We were excited to investigate Germania Maennechor. It was everything we were hoping for in an investigation. The building was large and the ghosts were plenty.

I don’t think anyone can appreciate how many moving parts there are in an investigation. It starts with staffing the event, setting it up, communicating with the hosts on what we require and then finally, selling tickets. No matter how carefully an event is planned, hiccups occur and we had our fair share. We had three staff members call out sick and discovered that one of the rooms didn’t have air conditioning shortly after we arrived. But, we pivoted and figured it out. As we were checking guests in, we realized we were missing 20 people, only to find them waiting patiently at the front door instead of coming through the back, which they didn’t know about. So, I’ll start out by apologizing to anyone who had to wait for us to find you.

The building itself is magnificent. It was built in 1913 for members of the German community to meet and enjoy the blessings of song. Over the years, the facility has become a meeting place for people in the area and hosts their annual Volksfest event every August, featuring great German food and entertainment.

We broke into five groups and investigated six rooms in the building.

Singing Room – Investigator: Joni Mayhan

First Session – Blue Group

My first session caused a bit of a panic for me. I was using the Ghosttube Vox app, which I’ve had amazing luck with in the past, but it simply refused to say a word. We went to Plan B and used an SB-11 Spirit Box, loaned to us by a great couple who attended the event, but it also refused to spit out a single word. This was perplexing to me because we did a test investigation and the Vox talked non-stop in that room. We then went to Plan C and pulled out the dowsing rods. I’m still not certain what went wrong and why they wouldn’t talk to us, but everything worked perfectly during the second session.

I had everyone introduce themselves and then I asked the first question.

“Is there anyone here who would like to talk to us?” I asked and the rods told me “No.” We all laughed and I noted that it was going to be a very long night if that continued. Undaunted, I continued and finally started getting reluctant responses.

• There were several males there
• There were also females in the room

Two of my guests had lost a family member seven years ago and began attempting to reach out to him. He was a long time member of the facility.

• Chris was there with them.
• He planned to come to Volksfest and be a part of the festivities.
• Bobby is with him.
• He misses his daughter.
• He’s at peace.

I took the rods again and asked them to point to where they were standing in the room. The rods pointed in the corner behind me to my left and then again across the room to the left. Paula, who was the group leader for the Blue Group, came back with a spirit box, but it wasn’t talking to me. We continued with the dowsing rods

• They said they would talk to us on the rods, but didn’t come through on the spirit boxes.

I walked out of the room with my Vox and it immediately began talking in the hallway, so I realized there was nothing wrong with my equipment. It was the room. I checked everything. I was connected to the Internet. The volume was fine. It said one thing to me: You don’t!

Second Session – Striped Group

The second session went much better than the first. We introduced ourselves and got started.

Rosemary asked if they were born and raised in Evansville and a voice said, “no.”

A guest asked if they need all of the people to be members to keep the place running and a voice agreed with him. “All,” he said.

Someone asked if they played with them and a voice said, “no.”

When I asked if they ever go sit at the bar and have drinks with their friends, a female told me, “Yes.”

We were getting responses to our questions, but they were difficult to understand. And then, all of a sudden, we got a clear response that made absolutely no sense. “Shipping lanes,” a male voice told us.

We thought we heard the word “boot” mentioned, so one of the guests followed up with it. “Someone mentioned something about a boot,” he started. A voice said, “Ed.”

He asked if they shipped boots and a male voice told him, “parkas.”

Bill comes in by himself on Sundays and does maintenance on the building. He always feels as though he’s not alone. He’s actually had several experiences in the building. He asked if they go to other areas and a male voice said, “Watching into me.”

He asked if they watch him on Sundays and a male voice with a British accent said, “What other option?”

Bill asked if they approve of what they’re doing at Germania and the same voice told him, “Be covered.” I’m not sure what that meant, but maybe it means something to them.

He asked if they were aware of the problems they had there. A female voice with another strong accent told him, “To all of you.”

He noted that things have been different since we came in and did our pre-investigation. Two Sundays ago, he was hearing strange sounds. He got up and checked the door, but nobody was there. Ten minutes later, he heard it again. Still nothing. So, he turned the music on so he wouldn’t hear anything. During the middle of his story, a deep male voice told him, “She warned you.”

I’m not sure what that meant. Was he talking about me warning him? I don’t recall warning him about anything, but maybe that’s how the ghosts took it.

Bill asked if he’s the one he’s aware of. A voice told him, “Too many.”

We thought we heard the name “Bob,” but after reviewing it, it sounded more like “Bug.” I asked Bill if he knew a Bob, so he asked, “Is there a Bob here, as in, you know what I mean?” A male voice said, “His season.” I don’t know if this makes any sense to Bill or not, but it was a pretty clear response.

Third Session – Yellow Group

Donna Mesker was in our third group. She was the one I spoke to when we decided to do an investigation and managed to get approvals. We’d barely gotten started when a male came through with some sage advice. “Let’s calm  down,” he told us.

Donna told them she knew there were women there when she’s in the building working and wondered if there were also gentlemen watching. A female voice told her, “One.”

Adam Williams, who is a friend of mine from New Harmony, asked if Bob Fedrick was with them. Apparently, they talked to him in a previous session. A male voice told him, “You left something.”

I commented that we most definitely heard the name Bob in the previous session. Then, a male voice came through, as if clarifying. “Foreseen their own money,” he told us. This might make more sense to the Germania Maennechor people if they knew someone named Bob who passed.

There were a few responses that I completely got wrong. I thought I heard “who was in the will,” but it wasn’t even close. Donna asked if they worked on Main Street, and a man told her, “I did not.”

Adam asked if any of them worked for the Fendrich’s and a female told him, “It’s a school.” I couldn’t find a Fendrich school in Evansville, but it could have been someone who worked there.

A male voice said, “Fifty fourd,” and I made fun of it. I said, “That sounded like fifty fourd or fifty five. Are you from Boston?” The same male voice told me, “I’ve been drinking.” It made me laugh.

Someone asked if they were in any of the pictures on the wall and a male voice told him, “Brandon.” They got the name Brandon in their last session, so this could be relevant. Donna walked around with a flashlight, but she couldn’t find the name Brandon under any of the photos.

Donna asked what their main task was when they were there and we all thought we heard, “Fold the linen,” but it was something else. Slowed down, it sounded like forma lin, which makes no sense.

When Donna asked if they see what happens during the meetings there, a female told them, “The rule is to play.”

Donna asked if they saw what happened to her in the meeting room and a male said, “Five, Twenty, Twenty-four.” This sounds like a date. Wonder what happened on 5-20-24.

I was trying to figure out if the session was almost over and asked if it was almost nine o’clock. A male voice told me, “Got it.”

Someone asked if they could tell us where they were in the room. A male voice said what kind of sounds like, “I’ve been lost again.”

“Just reopen it,” a female voice told us. “What are we opening?” one of our guests asked. A male voice responded, “Bar.” This is interesting because I asked them to close the bar once the investigation started, which wasn’t overly popular with the members.

We had a few more responses that didn’t line up with the questions and then time ran out.

Fourth Session – Red Group

We started out strong. As soon as we introduced ourselves, I asked if they could tell us their names. A male voice immediately told us, “Billy.”

Seconds later a male voice said, “The people.” I’m not sure what he was referring to, but his message was loud and clear.

I asked if he liked us coming to visit us and he was equally unimpressed. “Undetermined,” he told me.

One of the guests asked how old he was, and he told her, “Fifty-seven.”

When asked if they wish they could leave, a voice came across the SB11 Spirit Box and said, “NO.”

One of them piped up and told us, “This is a joke!”

We didn’t catch a lot of what they said at the time. I had to isolate and slow some of it down, but this one was interesting. Lexie Hoehn, Traci’s niece, was taking photos for us during the night. As soon as she came in the room and started taking pictures, one of them commented on it. “Picture’s good!” he said with enthusiasm.

Other times, we thought we heard something that wasn’t actually what we thought we heard. But when I held up three fingers and asked them if they could tell me how many fingers, we got a clear response. “Three, two,” a male said. This was funny because I was holding up two fingers and my thumb. Someone in an earlier group said that’s how you show “3” in German, so I adopted his method. So, technically, I was holding up two fingers and a thumb.

A guest asked if he was happy. We all through we heard, “I was,” but it actually wasn’t anything clear. She followed up with, “What makes you unhappy?” A deep male voice told her, “God.”

One of the ghosts didn’t think highly of us. She told us we were a “total freak.” Or maybe she was totally freaked out by our investigation. I’m not sure what to make of it.

Fifth Session – Orange Group

We ran over by nearly 45 minutes, so we were eager to get started. As we were introducing ourselves, it sounded like someone else said their name. In review, it was just gibberish, but when we asked them to clarify, a male voice said, either “same” or “save.”

One of them volunteered some information. “Got our music,” she told us, which makes sense because we were in the singing room.

They were apparently getting tired of us being there. When a guest asked if they liked dessert, a man said, “Please stop.”

We got a couple of responses that were warbled. I told the group we were getting some responses that were hard to understand. A female told us, “I’m sorry.”

This didn’t make a whole lot of sense to me, but I’m posting it because it’s so clear. Someone asked if he was speaking to his singer from upstairs and a male voice said, “Then you will do.”

For the fifth time that night, I held up three fingers and asked them if they could tell me how many fingers I was holding up. A male voice told me, “We’ll get along.”

We went a long period of time getting nonsensical answers until we finally got another valid hit. Someone asked their favorite pie and a man said, “Apple.”

We must have all been hungry, because we couldn’t seem to get off the topic of pie. When asked if he liked American apple pie, the male told them, “Peach.”

We were getting more odd responses that really weren’t words. I commented that I thought they were getting tired of us and a male voice (the same one we’d been hearing all night) said, “Good night.” I guess that was our answer.

Apple seemed to be a hot topic during this session. When we heard it regarding the pie question, we kept thinking we were hearing it again (we weren’t). Becca asked if pie was their favorite subject and a male said, “It’s a joke!”

We laughed and said that at least he has a good sense of humor when he did something incredible. He said it again! “It’s a joke!” This was pretty amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever had this happen in all my years of investigating.

We were getting towards the end of the session and were just kind of chatting amongst ourselves when a female gave us some important instructions. “It’s time to cook!” she stated quite emphatically.

That ended up being the last ghostly response for us for the night.

Men’s Kitchen – sessions led by Kathy Hoffman

We felt a lot of energy in the Men’s Kitchen and in the Back Bar Storage room. Neither room was large enough for a group, so we decided to split the group. Half of the group stayed in the Men’s Kitchen for 15 minutes and then went to the storage room for 15 minutes.

First Session – Striped Group

Kathy led groups with dowsing rods. She showed the group how to use the rods and then the group introduced themselves. Then, they were off and running.

• No was there to talk to them (which is funny because someone told them they weren’t there)
• She asked again and they finally said “yes”
• The spirits have been there for a long time.
• They were talking to a man.
• He’s from the Evansville area.
• He has lived there all his life.
• He doesn’t have a wife.
• He has one child.
• There was more than one sprit in the room.
• His ancestors weren’t members of the club.
• He visits other parts of the building.
• He was one of the original founding fathers.
• He was an immigrant from Germany.
• He likes being in the kitchen.

Second Half of the group

• There were spirits there willing to talk to them.
• They turned on the light (they had motion sensor lights in the room).
• The spirit from the storage room followed them into the Men’s Kitchen.
• They know who he is. He has family who were members.
• They were talking to a male.
• There were more than three spirits there.
• There weren’t any women there (men’s kitchen, so it makes sense).
• They are okay with women being in the men’s kitchen though.
• They see the KII meter (EMF meter) on the table in front of them.
• They can wave their hands over the meter.
• They just waved their hand over the device.
• They like the warmer temperatures.
• They know his relatives who were members.
• They visit him when he’s in the building.
• They were there when the building was built in 1913.
• They get tired after talking to us.

Second Session – Yellow Group

As soon as they introduced themselves, they got started.

• There was a spirit there.
• They had a female with them.
• They recognize her from being there frequently.
• The work she does there makes them proud.
• They were talking to a cook.
• They cooked for many years there.
• It was her favorite room in the building.
• They like it there.
• They stay in that building all the time.
• There was also a man in the room.
• Just the two of them were in the room.
• Bob was there with them (he was in their last session).
• Bob wasn’t married.
• Bob was an adult.
• There was someone else in the room with Bob and the female.

They switched groups and the second group came in.

• There was someone in the room with them.
• There was a woman there.
• She worked in the kitchen.
• She had children.
• She was married.
• Her children were also there.
• She likes staying in the building.
• He knows Bob Fendrich.
• He’s in the building.
• Bob is in the room.
• He wasn’t speaking with Bob.
• They asked the rods to point to where they were and they pointed towards the microwave.
• They confirmed they were by the microwave.
• They were still talking to the woman who was there from the beginning.
• She’s been there for more than 100 years.
• She wasn’t born here.
• She was born in Germany.
• She can hear the birds outside.
• One of them has been to Willard Library.

Third Session – Red Group – Technical difficulties – no audio was recorded during these sessions.

Fourth Session – Orange Group

After introducing themselves, they got started.

• There was someone in the room with them
• They were willing to share information with them.
• They enjoy sharing information.
• Their parents did not work in the building.
• They had grandparents who worked in the building.
• They played music.
• They liked to dance to the music.
• They liked to come in when they had the big parties.
• They weren’t able to help their grandparents.
• They were just watching in the background.
• They were too young to help.
• They got lots of good things to eat.
• They snuck in and got seconds.
• They asked where they were standing and they pointed towards the sinks.
• They got stuck washing dishes.
• They had to dry them too.
• They had to help peel potatoes.
• They were talking to a woman.
• Her father belonged to Germania Maennerchor.
• That’s why she came down there a lot.
• She lived in the city.
• She walked to Germania.
• Her father worked during WWII
• She missed her dad when he was in the war.
• He was gone long periods of time.
• Her dad came home from the war.
• Her dad got to spend a little bit of time with her after the war.
• Her dad took her fishing.
• She played baseball with her dad.
• Her dad was good at baseball.
• She was good at baseball too.
• She went to St. Anthony’s Catholic School.
• Ann was there with them.
• She was able to hear the music played in the kitchen.

Their session ended and the second group came in. After introducing themselves, they got started.

• They were talking to someone who prepared meals.
• They didn’t enjoy it.
• They enjoyed spending time with other members of the club.
• They sang in the choir.
• They were talking to a man.
• There was more than one person there.
• It was the same person they were talking to in the other room.
• They were standing over by the stoves.
• His wife was with him.
• His wife was standing by the refrigerator.
• They cooked in the kitchen.
• She wasn’t a good cook and neither was he.
• He’s glad he married his wife.

The first group ran over the fifteen minute time, which caused the second group to be short.

Fifth Session – Blue Group

First group. After introducing themselves, they got started.

• There was an auxiliary member there.
• Her name was Dorothy.
• She made the potato salad.
• The choir sang at her holiday.
• She’s going to be there to help make the potato salad.
• She’s happy.
• There’s a secret to making the potato salad.
• She’s doing a good job with the catering for the auxiliary.
• She was president of the auxiliary.
• She liked Yvonne picking her up for the meetings.
• She’s ready for Volksfest.
• She used to make kraut-balls.
• She doesn’t remember when he came and sang in her room.
• She misses them.
• She helped with bingo.
• Dorothy is going on their bus trip with them.
• Dorothy is going to fry bacon.

The second group introduced themselves and then got started.

• They had a hard time getting any responses. They passed them around to other people, who also had a difficult time. They joked that the ghosts must have gone to bed. They didn’t get a single response. They said the same thing happened to them in the stockroom session.

Fest Hall Stage

Jason Nelson ran the investigations on the stage in Fest Hall. Jason and his wife got married there several months ago. I came to the wedding and realized how haunted the building was. Jason put me in touch with Donna Mesker, which resulted in this investigation.

Besides the investigation on the stage, Jason’s group was also doing breakout sessions. A group of three went to a very dark space behind the stage and conducted their own mini-investigations with pendulums.

First Session – Orange Group

Jason explained the spirit box session protocol. His group introduced themselves and they got started.

One of the guests started to ask a question but was interrupted. “My name is Kalea….” A soft male voice said, “trust.”

Becky told them, “We aren’t here to hurt you. We’re here to learn.” A male voice responded with, “What?”

Jason asked them if they liked the weddings, and a male voice said, “Sure.”

Someone asked them if they liked performing and a woman sang out. It might have been one of the funniest responses of the night.

Becca came back from the breakout group and said she heard footsteps behind her. She asked if they were behind her and the pendulum indicated that they were.  As she was telling the group this, a voice came across the spirit box and said, “Go back!” I’m kind of glad she didn’t hear it at the time. He didn’t sound very friendly.

Becca asked if there were more than three people up there and a male voice said, “No.”

She then asked, “Who’s the best singer up here?” Before she could even finish her question, a female said, “It’s me.” I wonder if she’s the same one who sang to them.

Becca was truly on a roll. She asked, “What’s your favorite song?” and a male told her, “I’m dead.”

Someone asked “What is your favorite food that this place serves.” The same male voice told them, “The bacon.” I have to agree with him.

He followed up with another question. “Do you have a favorite drink?” The same male voice told him, “Blackwell.” I looked it up and Blackwell makes both wine and Jamaican Rum. It’s not necessarily a German drink, but it sounds good.

Someone asked if they liked spaetzle and a male voice said, “Happy birthday.”

When asked who was in the hallway, a male voice told them, “Barry.”

Becca asked, “What’s your favorite color?” It took a while, but we finally got an answer. “Purple,” someone answered.

Time was up and Jason moved onto his second session.

Second Session – Blue Group

I really hoped this group would have a positive experience after sitting through the tragedy that was my first session in the Singing Room. It took them a few questions before they finally got a response.

Someone commented on all the beautiful flags in the room and asked if they had a favorite. A female told them, “I think.”

Someone asked if they were a choir member and a male said, “Becca.” There was a Becky in the group. Is that her?

It sounds like we had a skeptic in the group. He asked a few validating questions and got insulted in the process. He asked if it was the year 2012, and the ghost in the room called him a scholar.

The ghosts might have provided information from a crime. The week before our investigation, someone broke into the building and stole copper pipes. Jason asked if they knew who stole the pipes and a male voice said, “It’s a cop.” This was stunning. Could the perpetrator have been dressed like a cop or security person? You know the ghosts saw it happen. This would be crazy if they helped find the thief.

Our skeptical guest asked another serious of questions that were somewhat nonsensical and got a response. He asked if there was a horse painted on the wall and a female said, “Pink?” as if in question.

As they closed out the session, the ghosts had one last thing to say. Someone asked if they had a good time and a male said, “That’s awful.” Apparently, they didn’t enjoy it as much as we did.

Third Session – Striped Group

Jason explained what they would be doing during the session. They introduced themselves and got started.

They went around most of the group without any clear responses, but then it was Bill’s turn. Bill spends a lot of time at Germania Maennerchor, especially on Sundays when he works on the building. In a previous session, he was told they watch him when he’s there. He didn’t get any clear answers when he asked if they watched him during Jason’s session, but he did get a clear answer when he asked about Carl. “Is Carl here?” he asked and a female with an accent told him, “Carl’s about.”

Someone asked if they’ve been there a long time and a male voice told her, “No.”

She followed up with another question that garnered an answer. “Do all the spirits in this building get along?” A female told her, “we can’t.”

They then got one of the creepiest responses of the night. They were in between questions when a voice said, “Now ask them!”

Jason asked if they were part of the choir and a woman told them, “That’s right.”

He followed up with another question, asking what they sang. A male voice told him, “Let’s rock!”

Someone asked how many people were in the stage area and a woman told them, “Eleven.”

They went around the group again, but didn’t get any responses until it was Bill’s turn again. “How many people are in the room now?” he asked. A female told him, “There’s six.”

They didn’t get any further responses.

Fourth Session – Yellow Group

Jason started off his session with a response. After explaining the session process, he asked how many spirits were there with them and a female voice said, “Ten.” It’s very faint, so you’ll have to listen closely or with headphones.

He’d been asking the ghosts if they liked warm beer or cold beer all evening and finally got a response. “Warm,” said the same lady with an accent that talked to his group earlier.

A guest asked if he saw them over by the window and a voice told him, “no.”

Someone asked if they could make a noise to let the group know they were there. Immediately afterwards, the recorder picked up two distinct thumps.

One of the guests said she heard something, but didn’t know what it was. This was answered with a louder thump.

Adam asked if Bob Fendrich was there. This is someone they talked to in another session. A male voice told him, “I’m driving!” and then another male said, “I’m Bob.”

They went around the room several times without getting a clear response. Finally, someone asked, “Do you speak German?” A male voice told her, “No.”

That ended up being their last response for the session.

Fifth Group – Red Group

After they introduced themselves, they got started on the session. They got a response right out of the gate with the first question. A guest told them, “I like chicken. Do you like chicken?” and a male voice told him, “yes.”

Unfortunately, the big air conditioning unit kicked on as soon as the session started. It makes audio review almost impossible since it drowns out a lot of the responses. They were getting slight responses, but they weren’t clear.

This group felt as though there was a little girl named Nina following them, so many of their questions were directed towards her.

They ended up just chatting for the rest of the session. I think the ghosts were getting tired. I know we were.

Women’s Kitchen –Investigator:  Rick Schlegelmilch

First Session – Red Group

Rick would be using the Vox Spirit Box app, like I used in the Singing Room. He had everybody introduce themselves and then began explaining the process. As he was telling them how the session would go, a voice interrupted him and told him, “They’ve listened.” Apparently, they were ready to get the show on the road.

The first guest to ask a question asked how many people were sitting around the table with them. Before she could even finish asking her question, a male voice said, “A hundred and four.” I have to assume he was being sarcastic. That would be a lot of ghosts.

They got another random response and a guest said it didn’t sound American. A male voice told her, “If you think.”

She must have not heard the response, because she asked again. This time, another ghost answered her, “Thirty-eight.”

It was one of the guest’s turn, but he opted to pass his turn onto the next person. As soon as he said, “I’ll pass,” a ghost had some commentary about it. “And it’s a living,” he said. Is that what they call us? Livings?

Someone asked if they had children and a woman told them, “No.”

When asked what kind of work they did, a male voice told them, “Festival.”

In between questions, a woman had something to tell them. “Attempt on my life,” she said.

Rick had an equipment issue, so he switched to the SB-7 Spirit Box. A woman was asking if they had any issues with the 1937 flood, if it affected them personally. A male voice said, “Get off.”

If they got any other responses, I couldn’t hear them. The volume was very low. The session ended and the group went to break.

Second Session – Orange Group

They attempted a spirit box session, but didn’t get any clear response, so they began using the flashlight as a tool.

They enjoy having people come in and learn from them.

They would like to share their information.

Rick turned the spirit box back on. This time, they began getting responses. A woman asked if they had a large family and a male voice told her, “I want to leave with you.” Hopefully, that didn’t happen.

Someone began using dowsing rods and were getting quite a few responses while the spirit box played in the background.

• The woman they were speaking to had a half dozen children.
• Their family wasn’t there.
• He worked at the shipyard during the war and worked as a welder.
• They didn’t know her mom.
• They worked on the ships while they were in the water.
• They knew how the LSD ship broke away and floated out into the river. She noted that her mother was on the ship when it happened.

After getting that response, she said, “I’ve got goose bumps,” and a male voice responded with, “No thanks.”

• He didn’t work on the tanks

Rick asked if he worked on the airplanes. The dowsing rods said “yes” at the same time he got a response on the spirit box. A male voice said, “You bet.

• He wasn’t a riveter
• He was a welder with the airplanes
• Other family members worked with him
• His father worked with him.
• His children didn’t work with him.

A male guest asked if he was a member of Germania and a male voice said, “No.”

• He was a welder for the building they were in.
• He was injured which prevented him from being in the war.
• It wasn’t due to a work injury.
• He was born with the issue.

Third Session – Blue Group

Rick’s group started out with a spirit box session. It took almost five minutes to get a response, but it was a doozy. A guest asked if they had any pets and a man told them, “A snake.”

I feel sorry for the Blue Group. They just weren’t getting any results. Finally, after another four minutes, someone asked, “What room are we in?” and a man told him, “What we owe.” It wasn’t really an answer that fit the question, but it was the only one that was legible.

They started asking if they played cards in the Women’s Kitchen or if they counted money. Rick commented that “That got them talking,” and a woman said, “I’m not sure.”

One guest asked, “If you lost money in this room, did you get in trouble when you got home?” A female told him, “Stop,” and she sounded irritated.

One reason why this group might not have been getting as many responses as the other groups is because several of them kept asking validating questions to prove there were really ghosts there.

They were getting noises on the spirit box, but most of them were just blips and blurts from radio stations. Finally, someone told them, “Say orange if you don’t want to talk,” and a male voice said, “That one.” I don’t know why he didn’t just say orange, but his intent was clear.

The session ended and they moved onto their next group.

Fourth Session – Striped Group

After introducing themselves, they got started on a spirit box session. One guest asked how long they’ve been in the building. A male voice commented, “Man, it’s strong.” I’m not sure what he meant by that, but it was an interesting response.

In this group’s session in the Singing Room with me, one of the guests asked they what their favorite beer was. A male voice said, “Busch,” which struck us all as funny. He asked if his Busch Beer friend followed him into the Women’s Kitchen. A male voice immediately responded, “I’ve a come!”

The same guest asked if his “boot shipping” friend came with them. Upon review, I didn’t get the same information we thought we got at the time. We heard “shipping lanes” come through on the VOX. When asked what they shipped, we thought we heard the word “Boots” but that wasn’t the case. They actually said “parkas.” The response to the follow up question in this session was “Billy,” followed by another male voice who said, “Jim.”

Rick was attempting to move the session along, so he asked Rosemary if she’d like to ask any questions. A male voice piped up, “Welcome!” He was apparently happy to see her.

Rosemary asked them if they could move the cat ball that lights up when moved. A male voice found it, “Intriguing.”

A woman who returned from the break out session asked a few questions. She asked if they liked it when they cooked in the Women’s Kitchen. A male voice told her. “I don’t cook.”

When it was Bill’s turn to ask questions, he asked if they were there on Sundays. During his session in the Singing Room with me, they told him they watch him on Sundays. This time, he got two interesting responses. One voice said, “Typical,” which was followed by another voice that also said, “Typical.”

Bill then asked if there were more female than male spirits in the building. He got a really interesting answer. A man voice with an accent told him, “You’re a policeman.”

When Bill asked if Bob was there, a female told him, “He’s in the basement.” I was under the impression they didn’t have a basement, so I’m not sure what this meant.

When it was Rosemary’s turn, she attempted to get them to play with the cat ball on the table. When she asked if they would turn it on, it went on immediately. It continued to go off for another minute.

A guest asked if they were there during the steamboat era and a male said, “You bet.”

They asked quite a few more questions and really didn’t get any responses, but they did get something during a pause in questions. It’s faint, but clear. A male said, “They said it’ll come.” Another male responded to him and said, “Are you stupid?” It sounded like they were having a conversation.

That ended up being their last intelligent response.

Fifth Session – Yellow Group

Rick started his last session by explaining the process. After they introduced themselves, they got started. Often, as we get later into the night, the activity wears down. It’s as though the ghosts have retired for the evening. Either that, or we’ve worn them out.

They didn’t get their first intelligent response until nearly eight minutes into the session. A woman told them what I suspected. “It’s break time,” she told them.

They didn’t get another clear response until the thirteen minute mark. Someone asked what their name was and a man said, “Got rich for.” It’s not an intelligent response, but it was clear once it was slowed down. The group thought he said “Richard,” so they began directing questions towards him.

After a few more rounds, Rick gave up on the spirit box and began focusing on the cat ball. He asked them to make it flash its lights and it instantly began flashing. He remarked that he’s done 15-20 of these investigations and has never had it work that well.

They got it to come on several more times before it was the end of the session.

Rathskeller Sessions – Investigator: Traci Hoehn

Traci’s sessions were located in the Rathskeller. Here, guests got to experience sensory deprivation in combination with the spirit box, a technique known as the Estes Method. Using this method, one participant listens to the spirit box through a headset while blindfolded. They say what they hear come through while the rest of the group asks questions. The headphones and blindfold preclude interpreting anticipated answers by the listener. Although we were short a blindfold, all of the participants kept their eyes closed during the sessions, and they were set a few feet back from the group to avoid noise contamination as much as possible. You’ll see in the transcripts, some people seem to have more of an affinity for this method (or perhaps the ghosts just like talking to them more!). With the Rathskeller being one of the most active areas of the building, we were certainly excited to see how the ghosts would communicate with us here.

Each session opened with a brief explanation of the equipment. Once we got a volunteer set up listening to the spirit box, we introduced ourselves to the ghosts and got rolling. The goal is always to have a direct conversation with the ghosts that makes sense. We certainly achieved that goal at certain points in the evening! In the following transcripts, all responses from the Estes Method listener will be labeled as A while any questions from the group will be labeled Q.

Session One (Yellow Group):

Q: Can you tell us what your name is?

Is there anyone here who wants to talk with us?

A: Clothes

Q: Clothes? Do you see the clothes on the table (referring to the shirts for sale)? Is that what you see?

What kind of work did you do?

What is your first language?

A: Baby

Q: Are you young?

Are you the spirit of a young child?

Are your parents here, too?

Do you have a baby?

How old are you?

Are there more than two spirits in the room?

Did you cook when you worked here?

Is your name Samuel?

Where are you from originally?

Are you married?

Is anyone else from your family here?

What would you like to talk about?

At this point, we weren’t having a lot of success yet, so we switched volunteers and had a new listener.

Q: Are you shy? We know you’re in here. There are plenty of you in this building. We just want to talk to you. Were you a member of the club here?

A: One

Q: One, what?

A: No, three.

Q: There are three what?

A: Now.

Q: Are you three years old?

A: Three

Q: Do you like any of the toys we brought for you (there was a ball and a REM pod in the room for the ghosts to play with)?

Are you male? A boy?

A: Yeah.

Q: Have you played with balls before?

A: Yesterday. Night.

Q: Would you like to play again today with our pink ball?

A: Do you?

Q: Yes. I’ll play ball with you. You go first.

A: Patient.

Q: Ok. I can be patient.

A: I don’t know.

Q: Are there other kids who you play with?

A: Left. The middle.

Q: What’s in the middle?

A: Fendrich.

Q: Is that a name? (Here one of the guests notes that there is a Fendrich Golf Course in Evansville)

A: I’m happy.

Q: Is Fendrich someone in your family?

A: I’m trying.

Q: What are you trying to do?

A: It’s up.

Q: What’s up?

One of the pictures that are up? (Pictures of former members adorn the walls of the Rathskeller)

A: Relations. Relationship.

Q: Was that your dad?

Can you tell us the names of the other two who are here with you?

A: This time?

Q: Please.

A: Girl.

Q: Her name?

Thank you.

Are you friends with the girl with you?

A: They are. One.

Q: Are there two girls here, too?

A: Drugs.

Q: What do you call the Frau that is here?

She’s probably the staunch one, right?

A: Wait.

Q: Does she serve the food?

A: We are.

Q: Or was she a barmaid who served the drinks only?

A: Promise?

Q: Yes. Tell me.

Are there people in other parts of the building?

A: Speech.

Q: Do you want to give a speech?

A: Brandon.

Q: Is that your name?

Who is Brandon?

Can you see me?

A: I’m Bob.

Q: Hi. It’s nice to meet you, Bob. Do you remember any of our names?

Bob, how long have you been here?

Can you tell me who the president is?

A: No.

Q: Did you play any sports?

A: Nope.

Q: Are you ok?

What can we help you with?

Is this still Bob?

Is it Bob that’s asking for help?

A: Here we are.

You can.

Q: Do you like living here, in this building?

A: Butterfly. (After looking around the room, one guest had a butterfly on their clothing)

Q: Do you like her butterfly?

A: Hurry.

At this point, Traci saw the shadow of a tall man walk behind the bar and into the back room. None of the other participants saw him, but we all became much more vigilant. We used this opportunity to switch listeners once more.

Q: Do you always stay here, or do you leave the building?

A: I’ve been.

Q: Have you been walking around outside the building?

What is your favorite object in this room?

Do you know who was behind the bar just now?

A: Developing.

Q: Can you come forward and touch the machine (K2 meter)?

A: It’s between.

Q: Would you rather it be further away?

A: Your neighbors.

So, that’s it.

Q: Are you done talking?

A: What we bring you.

Q: Explain.

A: Forty-seven.

Q: What are you doing right now?

Did you or somebody you know work for the Fendrich Cigar Company?

A: Not picking up. An accessible way.

Q: We only have a couple of minutes left in this session. Is there anything you want to say to this group? Anything you want them to know?

A: Main Street. And they’re all the same.

Q: What’s all the same?

Do we need to go to Main Street? Give us an address on Main Street and we’d be tempted to go.

What do you call the Frau in this room?

The female spirit in here, what is her name?

Session 2 (Red Group):

A: Devil

Q: That’s a good start. (We then went around the circle to introduce ourselves)

A: Are you sure (said just as someone said their name)?

Q: Can you tell us what your name is?

How many people are in here with us?

A: A young one.

Q: A young one? What’s their name?

A: Nina.

Q: Well, hi, Nina! Nina, do you want to play?

There’s a ball on the floor, Nina. If you want to roll it across the floor, any of us would be glad to play with you.

A: Moving.

Q: What’s moving?

A: I saw it.

Q: What’d you see? Did you see the ball we’re talking about?

A: A person.

Q: Which person?

A: It’s open.

Q: What’s open?

A: It’s mine.

Q: What is?

You think that ball is yours?

Nina, can you share it with me?

Can I have it?

A: Attic.

Q: It’s in the attic? 

Is it a toy?

A: Nope.

Q: Ok. Is it a book? 

A: Myself.

Q: Are you by yourself?

A: Briefly.

Q: Were there other people here before?

A: Basement.

Mama.

Q: Is your Mama here?

A: Love. Let’s dance.

Q: Do you like to dance?

A: I agree.

Q: Do you have any siblings that you dance with?

What type of music do you like to dance to?

A: Danger.

Q: What kind of danger?

A: Enjoy.

Q: Do you enjoy dancing?

What do you like to do?

A: Good.

Q: How old are you?

Are you here with your family?

A: Help me.

Q: Are you stuck here?

A: English.

Q: Do you speak English? Can you understand us?

A: April.

Q: My birthday is in April. Is that your birthday?

A: Stand up.

Q: Do you want us to stand up?

As a group, we stood up.

A: Where is that?

Q: Did you lose something here?

We’re all standing.

A: Extra.

Q: Are you sitting in the extra chair?

A: American.

Survivor.

Q: Can we sit now? (With no response, we sat back down).

A: Damage.

Q: What’s damaged?

Is it something we can fix?

Are you standing over by this table of t-shirts, by any chance? (The guest felt a cold spot, while others thought she saw movement in that direction).

A: On the river.

Save them.

Q: Who are we going to save?

Are they on the river?

A: When they’re gone.

Q: When who’s gone?

A: Downtown.

Q: Downtown Evansville?

A: Help them.

Q: What can we do to help?

A: Sinking.

We switched listeners at this point.

A: Taking flight.

Q: Where are you going?

A: I don’t…

Nepal.

Q: Can I go?

Did you survive a disaster?

A: (Listener said she heard a bunch of gun, “like a war”)

Rock me, please.

Q: Are you a child?

A: It’s a baby. It’s a baby!

Help me, please.

Help me.

Q: How can we help you?

Where’s your mother?

A: You can just get back! (Listener identified this as a strong male voice)

Q: Are you in water?

A: Go away. (Lexi, our photographer, had just walked into the room. So, she went to another room for a bit.)

Q: Are you stuck?

A: You must be quiet.

Q: Why do we have to be quiet?

A: Sleeping.

Q: Is the baby sleeping?

A: Help.

Q: What do you need help with?

A: (The listener couldn’t make it out in full but heard that somebody was in the hospital).

Q: Who is in the hospital?

A: Twelve people.

Q: Are you talking about the disaster?

A: No.

Q: Are you referring to a war?

Why are there twelve people in the hospital?

A: There’s something here right now.

Q: Did something happen on the water?

A: Catch me.

Q: Is it a fire?

A: No!

Q: Something to do with water? Avalanche?

Did someone drown?

A: No!

Q: Was there a flood?

A: (Listener heard something in another language but didn’t recognize it)

Q: Are you a mother looking for her baby?

A: A long time ago.

Q: Did you lose a baby?

A: Shh. Yes.

Q: Were you around in the 1937 flood?

Are you giving birth?

Did you have a boy or a girl?

A: I don’t know.

Q: Did you give birth here in Evansville, Indiana?

A: Baby is. Indiana.

Q: Are you from Indiana?

A: Indianapolis.

Q: Why are you here?

A: You.

Q: Can you tell me what year it is?

Who is the president?

A: Calendar.

Q: Yeah, I want to know what the date is. Do you know? I can’t remember.

A: Indiana.

Q: We are in Indiana. You are right.

We switched listeners here.

A: My name is Rick.

Q: Hi, Rick. How are you today?

A: Shh.

Baby. Baby.

Your inability.

Music.

Q: What kind of music?

A: What’d you say?

Q: What kind of music?

A: And I never. Would you?

Q: Maybe?

A: No. Music.

Q: Can you move that ball right there?

A: An apple?

Q: It’s not an apple, it’s a ball.

A: Shh.

Loud music, and everyone’s certain.

Q: What kind of music?

A: Get her out!

Q: Do we need to save somebody?

A: Alive. Ball.

Q: Can you play with the ball?

A: Let’s push it.

Q: Ok. Let’s roll it. Can you roll it?

A: No. Up.

Q: Roll the ball to me.

A: L.A.S.

Frank.

Here I go.

Q: Where are you going?

A: We’re going to laugh.

Shh.

Q: We would love it if you’d move that ball.

A: Beach.

Q: You want to go to the beach?

Are you in California now?

A: Hand.

But first. More.

Q: Are you from Evansville?

A: Shh. I know.

Up. Right now.

Sherry.

Q: What is your name?

A: It’s whatever party.

Q: Is this Nina or someone else?

A: Shh.

Q: Are you a child?

A: (Heard a response in another language).

Q: Do you speak English?

A: Open.

Q: Open what?

The listener then clearly heard her name through the spirit box and decided she was done. Hearing your own name can be quite a startling experience!

Session Three (Orange Group):

Q: Can you tell us what your name is?

A: Anne.

Q: It’s nice to meet you, Anne.

Anne, is there anything that you want us to know?

A: Breathing.

Q: Were you a singer? Did you join the Damenchor here and sing?

A: At home.

Q: Did you sing at home? 

Did you play any instruments?

A: Sorry.

Q: That’s ok.

Did you read music?

A: Thank you very much.

Q: You’re welcome.

(A guest reported feeling dizzy)

A: A.L.T. for birthdays.

Q: Do you work with children?

A: I can see.

Q: Do you teach children? (Another guest was getting goosebumps)

A: Radio.

Q: Did you work or volunteer here in this building?

Did you live here in the 1920s?

A: Got it.

Q: Are you here by yourself?

How long have you been here?

A: Eyes wide.

Q: How old are you?

A: Five.

Q: Were you married?

Did you get to dance here?

Did your dad put you on his feet and dance with you?

A: Somebody.

Prayer.

Q: Did you have a good time here?

Did your family speak German?

A: I need.

Q: What is it that you need? We’ll try to help you.

How many of you are here? In this room.

A: With.

Q: Are you with someone? Is there more than one of you here with us?

A: Danger.

Q: Are you a male or a female?

A: (Response in German, the listener doesn’t speak German so he couldn’t translate)

Q: Male or female (Asked in German)?

A: Bitte (German for ‘please’)

Q: Are you a small child (In German)?

A: I was really excited.

Q: Did you enjoy dancing down here?

A: Number one.

Q: If you’re number one, who is number two?

Can you teach us a song?

Can you tell us the words?

A: Bitte (German for ‘please’)

Q: Do you sing with your friends?

A: Did you know?

Q: I didn’t, that’s why I’m asking if you could teach us your song.

Did your grandma teach it to you?

A: People.

At this point, we switched listeners.

Q: What’s the name of your favorite song?

A: Touch it.

Q: Did you live in the city or the country?

A: All better.

Q: Did you visit the country?

A: No school.

Q: Was it summertime?

Did your mother read to you?

What was your favorite book?

A: Give me forever.

Q: Give me forever?

A: Looks right.

Q: Do you read often?

Did you have another hobby that you did frequently?

A: Rocking.

Q: In a rocking chair or in a swing?

A: Because God.

Q: He is our Rock.

Are you really religious?

A: No.

Look up.

Q: What am I supposed to be seeing? 

Can you make any of these lights swing on the ceiling? That’d really be something. 

Do you move things in here?

A: I just want to.

Q: You just want to make things move? I would, too, if I were you.

Is there anything you can move?

Can you tell me how many fingers I’m holding up, if you can see me?

A: Sorry.

Q: That’s ok.

A: Coffee. Not hot.

Q: Ok, I was looking at the coffee maker. Is that you walking by the coffee maker?

A: Father.

Q: Did your father drink a lot of coffee?

I keep seeing something move around the coffee maker, is that you?

A: I don’t know.

Riddle.

Hey.

Q: Do you want to tell me a riddle?

Do you know how to make coffee?

A: In the right.

Q: Do you like cookies?

A: Yes.

Q: Oh, I like cookies, too.

A: With the boys, all of it.

Q: Do you like cakes?

A: Left off.

Q: I like to dip my cookies. You can dip them in coffee. You can dip them in milk.

A: I see that.

Q: What did you see?

Do you like candy?

A: I can.

Q: What’s your favorite type of German food?

A: I’ve got to know.

Q: What do you have to know?

A: It’s much bolder.

Q: Do you not like me?

A: It will play you.

Q: Are you unhappy?

Earlier you said, look up. Did you want us to see the stained glass windows?

Do you like the swan?

A: Slow down.

It’s fraying.

Q: Do you like the castle?

Do you like the paintings on the wall?

A: I don’t want to say.

Q: Ok.

A: You’re playing.

Q: Do you like the Edelweiss, the flowers?

A: Aye.

Me.

Q: Are you five years old?

A: And?

Q: Or are you older?

A: You head.

A little more.

Q: Are you over 21?

Or are you retired?

A: Serious?

Q: Yes, I’m serious. I’m retired.

A: Military.

Q: You were in the military. Were you in WWII?

A: Showing.

Q: Can you tell me who is in charge here? Who is in charge in this building?

If I want to talk to the boss, who do I talk to?

A: Definite.

Q: There is a definite boss? I need to know who it is. Is it the lady that is seen down here sometimes?

A: Now, she’ll be filled.

Q: ‘Now, she’ll be filled’? That’s odd.

A: This is.

Q: I’m sure this is odd for you, talking to us like this. Not many people do talk to you like this.

A: Your friend. (At this point I should note that it is Traci asking the question, so we assume the ghost is talking about Joni or another investigator).

Q: My friend? Yeah, she talks to you like this, too.

A: One.

Q: Do you remember what my friend’s name is? We came here a couple of weeks ago. She is the boss, of our business anyway.

A: No, old.

Fifty.

Q: Are you fifty?

A: You, definitely.

Q: I’m not fifty. I’m getting there.

We’re going to wrap up, is there anything else you would like to say to us?

A: Raggedy.

Q: Are we looking raggedy?

Session Four (Blue Group):

Q: Can you tell us what your name is?

We were talking to several people earlier. Are any of you still with us?

A: Open

Q: What’s open?

A: Who’s talking?

Q: Who is talking to you? What’s their name?

Is your name Christopher?

How long have you been here?

Did you like being in the Rathskeller?

A: Oh, my god!

Q: Oh, my god, what?

Do you have a favorite drink at the bar?

What city are we in?

A: Louisville.

Q: Do you know what state we are in?

A: I don’t know.

Q: Do you know the city?

A: Great, great (unintelligible).

Q: Are you happy here?

A: I want out.

Q: What do you want out of?

A: I don’t know.

Q: Do you want out of here?

A: Maybe.

Q: Do you want us to leave with you?

A: Not this time.

Q: Are you happy that we’re here? (The guest was advised to tread lightly with this line of 

questioning. We want to be as respectful to the ghosts as possible, so if they tell us to leave – we leave.)

A: The boys are.

It takes your breath away.

Q: What takes your breath away?

A: I don’t know.

Q: Were you born in Evansville?

A: It’s possible.

Q: Do you know where you were born?

A: France.

Q: Parlez-vous français? (translation: Do you speak French?)

A: Ok, I’m traveling.

Q: Can you say your name for us?

A: The gates are open.

Q: Open to what?

Did you ever live in Germany?

A: I already told you that!

Q: Did you ever dance upstairs here at Germania?

A: I can dance.

Q: Were you the best dancer?

Did you play a musical instrument?

A: Piano.

Q: What is your favorite color?

Were you a choir member?

A: I don’t know what it is.

Q: We’re going to ask a couple of more questions, then switch listeners. Is there anything else you want to say right now?

A: Wait and see.

Q: Ok, we’ll wait and see.

We switched out listeners and dove back in.

Q: We have someone new listening. Are you going to continue talking to us? We would enjoy it if you would. We’ve very much enjoyed our conversations tonight.

A: Back of the bar.

Q: Are you at the back of the bar? Are you who I saw earlier tonight?

A: Why?

Q: I’m just curious. I want to say ‘hi’ to you.

How long were you a member here?

Were you a bartender here?

Are you drinking beer?

Do you have a favorite German food?

Do you like when they have big events like weddings?

A: Do you have any questions?

Q: Am I standing or sitting?

A: Right.

Q: Am I wearing a watch?

Do you know what type of flowers are in the corner?

Do you know what instrument is in the corner?

A: Come on!

Q: Where are we going?

A: Back to the neighborhood.

Q: Which neighborhood?

A: Up the river.

Q: Which river?

Do you like this area?

A: Its property.

Q: What about this property do you like?

Do you have a favorite room in this property?

What’s your favorite place in the world?

Does pineapple go on pizza? In your opinion.

Could you move that ball?

A: Gets on the tour.

Q: For what?

Do you ever get tired of hanging out in this bar and want to go over to (unintelligible)’s 

house?

A: Waiting on earth.

Q: Does he like ice cream?

A: I need directions from home.

Q: Where do you live at?

A: Up the river.

Q: Do you travel by boat?

A: I encourage you to go there.

Q: Would you rather have whiskey or beer?

A: They sure are.

Q: Do you like them both?

A: Trips.I love trips.

Q: Where all have you been?

Have you ever spent the night at the Hilltop Inn?

A: We got a new floor.

Q: Is it a wooden floor?

Is it a stone floor?

How old are you?

Do you have children?

A: No.

I require them for writing.

Q: What’s your favorite food?

What’s up the river? It seems like a recurring topic.

Are you from Louisville? Someone mentioned that town either this session or the last. Is 

that where you are from?

A: I want to put that theory to the test.

Q: So do I!

So, is that where you are from?

What other theories do you want to test? I like testing theories.

Let’s test the theory of whether you can see me or not. How many fingers am I holding 

up?

A: I saw my brother.

Q: What’s his name?

A: I’m serious!

Q: Ok, me, too! I want to know what your brother’s name is. I have brothers.Their names are 

Nick and Ryan. Do you have any sisters?

A: We broke up.

Q: Did you live separately from your siblings?

A: I dance to the music.

Q: What kind of music?

A: I love music.

Q: What kind of music do you like?

Do you have a favorite type of music?

Session Five (Striped Group):

Q: Can you tell us what your name is?

Is there anyone here with us?

A: Yes, I’m here.

Q: Oh, I’m glad. Can you tell me what your name is?

Is your name Bob?

Are you happy to be in this room tonight?

A: Yes.

Q: Are you male?

Are you female?

How old are you?

A: Sixty-five.

Q: Do you watch us when we play?

A: I did.

Wait for days.

Q: Do you like to play with us?

What’s your name?

A: Eddie.

Q: Eddie, do you watch me on Sunday mornings?

A: It smells good.

Q: Is John with you? Or Karl?

Bobby or Randy?

How many are in the room with us right now?

A: Sunday.

Q: Yes, tomorrow is Sunday. Do you go to church?

Tomorrow is also Father’s Day. Do you have any children?

A: There’s a favorite.

Q: Have you lived here long?

Do you like the hot weather we’re having?

I would rather have it cooler, but it is summer. What’s your favorite time of the year?

When you said there is a favorite, does that mean you had a favorite child?

A: Son.

Q: Did you say your son? Is your son your favorite?

A: Yes.

Q: What’s his name?

Is he all grown up?

A: The best one.

Q: You really do have a favorite kid don’t you? Why is he the best?

Is he a member here?

We’re getting ready to switch listeners, is there anything you would like to say before we do?

The spirit box turned itself off right as we decided to switch listeners; Traci was able to turn it back on and functioned properly afterwards.

Q: Ok, we have a new listener if you want to talk to her. You can tell us whatever you want us to hear. We’re going to be wrapping up the night before too long, so there’s not a lot of opportunity tonight to tell us more. Is there something we need to know?

Do you like being here?

Do you like the Rathskeller?

A: Music playing.

Q: Do you like music?

A: Some.

Q: Do you like to play with us? Can you play with the ball?

A: (The listener said she could hear the piano playing)

Q: Can you play the piano?

Do you like the piano?

A: Whatever.

Q: So, do you play a lot of instruments?

A: (The listener commented, “Oh, all kinds of music coming out!” This hadn’t been happening to anyone else throughout the night.)

Q: Were you one of our founding fathers?

Were you an officer of Germania?

A: Yes. 

Q: When I was listening, you mentioned something about a favorite son, is that correct?

A: Do you sing, too?

Yes, you sing, too.

He sings, too.

Q: (Traci explained that the listener might be hearing a conversation between two or more ghosts, which can happen sometimes during the Estes Method.)

Can you sing for us?

A: Playing. Playing for.

Q: Can you sing a few notes of your favorite song?

A: (Listener said she heard “all different kinds of music” again.)

Q: Were you a musician in the building? 

Were you part of the Rathskeller band?

Do you ever go swimming in the Ohio River?

A: To keep it secret.

Q: Have you been in this building very long?

Do you go to bed early?

A: Up.

Q: Do you like to stay up?

A: For the fun of it.

(Listener heard “1907 or 1927 or something”)

June 20th.

Q: (As a group we discussed the dates of the 1937 flood, which was in January-February).

Do you remember the big flood in Evansville?

A: Let’s go.

Q: Where do you want to go?

A: I come here.

Q: Uh-huh. Yeah, you came here, but you don’t have to stay here. You could go. Or you could wander around the neighborhood and look at all the buildings. I’m sure it looks different than from when you were here. Where do you want to go?

A: Totally. It’s totally.

Q: It’s totally what?

We’re going to switch again. Is there anything else you would like to say?

A: More music.

We switched to our last listener of the night and hoped we hadn’t worn the ghosts out yet.

Q: We’re having our last listener of the night. Now that we’re wrapping up, remember all of those important things you want to say to somebody you can tell us now.

A: Hello.

Q: Hello. My name is Traci, what’s your name?

You don’t have to be scared.

Are there still kids here?

Can you hear what we’re asking? Do you understand what we’re asking?

We just want to understand. Can you give us some sort of indication that you know why 

we’re here?

Are you at peace here in this building?

Are you content here?

Is there anything you’d like us to know?

Have you been to the Volksfest? They have really good food there?

Have you been to their Christmas dinner and play?

You mentioned something about June 20th. What’s so important about June 20th?

Eddie, are you still with us?

Traci reiterated that not everyone is able to do the Estes Method. She also pointed out that we may have worn the ghosts out for the night. It likely takes a lot of energy for them to communicate with us, and these ghosts haven’t had the experience of a full investigation before. With that in mind, we decided to let the ghosts go to bed for the night.

Overall, the Rathskeller proved to be a very haunted location in the building! The ghosts were talkative and definitely gave enough information to head down the research rabbit hole.

Conclusion

It was an interesting investigation and the first we’ve done at Germania Maennerchor. We definitely had some intelligent responses, but the best one of the night came from Jason’s second session (Blue Group) on the stage. Someone broke into the building and stole copper piping. He asked who did it and the ghosts told him, “It was a cop.” I would suggest that they look at anyone who dresses like a policeman. If the man worked security somewhere in town, it would make sense he wore his uniform when he broke in and stole the pipes to prevent anyone from questioning him being in the building. They probably couldn’t do a lot with the information, but it would give them more insight into the break in.

Thank you to Germania Maennerchor for hosting us and helping out with the event. Additional gratitude to my team for making it happen. We had a lot of issues at the beginning of the event, but everyone worked through them to provide the best possible experience for our guests. And thank you to our guests who joined us. We are working on two additional events right now, so stay tuned!