Hauntings in central Pennsylvania

It's well known that a visit to Gettysburg might be your best chance of bumping into a spirit in Pennsylvania, but not all ghosts haunt the Civil War town. In central Pennsylvania, some are closer than you think!

Several sites in Carlisle have fairly active ghosts. On the Army War College campus sits the Hessian Powder Magazine, the guard house built in 1777 by captured Hessian, who were then imprisoned inside it.

Since 9/11, you must go through inspection at the outside gate to gain access to the campus - sad, because I used to freely ride my bike through there.

But the guards were very nice, and gave me a map to find the building.

I didn't realize it was a museum that you could go inside. This door marked "Open" doesn't look creepy, does it?

Once you're inside, there are displays such as this one.

I was the only person visiting the museum that day, so being inside alone made these statues a little creepy, too!

Farther back sits this creepy, narrow hallway.

And that's when your neck hairs start to tingle. Because down that hallway are the prison cells where Hessians were locked up.

And that's where the sounds come from at night. Moaning, groaning and clanging echo across the War College grounds.

Some claim to have seen a soldier outside.

But one man got an unexpected shock when he went down that hallway to investigate, and looked through the window of the door. Looking back at him were the Hessian prisoners from 1777.

I have to admit, I'd read this story before, and jumped when I looked inside the last cell and saw this.

Don't laugh - you'd have been startled too! lol

On the way out, there was a locked door with an opening high in the door, so I raised my camera and shot inside.

Nothing there but a few stored items, but it gives you an idea of how small those cells are.

I was hoping to capture an orb, too, but no luck.

On the square in Carlisle, the old Cumberland County Courthouse is a pretty sight.

Those who work inside have some scary stories to tell.

One woman says she'll never work late by herself again after hearing slamming doors up and down the hallway.

You can hear other stories about this building on the Nov. 4 episode of SyFy's "Ghost Hunters."

That same "Ghost Hunters" episode will also feature stories about the old Cumberland County Prison.

The grandboys like the place because it resembles a castle. But the prisoners who were locked up there didn't like it much, but apparently some still hang around.

One worker reports seeing a pair of boots walk down the hall, with no body attached.

There are many more such spine-tingling tales in the midstate, so if you're up for a ghost hunt, come and visit!

For now, that wraps up this year's Halloween party. Thanks to all the authors who've shared their spooky tales, tasty treat recipes and their own books! I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have.

Happy Halloween!

PA Horror Stories: Midstate ghosts

 

The history of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School has long intrigued me. Shortly after moving to Carlisle, I caught a documentary about the school on PBS and it stuck with me. So much so that I had to write a novel about it, placing two fictional characters in these actual events.

This is a photo I took of the historical marker near the former school site located on the Carlisle Barracks.

If you're not familiar with it, it's one of several facilities across the country that sought to "civilize" Native Americans by forcing youngsters away from their families to live in these institutions. Very sad.

Even sadder to drive  past the headstones in the small graveyard in the Barracks. About 170 children and teens died while at the school. One, Lucy Pretty Eagle, is said to still walk the grounds. She died at the tender age of ten. You can read more detail about the school and Carlisle's general history here.

Here's a photo I took of the graveyard. People still visit to leave small offerings on the headstones of the children. Some students, like the world famous athlete Jim Thorpe, managed to get through school and live successful lives. Thorpe attended in the early 1900s. The stories that really struck me were of the first students at the school's opening in 1879, those who had no idea what to expect, who were punished for behaving as they were brought up to behave rather than an "American."

Another photo I took in a local museum. This group shot is nearly life-sized, so that when you view it, you feel like the children are staring back at you. And the haunted look in their faces stays with you.

Another article mentions ghosts I'd never heard about before - the captured Hessian soldiers who helped construct the stone building near the Carlisle Barracks to house gunpowder, and which also served as a prison (later for "unruly" students as well). According to the article, one man who visited late at night said that rather stepping into the room that's now a museum, he was transported back in time to 1777 to a very active Hessian Powder Magazine room occupied by Hessians! The article has a few other interesting ghosts if you'd like to check it out.

I'll have another Halloween guest on Friday, so be sure to stop by!