Where It’s At ... for the paranormal lovers out there

Thu, 04/12/2018 - 8:45am

We didn’t call ourselves ghost hunters back in the early ’70s, but we were attracted to old houses, abandoned houses, and houses rumored to be haunted ... I clearly remember telling my friends that I wanted to be a parapsychologist - the only profession that would allow me to learn more ... and explore locations and meet interesting people ... living and ... not.

In the early 2000s when Rick Prose had taken over the helm at our local cable station, he overheard me talking about a feature I was planning to write for the Register’s Halloween edition about haunted places in the region. Rick said it sounded like a great idea for a TV show … and so Haunted Harbor was created. We did an episode at the Opera House (back during the Stephen Coppock years). We decided to make the investigation an overnight event. As the content was my baby, I went to Enchantments and asked the psychic (whose name I cannot remember) there if she was interested in participating in the investigation. Fortunately she lived, well I don’t remember where, but it was far from here. And, luckily for us, she didn’t have any other appointments that late in the afternoon and left for the opera house with me.

She picked right up on a spirit in the main stage area; on the third floor she saw several ghosts – one was a woman in period clothing standing in front of the trio of windows looking out over the harbor … waiting. In another section of the third floor she described, in detail, a man in uniform wearing an “unusual helmet” - yep, you guessed it, it was a Knights of Pythias helmet and clothing. I still remember Rick and I exchanging a “Hell’s bells!” look as we followed her past the K of P gent who was very angry about something. There’s a small door in one of the far corners (or nearby) that leads to a small storage area. The psychic was drawn there and opened it. Inside she spied a young couple canoodling and told us the space was often used by young lovers. When she opened another door leading to attic storage (I think it was) area the psychic told us she saw crates or boxes … intimating bootleg booze was moved through there … and more – it made for a most interesting segment of this Haunted Harbor episode.

While I have participated in investigations with the New England Paranormal Society and others at the Opera House, they do not compare to the investigations conducted by Greg Latimer and Sally Lobkowitcz (Lady in the Red Cloak Haunted History Tours) and founders of Mysterious Destinations Magazine. Now they have experienced, recorded and written volumes (literally) about their paranormal encounters.

They were even contacted by a rep for the Syfy Channel show Ghost Adventures some years ago – they were interested in a location Greg and Sally had investigated after seeing a Mysterious Destinations YouTube post.

Greg will be presenting information about their “ghost hunting” adventures on Saturday, April 21 at the Edgecomb Town Hall at 7 p.m. In a phone conversation with Greg, I asked about what kind of protection they use before beginning an investigation.

“When I was just learning about ghost hunting, someone from a team of Catholic ghost hunters told me you should believe in something (a higher power) before going to such environments,” Greg said. Being Christians, he said it’s their practice to say a non-denominational prayer before entering a location - nondenominational to take into consideration the spirituality of others participating in an investigation.

“We are also careful to advise what might be around that we are only there to explore and to learn,” shared Greg. “At the end of an investigation, we thank anything or anyone we’ve encountered and ask that they stay where they are when we go.

“We always conduct ourselves in a respectful – and cautious – manner. At one location several years ago, and one that we had visited many times before, inside it became disturbing, dark, and a fellow investigator had an unsettling experience,” Greg said. “And we left there immediately.”

Curious about other adventures Greg and Sally have had, what tools of the trade they use and how they are used? Then I guess I’ll be seeing you at the Edgecomb Town Hall in a few weeks …