When the Ribeyre Gymnasium was gifted to the town of New Harmony by Alfred Ribeyre in 1924, the children of New Harmony were thrilled. Their old gymnasium was undersized to a point where children injured themselves during basketball games by running into the rough corners. The new gym had seating for 1200, hot showers, proper ventilation and an impressive basketball court. They barely had a chance to enjoy it before tragedy struck the area.
On March 18th, 1925 an F-5 tornado swept through three states and killed 695 people and injured over 2,000. The Tri-State Tornado is still on record as being the deadliest tornado in US History.
The town of Griffin, Indiana, took one of the hardest hits. This prosperous small town was taken by surprise by the tornado. Weather-wise farmers were out in their fields preparing for the year’s planting season when it rolled in, looking more like a cloud of dust than a tornado. The timing was disastrous, as well. School had just let out and a horse and carriage full of children were hit head on by the tornado. The horse and driver were killed instantly, as well as many of the children. One of the children who survived was a ten year-old boy who ran six miles to New Harmony to get help.
The dead and dying were brought to New Harmony. The dying were attended to on the brand new gymnasium floor, the same place where happy children played basketball, and the dead were placed in the basement, which acted as a temporary morgue. The building has been haunted every since.
People who attend to the building often feel watched. On more than one occasion, they’ve heard a crash from the kitchen, only to discover an ice scoop on the floor on the other side of the kitchen. People participating in yoga often heard the sounds of footsteps and giggling coming from the stage, and one man who came to fix the clock actually saw the ghostly children playing on the bleachers.
We’ve investigated this building five times in the past and have always come away with evidence of the haunting. We’ve recorded dozens of EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenomena) and have even had several strange experiences. During our last investigation, we saw and heard a man walk from the Annex building into the kitchen, whistling. Curious, I got up to look and found the kitchen completely empty.
I was encouraged to set up another investigation here by people who went to school in New Harmony and used the gymnasium as children. Several of them had been on previous investigations there, but were curious if anything had changed. I set up the event and it sold out within two weeks.
As a medium, I can tell you that the building has a presence. It’s hard to describe, but you basically know you aren’t alone. It’s the feeling you get when someone walks quietly into the room behind you. You feel them before you turn around and see them. In this case, you feel them, but cannot see them, which is an unsettling sensation.
We set up for the event earlier in the evening and, after a brief introduction, started the investigation. We divided into four groups and investigated four areas of the building: the Annex, the gymnasium floor, the stage and the basement.
The Annex
The Annex is a long narrow addition to the gymnasium, connected by open doorways. We’ve had several encounters there with the little boy ghost. He peeked out from the bathroom door. Rick Schlegelmilch (aka Whistling Rick) oversaw a dowsing rod session there.
First Group (Blue Group)
Whistling Rick had everyone introduce themselves and then gave them a demonstration on how to use the rods.
Then they got started. Here’s what they discovered:
- There were more than one of them there.
- There was someone there from Griffin.
- There wasn’t a little boy with them.
- There was a woman with them.
- She worked at the school.
- She worked there a long time.
- She wasn’t by herself.
- She was with other people.
- The kids there wanted to play a game. (Ziggy put cat balls on the floor for them.)
- There are many kids there.
- Someone asked for the rods to point to where the ghosts were in the room. The rods said yes, but didn’t point.
- She was standing in front of him.
- She would like to communicate with them.
- She visits other places in town.
- There isn’t an airport in New Harmony (test question).
- They hear Rick when he walks through town whistling.
- She’s in the back of the room.
- She can come to the front of the room.
- She was a teacher there.
- She helped take care of the building.
- She was married and had kids.
- The kid was playing with his own ball.
- He was playing near them.
- He plays with other kids too.
Second Group (Red Group)
As soon as they introduced themselves, they started the session.
- No one from downstairs followed them upstairs.
- Someone there wanted to talk to them.
- They were talking to a male.
- They were still talking to the maintenance man from the last session.
- He worked there.
- He has friends over there.
- He played basketball there.
- He wasn’t wearing pink shoes (test question).
- He was close to them.
- They were also speaking to a female.
- She’s the female who has been seen in the bathroom.
- Her name is Emily.
- She was a teacher there.
- She had children.
- She’s never been to Illinois.
- She still wants to talk.
- She likes Otis Reading and would rather be sitting on the dock of the bay.
- She likes Motown.
- It isn’t daylight outside (test question.)
- She can buy dowsing rods.
- She likes spinach.
- She’s talked to them before.
- She once went to dances at the old Odd Fellows building (now Capers Emporium).
They heard a whistle, but it wasn’t caught on the recorder. Too many people were moving around in their chairs.
- She can whistle again (but didn’t).
- She used the tunnels under the streets.
- She fished in the Wabash.
- She doesn’t know what an airplane is.
- Someone came up from downstairs.
- The sky isn’t green (test question).
- She can make a noise for them.
- A female followed them from downstairs.
- It was Anna.
- Someone named Andy was with Anna.
- It wasn’t the woman asking’s Andy.
- Anna likes to play outside.
- That was her peaking her head through the window.
Third Session (Yellow Group)
By this time, many of the groups had been to other areas of the building and had knowledge to build on. The dowsing rods gave them a chance to explore information they already uncovered.
- Someone there was willing to speak with them.
- The coach from the other room was there.
- They were enjoying the investigation.
- She asked for them to point to where they were in the room and they pointed towards Kathy.
- They were under twenty years old.
- They played in the gym.
- It’s not light outside (test question).
- Bob the coach was there.
- He coached basketball.
- He coached against Kathy’s dad.
- They know who Jim is.
- There was more than one person there.
- There were children there.
- Virginia was there.
- She asked for the rods to point to where Virginia was and they pointed.
- She can make the ball on the floor light up.
- Virginia was under 21.
- She was under 16.
- It isn’t warm outside (test question).
- She likes warm weather.
- She’s planted a garden here in town before.
- She had a pet.
- She didn’t have a cat.
- She visits the other buildings in town.
- She knew the people at the Fretageot house.
- New Harmony used to have a ferry boat that went across the Wabash.
- New Harmony never had a professional sports team (test question).
- The basketball coach was still there.
- His name is Bob.
- He coached boys’ basketball.
- They won often.
- He was married.
- He had kids.
- They know who wears the strong perfume at the firehouse. (They have a ghost there).
- Her name is Marie or Maria.
- She sometimes comes over to the gym. (Rick said he suddenly smelled perfume.)
- Someone there peeks through the back windows.
- They can light up the equipment on the floor (but didn’t).
- They weren’t going to light them up though.
- She asked the rods to point to where they were and they pointed straight ahead.
- They used to teach school.
- They taught the younger kids.
Fourth Session (Orange Group)
Rick’s last group had already had a lot of experiences. He asked them if they had a common thread throughout the night and they had. A female had been following them all night. They decided not to do a dowsing rod session and spent the half hour discussing the paranormal. They talked about everything from Ouija Boards to sleep paralysis.
Gymnasium Floor
First Group (Orange Group)
Rachel Decker led the investigation on the gymnasium floor. I’ve known Rachel for years and have investigated with her in several haunted hotspots. She has over twenty years of experience, which made her an excellent investigator for our investigation.
She started out by asking everyone to take a moment to focus on the word “communication,” and let them know that was why they were there. This moment of silence gave everyone a chance to center themselves and fully invest their attention on the investigation.
They were using a spirit box to communicate. The spirit box is a modified radio that scans rapidly through the channels, allowing the ghosts to speak through the white noise. When it works, it’s phenomenal. When it doesn’t work, it’s annoying. Rachel had mixed results during the night. At the time, they didn’t think they were getting anything, but they captured a lot. During audio review, I was astounded by the results.
Someone asked if they went to school there in the 80s and a warbled voice said, “We didn’t.”
When asked if they attended dances there, it sounds like someone said, “maybe.”
Rachel asked if they could tell her their name and a male voice said, “Steve.”
Then, without benefit of a question, a female told them, “I’m sick.”
When asked what their favorite food was, a male voice said, “cake.”
Someone asked how many spirits were there and a male voice told them, “a lot.”
They were asked if they had anything to say without asking a question and heard a very weird laugh.
And perhaps the eeriest response of all came a few minutes later. Someone asked if they personally know anyone sitting in the circle. A female voice said, “Rachel.”
Rachel actually heard them say her name and asked if they could tell her their name so she knew who she was talking to. A female voice responded with, “Try to think the thing.” While it makes no sense, it was a clear response.
As she was attempting to get a response, a voice came through and told her, “We’re pretty. We’ll match.” I’m not sure what that meant. Maybe the woman thought Rachel was pretty too?
Then, without a question, a female said, “This is not our music.” The spirit box Rachel was using looks like an old fashioned radio. Perhaps she was confused?
They discussed the session afterwards and all agreed they could hear voices coming through under the static. You couldn’t quite make out what they were saying, but you could hear them. Some of the responses they thought they heard weren’t actually what came through the box. One person thought she heard “Theresa,” several times. I didn’t hear it in the recording, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. As it turns out, one of the guests just lost a sister named Theresa, so it meant something to her.
Second Session (Yellow Group)
Rachel started out the second session similarly as she did the first and asked them to spend a few seconds focusing on communication. I think this is a great way to get started. It acts as a grounding mechanism, allowing everyone to become more present for the session.
She switched spirit boxes and tried her SB11. The SB11 is far quieter than the modified radio, but they also weren’t getting very many responses. After a few attempts, they finally got a response.
When asked, “Did you work here?” a soft voice told them, “I did.”
Rachel ended up switching back to the other spirit box after a few more questions went unanswered.
Someone asked if there were any children there and a male voice said, “You see what’s taken her?” I have no idea what it means, but it was one of the clearest responses all night.
Seconds later, the same male voice added another question. “Did she come?” he asked.
They went around the group several times without getting any responses until someone asked if they had friends here. A very faint male voice said, “sure.”
They ended up turning off the spirit box and then demonstrated an Estes Method session with her partner, Lisa Dickens. Lisa has been doing the Estes Method for years and has an interesting method. She hears far more than the spirit box provides. It throws her into a channeling session.
Q: Is there anyone who would like to speak?
A: Virginia.
Q: How old are you, Virginia?
A: Nine
Q: Are you from New Harmony? Were you born in New Harmony? Can you tell me anything about yourself? What’s your favorite color?
A: Green.
Q: Green is a great color. Did you ever play in this gymnasium?
A: No.
Q: You just like to come and hang out? Are you here alone?
A: Yes.
Q: You don’t have any friends or family close by? Is there anyone else around in this building?
A: Yes.
Q: Are they friendly with you?
A: Yes.
Q: That’s good. What do you do for fun?
A: Play with dolls.
Q: What kind of dolls?
A: Suzie Q.
Q: Do you make your own dresses for your doll? Can you tell me what color dress your doll wears?
A: Pink.
Q: So not your favorite color. Can you tell me your mom and dad’s name? Are you finding it hard to talk to us?
A: Yes.
Q: Is it making you tired? I appreciate you trying so hard. Do you have any questions for me? Is there anyone else here who would like to talk to us? There’s nothing here that will hurt you.
They didn’t get any further answers, so Rachel pulled Lisa out of the session. It was unusually quiet during this session. I wonder if the ghosts followed the first group to their next session.
They spent the rest of the session discussing paranormal topics. Rachel was asked if she’s seen anything paranormal and she has. She has seen things thrown across the room and saw a shadow figure at St. Albans.
Third Session (Red Group)
They started the third session the same way they started all the others with a moment of intentional thought. Rachel explained how the session was going to go and then they got started.
They really didn’t start off strong. They were getting a lot of radio blurps as the stations swept past. But then they finally got a hit. “Are you standing inside the circle,” someone asked. “Be out of it,” the same male voice from the previous session said.
It was Ashley’s time to ask questions. As a psychic medium, the ghosts tend to follow her from location to location. She asked, “What season are we in?” and a male said, “Got bacon?” The group didn’t hear it at the time. I wish they would have because it would have given them a good laugh. It wasn’t a direct response, but it was funny.
They had a lot of “non words” that almost sounded like responses, but after listening to them with headphones and an audio processing program, they weren’t what the group thought they were.
Several people thought the ghosts were in the balcony watching them. Ashley also mentioned it. They were seeing shadows move up there against the windows too.
“Are you having fun tonight?” someone asked. A male voice came through quickly and told them, “Nope.”
They finally closed down the spirit box session and moved onto an Estes Method with Lisa Dickens.
Q: Is Mike here?
Q: What about Victoria?
A: Yesterday.
Q: What happened yesterday?
A: I fell and skinned my knee.
Q: I hate to hear that. Were you playing outside?
A: Yes
Q: What kind of game were you playing?
A: Bye.
Q: Bye. Thanks for talking to us. Is there anyone else who’d like to talk to us?
Q: Is Anna here with us?
Q: Does Edward still want to talk?
Q: Do you like the snow? Are you still here?
Lisa noted that she was getting absolutely nothing. It was totally quiet, so they pulled her out of the session. It was surprising to them that the activity seemed to peter out after being so prevalent at the beginning of the night. Perhaps we wore them out?
Jason noted that they were seeing flickers of light behind several of the people. They spent the remainder of the session talking about the various equipment Rachel brought.
Fourth Session (Blue Group)
The fourth started like all the rest with a moment of concentration on the word “communication.” They started the spirit box session and asked several questions before they finally got a clear response. A female voice said, “Isaac.” This was the first time I heard the name all night, so I’m not sure what it referred to.
Then, without a question, a male voice said, “Ninety-two.”
They got a few short responses that kind of sounded like responses, but weren’t. I was about to give up on this session, thinking the ghosts had retreated when we got a clear statement. A little girl said, “My tummy hurt.” Was she from the tornado? Or somewhere else?
Rachel put a basketball on the floor and invited them to move it. It was a flat ball, so it didn’t move easily. Then, all of a sudden, the ball began moving all on its own. We know the ghosts at the gymnasium are capable of moving items because they are constantly tossing kitchen utensils around. This was pretty amazing.
They asked if they could move the ball and there was a quick “yep!” but they didn’t move it.
They were getting a lot of responses, mainly from the same two voices (a male and a female) but the responses were cut off. It was difficult to make out what they were saying, so I didn’t clip them.
It’s always interesting to me how some groups can experience far more activity than the others. I always say that the ghosts usually follow the strongest medium, but this wasn’t necessarily the case at the gymnasium. Ashley Morrow is one of the strongest mediums I’ve ever worked with and her session (the third one) was the quietest session of the evening. I guess they pick and choose who they talk to.
Stage
First Session (Yellow Group)
I held court on the stage. I’ve always been curious about this space because it is essentially the focal point of the gymnasium. Many plays and school programs happened here, giving it a lively energy. I wanted to see if this transferred into open communication.
I was excited to use a new piece of equipment. The Flux 2 is a triangular device. It has a red light on one side and a green light on the other. In reviews, you can ask questions and the ghosts in the room will answer by lighting up the light that corresponds with their answer. It works very similarly to the dowsing rods. If you ask yes and no questions, you should get a response. Unfortunately, it didn’t work. We asked several questions and nothing happened, so it was onto Plan B. I had a spirit box with me and we moved to it.
The highlight of my group session was the break-off groups. People would go in pairs up to the two small attics on either side of the stage to conduct their own sessions with a pendulum. The results were interesting.
One group talked to a man who was a coach there. He didn’t like the woman’s blue hair though.
As I was stressing out over my new piece of equipment not working, a male voice came through and said, “What’s wrong?” It was nice of him to ask. I just wish I heard it at the time.
Jeannie asked, “Where do you like to spend your time?” A male voice told her, “With people.” It was so clear, we all heard it.
Becca asked, “What’s your name,” and a male voice answered with, “Redman.”
She asked if they were married and a faint female voice told her, “No.”
During a lull in questions, a male voice came through and said, “It’s Bob.” This is interesting to me because several other groups picked up on a man named Bob who said he was a coach. Is he the same man the breakout group spoke to in the attic? (And just a sidenote, but what’s on Becca’s forehead? She wasn’t wearing a scarf. Something just appeared on her head.)
Someone asked if they lived nearby and the Flux 2 flashed red, which we took as “no.”
Second Session (Orange Group)
We started the session with a spirit box session. We went around the group and introduced ourselves as the first two people went to the attic for their breakout session.
I got a response pretty quickly. I held up three fingers over my head and asked them how many fingers I was holding up. A voice said, “two.” I told them that was incorrect and then a faint voice said, “three,” followed by a humorous moment when another male voice said, “twelve.” How many fingers does he think I have? I told him I’d have to borrow another person’s hand to make that work.
Sometimes we catch paranormal activity without knowing. In this case, as we were doing our session, the recorder caught the sound of someone crying out, “No! Please!” in the background, which was followed by a male’s voice, “Unbelievable,” he said. While we could hear the other group’s spirit box, this wasn’t something that happened in this group. I listened to all of their audio and it was fairly quiet for them during that session. Were we catching voices from the tornado victims who were treated on the gymnasium floor?
We kept hearing what sounded like the same male voice coming through. I noted it and was instantly corrected. “Not the same,” a female voice told me.
A strong female voice said, “People!” which was followed by a softer male voice saying the same thing. It almost sounded like they were surprised we were all there.
Shortly after that, a woman in our group asked, “If you don’t like the stage, what about the rooms upstairs?” A warbled female ghost again said, “People!” A male voice agreed with her. “That’s the problem.” Apparently, they weren’t keen on us being there. I kind of know how he feels about being in crowds of people.
Towards the end of the session, I realized I had a medium in my group. Rebecca was feeling a woman who kept drifting out from the kitchen. She said she was following her group.
I walked off the stage for a moment to talk to one of our volunteers. She told me that the ghosts in the basement were upset because one of the groups had brought up the tornado and it was impacting the basement session. We really hadn’t brought it up in any of my sessions, so I was confused where it was coming from. I later learned that neither Rachel or Rick’s groups talked about it either. The interesting part came as soon as I got onto the gym floor/ A very loud, very creepy voice came through the spirit box and said, “DOWN!” This was the first we’d heard from him the entire night and he didn’t sound happy. I have to wonder who he was and why he was so forceful.
Someone asked how many were there with them and a female voice said, “nine.”
We didn’t get anything relevant for the rest of the session.
Third Session (Blue Group)
My third session started off pretty quiet. We introduced ourselves and then began asking questions. We got a few blurps, but nothing was a relevant answer. Sometimes, I think they’re evaluating our group. My suspicions came with the first clear response. Ziggy asked if they could light up one of the devices and a male voice said, “Hoping you’re smart.”
Jimmy asked if they were going around to all the different groups and the same male voice we’d been hearing all evening said, “Just a break.”
Jason asked “What year do you think it is?” A male voice told him, “It’s twenty.” I’m not sure if that was 1920 or 2020. If it was 1920, it’s in the range of the tornado, which happened in 1925.
I recognized one of our guests as someone who came to our Artefakts investigation. I asked him if he was a medium and he kind of downplayed it, but the ghosts knew. Someone said, “Yes.”
I had to leave the group for a moment. A woman from our last group went down into the basement and couldn’t even join the group. As a medium, she saw all the bodies. She said they were on tables and on tarps on the floor. She also felt strongly that they didn’t want her down there. It was enough to make her cry, so she rushed back upstairs and found one of our volunteers. I offered to let her sit in my group, but she just wanted to hang out in the kitchen and catch her breath. After that session ended, she was much calmer and was able to resume the investigation with her group.
Jimmy asked if this was the male farmer they’d been talking to. The same male voice we’d been hearing all night told him, “I’m a joker.” This made total sense because most of his answers had a sarcastic flavor to them. The group thought he said, “Joe,” and spent the rest of the session directing questions to Joe.
The group thought they heard a man say, “Hi folks,” but it was actually something else. It kind of sounded like “Hi folkla.”
We had two groups who were there ghost hunting for the first time. As I was thanking them for making us their first time, a male voice spoke through my words saying, “a believer.”
There were several things spoken across the spirit box that I couldn’t quite make out. At one point, it sounded like a man said, “Think I bought his bluff,” but it wasn’t clear enough to mark as evidence.
Then, in between questions, a male voice told us, “That’s the clock.” It would have been really interesting if he said that before the clock chimed for the hour, but the timing just wasn’t there.
Several people decided to go up to the attic to do a pendulum session. I was telling them that three people could go, that there were three chairs, when a voice chimed in. “We’re going too,” she said. Interestingly enough, she had a foreign accent. I have no idea who this could be.
As one of the groups came back downstairs, they reported hearing someone come up the stairs while they were up there. They thought it was me, coming up to take pictures, but then nobody showed up. They even got up and looked down the staircase, only to find it empty.
We asked a few more questions but didn’t get any clear responses.
Fourth Session (Red Group)
The last session started off fairly slow. We were getting responses, but none of them were clear words. This was surprising to me because this group had Ashley Morrow in it. In past experiences, the ghosts of the building tend to follow her. I asked if they were following her again this time and got a very faint, “yes.”
I wondered out loud if we were wearing them out. I asked if it was their bedtime and a warbled voice said, “bed.”
I asked if they lived in New Harmony and a voice said, “Ashley.” Were they referring to our Ashley or another person by that name?
A group came down from upstairs and said they’d been talking to Anna, who they met in the basement. The other group came down from the other attic said they were talking to Anna too. They were also talking to Rose, who was giving him hot flashes and making him sick to his stomach.
One of the guys in the group asked if Rose followed him back downstairs from the attic and my Flux 2 finally reacted. It flashed red, which means “no.”
I asked Ashley what she was picking up on and she said she was feeling a young female, as well as a young male. A male voice came across the spirit box and said, “textbook message.” I’m not sure what he meant by that, but it was pretty clear.
It got really quiet during the end of the session. The responses were faint and difficult to interpret, making me wonder if they’d used up all their energy earlier in the evening.
The breakoff groups were getting a lot in their sessions, so the last session wasn’t a total loss. They were talking to an older female. Another group was talking to the young girl, Anna.
Basement
As usual, Traci Hoehn, who we affectionately refer to as our “cellar dweller,” held camp in the basement of the gymnasium, using the Estes Method. This paranormal experiment utilizes a spirit box connected directly to headphones. Participants also wear a blindfold, preventing them from seeing or hearing the others in the group. All they can hear are the sounds coming through the spirit box. As they hear something, they call it out. The others in the group will ask questions to the ghosts in the room to see if they respond through the participant. This experiment is interesting, because when the questions match the answers, we truly know we are talking to someone.
During one of the sessions, I picked up a strange sound in the background. It sounded like old time music. At first, I thought it was the sound of the spirit box from the stage, but after reviewing their audio from the same period, there was nothing to correlate.
First Session (Red Group)
After a brief introduction and history about the basement, Traci got started with the Estes Method. Ashley Morrow, who is a psychic medium, donned the headphones.
They introduced themselves to the ghosts in the room.
A: Hello
Q: Can you tell us your name?
A: Anna
Q: How old are you?
A: Six.
Q: What’s your favorite color? How tall are you?
A: I’m little.
Q: Hello, Anna. Do you live here in New Harmony? Do you go to school here?
A: School bus.
Q: Do you like flowers? Do you like to play games? What’s your bus driver’s name? Do you sit in the back or the front of the bus?
A: Storm.
Q: Are your friends here?
A: Yeah.
Q: Did you live in Griffin?
A: Yeah.
Q: Did you live near Black River?
A: I don’t know.
Q: How many people are here?
A: A lot.
Q: Do you get to play?
A: Yeah.
Q: What’s your favorite thing?
A: Hello.
Q: Is that still you, Anna?
A: No.
Q: What’s your name?
A: Mike
Q: Were you a student?
A: No.
Q: What did you do?
A: Work.
Q: What did you do for work? Mike, are you from New Harmony?
A: No.
Q: Where are you from? Did you grow up in Posey County? Mike, are you married?
A: Used to be.
Q: Did you have any kids? How old were your kids?
A: No kids.
Q: Did you have any pets, like a dog?
A: I don’t know.
Q: Do you like to go fishing?
A: Don’t feel.
Q: Do you have any pets?
They noted there was a cold spot right in front of them.
Q: Do you like to go hunting?
A: It’s sad here.
Q: What makes you happy? Do you have friends here? Is your wife here?
A: Speak.
Q: Do you want me to speak?
A: It’s not normal.
Q: What’s not normal? Us coming down here talking to you?
A: No one speaks to me.
Q: Well, we’re talking to you. Can you tell us more about yourself?
A: Edward.
Q: Are we speaking to someone else now?
A: I’m here.
Q: Hello. How are you? Do you not want to talk to us?
A: Figuring out what to say.
Q: You can say anything to me. My name is Becky.
A: Hello.
Q: What did you used to do? In New Harmony?
A: Close
Q: What did you teach? Were you the principal?
A: No.
Q: How long did you teach?
A: Not long.
Q: What did you like to do outside of work? Are you standing over by that radiator?
A: Yep.
Q: Do you want to come any closer or do you prefer to be over there?
A: I’ll try.
Q: Edward, there’s a box in the middle. If you want to touch it, it will light up. It won’t hurt you. Can you tell us what your last name is? Your family name?
A: I’m by here.
Q: Who are you beside? Do you remember her name?
A: She didn’t say.
Q: Is Anna still here?
A: Clapping,
Q: Is she clapping? Is she having fun?
Q: We’re going to switch people now.
A: Okay
Ashley said it got really sad. She felt overwhelming sadness. They applauded her for her amazing session.
Dustin took over the next session.
A: There you are.
Q: Who are you looking for?
A: Is this Anna?
Q: Yes.
Q: Hello, Anna. This is Ashley. How old are you?
A: Five…six.
A: Edge of group.
A: You can come in closer. You can even sit next to us.
A: I’m coming.
Q: Can you tell me what your last name is?
A: Five people.
Q: There’s five people here? Hi Anna. When’s your birthday? Do you have any brothers or sisters?
A: One.
Q: Was Edward one of your teachers?
A: Boy.
Q: What was your sibling’s name?
A: Anthony.
Q: Is Anthony down here?
A: Look.
Q: Look where?
A: There’s so many.
Q: So many what?
A: People.
Q: So many people down here?
A: Dark. They.
Q: They what, Anna?
A: Cold.
Q: Is everybody cold? Do you have on a pretty dress? Are there five people here?
A: Try to get it off. Red.
Q: What’s red?
A: People. Red. Red.
Dustin was getting visibly upset, so they pulled him out. He said it got very overwhelming. The entire group was amped up after both session. They had time for one more person.
Q: Who are we speaking with?
A: One of them.
Q: Can someone make the light turn on?
A: Maybe.
Q: What is your name? Who are we talking to?
A: Hi guys! Fun.
Q: Are you close to us?
A: Right here.
Q: Where at?
A: Skip.
Q: Is that your name or what you’re doing?
A: Holiday.
A: Bang. Loud sound.
Q: Do you see the green light? Can you touch it?
A: Yes.
Q: Can you touch it?
A: Shy.
Q: It won’t hurt you.
A: Today.
Q: What is today?
A: Monday.
Q: How old are you?
A: Upstairs. Upstairs.
Q: Are we supposed to go upstairs?
A: She. She.
Q: (Ashley) You can come with me.
A: Ivan.
Q: What makes you happy?
Q: We’re going to give you one more chance to say something. We’re going to take a break.
A: Have fun.
Q: We’ll be back.
A: Nice!
Second Session (Blue Group)
The second group went through the same introductions and instructions and then they were off and running. Jodi Helfrich was the first to do the Estes Method. They introduced themselves.
Q: Is anyone still down here with us?
A: Hi.
Q: Who am I talking to? Is this Anna? Is there more than one person down here?
A: Down.
Q: Did you stay down here for this new group? Did you stay down here during the tornado? Are you from Griffin?
A: Almost.
Q: Are you from a nearby town?
A: Yes.
Q: What’s your favorite kind of pie? What color is my shirt?
A: I see you
Q: What color is this?
A: No
Q: Are you from Mt Vernon?
A: The others
Q: Are you from New Harmony?
Q: Do you like pickles?
A: Maybe
Q: Do you like bread and butter pickles or dill?
Q: Is there just one spirit down here?
A: All
Q: Are there more than ten?
A: Yes
Q: Are there children? How many are down here? Do you like us being here? Do you like when people try to talk to you?
A: Maybe
Q: Do you leave the basement?
Q: What city or town are you from?
Q: Do you have friends down here with you?
A: Yes.
Q: Who are we speaking with?
A: Edward.
Traci interjected that Edward came through the last session too. He was a teacher.
Q: Edward, can you tell us your last name?
A: Worked.
Q: Where did you work?
Q: Did you work in town?
A: Some.
Q: Did you travel? Are you with anybody else?
A: Don’t know.
Q: Did they go upstairs? What’s your favorite color?
A: Get it.
Q: What do you want us to get?
A: Get it.
Q: Edward, what was your profession?
A: Yeah.
Q: Edward, can you touch one of these devices and make it light up?
A: Cars?
Q: If you touch one of these, it’ll light it up.
A: She said she just heard a whistle.
Q: What color is my hoodie?
A: Russell.
Q: Is that your last name or first name?
A: Last.
Q: Thank you. That was helpful.
Jodi came out and said she was hearing a low murmuring, but not through the headphones. It also sounded like it was in the room. She also kept getting touched. The next person took her place.
Q: Did Edward stay with us? Are you married, Edward? What year were you here, Edward? What color is my sweatshirt? You said ‘cars’ earlier. What does that mean?
They weren’t getting any responses. Traci noted that it’s much harder than it looks.
Q: Is there anyone down here who wants to talk? Do you like pizza? What’s your favorite food? Have you ever had a chocolate milkshake? Is your name Edward Russell? Are you still here?
A: She said she just heard a laugh
Q: Edward, are you laughing at us? What’s my name? What are these walls made of? Was there something down here that scared you?
She took off the headphones and said she heard things, but didn’t know what they were saying. The next person took her place.
Q: We have someone new listening. Is anyone still here who wants to chat with us? Is Edward still here? How about Mike?
A: Said man.
Q: So there’s a man here? Does he have a name? Do you remember any of our names?
A: Here.
Q: Yes. We’re here.
A: More.
Q: You want to talk to us more? Are you around the group? Are you towards the back or front of the basement? What year is it? What kind of car did you have?
A: She said she heard a scream.
Q: Are you from Griffin? Can you say hello?
A: Every.
Q: Edward, were you married?
A: 47.
Q: Is that your age? Or how long you were married?
A: She said she heard a whistle.
Q: How many fingers am I holding up? Did you ever eat French fries?
A: Together.
Q: Can you say anybody’s name in this group? How old are you? Are you married?
A: It’s I.
Q: Are you Edward? How old are you, Edward? Do you have kids? Are you trapped down here?
Q: We’re going to be wrapping up. Is there anything else you’d like for us to know?
No answer, so she stopped the session.
Third Session (Orange Group)
Traci started the session, like she has done with all of them by turning off the basement lights so everyone can appreciate what it was like for the person who was put in the basement alive after the tornado. This garnered several gasps and they were all thankful when she turned the lights back on.
They got started. Becca was the first to don the headphones.
Q: We are back to you to talk to you. (They went around the room to introduce themselves)
Q: Can you tell us what your name is? Are you a male? Are you a female?
A: Pretzel.
Q: How long have you been here?
A: Ha ha.
Q: Do you have family here?
A: I’m going to die.
Q: Was that you who just screamed?
A: Excuse me. I do.
Q: How old are you?
A: 18. Why? No.
Q: Do you have children? What’s your favorite dessert? Are you from New Harmony?
Q: So, you’re 18. Are you still in school?
A: She shushed Traci.
Q: What’s your job? Do you like to read? If so, what’s your favorite book?
A: Yes. I am.
Q: Where are you from? Any brothers or sisters?
A: Done.
Q: Did you go to school here in New Harmony?
A: Why?
Q: Just curious. Did you?
A: She said she felt very hot on her left side.
A: Are you ignoring me?
Q: Did you go to dances here? Are you okay now?
A: Offended. Don’t say that?
Q: Did you just try to sit in the chair next to me? (the chair started making a popping sound)
A: Yes.
A: Different.
Q: What did you do for a living? Can you tell me your name?
Q: Is there anyone else here besides the 18 year old? Is Anna still here?
A: Yeah.
Q: Can we talk to Anna?
A: Show mercy.
Q: We aren’t going to hurt any of you. We just want to talk to you. (Traci explained who Anna was). Does Anna want to talk to us?
Q: What year is it?
A: Slow down.
Q: Who was the president when you were alive? Do you have a best friend?
A: My favorite.
Q: What street did you grow up on? What do you do for fun?
A: Calm down.
Q: Does it bother you for us to talk to you?
A: I’m a woman.
Becca took off the headphones and said she felt hot the entire session. They put the next person into the session and were off and running.
Q: Do you have a friend, Anna?
A: Why do you ask?
Q: Just curious. (Traci noted they were very suspicious of their intentions)
Q: What year were you born? Were you married?
A: She shushed her.
Q: Is there something you want us to hear? Is that why you keep shushing us?
Q: Can you move anything in the basement?
A: Say it.
Q: What do you want me to say? Why don’t you say it?
A: Is there? And she shushed them again.
Q: Where are you from? Do you have siblings?
A: Yes.
Q: How many siblings do you have?
A: She shushed him.
Q: Were you close to your siblings? You said you were a woman. Can you tell us your name?
Q: Were you a librarian? Is there something we’re supposed to hear?
A: I’m not good. She shushed them again.
Q: Why do you think you aren’t good? Did you do something that you feel bad about?
A: A small cat.
Q: They started to ask about the cat, but she shushed them again.
Q: What are your sibling’s names? Did you go to school in New Harmony? What’s your favorite holiday? Would you like to ask us a question? What’s your kids’s names?
A: She shushed them again.
They brought her out of it. She talked about how she heard the shushing over and over again. They got the last person ready.
Q: All right. We have the next person, ready to talk to you. Are you going to talk to us? Do you remember any of our names?
Q: Can you tap the lady who’s listening on the shoulder? What should we talk about?
Q: Can you tell us your name? Do you still like pretzels?
Q: Did you live here long? Are you a teacher? (Traci noted they talked to a teacher named Edward in a previous session.)
Q: Who’s your favorite?
A: I don’t know.
Q: Did you have anything to do in your spare time? Is there a cat here? Did the cat catch the mouse behind me?
A: What?
Q: Yeah, there’s a mouse down here. Did the cat catch him?
Q: What’s your father’s name? Did you ever take the train from Griffin to New Harmony? Were you a science teacher here? Did you last name start with an H? If you’re a teacher, did you enjoy teaching?
A: I
Q: Can you tell us your name?
A: With us. Remember.
Q: Do you want us to remember you? Is there someone here you remember?
A: Barely. Wabash.
Q: Were they a student here?
A: Randall.
Q: What about Randall? Was Randall your friend?
A: Go away.
They ended the session.
Fourth Session (Yellow Group)
After a brief introduction they got started.
Q: Is there anyone who wants to speak with us?
A: Hi. Hey!
Q: Can you tell me what your name is?
A: Alex.
Q: Hi Alex! Nice to meet you.
A: No. Talk.
Q: How are you?
A: Baby.
Q: Do you have children?
A: She said she felt warm.
Q: Alex did you do sports here?
A: Offer.
Q: How old are you?
A: 18.
Q: Who are you here with? Have you ever been to the fire house?
A: Yes.
Q: When was your birthday?
A: Over.
Q: What’s your last name? What year were you at the firehouse?
A: Over.
Q: Were you here in the 1920s?
A: Baby.
Q: Were you born in the 1900s? Are you worried about a baby?
A: Yes.
Q: Why? Is it your baby?
A: Yes.
Q: Are they around?
A: Four or five?
Q: Are they in this building? How long have you been in this building?
A: Seven.
Q: Months, years, decades?
A: Several more.
Q: Decades?
A: More. Five.
Q: Do you go to other buildings in New Harmony?
A: More. More.
Q: Are the babies you’re worried about your brothers and sisters?
A: Fire.
Q: Did they get hurt in a fire?
A: Smoke.
Q: I’m sorry. Did you know Auburn Sanders who died in a fire in a restaurant in Griffin during the tornado?
A: Yes.
Q: Did several of your friends die in the tornado? (Traci diverted the conversation)
A: Burn.
Q: Did you have any hobbies? What did you do for fun?
A: Work.
Q: Did you like to work? Where did you work?
A: Over. There.
Q: Were you a farmer?
A: No.
Q: Where you a teacher?
A: No.
Q: Can you tell me what you did?
A: Coach.
Q: Are you the same coach we were talking to?
A: Bob.
Q: Do you like hanging out with us, Bob?
A: Players.
Q: How many players did you have on your team?
A: 12…no 13.
A: It’s mine.
Q: It’s your team?
A: Team.
Q: Was it a basketball team?
A: Yes. Here.
Q: You played here?
A: Yes. Yes.
Q: What else to you like to do for fun?
A: Never.
A: Play again.
Q: Do you know who Jim is?
A: No.
Q: Do you know anyone here?
A: Yes.
Q: Did you meet Virginia?
A: Yes.
Q: Is Virginia a sister?
A: No.
Q: Just a friend?
A: Now.
Q: Did your basketball team win all the time?
A: Never.
A: Table top.
Q: Were you here when they filmed League of their Own here?
A: Over. That’s last.
Q: What’s your favorite color?
A: That’s last.
Traci was explaining the movie and how that was the last time the gym was used as a gym.
A: Pictures. Pictures. Again.
A: Dark.
Traci pulled her out of it even though she was doing really great. She said she felt a little drained. Adam was the next to try it.
Q: Are we still talking to Coach Bob?
At that point, the recorder picked up on a short whistle. Nobody in the group reacted to it, which tells me they didn’t hear it.
Q: Is there anyone here who wants to talk to us?
A: Died.
Q: What is your name?
Q: Who died?
A: My family.
Q: Is this still Coach Bob?
A: I’m right here.
Q: Do you want to talk about your family?
A: I will.
Q: Do you want to?
A: Yes. You first.
Q: What were your parent’s names? What street did you grow up on?
A: Second.
Q: Awesome. What was the address?
A: Ten.
Q: Thank you. How long did you live there?
A: 18. Yeah.
Q: Did you have a big family? Were you married?
A: I wish.
Q: Did you have a lot of siblings? Bob, did you have a girlfriend?
A: I don’t know. Why?
Q: Because you said, “I wish,” when we asked if you were married. I think you would have been a lot of fun to know, Bob.
Q: What was one of your hobbies? Did you like to fish?
A: I don’t know.
Q: I was told a lot of people fished at the Wabash.
A: The bar. (maybe the sandbar?)
Q: Did you get to camp on the sandbar?
Q: Bob, you said you lived on second street. Can you tell me what town you lived in?
A: Yeah.
Q: Did you live in Poseyville?
A: Used to.
Q: What about New Harmony? Mt. Vernon? Griffin?
Q: What year did you coach here?
A: Tonight. Right here.
Q: You’re playing tonight. Right here?
A: Sorry. You too.
Q: Bob, do you know what month it is?
They heard a loud bang.
Q: Do you know what year it is?
A: It’s me (maybe making the sound?)
Q: Sorry Bob, but we’re going to be wrapping things up here. Is there anything you want to say? Thank you for talking with us.
A: More.
Q: Well, we’ll be back here next month.
A: No. Right now.
Q: What do you want me to ask you?
A: Thunder (everyone started walking overhead and it did sound like thunder)
Q: Is there anything else?
A: Stay here.
Q: We can’t stay here, so sorry. I have a dog to go home to. But thanks for talking to us.
A: Wait.
Q: Dog.
A: I have a dog. Do you have a dog? My dog’s name is Mimzy. We have to go, Bob.
She pulled him out of the session.
Conclusion
Overall, it was an interesting night. We captured more audio responses than I’ve ever gotten in the gymnasium before and quite a few people had personal experiences. Several people felt ghostly touches and others watched shadows moving in the balcony near the front windows.
I want to thank everyone for coming out, and I especially want to thank my team for making everything flow so smoothly. Thank you to my investigators: Traci Hoehn, Rich Schlegelmilch and Rachel Decker. Additional gratitude to my group leaders: Jason Nelson, Kathy Hoffman, David “Ziggy” Zickefoose and Tina Moore.
Additional thanks to our photographer, Lexie Hoehn, pictured below with her Aunt Traci.
