"I ain't afraid of no ghost."
Oui, Oui...Ouija again.
This is actually the exact Ouija board we have been using...it glows in the dark!
This particular night had to be one of the best experiences with the Ouija board. We were able to receive a lot of information after communicating with this spirit.
First off, it was a boring night at URI and we decided to sit down with some friends in the dorm to do the Ouija board. Because our friends were a bit nervous to do it, we kept the lights on and began our ritual of "warming up" the board and asking the first and main question: Is there anyone here with us?
It takes a while for a spirit to make contact because it takes a lot of energy out of them. Eventually, the planchette (the piece that everyone places their fingertips on that moves to each letter) went to the word YES. We then asked what it's name was and this is when the hand piece began moving fairly quickly. The eerie thing about the planchette is that I can tell if someone is moving it themselves. When a spirit is moving it, it glides extremely smoothly across the board. The planchette then spelt out the letters "M-A-T-T." We then wanted to confirm that this was his name so we asked if his name was Matt and it went to YES. Next, we asked general questions like, "How old are you?" in which he went to the number 7. Then we asked what his favorite color was and he spelt out "R-E-D." We asked who his best friend was and he spelt "M-O-M-Y." I realize that this is the wrong spelling of "Mommy" but a 7 year old may not be the best speller either, which made this experience all the more believeable. What I am about to tell you next, you probably won't believe but if you ask the friends I was doing it with (which you should know that they did not believe in the Ouija board AT ALL) can vouche by saying that it is true.
We asked the spirit was his favorite animal was and, in all honesty, this is what he spelt out: "B-L-A-C-K-C-A-T." A black cat? At that moment, I had thought someone moved the planchette because it seemed way to choreographed. At the same, though, I didn't know why anyone would even think to spell that out and it would have been obvious if one of us was moving it on purpose. It definitely freaked me out a little. Then, things really started getting creepy. We asked if the spirit minded that we had the lights on and it said "NO." However, we asked it if it would want us to shut the lights off instead and it said "YES." We then asked why he wanted us to do that and this is what he spelt out: "C-M-E." I didn't get it at first but then it dawned on me...SEE ME! He wanted us to see him? And at that moment, everyone got very freaked out. We even made one of our male friends cry he was so scared.
I could not believe the responses we got that night and I understand if you think I am making this all up. I probably wouldn't believe me either but I also wouldn't lie about this because I'm not like that. You would have had to seen it to believe it but I hope you can take my word for it! The next time you come across a Ouija board, try it. You never know what could happen.
First off, it was a boring night at URI and we decided to sit down with some friends in the dorm to do the Ouija board. Because our friends were a bit nervous to do it, we kept the lights on and began our ritual of "warming up" the board and asking the first and main question: Is there anyone here with us?
It takes a while for a spirit to make contact because it takes a lot of energy out of them. Eventually, the planchette (the piece that everyone places their fingertips on that moves to each letter) went to the word YES. We then asked what it's name was and this is when the hand piece began moving fairly quickly. The eerie thing about the planchette is that I can tell if someone is moving it themselves. When a spirit is moving it, it glides extremely smoothly across the board. The planchette then spelt out the letters "M-A-T-T." We then wanted to confirm that this was his name so we asked if his name was Matt and it went to YES. Next, we asked general questions like, "How old are you?" in which he went to the number 7. Then we asked what his favorite color was and he spelt out "R-E-D." We asked who his best friend was and he spelt "M-O-M-Y." I realize that this is the wrong spelling of "Mommy" but a 7 year old may not be the best speller either, which made this experience all the more believeable. What I am about to tell you next, you probably won't believe but if you ask the friends I was doing it with (which you should know that they did not believe in the Ouija board AT ALL) can vouche by saying that it is true.
We asked the spirit was his favorite animal was and, in all honesty, this is what he spelt out: "B-L-A-C-K-C-A-T." A black cat? At that moment, I had thought someone moved the planchette because it seemed way to choreographed. At the same, though, I didn't know why anyone would even think to spell that out and it would have been obvious if one of us was moving it on purpose. It definitely freaked me out a little. Then, things really started getting creepy. We asked if the spirit minded that we had the lights on and it said "NO." However, we asked it if it would want us to shut the lights off instead and it said "YES." We then asked why he wanted us to do that and this is what he spelt out: "C-M-E." I didn't get it at first but then it dawned on me...SEE ME! He wanted us to see him? And at that moment, everyone got very freaked out. We even made one of our male friends cry he was so scared.
I could not believe the responses we got that night and I understand if you think I am making this all up. I probably wouldn't believe me either but I also wouldn't lie about this because I'm not like that. You would have had to seen it to believe it but I hope you can take my word for it! The next time you come across a Ouija board, try it. You never know what could happen.
Just passing through Elder Ballou
Katie and I managed to find another sight in our hometown: the Elder Ballou Cemetery, located right in Cumberland, RI.
There was a limited amount of information online about this sight but it did say that there are apparitions of a gray man seen walking along the premises. We decided to check it out- I mean what's better than driving 5 minutes to a haunted place? When we arrived, it was clear that this cemetery was not well kept by the town. The grass was very long and there were trees and bushes in random areas. You instantly got the feeling of creepiness.
The only place to park was across the street in a small dirt area. The first thing I noticed when I got out was the old bullentin board with flyers stuck to it. There were also newspaper clippings and all of the papers hung seemed to be outdated. It was a bit eerie and weird. Then, as we were about to cross the street, a man in a car slowly drove passed us and he was wearing a baseball cap. He didn't drive at a normal pace- I actually thought he was going to stop and ask for directions but I did not see his face and he kept driving. All in all, it wasn't the best feeling to start out with when you are about to walk into a cemetery.
We kind of shrugged it off and darted across the street. The cemetery was at a much higher ground than the road so there was a small hill we had to climb up to get to it. It was an extremely old-looking cemetery. It was messy and just did not look professional. We took a walk around and everything just seemed very out of place. I kept telling Katie that I didn't like being in there. Meanwhile, she's exploring every inch of it! I also felt like people were looking at us weirdly as they drove by. Unfortunately, we had no really scary experience except that I kept feeling as though there was someone staring at me. I swear, I kept turning around just to find nothing there and Katie began to feel a bit uneasy as well so we decided to leave.
The only really weird encounter that we had was that when we were back into my car about to pull out onto the road, that same man in his car drove by! I could not believe it. What were the odds of seeing him again? The reason I knew it was him was because he was wearing a baseball cap, driving the same car, and just as he passed us, he gave us a wave like he knew who we were. Strange? Definitely, but he could have just been a friendly guy...
There was a limited amount of information online about this sight but it did say that there are apparitions of a gray man seen walking along the premises. We decided to check it out- I mean what's better than driving 5 minutes to a haunted place? When we arrived, it was clear that this cemetery was not well kept by the town. The grass was very long and there were trees and bushes in random areas. You instantly got the feeling of creepiness.
The only place to park was across the street in a small dirt area. The first thing I noticed when I got out was the old bullentin board with flyers stuck to it. There were also newspaper clippings and all of the papers hung seemed to be outdated. It was a bit eerie and weird. Then, as we were about to cross the street, a man in a car slowly drove passed us and he was wearing a baseball cap. He didn't drive at a normal pace- I actually thought he was going to stop and ask for directions but I did not see his face and he kept driving. All in all, it wasn't the best feeling to start out with when you are about to walk into a cemetery.
We kind of shrugged it off and darted across the street. The cemetery was at a much higher ground than the road so there was a small hill we had to climb up to get to it. It was an extremely old-looking cemetery. It was messy and just did not look professional. We took a walk around and everything just seemed very out of place. I kept telling Katie that I didn't like being in there. Meanwhile, she's exploring every inch of it! I also felt like people were looking at us weirdly as they drove by. Unfortunately, we had no really scary experience except that I kept feeling as though there was someone staring at me. I swear, I kept turning around just to find nothing there and Katie began to feel a bit uneasy as well so we decided to leave.
The only really weird encounter that we had was that when we were back into my car about to pull out onto the road, that same man in his car drove by! I could not believe it. What were the odds of seeing him again? The reason I knew it was him was because he was wearing a baseball cap, driving the same car, and just as he passed us, he gave us a wave like he knew who we were. Strange? Definitely, but he could have just been a friendly guy...
Tucker Hollow Road- Not so hollow!
Tucker Hollow Road in Foster, RI was certainly an interesting sight to visit.Katie and I, as always, had done previous research before journeying to this supposedly haunted road and found that a girl named Dolly Cole and her family died in a house fire on that street. The fire was stared for unknown reasons and now she haunts the road. There have been several people who have witnessed Dolly walking on the road looking alive and well.
When we first arrived, I could already tell it was going to be creepy. It was a narrow, dirt road with thick woods and swamp areas on each sides of the road. My car had a little trouble ramudging through the rocks and dirt but I was more afraid of seeing something and having to swerve. We ended up driving the whole length of the road and I was very scared the entire time. It is definitely one of the creepiest roads in Rhode Island with no street lights, no pavement, and swamps surrouding everywhere, even the few houses that were located on the road. Who would ever want to live on that road?? It beats me, but we never did experience anything unusual except for the heaviest feeling of dread while driving down the road. We may have experienced these feelings because of how scary the road is in general, but I am also open to the fact that there could be a haunting that is residual- meaning the spirit does not know it is dead and is stuck thinking that it's living in the same moment in which it died. Therefore, in Dolly Cole's cause, her feelings of dread and sadness may be existent on that road and could be felt by drivers passing through.
Anything is possible.
Still not bored with the board.
Another ouija board experience.
For the record, I want to make it known that Katie and I did not really believe in the Ouija board in the beginning. I had tried using the board when I was younger and nothing had ever happened. Today I know that it is probably because I never took it that seriously and you must be patient. Once Katie and I got the hang of it, we were able to make contact nearly every time we used it. The key is to not joke around, make sure you either know or think that you are in a haunted sight while using, and be very open-minded.
One night, we decided to use it at one of our friends' houses. Her house was a little older and she thought it was haunted. Although we did not get much of a response from the board itself, Katie and I wanted to ask other questions, such as if it could move something in the room or make noise. When we had first started using the Ouija board, I would get freaked out if Katie wanted to ask questions like that. At least with the Ouija board we had some kind of control in the situation but if you ask a spirit questions like that, anything could happen. Once I started to feel comfortable with the idea, I allowed Katie to ask it. I was becoming less and less afraid of spirits the more we investigated.
Finally, Katie started asking the questions and we waited patiently for any kind of noise that seemed out of the ordinary. We began to hear faint banging coming from upstairs. It almost sounded as if someone had gotten out of bed and was walking down the hall. Granted, our friends' parents were asleep up there and they could have been making the noise but it went on for far too long to be a person. It also wasn't continuous. There was a bang here and a bang there...nothing consistent like someone would be walking so that shot down that idea. After it stopped, Katie asked it to make another noise. We waited then we suddenly heard a sound from the kitchen. It was very distinct and I still remember it because it truly sounded like something had fallen out of place in there. It reminded me of the noise that a keychain would make if it fell onto a table or slid off of something. It also reminded me of the sound it makes when I put my car keys down on the kitchen table when I walk inside the house. All in all, it was a really random sound and we immediately went into the kitchen to check it out. We looked around...nothing had seemed out of place. The only item visible that looked like it could have caused that noise was a keychain sitting on the counter. However, it was in a sturdy position and if it had moved, someone would have needed to move it.
This scenario may not be as intense as some of the other experiences I have had, but it is still weird! There was no explanation for the sounds and, like I always say, I do not like jumping to conclusions but I certainly think it could have been paranormal.
For the record, I want to make it known that Katie and I did not really believe in the Ouija board in the beginning. I had tried using the board when I was younger and nothing had ever happened. Today I know that it is probably because I never took it that seriously and you must be patient. Once Katie and I got the hang of it, we were able to make contact nearly every time we used it. The key is to not joke around, make sure you either know or think that you are in a haunted sight while using, and be very open-minded.
One night, we decided to use it at one of our friends' houses. Her house was a little older and she thought it was haunted. Although we did not get much of a response from the board itself, Katie and I wanted to ask other questions, such as if it could move something in the room or make noise. When we had first started using the Ouija board, I would get freaked out if Katie wanted to ask questions like that. At least with the Ouija board we had some kind of control in the situation but if you ask a spirit questions like that, anything could happen. Once I started to feel comfortable with the idea, I allowed Katie to ask it. I was becoming less and less afraid of spirits the more we investigated.
Finally, Katie started asking the questions and we waited patiently for any kind of noise that seemed out of the ordinary. We began to hear faint banging coming from upstairs. It almost sounded as if someone had gotten out of bed and was walking down the hall. Granted, our friends' parents were asleep up there and they could have been making the noise but it went on for far too long to be a person. It also wasn't continuous. There was a bang here and a bang there...nothing consistent like someone would be walking so that shot down that idea. After it stopped, Katie asked it to make another noise. We waited then we suddenly heard a sound from the kitchen. It was very distinct and I still remember it because it truly sounded like something had fallen out of place in there. It reminded me of the noise that a keychain would make if it fell onto a table or slid off of something. It also reminded me of the sound it makes when I put my car keys down on the kitchen table when I walk inside the house. All in all, it was a really random sound and we immediately went into the kitchen to check it out. We looked around...nothing had seemed out of place. The only item visible that looked like it could have caused that noise was a keychain sitting on the counter. However, it was in a sturdy position and if it had moved, someone would have needed to move it.
This scenario may not be as intense as some of the other experiences I have had, but it is still weird! There was no explanation for the sounds and, like I always say, I do not like jumping to conclusions but I certainly think it could have been paranormal.
The Dark Side of the Monastery
You guessed it- yet another night investigating the monastery. The appeal is that Katie and I have had the most experiences at this sight so why wouldn't we want to keep coming back?
In this particular instance, Katie had brought her brave younger sister along for the experience. As usual, we parked our car in the parking lot, shut it off, and rolled down the windows. This seemed to be quite the ritual for us! As every night does, it started off slow so we all got to talking about random topics. For some odd reason, I stared out at the dark woods and asked Katie and her sister if they were given a million dollars, would they run through those woods. Katie's sister exclaimed that she "totally would" because it was a million dollars! Katie, on the other hand, hates the dark and didn't think she could ever do it. I did not even have to think twice about my answer- I would never simply because I am more afraid of the people that could be in there. The three of us began talking about this controversy when, the next thing we know, we are sitting in darkness. It was PITCH black. We all stopped talking for a brief moment as Katie turned her car on and raced out of the monastery. I was in shock. Nearly all of the lights in the monastery had turned off, leaving us in total darkness and unable to see for a few seconds before Katie could turn her car on. It scared me to death, nonetheless, and we were in a state of total confusion. We have visited the monastery numerous times and not once have we had the lights turn off on us like that. I remember glancing at the clock and it read 10:13-such an odd time for the lights to be on a timer and to turn off. However, like I said, we had certainly been at the monastery before and the lights have never turned off. The craziest part about it is that we were actually having a serious discussion about the darkness and how afraid Katie and I were of it. Then the lights suddenly go out on us? I know that I always say this but it just seems like way too much of a coincidence...
In this particular instance, Katie had brought her brave younger sister along for the experience. As usual, we parked our car in the parking lot, shut it off, and rolled down the windows. This seemed to be quite the ritual for us! As every night does, it started off slow so we all got to talking about random topics. For some odd reason, I stared out at the dark woods and asked Katie and her sister if they were given a million dollars, would they run through those woods. Katie's sister exclaimed that she "totally would" because it was a million dollars! Katie, on the other hand, hates the dark and didn't think she could ever do it. I did not even have to think twice about my answer- I would never simply because I am more afraid of the people that could be in there. The three of us began talking about this controversy when, the next thing we know, we are sitting in darkness. It was PITCH black. We all stopped talking for a brief moment as Katie turned her car on and raced out of the monastery. I was in shock. Nearly all of the lights in the monastery had turned off, leaving us in total darkness and unable to see for a few seconds before Katie could turn her car on. It scared me to death, nonetheless, and we were in a state of total confusion. We have visited the monastery numerous times and not once have we had the lights turn off on us like that. I remember glancing at the clock and it read 10:13-such an odd time for the lights to be on a timer and to turn off. However, like I said, we had certainly been at the monastery before and the lights have never turned off. The craziest part about it is that we were actually having a serious discussion about the darkness and how afraid Katie and I were of it. Then the lights suddenly go out on us? I know that I always say this but it just seems like way too much of a coincidence...
The Hill has eyes
Video of someone driving on Tower Hill Road:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9mBCXJpSRE&feature=related
Tower Hill Road is a street located about 2 minutes from my house, off of Diamond Hill Road in Cumberland, RI. It is a completely dangerous road that is also supposedly haunted. It is very windy, narrow and there are rocks that stick out into the road, making it even more hazardous than it already is. The supposed tale of this road is that if you gain enough speed to reach the "deadly curve" and you go around it fast enough, you can see the apparition of a little boy on a tricycle in your review mirror. Who would ever try this stunt? Certainly not me. However, there are also other tales, such as seeing apparitions in the woods. Katie and I have ridden down this road several times and the only thing we have ever experienced is the feeling of being watched. Maybe it is because there is woods surrounding every house along that road and the lack of street lights. Although, two of my very good friends have both experienced the same thing on different occasions and I do take their word for it because it happened years apart from each other. Both of them had their radios go all out of whack as they were driving along that road. There was absolutely no explanation for it happening; but, I find it a bit ironic that one of my friends told me that this happened to her about 5 years ago whereas one of my other friends told me that this recently happened to them and these two friends do not even know each other.
Is it purely a series of chance that 2 identical experiences occurred on the same road? You be the judge.
Just another night at the library...
As I have mentioned in my other posts, the monastery was a very popular sight for Katie and I to investigate. I want to share with you another one of our encounters.
We, again, brought the videocamera with us in hopes of finding something interesting! We parked in the parking lot closest to the entrance of the Cumberland Monastery and I shut my car off in order to hear any sounds more distinctly. Katie started asking questions to see if any spirits might be present and could maybe respond back. It was a bit windy that night so I remember thinking that it might be hard to capture any voices since it's possible we wouldn't be able to hear it. I was hoping for visual evidence.
After not having much action occur, Katie handed the video camera to me. I asked the usual questions, "Is there anyone there that would like to speak to us?" "Why are you here?" "Can you make a noise to let us know that you are here?." Then, I decided to ask, "Could you walk across the videocamera to let us know that you are here with us?" Suddenly, at that very instant, the screen got VERY blurry and I could not longer see out of it. I quickly showed Katie and she was just as flabberghasted as I was. I tried focusing the camera on other things and towards different areas where the lights weren't shining- it was still blurry. After a good 10 to 15 seconds, the screen went back to normal as if nothing had ever been wrong. I did not even adjust anything, I simply held the camera steady. I could not believe it. Katie and I rewound the tape to see it again and it is almost uncanning how at that very moment I asked something to walk in front of the camera, the screen immediately became blurred.
Katie and I like to come up with any possible reason for the occurrence before jumping to conclusions. We thought that the tall street lights might have caused it do this but if I was holding the camera still, why did that happen? And, why was it that when I focused that camera back on that exact spot, that the screen was completely visible before and after that had happened? It was too much of a coincidence to be a perk in the camera.
We, again, brought the videocamera with us in hopes of finding something interesting! We parked in the parking lot closest to the entrance of the Cumberland Monastery and I shut my car off in order to hear any sounds more distinctly. Katie started asking questions to see if any spirits might be present and could maybe respond back. It was a bit windy that night so I remember thinking that it might be hard to capture any voices since it's possible we wouldn't be able to hear it. I was hoping for visual evidence.
After not having much action occur, Katie handed the video camera to me. I asked the usual questions, "Is there anyone there that would like to speak to us?" "Why are you here?" "Can you make a noise to let us know that you are here?." Then, I decided to ask, "Could you walk across the videocamera to let us know that you are here with us?" Suddenly, at that very instant, the screen got VERY blurry and I could not longer see out of it. I quickly showed Katie and she was just as flabberghasted as I was. I tried focusing the camera on other things and towards different areas where the lights weren't shining- it was still blurry. After a good 10 to 15 seconds, the screen went back to normal as if nothing had ever been wrong. I did not even adjust anything, I simply held the camera steady. I could not believe it. Katie and I rewound the tape to see it again and it is almost uncanning how at that very moment I asked something to walk in front of the camera, the screen immediately became blurred.
Katie and I like to come up with any possible reason for the occurrence before jumping to conclusions. We thought that the tall street lights might have caused it do this but if I was holding the camera still, why did that happen? And, why was it that when I focused that camera back on that exact spot, that the screen was completely visible before and after that had happened? It was too much of a coincidence to be a perk in the camera.
Suspicious "Snowflakes" at St. Stephen's Cemetery...what a mouthful!
One cold night over the winter, Katie and I planned our next adventure. There were so many places we wanted to go so it was pretty easy for us to decide on a destination. We came across "St. Stephen's Cemetery" in Attleboro, MA. We figured it was relatively close because Cumberland was on the border of Attleboro so we mapquested the address through Google. As I was reading through the street names, I couldn't help but notice how familiar they sounded. After a few moments of thought, I realized that I had taken this very route several times to go over a friend's house. Could it really be that I passed by this cemetery numerous times and not even think twice about it? Yes! It is possible! We then quickly agreed that this was the place we should go because I knew exactly how to get there.
In the car ride over, Katie and I were anxious, excited, and nervous all at the same time- feelings we felt every time we were going on an investigation. This time, we had a video camera with us so we could document anything that might happen. I slowly developed a knot in my stomach as I realized that we had almost reached the cemetery. Unfortunately, it was located on a main road so it was harder than normal to be secretive about our investigation. However, I still pulled into entrance of St. Stephen's Cemetery and drove about 100 feet in then stopped my car so we could look out the windows and listen for sounds. Katie pressed "record" on the video camera and began asking questions in hopes of hearing a disembodied voice when we would review the tape later.
Beforehand, we had read briefly that children apparitions have been seen as well as a glowing gravestone for reasons unknown. There were also accounts of people hearing voices and laughter while walking in the cemetery only to find that no one else was present. Katie and I truly hoped we could catch something on camera so we could finally have a piece of evidence to show non-believers. We sat in my car for a while and nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be happening. We then decided to leave to go home and watch the video back. As we were leaving the cemetery, I instantly felt a sense of relief. This may be hard for you to believe, but I am not one to exaggerate about this kind of stuff. I kept my mouth shut about it, though, because I did not want to make it into a big deal or scare Katie because it honestly could have just been the fact that we were sitting in a graveyard for 40 minutes! Suddenly, Katie gave me a weird look as we were out of sight of the cemetery. I asked her what her deal was and she replied, "I don't know if you're going to believe me but I feel so much better after leaving there...I had such a heavy feeling in my stomach when were sitting there." I couldn't believe it! I told her I had felt the same exact way. Coincidence? I don't think so.
Anyways, upon reviewing the evidence, we did catch something pretty interesting. I noticed that Katie had held the camera outside the window as we were departing the graveyard and it looked as though there were snowflakes falling from the sky. The videocamera was in night vision mode so it looks like small specks were flying in all directions. The weird part about it was that throughout the whole video, we did not see these specks at all. They only appeared when we were leaving the cemetery. AND- it wasn't snowing! If it had, I would have had to turn my windshield wipers on because that was how many dots were spurred up into the air. Could it have been dust? Maybe, but that was the only instance those specks had appeared on tape. Believe what you will but I think it might have been paranormal.
In the car ride over, Katie and I were anxious, excited, and nervous all at the same time- feelings we felt every time we were going on an investigation. This time, we had a video camera with us so we could document anything that might happen. I slowly developed a knot in my stomach as I realized that we had almost reached the cemetery. Unfortunately, it was located on a main road so it was harder than normal to be secretive about our investigation. However, I still pulled into entrance of St. Stephen's Cemetery and drove about 100 feet in then stopped my car so we could look out the windows and listen for sounds. Katie pressed "record" on the video camera and began asking questions in hopes of hearing a disembodied voice when we would review the tape later.
Beforehand, we had read briefly that children apparitions have been seen as well as a glowing gravestone for reasons unknown. There were also accounts of people hearing voices and laughter while walking in the cemetery only to find that no one else was present. Katie and I truly hoped we could catch something on camera so we could finally have a piece of evidence to show non-believers. We sat in my car for a while and nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be happening. We then decided to leave to go home and watch the video back. As we were leaving the cemetery, I instantly felt a sense of relief. This may be hard for you to believe, but I am not one to exaggerate about this kind of stuff. I kept my mouth shut about it, though, because I did not want to make it into a big deal or scare Katie because it honestly could have just been the fact that we were sitting in a graveyard for 40 minutes! Suddenly, Katie gave me a weird look as we were out of sight of the cemetery. I asked her what her deal was and she replied, "I don't know if you're going to believe me but I feel so much better after leaving there...I had such a heavy feeling in my stomach when were sitting there." I couldn't believe it! I told her I had felt the same exact way. Coincidence? I don't think so.
Anyways, upon reviewing the evidence, we did catch something pretty interesting. I noticed that Katie had held the camera outside the window as we were departing the graveyard and it looked as though there were snowflakes falling from the sky. The videocamera was in night vision mode so it looks like small specks were flying in all directions. The weird part about it was that throughout the whole video, we did not see these specks at all. They only appeared when we were leaving the cemetery. AND- it wasn't snowing! If it had, I would have had to turn my windshield wipers on because that was how many dots were spurred up into the air. Could it have been dust? Maybe, but that was the only instance those specks had appeared on tape. Believe what you will but I think it might have been paranormal.
Oui? Do you believe in ghosts?
Now, this is the story of something that occurred right in one of the dorms at URI! Once Katie and I really got into the whole "paranormal thing", we decided it would be awesome, and appropriate, to invest in a Ouija board. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is simply a board and a "planchette" (or hand piece) that is designed to communicate with spirits. The board consists of letters and numbers as well as the words "YES" and "NO". I had tried using it as a kid but nothing ever happened because my house is not haunted. After reading online about the haunted dorms on the URI campus, we thought it would a good idea to test it out in one of them.
We gathered people together, maybe 5 or 6 of us, and all sat on the floor with our legs crossed and our fingers touching the planchette. We began asking questions and waitied patiently for the planchette to move on its own. Supposedly, the spirit sucks the energy from the people that are playing and moves the piece to answer our questions. I was very skeptical at whether or not it was going to work but we sat very patiently, since we had been informed it may take a while for a spirit to come in contact. After about ten minutes, we noticed the planchette started to move. I instantly thought that someone might be moving it themselves but I kept my mouth shut as we began asking complicated questions- questions that only one person would know the answer to. I decided I would ask a personal question that only I knew the answer to because I know that I do not move the hand piece and if it moved to the right answer then I would know it was working. I closed my eyes, as did everyone else, and we waited to see where it would land. It was a number question and with my eyes being closed, I had no idea where it was on the board so when the planchette finally came to a stop, I opened my eyes...
It had landed on the right number!!! I was completely shocked. I was still skeptical but at the same time, no one else had known the answer to my question so what were the odds of this Ouija board giving the right answer? It was absolutely crazy. As the night went on, we kept asking questions and 9 times out of 10, it would get it right. I was amazed and you probably would only believe me if you experienced it for yourself. Trust me, I understand. I could barely believe it and I actually witnessed it!
I had always read weird stories of Ouija boards and how they worked for people and to actually experience this myself was so satisfying and exciting! Katie and I use that Ouija board very often and although we haven't gotten as great of results since those nights at URI, we still hope for the best and will definitely have more experiences to come...
No mercy for Mercy!
Another site that was close to our school was the Chestnut Hill Cemetery that was located in Exeter as well. We discovered this by searching the internet and I couldn't help but recognize the name, Mercy Brown, who was a suspected vampire buried in this cemetery. I then thought back to high school and how one of my professors spoke of this place on Halloween when we were all sharing scary stories. Katie and I did further research about her and it gives me chills just thinking of the tale of Mercy Brown. She was supposedly a vampire because, for whatever reason, her father dug up her body to find her blood still retained in her body and had no sign of deceasing. Therefore, it is said that people have seen her in the cemetery at night along with blue lights the float along the graves. We were dying to know if this was true and decided to take a drive with a few of our friends one night.
After getting lost a couple of times and soon realizing we had passed the cemetery more than once, we pulled in. Except for maybe one street light, it was hard to see but we got out of the car and walked around to find Mercy Brown's grave alongside with her family members' graves. We had read online that her body was moved to a crypt and we quickly spotted that, as it was a huge stone wall enclosed by doors that kept in her body. We swore we heard noises coming from that crypt, I don't care what anyone says!
I should also mention now that I am a complete skeptic when it comes to the paranormal. Of course, I would love to experience something but I do not jump to conclusions with these kinds of things. Therefore, you should take my word when I claim to have witnessed something!
Anyways, after walking around a bit and getting completely spooked, a light came on in the distance and a dog began barking. It scared the heck out of me, let me tell ya! It turned out to be a resident of a house next to the graveyard and we decided it would be best to leave before we got into trouble. However, it made me suspicious because people must visit this site often enough for the neighbor to know that we were there- the house wasn't that close to the cemetery! It was crazy that anyone even saw us. Maybe this gives a little more truth to the haunting of this grave site because of how many people are willing to visit it and find out the truth...I look forward to going back soon and experiencing the apparition of Mercy herself!
After getting lost a couple of times and soon realizing we had passed the cemetery more than once, we pulled in. Except for maybe one street light, it was hard to see but we got out of the car and walked around to find Mercy Brown's grave alongside with her family members' graves. We had read online that her body was moved to a crypt and we quickly spotted that, as it was a huge stone wall enclosed by doors that kept in her body. We swore we heard noises coming from that crypt, I don't care what anyone says!
I should also mention now that I am a complete skeptic when it comes to the paranormal. Of course, I would love to experience something but I do not jump to conclusions with these kinds of things. Therefore, you should take my word when I claim to have witnessed something!
Anyways, after walking around a bit and getting completely spooked, a light came on in the distance and a dog began barking. It scared the heck out of me, let me tell ya! It turned out to be a resident of a house next to the graveyard and we decided it would be best to leave before we got into trouble. However, it made me suspicious because people must visit this site often enough for the neighbor to know that we were there- the house wasn't that close to the cemetery! It was crazy that anyone even saw us. Maybe this gives a little more truth to the haunting of this grave site because of how many people are willing to visit it and find out the truth...I look forward to going back soon and experiencing the apparition of Mercy herself!
Ladd School: not just for lads...
The Joseph P. Ladd Center...our suspicions arose in this place after hearing stories from several of our friends. "You guys haven't been to the Ladd School?!" they would ask, surprised. Katie and I looked at each other sheepishly but began asking questions about it. Many of our friends claimed to have had experiences there so we immediately wanted to go check it out.
Being a student at URI made for a convenient travel distance to this supposedly haunted place. It was only about 20 minutes or so down the road. I remember feeling very eager to see what it was all about! Katie and I had researched it a bit before we went and discovered that it was a hospital for mentally challenged male and female children. However, these children were tortured by doctors and nurses, as the story goes. It only closed for good in 1982 when others got wind of what was going on there. It is in a very secluded and sketchy area, it is no wonder no one found out about this place for years.
Anyways, Katie and I brought along two of our friends to investigate because we were also warned of human intruders, not just ghosts. We finally arrived to find a bunch of buildings scattered distantly from one another. I kept thinking to myself, "Why aren't these buildings torn down? What is the use of them?" The answer was, quite frankly, that they were not currently used for anything- the town simply thinks it costs too much to tear down.
We finally parked in a spot in front of a rectangular building full of graffitti and boarded up windows and doors. Luckily, we found a spot in which a door was kicked in! We made our way over there but suddenly felt a sense of nervousness. The building was pitch black and we hadn't brough flashlights...smart move, huh? The only light flooding in was the dusk sunlight, which wouldn't be lasting for very much longer. After debating for a couple of minutes of what to do, we decided that we were here now and might as well take a look!
One by one, we stepped into the opening and looked down the long hallways. There were rooms still full of furniture, such as chairs, beds, etc. It was VERY creepy and I did NOT enjoy being in there! All I could picture was children being tortured and their spirits still lingering around these hallways. We could only bare the darkness for so long before stepping outside again and we all gave a sigh of relief. What were we thinking going in there without any flashlights?! Despite the creaking and groaning of the walls, there wasn't much to document except for eerie feelings. Was it the history that filled my mind and gave me uneasy feelings? Or was the Ladd School really full of unsettled souls?
Maybe on my next visit, I will find out...
Being a student at URI made for a convenient travel distance to this supposedly haunted place. It was only about 20 minutes or so down the road. I remember feeling very eager to see what it was all about! Katie and I had researched it a bit before we went and discovered that it was a hospital for mentally challenged male and female children. However, these children were tortured by doctors and nurses, as the story goes. It only closed for good in 1982 when others got wind of what was going on there. It is in a very secluded and sketchy area, it is no wonder no one found out about this place for years.
Anyways, Katie and I brought along two of our friends to investigate because we were also warned of human intruders, not just ghosts. We finally arrived to find a bunch of buildings scattered distantly from one another. I kept thinking to myself, "Why aren't these buildings torn down? What is the use of them?" The answer was, quite frankly, that they were not currently used for anything- the town simply thinks it costs too much to tear down.
We finally parked in a spot in front of a rectangular building full of graffitti and boarded up windows and doors. Luckily, we found a spot in which a door was kicked in! We made our way over there but suddenly felt a sense of nervousness. The building was pitch black and we hadn't brough flashlights...smart move, huh? The only light flooding in was the dusk sunlight, which wouldn't be lasting for very much longer. After debating for a couple of minutes of what to do, we decided that we were here now and might as well take a look!
One by one, we stepped into the opening and looked down the long hallways. There were rooms still full of furniture, such as chairs, beds, etc. It was VERY creepy and I did NOT enjoy being in there! All I could picture was children being tortured and their spirits still lingering around these hallways. We could only bare the darkness for so long before stepping outside again and we all gave a sigh of relief. What were we thinking going in there without any flashlights?! Despite the creaking and groaning of the walls, there wasn't much to document except for eerie feelings. Was it the history that filled my mind and gave me uneasy feelings? Or was the Ladd School really full of unsettled souls?
Maybe on my next visit, I will find out...
"Monky" business at the Cumberland Monastery
My passion for the paranormal began when I was in middle school and has only progressed since then. The Cumberland Library and Monastery located in Cumberland, RI- my hometown- proved to be a great sight for investigations. Meeting Katie was the greatest opportunity for me to share my interest in spirits and she has become my partner in crime for as long as I can remember! Our differing but at the same time similar personalities mesh perfectly to make for excellent ghost hunting explorations.
One summer a couple of years ago, the Cumberland Monastery grew into a place we visited often after discovering the haunted history behind it. Katie and I had always heard that it was haunted but we decided to take it a step further. After taking several walks in the long paths of the woods at the monastery, we went inside the library one day to read books about what makes this place haunted as well as to look up other haunted places in Rhode Island.
Oh how we thoroughly enjoyed plopping ourselves on the floor of the library with a whole shelf of books in front of us that were dedicated to haunted sights in our state. We certainly thought that others around us believed us to be complete “weirdos” for getting a thrill out of reading these books. We discovered a couple of other haunted sights in our town and quickly wrote them down for the future. Katie and I also read that there used to be gatherings of monks at the library until there was a fire that erupted that forced them to relocate. Additionally, there is a famous sight called “Nine Men’s Misery in which colonists died in the 1600’s while fighting Indians. After doing research we took our ritual walk along the outside path.
We must have gone to the monastery a couple of times a week that summer and even though we only had a couple of experiences; it is still an interesting place to investigate. Also, as a warning, you may think I am crazy for what I am about to say. One day Katie and I were walking our dogs and there was a spot in the middle of the path where we both stepped into and instantly looked at each other and froze. At the same exact moment, we had both felt a cold spot, which paranormal investigators sometimes experiences and it can mean that there is a possibility of a spirit present. Of course we had to remember that we were outside and there could easily be temperature changes but the fact that we both felt it at the same exact time is a bit suspicious. Being the optimist that I am, I did not think much of it but it still goes on our list of experiences!