the Ash Tree is Pulcinella a figure of duality in Italian folklore. He is holding a red pepper to ward off the evil eye in one hand and a lucky four leaf clover in the other. At his feet is a hedgehog which symbolizes good luck and a guide. Finally in the bark of the tree are a series of numbers. The numbers are from smorfia the use of number analysis in dreams to tell the future and, very commonly in Naples, play the lotto. The first number is 85 which stands for the souls in purgatory, next 48 is the dead man who speaks, and finally we wanted to put 42 as a nod to Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy but it also means coffee which really is perfect because after an all night investigation coffee is the first thing I want. 

With our name and symbol ready we started the year off by going to a Haunted Playground and Cemetery in Huntsville, Alabama. 

One day we didn't have plans so we went to Historic Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Nashville to walk around and carry recorders and take some photos of the old cemetery. 

Our first big investigation this year was in Independence, Missouri when we traveled to the Vaile Mansion. Which was the first time I filled out paperwork under the group name Travelers. 

We also stopped at a small cemetery in Hopkinsville to visit the grave of Edgar Cayce.

While talking to a friend who has a podcast called Ed DIE Horror and Paranormal Podcast he pointed out that starting up social media would be easier now rather than later. So that felt like the next logical step and we did just that.

In October 0f 2024 we put out our top 31 pieces of paranormal evidence so if you want to see the best we have collected and what we are all about here is a link to that video. 

Top 31 Pieces of Paranormal Evidence

  https://www.facebook.com/TravelersParanormal/

 https://www.instagram.com/travelersparanormal/

 https://twitter.com/TravelersParan1

 https://www.tiktok.com/@travelersparanormal

 https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwbxQohu8OlBDMJKXS7tlNQ

And of course this blog! https://jorkeohane.blogspot.com/

So if you are interested in the paranormal and the links to my past blog posts provided you some entertainment please like, follow, and subscribe. My goal right now is to get 100 youtube subscribers so that I will be able to change the URL to something easier to remember and closer to our group name.

Currently we are doing evidence review for our return visit to Wavery Hills. We also have recordings and video from the Historic Lotz House in Franklin, TN, a return to the Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and the Thomas House in Red Boiling Springs, TN. So stay tuned for more.

Travelers: Shadow of the Vaile

The midwest and plains areas of the United States are filled with stories of haunted locations that would be top on any paranormal investigator's list.  And in fact there are many on Meg and my list. This year we got to explore one of those haunted homes: The Vaile Mansion in Independence Missouri.  

History of the Land:

The Vaile Mansion is located in Independence Missouri in Jackson county along the bank of the Missouri River. The area was once the northern boundary of the Osage Nation which included parts of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. They have traits in common with both Woodland Tribes as well as Great Plains tribes. They were noted for their use of horses and and their buffalo hunts on the Great Plains. 

On November 10, 1808 the US Government and Osage Nation signed the Osage Treaty at Fort Osage (then Fort Clark). In the treaty over 52,000,000 acres, mostly in Missouri, were ceded to the government. Immediately the Osage people protested the treaty questioning whether all necessary representatives were there. They were forced to Kansas where smallpox, other diseases, and war would devastate the tribes. 

The earliest European settlers were French. The land was fought over during the French and Indian War and came under British rule and then was promptly ceded to Spain in 1763. In 1800 Spain was forced to return the land to France in the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso and then in 1803 the area was sold to the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase. In 1804 Lewis and Clark reached the area and picked plums, raspberries, and apples on their journey west writing in their travel log that it was a "high commanding position." That spot would become Fort Clark and later renamed to Fort Osage.

In 1821 Missouri was formally admitted into the Union of the United States. And in 1826 Jackson county was organized and named for Andrew Jackson. Independence was selected as the county seat and the town quickly began to expand as it became a central location for westward travel. Independence was called "The Queen City of the Trails" as it was the starting point for the three western trails: Oregon, Santa Fe, and California trails. The infamous Donner Party left from Independence in 1846 on the Oregon Trail. Independence also served as an important trade route since it was the furthest west that steamboats could travel on the Missouri river due to the confluence with the Kansas River just six miles away.

In 1831 Jospeh Smith, founder of The Latter Day Saint movement,  stated that a New Jerusalem would be founded in Independence. Followers were encouraged to travel to the area and begin purchasing land. The new comers clashed with existing settlers and in 1833 a decree ordered all members of the Latter Day Saints to leave Missouri. In 1838 removal came to a head between August to November in the Missouri Mormon War. One of the worst clashes was on October 30, 1838 at Haun's Mill. Mormon families had gathered there and were surrounded by over 200 militia members. The battle resulted in 17 deaths.

During the American Civil War Independence saw two battles within the city limits in 1862 and 1864. Also in Jackson County was the 1864 battle of Westport, called the Gettysburg of the West. 

After the Civil War train travel began to increase and moved the center of travel to Kansas City. 

My sister and I believe in the idea of places holding trauma and memory. Even in this limited history above the amount of upheaval and change and the number of people who traveled through this area surely has had an impact. 

History of the Vaile Mansion:

Colonel Harvey Merrick Vaile was born in Bennington, Vermont in 1831. In the 1840s he moved to upstate NY where he would meet Cecilia Sophia Graham and they would eventually marry. Harvey held a variety of jobs including teacher, lawyer, lobbyist, and reporter. However the majority of his fortune came from land investments and partnership in the Star Route along the Santa Fe Trail.  

As Harvey's wealth increased he and Sophia wanted to build a home that matched. They wanted to have a home that people could use as a gathering place and took inspiration from some of the finest homes in Europe. The Vaile Mansion was completed on October 12,1881, at a cost of $150,000. It was a modern marvel for several reasons but the most impressive reason was the fact that it had heating and hot water. Especially impressive since no other home in Jackson County had indoor plumbing. The home had 31 rooms, 14 foot ceilings, a mansard roof, long gothic windows, speaking tubes, and two chandeliers originally meant for the White House but purchased by Harvey when a defect was discovered in them. 

The home was designed by architect Asa Beebe Cross. Cross designed over 1000 structures in Kansas City though today only a handful remain one of which is the Vaile Mansion, another is St. Patrick's at 8th and Cherry in Kansas City, and a third is Sauer Castle at 935 Shawnee Rd in Kansas City.

Unfortunately Sophia and Harvey did not get to live the life the imagined when they began construction on the home. Harvey was charged with fraud and theft of funds with his Star Route. He spent over $100,000 on legal fees and countless hours traveling from Independence to Washington DC to defend himself. He would eventually be acquitted but during the time when he was away Sophia became ill with stomach cancer. On February 14th, 1883 while Harvey was in Washington Sophia passed away from an overdose of laudanum which she had been prescribed for pain. 

Harvey would never get to use the house as a grand and happy gathering space, in fact the planned ballroom on the third floor was never finished. The couple did not have children and Harvey Vaile never remarried. In the Kansas City Times Mary Paxton Keeley remembered a chance encounter meeting Harvey Vaile when she was a young child with her father and brothers visiting the grounds and the lake which on some days was opened to the public.

 Upon seeing her father and his children an aged Vaile asked if they were all his and then commented that the father was indeed a rich man.

Harvey passed away due to complications of a stroke on June 4th, 1894. His Last Will and Testament surprised some. His cousin Olivia Sprague, who had moved in and run the home after Sophia's death was left a yearly allowance, the home was left to become a women's school called called The Independence Ladies College, and to his nieces and nephews he left five dollars each. Not surprisingly the nieces and nephews fought the Will.

The legal battle over the property cost so much that both parties could not maintain the property afterwards and as a result his nieces and nephews never took control of the home and it never became a school as he had planned. The furniture was sold to raise founds, with one exceptions being a clock now on one of the mantles which was original to the home and is verified by a painting of Harvey with the clock in the background. Afterwards the home served as an Inn for a short time, headquarters for the Vaile Pure Spring Water Company, a mental asylum, and a senior living home.

The Trip:

We planned to leave enough time to visit some historic sites and places connected to the Vaile Mansion. For example the pictures above of the confluence of the rivers, Fort Osage, St. Patrick's, and the Sauer Mansion. On our first night in the area we stopped at Lutfi's which not only had delicious catfish but amazing carrot cake dessert. The guys behind the counter were amazingly welcoming and after a short conversation they offered us some of their chicken wings to try with a sauce they were very proud of on it. It was Friday in Lent and we could not eat meat so we tried to decline the wings but they insisted we take them and have them Saturday for breakfast. The wings were a perfect breakfast especially since our hotel did not have much breakfast due to Covid restrictions. If you are ever in the area near Independence/Blue Springs do yourself a favor and stop at Lutfi's! I know I will be back.

The Equipment:

When we booked the investigation we knew it was a public investigation meaning there would be many people in the home that night, but we hoped it would be a manageable amount of people and we began making plans about setting cameras in different hotspots as well as Meghan memorizing some Shakespeare and various poems to recite for Harvey and Sophia's entertainment. 

We wanted to place a trap camera looking at the stairs going to the third floor due to reports of a shadow figure that had been seen in the stairwell, we also planned on putting a recorder on the third floor so that we could cover the area without having to be up there, similarly we planned on putting a trap camera in the basement to look at the door that is said to close itself, and finally another camera in the nature's bower a strange small sitting area overlooking the front lawn and street. However when we arrived we realized it was more people then we felt comfortable with to leave our equipment around. We did end up leaving one camera watching the stair case to the third floor but that was it. As a result we had the one trap camera, my video camera, the two recorders we were carrying, and a body camera that we were still testing out to see how it would perform.

The Investigation/Evidence:

Before going to the mansion we stopped at the Vaile family mausoleum for an S-Box session.

We arrived a little early which was fine because it allowed us a quick nap before beginning. There was a sign in sheet that asked for team name so this will forever be the first official investigation under our team name: Travelers. Now the house is large with over 30 rooms however the amount of people made investigating a little difficult because we didn't want to interfere with anyone else's recordings and by the same token we had to listen very carefully to ours. I think we started out with a good plan. We went straight to the Nature's Bower to set up our camera and look at the faces in the wood grain.

While there we had an Estes Method S-Box session. This is our newest experiment in investigating and helpful in a situation like this where the sound of the S-Box would negatively effect other investigations. For the experiment Meg was wearing earbuds connected to the S-Box and then noice reducing head phones so that she could not hear my questions. 

We left the Bower to go to Sophia's bed room and sitting room. There were so many questions that we had for Sophia and she is said to be one of the most active spirits in the home. We wanted to be sure that we got to spend some time in this side of the house where Sophia spent most of her time when she was ill. As Meg walked past one room she heard a woman's voice. Unfortunately we did not have that voice on a recorder but it sounded like a cry/moan. 

We left the second floor and went down to the first floor. While down there we had some plans for Meg to recite an AE Houseman poem as well as some Shakespeare. Listening back to the recordings though we were struck by how much we heard voices in the recordings. The best way to describe it was as "swirling voices." At the end of this blog post I will link a compilation video of all the EVPs but first I will post some that I have separated out like this one from the first floor women's parlor.

After leaving the first floor we spent time in the basement. As I was walking I saw a very unique orb fly past the video camera. Normally I won't include orbs as evidence because they are usually just bugs reflecting light but this one not only had a strange shape but a strange pattern of movement. 

We left the basement and went straight up to the third floor to try and spend at least a little time on that floor. The floor is famous for evps, disembodied voices, and shadow figures. We set up a laser grid which despite having new batteries began fading in and out as we sat upstairs.

After exploring the third floor before heading back downstairs I commented about how there wasn't much to explore and we recorded this evp.

Now there was a door that we could have pushed up to look into the attic but having been told there are bats I wasn't going to look. 

We came back down from the third floor to check on my trail camera and stopped to talk with two other investigators who were using their SLS.

Now that we had been to every floor for at least a little bit we turned our attention to the other side of the house and Harvey Vaile's office. There we recorded this residual EVP that I found very moving when I listened to it later. Also I used one of my favorite pictures: a portrait that shows Harvey Vaile standing in front of one of the fine marble fireplaces with a clock behind him. I think the fact that you see Harvey reflected in the mirror is what draws me in.

As I said above Harvey and Sophia Vaile never got to live the life they dreamed of in their beautiful mansion in Independence, Missouri. While Harvey traveled back and forth from his home to Washington DC because of the investigations into potential fraud Sophia was home alone and suffering from what is believed to have been stomach cancer. When Harvey returned from a break in the investigation to bury Sophia imagine his pain and grief at missing her last days and suffering she had endured alone. Sitting in his study imagine his attorney or business associates trying to ask about the investigation. What would his mind frame be? That is what I was thinking when we heard this residual EVP.

Finally here is a compilation of all our other EVPs/evidence from the investigation.

We hope to return to the Vaile Mansion someday for a private investigation so that we can fully set up our equipment. Meg did so much more research into the history of the home, people, and land then I included here. This investigation will forever be a special one since it was the first time we actually publicly investigated as Travelers!

Thank you. Please consider following my youtube jorekkeroj and this blog for our future investigations. We will beginning the evidence review from our investigation at the Lotz House.