Bluefield State College

Bluefield State College is located in Mercer County, WV and has quite the interesting history!  In 1895, there was a huge need for higher education of WV's African-American population, which made up a large number of the coal company work force in Southern WV.  That year, Senator William Mahood passed legislation creating the school, which opened later that year under the name of Bluefield Colored Institute.  The original campus was a mere 4 acres in size, and the site was chosen because it was centrally located--within 100 miles of 70% of the state's black population.

That first year, Hamilton Hatter served as principal of the school, overseeing 40 pupils and the construction of the first three buildings on campus, one being an administration building known as Mahood Hall, named after Sen. Mahood.  Hatter held this position until 1906, when he was seceded by his assistant, Robert Sims.

During Sims' tenure as principal or president, the school became a "normal" school, or teacher's college in 1909.  However, it wasn't until 1931 that a name change to Bluefield State Teachers' College, cemented this change.  By 1943, the school underwent another name change, this time to Bluefield State College, and less than four years later, received its full accreditation.

Throughout this time, the school was still a predominately African American institution.  However, after 1954, partly due to the Brown vs. BOE landmark case, the school started its transition and desegregation began in earnest.  This was also a time when many of the local coal mines were being shut down, creating an even greater need for higher education for white students, as well as black.  Throughout the next decade, the change became more conspicuous as African-American presidents of the college were being replaced with white presidents, and it was rumored that more qualified black professors were being fired in favor of less qualified white professors meant to appeal to white students.

These tensions over race, combined with tensions over the Vietnam War led to the November 21, 1968 bombing of the physical education building on campus.  Although no one was seriously hurt or killed, massive property damage resulted, and as a result, the president of the college shut down all residence halls, furthering the transition of Bluefield from a residential black school, to a commuter-only mainly white school.

And, like many institutes of higher learning, throughout all of this history, the campus has picked up a ghost story or two.

The stories seem to concentrate on one of the campus' oldest buildings, Mahood Hall.  Although originally housing administration offices, the hall later served as dormitory space before housing the school's Business Department.  At one point, there was talk of turning the building BACK into specialized apartment housing, but the plan was ultimately scrapped, despite several major renovations.

It is unknown who she is, or how she got there, but students and staff alike have reported seeing a little girl in the hallways and in the basement of Mahood Hall.  To those who have been lucky (or unlucky) enough to have stayed there during its time as a dormitory, it is said that upon dozing off, many would suddenly awake and find themselves face to face with this little girl.  Since the college has not had any on-campus housing since the 1968 bombing, and the story of waking up to a little girl is so prevalent on several websites and print publications on WV haunted history, it makes one wonder....are these witnesses simply being punished for dozing off IN CLASS, or is this a simple detail that has been exaggerated or even made up?

We may never know, but at least one paranormal investigation group has been granted access to investigate Mahood Hall, and they walked away with some interesting results.  In 2010, Black Diamond Paranormal Society investigated the claims of the little ghost girl, but also another claim of another apparition seen.  It was reported that around 3am, the figure of a girl studying on the first floor was spotted, but then disappeared without a trace.  Along with several EVPs, the team also caught a video in which they believe the figure of a girl steps out of a first floor doorway.  Please see below for a link to this video!

Ghost Girl Video, BDPS

Photo property of THIS SITE

WVU Tech's Phantom Fire Fighter

On the campus of WVU Tech sits Ratliff Hall, a coed dormitory.  This dormitory was constructed in 1963 and named for Dr. Lavada Ratliff, former head of the Education Department at the university.  The dorm, which consists of two separate wings, was meant to be a coed facility, but up until 2006, primarily served as housing for women only.  Today, the west wing is reserved for females, while the east houses men.

It is presumably the west wing that has picked up a reputation for being haunted, especially the second floor.  On this floor, numerous paranormal experiences are reported by female residents, including disembodied footsteps in the corridors, doors that slam on their own, and curtains that billow out without the aid of an open window or A/C.

Perhaps the most interesting experience reported from this second-floor ghost haven is the sighting of an actual apparition.  Due to a power failure, the lights in the dormitory temporarily flickered out.  While in the dark, one young lady saw what appeared to be the figure of a fire fighter in the hall.  This figure disappeared a moment later when the lights flickered back on.  Many believe that this firefighter has a connection to a small fire that took place on the second floor of the dorm in 2000, although no one was hurt or injured in this blaze.

However, it is interesting to note that very close to campus is where the former Montgomery City Hall and fire department was housed, which was also noted to be haunted by a phantom fireman.  Could it be that when this structure was torn down to make room for a gas station, the spirit of the fireman made his way into the dormitory?

Photo from the WVU Tech Housing Website

Lewisburg's Fort Savannah Inn

In the mid 1700's, the area we know as Lewisburg was known as the Savannah.  Around 1770, although some say as early as 1755, a fort was constructed known as Fort Savannah.  It was Fort Savannah where Andrew Lewis compiled and lead troops on a 160 mile march to engage the Indians in the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1774.

Today, the fort is memorialized by a motel called the Fort Savannah Inn, located just across the street from where the fort originally stood.  The Fort Savannah Inn, or "The Fort" as deemed by the locals, consists of a log cabin structure made from the reclaimed wood of historic structures which houses the offices, check-in desk, and a restaurant/pub.  Other buildings include  a manager's cottage and two separate motel buildings housing a total of 66 rooms.

According to the book, Ghosts of Greenbrier County, by Nancy Richmond,  this hotel is also home to a ghost or two, which is most often observed by overnight clerks, which leads me to believe that the majority of activity is undoubtedly noticed in the log cabin section of the complex.  According to Richmond, night clerks have observed things such as hearing doors in the basement open and shut, and seeing lights go on and off in unoccupied rooms.  The kitchen refrigerator has been known to open by itself, and one clerk reported an ice bucket flying 15 feet into the air and rolling across the floor.

Unfortunately, chances to experience these phenomena for oneself may be impossible in some cases, and in others, simply not worth the effort.  When doing research for this location, I came across scores of reviews from guests to the hotel...and not one of them was positive.  The main issues were filthy rooms, broken bathroom fixtures, and an extremely rude staff with a manager who price gouged room rates whenever area events made rooms in town scarce.  The hotel was put up for sale in 2010, but apparently is still operational as of July 2012, with little to no marked improvement, and rumors that one building housing motel rooms is actually shut down because its sinking into an underground cavern. 

Photo property of Rebecca Gaujot

Hereford House, St. Albans

This evening, I stumbled upon a completely new-to-me local haunt...this time in St. Albans.  Lemme explain:

Today, Aaron and I, along with my sister and Luke, attended a wedding reception/celebration for some mutual friends.  The event was held in the historic Beeches homestead.  The Beeches, built around 1874 by Collis P. Huntington for his nephew Henry during the construction of the C & O line through the area, is now home to the St. Albans Women's Club.  I was pleasantly surprised, as I had no idea where this event was taking place.  After a delicious meal, Aaron and I took Luke to explore the house a little bit, and I even had the foresight to put fresh batteries in my EMF meter!

I knew I had seen this house mentioned before, so when we got home, I pulled out my St. Albans Walking Tour pamphlet, which is put out by the local historical society, and found some information on the house. However, what I would go on to read further down in the pamphlet was even a bigger surprise!

The tour pamphlet contains information on 26 different places in St. Albans of historical significance.  I have several copies of the pamphlet that I've picked up at History Days at the state capitol, and other history functions and tourist stops.  I've skimmed through it plenty of times, but realized I had never taken the time to really READ it.  I took that time today, and I'm so glad I did, because I stumbled upon the entry for the Hereford/Burdette House!

The Hereford/Burdette House was built around 1918 by a man named C.D. Hereford and his wife, Annie May.  C.D. was originally from Putnam County, in an area that was known as Red House Shoals, which is right where the town of Eleanor is located.  In fact, according to another publication by the St. Albans Historical Society, C.D. grew up on the Ruffner property, and was the son of Dr. Syenham and Laminia S. Hereford.

C.D. and his wife, who was originally from Missouri, came to St. Albans in 1872 aboard the steamer Victor.  Shortly thereafter, C.D. opened up a general merchandise store on Main Street.  The store miraculously survived two major fires that wiped out most of the downtown district in 1909, and today, his building, located at 68 Old Main Plaza, is home to Chandler Floor and Wall Coverings.

In 1918, C.D. Hereford built his palatial, Italianate home on the corner of what is now 3rd St. and Kanawha Terrace.  Unfortunately, C.D. was never really destined to enjoy this home, as he died November 18, 1918 from Bright's Disease.  He was 72 years old.  His widow, Annie May, lived in the home until her own death on June 3, 1937.  From her death certificate, it appears as if she died in the home from peritonitis caused by a gall bladder infection.  She was 81 at the time of her death, and many believe she never left her beautiful home.

According to the pamphlet itself, strange noises heard at night in the Hereford/Burdette House are attributed to Mrs. Hereford's ghost.  No other information on these hauntings is available at this time, so I'd LOVE if you have any stories about this ghost or the paranormal goings-on at this historic home!

The Infamous St. Albans Walking Tour Pamphlet

Photo courtesy of Google Streetview, which apparently had a smeary lens when this shot was taken...or perhaps its simply the ghost of Mrs. Hereford trying to find out who is taking pictures of her lovely home!

Luke, The Ghost Whisperer

My son Luke will be turning three next month and as his verbal skills are improving daily, he's been saying some really WEIRD stuff...stuff that makes me think he might actually be experiencing some paranormal activity in our home.

These "sightings" started happening months ago when Luke told us that there was something in our laundry room.  Our laundry room, which is located right off from the kitchen, has a long history of weird things happening in it.  We've often seen movement coming from there, looking like shadowy human forms.  During a 2006 investigation of my home, we did catch some interesting video that looked like a piece of clothing pick up and fall down, followed by a ball of light which came out of the laundry room, into the kitchen, and was then accompanied by a horrific sound as if some old man was clearing his throat.

Anyway, it started with Luke going in the laundry room and saying there was an animal in there...he called it an "anmal," lol.  I thought he had seen a mouse or something so I was concerned, lol.  These sightings of an animal continued, but they morphed into what he was calling a monster.  It even became a game...he would knock on the side of the dryer and then run away from the "monster" that lived in there.

I thought it was a simple game, until he started saying that there was a man and a little boy in there.  He didn't give us any details, but luckily doesn't seem afraid or bothered by these things.

The next sightings were of a man sitting in our family room, but again, he wasn't interested in giving us any details other than the fact that he was a "mean man."  In another incident, he saw a man in a nearby hallway and we were able to get a few more details out of him.  Luke described THIS man as being tall, thin, and with dark hair.  Things really culminated just recently when in two separate incidents he again saw a man in our living room.

Our living room does have some interesting history attached to it, lol.  Several independent visitors to our house who have claimed to have had psychic abilities believe that there is a "vortex" of sorts on the wall behind our couch, and over the years of living here, we have had quite a few sightings in that room.  Just recently, however, we bought a new set of furniture.  We got the couch, love seat, a chair, a table, and several pillows from my boyfriend's uncle who had gotten them for a mere $200 from a nursing home in Kanawha City.  The reason he was given for this excellent price was that the set was in the nursing home's TV room, and since no one ever went in there, he didnt' need the set any longer.

Of course, I immediately started teasing my mom that someone had probably died on the chair (which was her favorite piece) and that was the reason why no one would go into the TV room at the facility.  Lo and behold, within days of making that statement, we all started seeing the misty apparition of an old man sitting in the chair, getting up.  The way he was positioned, we couldn't make out his face, but that he was a bald man who was laboriously getting up out of the chair.

Then, several days ago, I was sitting in the "haunted chair" while Luke played with his cars on the ottoman.  He stopped what he was doing, looked up and over my right shoulder and pointed.  He said "man."  He kept pointing and saying man.  He then patted his own head and started saying "boo-boo."  I was concerned that he had a boo-boo, but when I asked him about it he was adamant that it was the MAN who had the boo-boo on his head, and that it was red.

Luke has also recently shown possible photo-scrying abilities.  He was looking at an old photo that I had in my Whipple Company Store file, and he was busy pointing out the things he saw in the photo, including cars, some trees....and a ghost, lol.  Right between the building and the railroad tracks, where many of the ghost sightings and verifiable deaths have occurred, Luke pointed with his tiny little finger and said "ghost there!"

I always wondered if I would have to deal with something like this when Luke got older, as he comes from rather ghostly beginnings anyway.  He was conceived at the haunted Lowe Hotel, and was born in the Haunted Thomas Memorial hospital, where I had plenty of interesting things happen all throughout my pregnancy.  A ghost may have also been responsible for his being born premature...but that's another story, lol.

Luke comes from a long line of women in my family who have exhibited a greater than average sense of intuition, and everyone who meets him says despite his aspects of immaturity, it feels like he's an old soul.  He truly is empathic to those he's around, and I've often wondered, even if albeit facetiously, if he could read my mind, as he always knows exactly what I'm thinking, where I'm at, or what I'm about to do.  I guess we'll see where things go from here...but I've got Chip Coffey on speed dial just in case!

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Top Ten YouTube Picks for August

I'm a paranormal researcher and investigator.  In other words, I'm broke, lol.  This is an expensive lifestyle, and one that doesn't really pay off monetarily.  I can appreciate a good freebie, so that's why I enjoy sharing with YOU some totally FREE resources whenever I can.  Several months ago, I posted a list of free Kindle downloads on a variety of paranormal nonfiction topics.  This month, I'd like to shake things up a bit with some totally free documentaries that can be found in their entirety on YouTube.  Enjoy!



Vampires

1. Vampire Secrets--This History Channel special looks at the legends surrounding the vampire mythos, and even discusses the modern vampire subculture.  If your only exposure to Michelle Belanger has been through Paranormal State, you're in for a shock, lol.

2. In Search of History: The Real Dracula--there are a few similarities to the Vampire Secrets documentary, but this one concentrates more on the historical basis for Bram Stoker's most famous character.

Aliens & UFOs

3. Fastwalkers--Fastwalkers is the NORAD code word for what we know as UFOs.  This documentary on UFOs opens with a monologue from Stan Friedman, so you know its gotta have at least a "little" credibility, lol.  I admittedly haven't watched the entire documentary, but if you can overlook some cheesy formatting and CGI, there does appear to be a good solid base of UFOlogy history.

4. Decoding the Past:  UFOs in the Bible--This History Channel documentary talks about well known events as found in the Bible...but explores the possibility that aliens/UFOs actually played a part in these events.

BigFoot

5. To the Ends of the Earth--This is the weirdest thing I've ever seen, lmao.  A dude sits out in the snowy forest, playing his drum set.  In between "sets" he shares his own stories and well known BigFoot facts.

6. American Paranormal:  BigFoot--This is a National Geographic documentary on the Sasquatch phenomenon.

Ghosts  (My Favorite!)

7. Ghost Adventures--This is the SyFy special that sparked the popular Travel Show, Ghost Adventures. If by chance you missed it, here it is in its entirety.

8. Ghosts on the Underground--London's subway system is haunted; very, very haunted, lol.

9. World's Scariest Ghosts Caught on Tape--this is a Halloween staple.  Its been around for awhile, but is still a really fun look at paranormal "evidence."

10. The Best Ghost Cases Ever Caught on Tape--definitely some interesting cases, although I know of several just off the top of my head that have been "debunked," lol.

Batman...in Guyandotte?!

It's Batman!  Or is it Mothman?  Or maybe a demon, a soldier, someone on a ladder, or even Bastet, the Egyptian Cat Goddess?  To the skeptics...is this a forgery, or perhaps a simple case of pareidolia/matrixing?  Whatever you see lurking in the shadows of this historic home, and however you believe it GOT there, most can agree that it certainly is an interesting image! 

This photo was submitted to HPIR's Haunted and Historic Guyandotte Tours from a tour patron who visited one of our first ever Full Moon Hauntings tours this past spring!   While fairly comical in appearance, many people feel like the shadowy being closely resembles some type of demonic entity.

 Huntington Paranormal is on its fourth tour season, featuring a variety of haunted history tours in historic downtown Guyandotte.  This photo is just one of the many submissions we receive from tour guests and volunteers.  We haven't had a season yet where someone hasn't had some type of experience they couldn't explain.  You, too, can have an opportunity to experience the unexplained, and get a chance to GO INSIDE some of Guyandotte's most haunted and historic locations!

Our next round of tours will be held on Friday, August 24th and Saturday, August 25th.  These are our annual cemetery tours, but this year, we're expanding beyond the iron gates and into several historic (and haunted) properties!  We've also got a few surprises planned for our tour guests, making this year's tour one not to miss.  Can't make it?  Don't fret!  If you're unable to join us in August, or if you'd prefer the full downtown house tours, we have our annual Halloween tours AND our ever popular Guyandotte Civil War Days tours, chock full of history and haunts.

As always, tours are completely FREE and open to the public, but tour slots fill up quickly.  Tours are led by knowledgeable tour guides who have a deep appreciation for the history of the area love to share it with YOU.  The cemetery tour in August will leave from behind the Madie Carroll House.  Early ticket distribution starts at 6pm with the first tour leaving at 7pm.  Please see our website below for full details on this tour, and dates for upcoming events.  We hope to see you there!

Haunted and Historic Guyandotte Tours

Disclaimer:  HPIR and Haunted and Historic Guyandotte Tours are not promoting this picture as proof of the paranormal.  Rather, we'd like to share this image that was so graciously shared with us, and allow viewers to come to their own conclusions. 

Theresa's Note:  This may sound a little weird, but I think the image most closely resembles a 19th century mystery creature known as Spring-Heeled Jack.  Spring-Heeled Jack is mostly known for popping up in the UK, but there have been a handful of American sightings.  This mysterious creature's attire was reported by witnesses as being a tight, oil-skinned garment with a fitted, devil-horned mask.  Below is a picture for reference!