Where To Go For Help

As an accidental ghost hunter people will sometimes ask me where to go for help. Strange and frightening things may be happening in their homes or workplaces and, in some instances, their children may be too afraid to sleep in their own rooms.

Since I'm an accidental ghost hunter I'm not equipped to visit their home and do a professional ghost hunt, but that doesn't mean I can't help.

It's been my observation that The Atlantic Paranormal Society, TAPS for short, is the most professional and helpful service for those who are dealing with this type of disharmony in their homes. These are the folks who do the Ghost Hunters and Ghost Hunters International shows on cable TV. They use state of the art equipment, and they do their best to debunk, or find non-supernatural explanations for what may be causing problems in the home. It is not uncommon for electrical or plumbing issues to make strange noises or cause funny things to happen.

TAPS has affiliate members all over the country. Just visit their website at http://www.the-atlantic-paranormal-society.com, and click on the 'Family Members" link. Their services are free, and they will do their best to help.

And just so you all know, The Accidental Ghost Hunter is not affiliated with TAPS.

Tucson Depot Orb

One of my friends and fellow Tombstone Vigilante members, Tom Carter, gave me his permission to post this photo.

A few years ago the Tucson railroad depot underwent a major renovation and Tom took a few pictures of the construction. He was using a 35mm camera, and much to his surprise one of his photos came out with an orb.

Orbs are something of a controversy in the ghost hunting community. Sometimes orbs can be balls of energy which may indicate the presence of paranormal activity. And sometimes orbs can simply be dust or even insects that are in the right place to reflect light back into the lens of the camera.

This site does, however, have an interesting story behind it. In the months after the infamous shoot out on Frement Street in Tombstone, known today as the gunfight at the O.K. corral, enemies of the Earp brothers took their revenge. In two separate attacks both Virgil and Morgan Earp were ambushed. Morgan was killed. Virgil survived but permanently lost the use of his left arm.

In March, 1882, Wyatt Earp, his brother Warren, and their friends accompanied Vigil and his wife, Allie, from the town of Contention to the depot in Tucson where they would be stopping for dinner before continuing on to California. Shortly after Vigil and Allie reboarded the train Wyatt spotted two cowboys, Ike Clanton and Frank Stillwell, laying prone on a nearby flatcar, with shotguns pointed at Virgil and Allie. Wyatt gave chase. Ike Clanton escaped, but Frank Stillwell was gunned down by Wyatt Earp.

Today the Tucson railroad depot is still a working train station. It has a few shops, a restaurant, and it is also the home of the Southern Arizona Transportation Museum. And some folks say it is also haunted by the ghost of Frank Stillwell.

GM

Gettysburg Ghosts

This post is courtesy of guest blogger Rick Fritz.

"I never intended to be a ghost hunter. I moved to Carlisle Pa, when I took a job at Harrisburg Community College. Carlisle is 27 miles from Gettysburg. My wife befriended a woman who worked in a Civil War dress shop whose husband was a licensed Civil War Battlefield Guide. Anyway my wife kept hearing these fantastic ghost stories and seeing ghost photos. Determined to debunk these stories, we set out on our own to “hunt ghosts”

"The first place we went was an area known as Doc’s Rock. It is just passed the Wheatfield, across the road from the Irish Brigade monument. It was the site of the 1st Field Hospital. There we have heard pigs, volleys of musket fire, and photographed lots of orbs. Like the one in the above photo.

"These orbs were captured over the Wheatfield. Picture taken from Doc’s Rock."




"We then concentrated on Doc’s Rock. In this photo notice how the dark blue orb has moved from the base of the tree!"




"From there we went to Devil’s Den."




"Devil’s Den was very active. Lots of small orbs!"





"And a blue rod that moved!"





Wow! There are some truly amazing photos, Rick. I've not been to Gettysburg myself, but I hear it is a very haunted place. No wonder. During the three day Battle of Gettysburg more Americans were killed than in the entire Vietnam War.

Thank you for sharing.

GM

The Accidental Ghost Hunter's Review of Ghostly Encounters

Ghostly Encounters is an interesting little show that's been showing on the Biography cable network for the past few years. It comes from Canada, and it's hosted by a very pleasant young man, Lawrence Cho.

Cho stands in what looks like an old, abandoned ball room as he introduces each segment. An allegedly true ghost story is then told by the person or persons who experienced it. Seated in a spotlighted chair on an otherwise empty set they tell their stories as the viewers are shown a dramatic recreation of the events they describe. At the end of the segment Cho sums up and comments on each story. Ghostly Encounters is a half-hour show with two stories covered over each episode.

This show is very entertaining and some of the stories are very interesting. The only problem is they often times can not be verified. Typically there is no evidence presented that could back their stories; no photos, no videos nor EVP recordings. It's just a man or woman telling a story of their own personal ghostly encounter, and it's up to the audience to decide whether or not they're telling the truth.

I enjoy this show. I don't go out of my way to watch it, nor do I think it's as good as another Biography Channel show, Dead Famous. But it's still entertaining, and it's the kind of show your kids can watch without getting scared out of their wits.

Ghostly Encounters airs on weekends. Check with your local provider for times.

GM

Horse and Rider Ghosts?

Today's post is courtesy of guest blogger Cindy Smith.

"This is the horse and rider photograph I took at the Stockyards in Fort Worth a couple years ago. It was taken with a digital camera sometime around 8 pm. The man appears to be right in front of me, when he wasn't anywhere to be seen by either myself or my friend who was with me. You can actually see right through the man and the horse, and the horse has no feet. He appears to be floating off the ground.

My friend and I looked all around the arena that night for this rider and horse and he did not exist. There was no one in front of me when I took that picture. I have shown it to others and they say that the Stockyards are very 'haunted'. That maybe this was someone who rode with the rodeo who just didn't want to leave. ????"

This is an amazing photo Cindy. I have seen that fuzzy, blurry distortion show up in other people's photos down in Tombstone. Cindy tells me that so far no one has been able to debunk it.

Thank you for sharing it.

GM

Musical Ghosts?

I was searching for another file on my hard drive and came across this little oddity...

This photo was taken in Avondale, Arizona, at a Western movie studio. A small, privately owned filmed studio, which, so far as I know, has never been open to the public. It's used mostly by small, independent film makers.

For those of you who are unfamiliar, Avondale is a small suburban community southwest of Phoenix. When I was growing up in Phoenix the town of Avondale was a nothing more than little farming community out in the sticks. I don't recall hearing stories of any violent crimes happening out there. Maybe a car crash or a farming accident, and that was about it. Avondale was just citrus orchards and dairy farms. But like most everything else in the Valley today it is now surrounded by the big city.

About 18 months or so ago I was invited to sign my books at an Old West event at the movie studio. I brought my trusty 35mm camera with me, as I always did. As usual, the roll of film came back normal, except for this shot I took of one of the bands performing. There is a strange white mist surrounding one of the band members. It almost looks like a super-sized orb. It very well could just be a trick of light--perhaps a reflection of the dust in the air. Many times that's what an orb is, and this particular location was a very dusty place. So far as I know it's not a haunted site. But then again, they say spirits are everywhere.

You be the judge.

GM

The Accidental Ghost Hunter's Review of Ghost Adventures at the Bird Cage

Prior to this show airing some of the locals in Tombstone had told me they didn't much care for the three young men on Ghost Adventures, and now that I've seen it I can certainly understand why. If fact, I personally am appalled by their behavior.

The Bird Cage Theater is a museum. It houses priceless historical artifacts. I personally know the staff at the Bird Cage, and I simply can not believe that they would have ever given Zach permission to fire a gun inside the building, even if it was loaded with blanks. By firing that gun he could have easily damaged some of the artifacts, and they are irreplaceable!

Even more appalling was when Zack pointed the gun at himself and dared the spirits to fire it at him. BLANKS CAN KILL!

I am a member of the Tombstone Vigilantes, and Old West reenactment group that performs every other Sunday on Allen Street. We are very safety conscience. With every performance we include a demonstration of how blanks can kill by firing one close range at a beer can. The beer can explodes. So not only could Zach have become the next spirit resident at the Bird Cage himself, the people watching the show at home have now been lead to believe that a gun loaded with blanks is merely a toy. That is inexcusable and unforgivable.

Zack is a prime candidate for a Darwin Award.

GM