Mystery and Murder at Prospect Place

The network of secret routes and homes known as the Underground Railroad was used to aid slaves as they fled north towards freedom.  Many abolitionists sympathetic to the plight of these individuals opened their homes at their own risk.   George W. Adams was an example of just such a man.  After inheriting his father’s plantation, Adams freed the slaves, sold the plantation and moved to Ohio.  One of his sons, George, would maintain his father’s abolitionist beliefs, and would, consequently, allow his home to be a safe house on the Underground Railroad.  After the death of his first wife and upon marrying his second, George Adams would go on to build Prospect Place.  From the murder of a bounty hunter to the disappearance of George’s son-in-law, the history of the Adams family and their descendants holds all the drama and intrigue of an epic historical novel.   

Prospect Place has garnered somewhat of a national reputation.  The television shows Ghost Hunters (SyFy Channel) and Ghost Adventures (Travel Channel) have held investigations at the site.  In addition, a visit to their website will demonstrate how those responsible for restoring Prospect Place are capitalizing on its reputation.  They offer both public as well as private tours and overnight stays for ghost hunters.  The site also provides videos from previous ghost hunting expeditions.   On the evening of Thursday, July 7, the authors of this article will perform their own expedition.  Real time updates, pictures and videos will be posted on this blog as they occur.  Depending on what unworldly beings are waiting to greet the two authors as they arrive, posts will begin around 8:00 p.m.

Below, ghost fans, are some additional pictures and information as well as video clips from one of the television shows that have visited Prospect Place.  Very dramatic history behind this place.  The first set of pictures is from the G.W. Adams Educational Center website.  The property/business manager of the site and, I believe, a major catalyst in bringing Prospect Place back to life is none other than George J. Adams.  The name is not coincidental.  So, without further ado..

Awe, Nothing like a romantic getaway.  We can't wait!

   

                                                                          

We love old pictures like this.  19th and early 20th century photos could be of the sweetest, old couple of the time and still feel a bit creepy.  This one, in particular, is interesting, however.  The subjects of photos of this period are often looking blankly and somberly into the camera.  Here, we see family members staring at others in the picture; the two in the front seem to be casually speaking to one-another; and, our favorite, the woman who is referred to simply as "unknown woman" is grinning mischievously.  What has she done?  In addition, the lone picture on the left wall appears to be askew, possibly a reflection of the photo as a whole.  Though, in fairness, it also looks to just be leaning out from the wall.  But, where is the symbolism in that?

Also, you can go to the Grave Addiction site, which we referenced in an earlier article, to see some additional photos taken by the creator of that site, Beth.

And, on a final note, here is a clip from the Travel Channel television show, Ghost Adventures.  This is the first of four clips.

Well, that is all for this session.  We will periodically offer additional information about Prospect Place and its history as we draw closer to the site visit.  Thanks, everyone, for stopping in.  Make sure to enter your email to receive updates when we have new posts and click on the follow tab to, as you might guess, follow this blog.  And, of course, read our article on the Examiner site to help promote us.  We will typically post every Wednesday, but that could expand depending on site expeditions and, more importantly, moods.

Thanks!



The screaming dead must have lost their voices

The journey to Cedar Hill Cemetery seemed fated to result in dramatic events as though scripted by a Hollywood screenwriter of the supernatural.  The location of the Baker Mausoleum on the 113 acre cemetery was unknown at the beginning of this expedition. Upon entering the site, a series of roads branched into several directions.  These roads would then split again, creating a network of veins throughout the rolling hills. Despite the odds, the authors of this article drove directly to meet the Baker family at their resting place as though guided. (Reference The screaming dead article for additional background on this story.)

As things turned out, if some mysterious force was reaching out to pull those living closer, it was simply a tease. As legend has it, one will hear a woman screaming when placing his or her ear against the mausoleum door. Even the non-believing skeptic felt slightly anxious while stepping up to the dilapidated structure.  At times, imagination and eerie surroundings have a way of overcoming reason when put to the test.  All that was heard, however, was the murmuring sounds created by the cars passing by on nearby Cedar Road as the rumble of engines vibrated up through the concrete. If there are indeed spirits haunting The Baker Mausoleum, they may tease by leading one to anxious anticipation.  But, unfortunately, the experience will not end in screams.    

The Screaming Dead

Approximately 30 miles east of Columbus, Ohio and situated at the fork in the Licking River there is a town called Newark.  With a population of 47,500, Newark is by no means a large city, but it has still grown beyond the size where every action of one of its citizens becomes the knowledge of the community as a whole.  Like all Midwest towns, Newark has its basket of locals who went on to gain some modicum of celebrity; including the likes of horror author, Gary A. Braunbeck and Edward James Roye, the president of Liberia from (1870-1871).  (The authors of this article would be remiss not to mention Kara Wetzel, who is described in Wikipedia as “The oldest of rapper Lil’ Waynes’ illegitimate children’s ‘baby mamas.’” )

Another characteristic of Newark that it likely shares with towns across the United States is its several haunted locations that have created both local and, in some cases, national prominence.   These include the widely known Newark Earthworks, which once contained the largest earthen enclosures in the world, as well as, what every town cannot go without, a high school that is haunted by the ghost of a janitor who accidentally hung himself.  Though these will likely be topics of future articles, this and forthcoming articles will focus on the Cedar Hills Cemetery. 

Thanks to a Perpetual Care Fund, Cedar Hill Cemetery has successfully endured since 1850.  As a chartered division of the City of Newark, it is the largest municipal cemetery in central Ohio.  When considering ghostly matters, it is not the entire location that is of interest. 

If one drives through the gates leading into the 113 acre cemetery, follows the road furthest to the right and continues into the rolling hills that contain a small number of the 36,000 who have been laid to rest there, he or she will find themselves at the Baker Mausoleum. 

Likely due to its worn appearance, with collapsed columns along its side and the statue of a weeping woman perched near the door, the mausoleum has been nicknamed The Asylum.  Nine members of the Baker Clan have been interned within the mausoleum.   The youngest of which, Annie Dickinson Baker, was only three days old.  Her name was accompanied by the inscription, “Our Little Lady.” 

Next to the mausoleum are a series of headstones that, due to the names and the manner in which they are positioned, appear to have been of some relation to the Bakers.   As legend goes, if a person puts their ear up to the mausoleum, he or she will be treated with the sound of a woman screaming.  The intent of future articles will, of course, be to determine whether any “event” can be experienced at this site.  More importantly, however, the building of the mausoleum and those interned there will be further researched to see whether there is a more detailed “story” that led to this legend, or if it is simply the product of a haunting physical appearance and location that invites the promulgation of such stories.


Now, if you ask "The Materialist" of this dynamic duo, he will bet that the screaming is a combination of an active imagination and the sounds of cars driving nearby reverberating through the concrete.  He is, however, hoping like hell (which he, of course, does not believe to exist) to be proven wrong.  Now, as for "The Believer," she is quite open to the possibility that this is nothing more than a small town legend, for she is sensible and does not believe in all that is presented to her.  She is, however, very open to the possibility that something that is not understood has left a slight crack in the ether that is just large enough to allow for the escape of sorrowful, tortured screams.


We shall see...stay tuned!

A Long in the Making Endeavor

For years now, the two of us have been talking about doing something like this.  And, finally, what motivated us to do so was an ad for local contributors to write for the examiner.com on a variety of subjects.  One of these subjects was, of course, paranormal topics.  So, we used this as the push we needed.  Regardless of whether we are accepted, we will use this blog to move forward with our new adventure.  Below, is a copy of the writing sample we sent to the examiner with the application.  It may look familiar as we also used parts of it for the introduction.

Typing Paranormal into Google will treat one to 64.8 million potential links to explore.  A more modest search of Ohio Paranormal will result in 4.25 million hits.  If the researcher of all things spooky and strange decides to dig into a good book on the subject, he or she can browse through one of Amazon.com’s 869 nonfiction or 517 history books on the Paranormal.  With all of the videos, personal testimonies and words written on the subjects of the supernatural, alien encounters, outer-body experiences and a whole host of other topics, there is still no definitive evidence that anything exists beyond the materialist, physical world presented to us every day.  Despite this, a 2005 Gallup Poll taken from a population of 3017 Americans, Canadians and Britons determined that 73% of those polled believe in at least one of 10 paranormal topics; including: extrasensory perception, haunted houses, ghosts, telepathy, clairvoyance, astrology, communication with the dead, witches, reincarnation, and, finally, channeling spiritual entities.   

So, when considering the disparity in what “facts” exist regarding the paranormal and what people actually believe, what, then, is the elusive truth?  Is the paranormal a relic of some primitive world that serves a person’s confirmation biases?  The product of unyielding dogmas used by authoritative powers to maintain their constituents’ loyalties while simultaneously stunting the progress of society?  Or, are these populist beliefs that those in power do not want to acknowledge?  Beliefs that fall outside the realm that human being’s five senses can document and record?  These are the questions the authors of this article, one a skeptic siding more with materialists and the other quite the opposite, seek to answer.       

Tally-ho and way we go!