When I first started investigating, I was dead set (no pun intended) on gathering \u201cscientific evidence\u201d that ghosts exist.\u00a0 I had gadgets and I had a tool belt to carry my gadgets in.\u00a0 All those gadgets do is make you appear to be technologically hip \u2013 until your EMF meter goes off and the homeowner asks you why and you say, \u201cUm\u2026 I\u2019m not sure.\u201d\u00a0 Cover blown \u2013 your hip status just went down the toilet, folks.<\/p>\n
There are simply too many factors that come into play when you get gadgets involved.\u00a0 Unless you are a photographer by trade, you likely don\u2019t know all the intricacies of your camera and all the ins and outs of photography.\u00a0 You can\u2019t truly 100% say that weird blob is anomalous.\u00a0 You can say you \u201cthink\u201d it\u2019s anomalous, but really, in the grand scheme of things, do you honestly \u201cthink\u201d anyone gives a rat\u2019s ass what you \u201cthink\u201d?\u00a0 Not really.\u00a0 They have you there because they want to know what you know, not what you \u201cthink.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now that I\u2019ve been doing this for a few years, I\u2019ve learned a lot and I\u2019ve changed my focus quite a bit.\u00a0 I have changed my focus to the history behind the hauntings rather than the science of the hauntings.\u00a0 Why is history so important to an investigation?\u00a0 Because no matter what kind of temperature readings, EMF spikes, or moon phases you have in your favor, you ain\u2019t got jack without the history.\u00a0 The history is the basis of anything and everything going on, if in fact, there really is something going on.\u00a0 If you have exhausted every scientific experiment you can think of and checked all the plumbing and there simply is nothing coming up but these people are still giving you accounts of things that have happened to them, then you owe it to them to find out why.\u00a0 That\u2019s why they called you.<\/p>\n
If you can find out the history of a location, you will likely find out why it\u2019s haunted.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t find out exactly why, you may at least be able to verify that it is.<\/p>\n
My mother lived in a house in Enid, Oklahoma when I was a baby and things happened to her all the time.\u00a0 She would come home and the recliner would be turned facing the wall.\u00a0 Knick-knacks would be moved from where she put them, the lights would come on, the cabinet doors would open \u2013 you know, classic haunted house stuff.\u00a0 One night she was awakened to find herself half way off of her bed, as if she had been dragged off of it.\u00a0 All the lights in the house were on and all the cabinet doors and drawers were open.\u00a0 Buffy, our fearless St. Bernard, was cowering under the dining room table whimpering like a baby.\u00a0 She took me from my crib and got the heck outta Dodge and moved out the next day.<\/p>\n
About 20 years later, she was working at the employment office when a gentleman came to her desk with his paperwork.\u00a0 As she was going through his papers, she saw the address.\u00a0 It was the same address as the house I was just telling you about.\u00a0 She says, \u201cOh, I used to live in that house about 20 years ago,\u201d and the guy says, \u201cReally\u2026 anything weird ever happen to you there?\u201d\u00a0 So they exchange stories and it turns out this guy is having things happen, too.<\/p>\n
Well, I always thought this was a great creepy story so one night I\u2019m relaying it to a few friends.\u00a0 I say the address and one of my friends starts completely freaking out.\u00a0 After he settles down he proceeds to tell me, \u201cWe always deliver medicine to the old lady that lives there and she is always going on about how the devil lives in her house and we always just thought she was crazy!\u201d<\/p>\n
So, you see, there are three stories from three totally unrelated people over the span of several years, of things happening to them in this same house.\u00a0 Do we know why the house is haunted?\u00a0 No.\u00a0 But with three stories like that, I think we can safely say that it is haunted.<\/p>\n
This example is why it is so very important to know the history of the location you are investigating.\u00a0 Corroborating stories are more validation to me than an orb in a picture or a crazy EMF reading any day.<\/p>\n
So this brings us to \u201cHow do I find out the history?\u201d\u00a0 Well, that\u2019s not nearly as easy as waltzing through a place with a bunch of gear that squawks and beeps and flashes, but in the end will be much more impressive, not to mention fulfilling for you as an investigator.\u00a0 People are impressed with intelligence and if you can show that you have done your homework, you will likely gain more credibility for that than for having more crap on your tool belt than someone else.<\/p>\n
If you are a credible investigator at all, you will have a very lengthy and in depth questionnaire you\u2019ll use to interview your clients with.\u00a0 Once you have talked with them ad nauseam and you have determined that their troubles are not the cat knocking things over, the pipes rumbling, or the medication they\u2019re taking, then you can begin your quest.<\/p>\n
Remember when you were a kid and you thought it would be cool to be like Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys or even Sherlock Holmes?\u00a0 Well, here\u2019s your chance because being a Paranormal Investigator is much like being a private investigator.\u00a0 You have to be very observant of everything in the location and even the actions of the owners.\u00a0 You will have to be able to purvey the scene, interview witnesses, dig for clues, and follow those clues until you find the answer, just like a detective.\u00a0 I would say luckily, you don\u2019t have to have a PI license to do this, but you know, sometimes I think you should because that would cut down on a lot of idiots out there yelling \u201cGhost\u201d every time they get an orb, but I digress\u2026<\/p>\n
The first thing you need to do on your hunt to uncover the past is take good notes.\u00a0 Look for anything that denotes a particular era \u2013 pictures, certificates, scrapbooks, photo albums, etc.\u00a0 See if they have any pictures of the location as it looked originally.\u00a0 Sometimes buildings and homes change considerably over the years and these changes might prove to be pertinent to your investigation on down the road.\u00a0 Ask the owner what history they know, if any.\u00a0 Ask them if they have the abstract of the location.\u00a0 The abstract will have all the deeds and mortgages and documents pertaining to the property in it and you can find out a lot from an abstract, such as any changes or additions to the property over the years and people involved in buying or selling it.<\/p>\n
Ask the occupants what they know about their neighbors.\u00a0 Find out if any of them have been there for a while.\u00a0 They may not know much about the neighbors and the neighbors might not seem to know a lot either, but Mrs. Cravitz across the street might be able to recall some minute thing that may not seem to matter, but might be a big clue later on.\u00a0 Take good notes!\u00a0 Note anything you find out from the neighbors!<\/p>\n
Now, being in the legal field for the last several years, I have learned how to find a lot of things out that people don\u2019t really know about or think about.\u00a0 There are several online search engines that you can subscribe to and would probably be a wise investment if you plan to do a lot of research.\u00a0 There\u2019s also a social security death index online that can be helpful.\u00a0 But for the real nitty gritty research, you\u2019re going to have to get off your butt and actually do some legwork.<\/p>\n
Your local courthouse can be a plethora of information.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t get your hands on the abstract, go to the deeds office and look up the address and you can find every deed that has ever been done on that property.\u00a0 Deeds reflect who owns the land and you should be able to tell from the different deeds whether improvements such as houses, etc. have been made on the land.\u00a0 Also note that the deed will just tell you who owned or owns a piece of property \u2013 it won\u2019t tell you if someone else rented it.\u00a0 But you can find that out, too.\u00a0 You can also find out who pays the taxes on the property by contacting the Assessor\u2019s office.\u00a0 This information should all be public record.\u00a0 You can find out a lot about a piece of property from the Assessor\u2019s office and I have never had an experience where they weren\u2019t happy to answer any of my questions.\u00a0 All of this is free \u2013 the only thing that will cost you is copies.\u00a0 Everything that is in the abstract should be available at the deeds office; it just won\u2019t be all in one handy book like an abstract.<\/p>\n
Another thing you might ask for while at the deeds office is to look at the plat of the location.\u00a0 A plat is a plan, map or chart of a city, town or section, usually on land that has been subdivided, indicating boundaries and borders of individual properties. Each lot is identified by number and letter. Lot dimensions are noted. It may also include features such as building locations, water pipes, sewer lines, vegetation, topography, etc.\u00a0 This can show you what was originally in that location and the layout of the property surrounding it.\u00a0 You might also be able to check with the local code or zoning office and see if they have any permits for building improvements or renovations on the property you are investigating \u2013 these might have names on them you need or even might tell you about a stairwell or attic that\u2019s been walled up.<\/p>\n
To find out who has actually lived in the house you can access the city\u2019s City Directory.\u00a0 Most cities have these and they are normally available at the library or the city offices.\u00a0 Some people call them a Criss-Cross directory also because you can look things up by address, name, or phone number and they\u2019re all cross-referenced.\u00a0 These are great tools in locating people, past or present.\u00a0 They come out once a year and you should be able to get a hold of them fairly easily.<\/p>\n
The city utility office is another place you can check for past residents.\u00a0 They are usually very accommodating if you tell them you are doing historical research on the house.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever been told they couldn\u2019t give me that information.<\/p>\n
Once you have a good list of names of previous residents, then you can start trying to contact them.\u00a0 I have found that a letter is much less scary for someone to receive than a phone call out of the blue, by a complete stranger, asking them about ghosts.\u00a0 A letter will give them time to process what you are actually saying to them and to do some research on you to determine whether you\u2019re sincere and credible, or a total loon.\u00a0 If they decide you\u2019re a loon, you\u2019re pretty much out of luck and they will probably throw away your letter or save it and show it to their friends saying, \u201cLook what I got in the mail from this loon!\u201d and you\u2019ll never hear a word from them.\u00a0 Or they might be afraid of appearing like the loon and not say anything at all.\u00a0 Or you could get really lucky and they will call you with their stories.<\/p>\n
If you don\u2019t hear anything from the previous residents, don\u2019t get discouraged.\u00a0 Go to the graveyard.\u00a0 Not literally, but start digging through the obituaries.\u00a0 Most libraries have a database of some kind of all the obituaries. You can probably access them on microfilm.\u00a0 Genealogy groups are also a good resource and most communities have them and they are always willing to help people, given you don\u2019t blurt out what you\u2019re doing, or they may think you\u2019re loony.\u00a0 Cemetery associations also should have records of every person buried in the cemeteries and they may be another place to check with.<\/p>\n
If someone died of unnatural causes, there will likely be a newspaper article on it and if you search the dates surrounding the death, you might come up with a story or two about the occurrence.<\/p>\n
If the person died from a crime, there will be a police report, which you should be able to obtain relatively easily from your local police department.\u00a0 Now with everything being available online, many court districts have court documents available online.\u00a0 You would need to find out their location on the net and then you can search by name to see if anyone has any documents filed in the court system.\u00a0 If you have the name of a murderer, you can probably get copies of things like a probable cause affidavit, which basically outlines the crime committed and you will get a lot of details from that.\u00a0 We were working on a home where a heinous murder took place and we were able to obtain a copy of the probable cause affidavit and the information sheet the state filed and we culled several details from those basic documents.\u00a0 We found out where the bodies were discovered, who all the witnesses were, all kinds of things that related directly to the haunting.\u00a0 We were also able to go online to the Department of Corrections and look up the killer \u2013 which doesn\u2019t necessarily pertain to the haunting directly, but it was interesting and a name might be relevant to the haunting in the long run.<\/p>\n
It would also probably behoove you to become chummy with the local police department.\u00a0 With this particular house I mentioned, we were able to get a walk through with the detective that worked the scene when it happened.\u00a0 He was able to give us a lot of background and the facts of the case, which was pretty exciting because we had all grown up hearing about this murder and over the years the stories grow and change and you never know the truth, so it was cool that he was able to give us the true story and details that we wouldn\u2019t have otherwise known.\u00a0 Of course, if the crime was a long time ago, this might not be something that\u2019s possible, but if it is, take advantage of it.<\/p>\n
Some counties and towns have their own history books.\u00a0 My county has a huge two volume set that was put together by the local historical society in the 80\u2019s and it was done by gathering stories and histories from families throughout the county.\u00a0 I use these in my research of local ghost towns and they are one of my most prized and priceless resources, so check with your local historical society or museum and see if they have such a creature, because if they do, you will feel like you have totally hit the jackpot once you start going through it and realizing how much information is in those kinds of books.<\/p>\n
If, after you have exhausted all these ideas, you just can\u2019t get one thing to make sense, then I would say to go ahead and document everything the client is telling you, conduct your technical investigation, and provide them with a copy of the report.\u00a0 Have them keep a journal of any further occurrences.\u00a0 Perhaps by documenting everything well, your information may be able to help the next person that lives there.\u00a0 Someone may remember something later on that will make sense to someone and they may call you back.\u00a0 Check back with them periodically to keep track of whatever\u2019s happening there.<\/p>\n
As I mentioned earlier, being armed with knowledge is much more impressive than being armed with a bunch of gadgets and you should be well armed now that you know how to conduct a proper historical investigation.\u00a0 It may sound like a lot of work, but you\u2019ll be glad in the long run that you did it and your clients will have a lot more respect for you knowing you worked hard to truly research their problem.\u00a0 I\u2019ve met people that have written books and books on the history of haunted places and have made a great living based on their knowledge of history of haunted places, but I have yet to meet one successful author or investigator that\u2019s successful because he had the biggest tool belt and the most expensive meters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When I first started investigating, I was dead set (no pun intended) on gathering \u201cscientific evidence\u201d that ghosts exist.\u00a0 I had gadgets and I had a tool belt to carry my gadgets in.\u00a0 All those gadgets do is make you appear to be technologically hip \u2013 until your EMF meter goes off and the homeowner asks you why and you say, \u201cUm\u2026 I\u2019m not sure.\u201d\u00a0 Cover blown \u2013 your hip status just went down the toilet, folks. There are simply too many factors that come into play when you get gadgets involved.\u00a0 Unless you are a photographer by trade, you likely don\u2019t know all the intricacies of your camera and all the ins and outs of photography.\u00a0 You can\u2019t truly 100% say that weird blob is anomalous.\u00a0 You can say you \u201cthink\u201d it\u2019s anomalous, but really, in the grand scheme of things, do you honestly \u201cthink\u201d anyone gives a rat\u2019s ass what you \u201cthink\u201d?\u00a0 Not really.\u00a0 They have you there because they want to know what you know, not what you \u201cthink.\u201d Now that I\u2019ve been doing this for a few years, I\u2019ve learned a lot and I\u2019ve changed my focus quite a bit.\u00a0 I have changed my focus to the history behind the hauntings rather than the science of the hauntings.\u00a0 Why is history so important to an investigation?\u00a0 Because no matter what kind of temperature readings, EMF spikes, or moon phases you have in your favor, you ain\u2019t got jack without the history.\u00a0 The history is the basis of anything and everything going on, if in fact, there really is something going on.\u00a0 If you have exhausted every scientific experiment you can think of and checked all the plumbing and there simply is nothing coming up but these people are still giving you accounts of things that have happened to them, then you owe it to them to find out why.\u00a0 That\u2019s why they called you. If you can find out the history of a location, you will likely find out why it\u2019s haunted.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t find out exactly why, you may at least be able to verify that it is. My mother lived in a house in Enid, Oklahoma when I was a baby and things happened to her all the time.\u00a0 She would come home and the recliner would be turned facing the wall.\u00a0 Knick-knacks would be moved from where she put them, the lights would come on, the cabinet doors would open \u2013 you know, classic haunted house stuff.\u00a0 One night she was awakened to find herself half way off of her bed, as if she had been dragged off of it.\u00a0 All the lights in the house were on and all the cabinet doors and drawers were open.\u00a0 Buffy, our fearless St. Bernard, was cowering under the dining room table whimpering like a baby.\u00a0 She took me from my crib and got the heck outta Dodge and moved out the next day. About 20 years later, she was working at the employment office when a gentleman came to her desk with his paperwork.\u00a0 As she was going through his papers, she saw the address.\u00a0 It was the same address as the house I was just telling you about.\u00a0 She says, \u201cOh, I used to live in that house about 20 years ago,\u201d and the guy says, \u201cReally\u2026 anything weird ever happen to you there?\u201d\u00a0 So they exchange stories and it turns out this guy is having things happen, too. Well, I always thought this was a great creepy story so one night I\u2019m relaying it to a few friends.\u00a0 I say the address and one of my friends starts completely freaking out.\u00a0 After he settles down he proceeds to tell me, \u201cWe always deliver medicine to the old lady that lives there and she is always going on about how the devil lives in her house and we always just thought she was crazy!\u201d So, you see, there are three stories from three totally unrelated people over the span of several years, of things happening to them in this same house.\u00a0 Do we know why the house is haunted?\u00a0 No.\u00a0 But with three stories like that, I think we can safely say that it is haunted. This example is why it is so very important to know the history of the location you are investigating.\u00a0 Corroborating stories are more validation to me than an orb in a picture or a crazy EMF reading any day. So this brings us to \u201cHow do I find out the history?\u201d\u00a0 Well, that\u2019s not nearly as easy as waltzing through a place with a bunch of gear that squawks and beeps and flashes, but in the end will be much more impressive, not to mention fulfilling for you as an investigator.\u00a0 People are impressed with intelligence and if you can show that you have done your homework, you will likely gain more credibility for that than for having more crap on your tool belt than someone else. If you are a credible investigator at all, you will have a very lengthy and in depth questionnaire you\u2019ll use to interview your clients with.\u00a0 Once you have talked with them ad nauseam and you have determined that their troubles are not the cat knocking things over, the pipes rumbling, or the medication they\u2019re taking, then you can begin your quest. Remember when you were a kid and you thought it would be cool to be like Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys or even Sherlock Holmes?\u00a0 Well, here\u2019s your chance because being a Paranormal Investigator is much like being a private investigator.\u00a0 You have to be very observant of everything in the location and even the actions of the owners.\u00a0 You will have to be able to purvey the scene, interview witnesses, dig for clues, and follow those clues until you find the answer, just like a detective.\u00a0 I would say luckily, you don\u2019t have to have a PI license to do this, but you know, sometimes I think you should because that would cut down on a lot of idiots out there yelling \u201cGhost\u201d every time they get an orb, but I digress\u2026 The first thing you need to do on your hunt to uncover the past is take good notes.\u00a0 Look for anything that denotes a particular era \u2013 pictures, certificates, scrapbooks, photo albums, etc.\u00a0 See if they have any pictures of the location as it looked originally.\u00a0 Sometimes buildings and homes change considerably over the years and these changes might prove to be pertinent to your investigation on down the road.\u00a0 Ask the owner what history they know, if any.\u00a0 Ask them if they have the abstract of the location.\u00a0 The abstract will have all the deeds and mortgages and documents pertaining to the property in it and you can find out a lot from an abstract, such as any changes or additions to the property over the years and people involved in buying or selling it. Ask the occupants what they know about their neighbors.\u00a0 Find out if any of them have been there for a while.\u00a0 They may not know much about the neighbors and the neighbors might not seem to know a lot either, but Mrs. Cravitz across the street might be able to recall some minute thing that may not seem to matter, but might be a big clue later on.\u00a0 Take good notes!\u00a0 Note anything you find out from the neighbors! Now, being in the legal field for the last several years, I have learned how to find a lot of things out that people don\u2019t really know about or think about.\u00a0 There are several online search engines that you can subscribe to and would probably be a wise investment if you plan to do a lot of research.\u00a0 There\u2019s also a social security death index online that can be helpful.\u00a0 But for the real nitty gritty research, you\u2019re going to have to get off your butt and actually do some legwork. Your local courthouse can be a plethora of information.\u00a0 If you can\u2019t get your hands on the abstract, go to the deeds office and look up the address and you can find every deed that has ever been done on that property.\u00a0 Deeds reflect who owns the land and you should be able to tell from the different deeds whether improvements such as houses, etc. have been made on the land.\u00a0 Also note that the deed will just tell you who owned or owns a piece of property \u2013 it won\u2019t tell you if someone else rented it.\u00a0 But you can find that out, too.\u00a0 You can also find out who pays the taxes on the property by contacting the Assessor\u2019s office.\u00a0 This information should all be public record.\u00a0 You can find out a lot about a piece of property from the Assessor\u2019s office and I have never had an experience where they weren\u2019t happy to answer any of my questions.\u00a0 All of this is free \u2013 the only thing that will cost you is copies.\u00a0 Everything that is in the abstract should be available at the deeds office; it just won\u2019t be all in one handy book like an abstract. Another thing you might ask for while at the deeds office is to look at the plat of the location.\u00a0 A plat is a plan, map or chart of a city, town or section, usually on land that has been subdivided, indicating boundaries and borders of individual properties. Each lot is identified by number and letter. Lot dimensions are noted. It may also include features such as building locations, water pipes, sewer lines, vegetation, topography, etc.\u00a0 This can show you what was originally in that location and the layout of the property surrounding it.\u00a0 You might also be able to check with the local code or zoning office and see if they have any permits for building improvements or renovations on the property you are investigating \u2013 these might have names on them you need or even might tell you about a stairwell or attic that\u2019s been walled up. To find out who has actually lived in the house you can access the city\u2019s City Directory.\u00a0 Most cities have these and they are normally available at the library or the city offices.\u00a0 Some people call them a Criss-Cross directory also because you can look things up by address, name, or phone number and they\u2019re all cross-referenced.\u00a0 These are great tools in locating people, past or present.\u00a0 They come out once a year and you should be able to get a hold of them fairly easily. The city utility office is another place you can check for past residents.\u00a0 They are usually very accommodating if you tell them you are doing historical research on the house.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever been told they couldn\u2019t give me that information. Once you have a good list of names of previous residents, then you can start trying to contact them.\u00a0 I have found that a letter is much less scary for someone to receive than a phone call out of the blue, by a complete stranger, asking them about ghosts.\u00a0 A letter will give them time to process what you are actually saying to them and to do some research on you to determine whether you\u2019re sincere and credible, or a total loon.\u00a0 If they decide you\u2019re a loon, you\u2019re pretty much out of luck and they will probably throw away your letter or save it and show it to their friends saying, \u201cLook what I got in the mail from this loon!\u201d and you\u2019ll never hear a word from them.\u00a0 Or they might be afraid of appearing like the loon and not say anything at all.\u00a0 Or you could get really lucky and they will call you with their stories. If you don\u2019t hear anything from the previous residents, don\u2019t get discouraged.\u00a0 Go to the graveyard.\u00a0 Not literally, but start digging through the obituaries.\u00a0 Most libraries have a database of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1246"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1246\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}