Hamlet may have been right. When we recently asked if anyone had an experience with the supernatural, the number of responses was surprising. So in the Halloween spirit of spirits, here’s what some area residents told us.

Sometimes it’s the people...

In Boothbay, Susan Wilson tells about Thanksgiving the year after her mother died. “I was concerned about cooking the turkey so I checked on it.” The oven was turned off. She turned the oven on and checked later but the oven was off again. “At that point, I knew Mom wanted to join us so I set a place for her at the table and the oven stayed on.”

Southport’s Shawn Lewin had a strangely coincidental encounter. Years ago in Bangor, he was friendly with Albert Bean’s family. This September, Lewin was in Bangor again. A stranger came up to him on the sidewalk and started a conversation. Out of the blue, the stranger mentioned Albert Bean. Lewin chatted for a while and told himself, "I should give Albert a call.” He later found out that Bean had died that day.

Marlies Boyd has a video recording of the evening her late father let her know he was near. Boyd was recording a beautiful sunset with friends by the rocks on Shore Road at Ocean Point. She realized that the following day would have been her father’s birthday and she can be heard saying “Happy Birthday Dad” on the recording. She shared it with a friend who commented on the white butterfly dancing in the middle of the screen. “It wasn’t a butterfly,” she said. “There was nothing there when I was filming,” Boyd explained. “But a moving white orb showed up on the recording.”

Judy deGraw’s experience involved her former mother-in-law. While doing chores one Saturday morning, the room suddenly became very cold and deGraw smelled strong odors of mothballs and coffee which she had always associated with her former mother-in-law. The scents lingered briefly before dissipating. “Five minutes later, her daughter called to tell me that her mother had passed away,” deGraw said.

Others may reach out to us even at work. Rachael Townsend recalls a close friend and co-worker who died unexpectedly in a car accident. Afterward, Rachael would hear her name called and feel a pat on her shoulder while she was working.

Sometimes it’s the places...

Squirrel Island may be just as popular with ghostly visitors as it is with summer residents. Eleanor Eide of Edgecomb shared a story involving her friend Clare Newbury, who died recently.

One dark autumn evening years ago both women were walking their dogs on the island. At the end of a trail leading into the woods, the dogs stopped abruptly and both women felt a chill.

Newbury returned to the spot a bit later and reported she had seen a man dressed for tennis who said his name was Roger Hall. “I’m waiting for Betty,” he said before disappearing.

Months later, Newbury was at her son’s piano lesson in Wiscasset. While chatting with a woman there, Newbury learned they both knew Squirrel Island residents. “Did you hear that Mrs. Hall died,” the woman asked. “What was her name?” Newbury wondered. “Betty,” the woman answered.

Boothbay Register graphic artist and Eide’s nephew Steve Edwards had his own supernatural experiences in an old Nobleboro house he once rented on Ladd’s Hill. One afternoon, he and his wife at the time wondered why their two young children were so quiet while playing upstairs. When asked, they were surprised when the children answered, “Talking with the old lady.”

Edwards’ family often had to deal with unseen hands moving items. “We would place a roll of duct tape around a drinking glass on the table so it couldn’t move by itself.” he said. “When we checked, the duct tape would be moved.” On one occasion, Edwards’ hammer was missing. He later found it on the bed under his pillow.

Pam Logan lives in a 228-year old house in Wiscasset which had remained in one family before she bought it in 2016. When she was heading upstairs one day, the hall light was out, so she changed the bulb, but there was no light. She repeatedly changed the bulb, but still no light even though it had previously worked. Somehow the pull chain at the ceiling had been pulled to turn the light off. She had not known about the chain which was inaccessible without a ladder.

Whether it involves experiences with those who reach out from beyond or who remain in a location after death, a 2013 Harris poll showed  42 percent of Americans believe in ghosts. With experiences like these, it is easier to see why.