Prior to the Clan Gathering in 2002, the Coven did a little ghost hunting in Gettysburg. The following are some of the images we were able to pick up.
We spent two days touring around and looking for sightings in one of the most haunted places in the United States. There were many images taken of orbs throughout the area.
Note: These photos are undoctored, but you'll have to take our word on it. These were taken with digital cameras for our own interests. To this date we are not set up for proffesional ghost hunting.
Devil's Den, The Slaughter Pen
The Devil's Den is a large rock formation. The Slaughter Pen is an area where a particularly brutal attack was made within one area of rocks that was used to trap the unsuspecting soldiers.
Once darkness set, we headed out for some photos. We had several successful shots, but many are too light to put here. The following were some of the better ones.
After our initial round of photos, we got together and cast an impromptu circle hoping to help some of these spirits to move on.
The recordings have yet to be analyzed, but many of the members heard whispers, had their clothing tugged on and one person got shoved from behind and told we should leave... moments before the park police arrived!
... You wouldn't believe how much they can fine you for being in a park after hours.
The Wheatfield and Monument
During our escort out of the park, by the ever vigilant and very nice policemen, we managed to get a few quick shots. The first photo was taken of the Wheatfield, where the Irish Infantry fought. It is one of the eerier places in the park...
Just past this field is a memorial plaque to the very same infantry. It appeared to have some other visitors.
Nesbitt's Haunted Gettysburg Tour
For a fun evening I highly recommend taking one of these tours. Granted, you don't get to enter the buildings and the groups are large- but, it's still a fun evening of ghost stories and getting to know the town's history.
As the following pictures will show, it appears that the streets have just as much spiritual traffic as vehicular!
Right at the start of the tour we were told that the house itself had its own ghost. The previous owner gilded carriages and seems to hold a soft spot for other workers. During repairs of the home, one of the workers consistently had the door held open by ghostly hands. Perhaps this orb in front of the very same door is that ghost?
Many of the homes we passed, seemed to have a great deal of activity around them...
The Blue Boy
One of the more famous ghoststories is one called the Blue Boy.
Shortly after the war, the local orphanage was take over by a particularly brutal woman (shackles were later found in the basement). One boy managed to escape and throw himself upon the mercy of some young women living in a girl's dormitory at what is now the local campus. Their matron grew suspicous that the boy was being harbored somewhere in the building and did a search. In order to hide him, the little boy was placed on the window ledge in the dead of winter. The search was followed by a lecture and well over an hour later, the girls were able to return and let the boy in. But, when they opened the window, he was no where to be found. To this day, the blue face of a young boy is occasionally seen outside that same window. the following two pictures were taken of that building, with different cameras.
Between the dormitory and the center of campus lies a large lawn. Several of us crossed quite a few cold spots in this area, so we took some photos.
The Surgery
We discovered shortly thereafter that the field we had just crossed had a little gruesome history of it's own.
This site was where the bodies and amputated parts were placed in mass burial graves, from the Surgury (hospital).
After the tour we were directed by our wonderful guide to a battlefield not on the maps and not in the park formal (since our driver wasn't willing to risk being fined if we got caught- you know who you are). At first we didn't think we got any successful shots, but later on, we found that we had:
And that concluded our 2002 tour. Hopefully next year we will be touring Lancaster and Rehmeier's Hollow.
