"I ain't afraid of no ghost."
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!