Elsing's Second Hand Store
Date of Investigation:
Investigation Site: Elsing's Second Hand Store,
Investigatiors present: Barry, Kurt, Krista, Mark, Rhonda, Chris (former member of HPI) Matt (Midwest Preternatural Research).
Investigation Overview: All of the group members showed up at the store around 1:00 PM, except for Barry who had a prior commitment and would show up when she was finished there. We met with Vicky and got a tour of the building and a rundown on the paranormal occurrences that have been reported to have happened there over the years. We then planned out what we wanted to do during the investigation, took some photos and baseline EMF and temperature readings, and then left the premises to have dinner.
Upon returning, we talked with Vicky for a while, and then started the investigation around
the basement where both customers and other paranormal investigation groups have had activity. Throughout the evening, Vicky accompanied us and sat in on the EVP sessions. See the "Personal Experiences" section for detail about what happened during these sessions.
After the first EVP session, the group went back to the main floor and took some more photos, video, and EMF readings. The EMF readings were found to be high, so we completely shut the power off to the building. Shortly after, Barry showed up and we discussed the earlier events with her. We then went back down to the basement for another EVP session.
After the second EVP session, we broke up into groups of one and two and went to various locations around the building for silent vigils, EVP attempts, videotaping, and picture taking. We then met back on the main floor to regroup, and decided to try another EVP session in the furniture room with all the group members and Vicky.
We wrapped up our investigation shortly after
Personal Experiences:
Throughout the investigation, at various times, group members would report smelling scents, such as a sulfurous fire smell, like when a candle is extinguished, or a smell of human waste, which would then disappear. Several group members also felt very apprehensive near the stairs going down into the basement and the nearby areas.
We started our first EVP session around
Krista summed up the feeling best by saying "During the first EVP session, I experienced feelings of anxiety, apprehension, and vulnerability." While this was the first investigation for two group members, the rest of us have been in literally dozens of EVP sessions, and we had never before felt anything like what we felt during that session. Other members described it as a "tingling", a feeling of extreme heat or cold, a feeling of "not being alone", or a feeling of being watched. Several members also said that the room seemed to get both darker and colder. Also, during the session, three group members heard a noise they described as sounding like a young child sighing or possibly muttering something, except the direction it came from was behind a wall that many group members had their backs against, and it sounded strangely distant. There was also a light tapping noise on something behind Rhonda during the session. We asked if the sound could be repeated, but it wasn't.
When Barry arrived, the power was completely shut off to the building due to the high EMF readings that we seemed to be finding. We thought that shutting off the power could cut down on any high EMF that was present. We all went back down for another EVP session and attempted to recreate what we had felt before, but none of the group members felt in any way like they did during the first session. During this session, group member Rhonda read out loud from a children's book. Three times while Rhonda was reading the story, group members heard a sound that they either described as a cat-like meow or a girl crying. Each time it happened, it would happen at the same time Rhonda was speaking. It was faint, and some group members felt that it came from behind the heavy door that separated the furniture room from the storage room. As far as anyone knows, there is no cat on the premises and no signs of one. Nothing out of the ordinary was found in the storage room. As the EVP session continued, none of the group members felt anything like they did during the first session. At this point, we decided that what happened during the first EVP session was most likely attributed either to the high EMF that seemed to be present, or to the power of suggestion or "group-think".
We then broke into small groups to focus on other areas. Kurt and Krista went to the bookroom in the basement to do an EVP session. During this session, both Krista and Kurt felt like the room became darker and colder, and both members saw what they believed to be movement in a corner of the room, but nothing was found. A possible EVP was captured during this session (see attached audio Clip #4).
We later went back downstairs to the furniture room for a third group EVP session. During this session, Rhonda once again read out loud from a children's storybook, but there weren't any responses. As the third EVP session continued, all of the group members once again felt the same feeling of apprehension and anxiety that we felt during the first session, including Barry who was not there for the first one. The feeling that accompanied this energy coming into the room was very noticeable. The atmosphere of the room would change so drastically that you could almost physically feel it. At one point, Kurt mentioned out loud that he felt like he was not supposed to move a muscle and was not supposed to turn around, and Barry said that the same thought ran through her mind the same second as Kurt said it. Once again, the room felt colder and darker, and it felt like there was another presence in the room. These feelings continued, and Barry said that she was suddenly feeling very nauseous and very close to throwing up. Kurt also suddenly began to feel a heat in his throat and came very close to throwing up. Both Barry and Kurt left the session to go outside. While outside the building, both Kurt and Barry said that they had an amazing feeling of dread involved with going back into the basement, almost to the point where they didn't know if they could physically bring themselves to walk back down the steps. The strange feelings continued in the basement. Group member Mark said "...what made me finally leave my chair and sit on the floor was a picture I had in my mind of hands going around my neck from behind me". Shortly after this, the lights were turned on, the equipment was gathered up, and the decision was made to end the investigation for the evening.
When Vicky opened the store the morning after the investigation, several pots and lids that were on the shelves when we left were now lying on the floor in one of the aisles.
Auditory/Photo/Video/Physical Evidence:
Video evidence: None
Photographic Evidence: None
Audio Evidence: Throughout the evening, several recorder were kept running at various points around the building. There were some strange sounds that we found that we were able to identify, but we also caught several unexplained noises.
Final Analysis:
Some of our captured unknown audio clips sound strangely mechanical or electrical...almost like a children's talking doll that is either malfunctioning or the batteries are dying, but there are no dolls present in the basement. It is possible that it could be something else, such as a Christmas ornament in the holiday room that is making the sound. Until the source is found, however, these sounds remain a
mystery. Even without these as evidence, the level and amount of personal experiences that occurred that evening cannot be discounted. Several things happened to group members during the investigation that cannot be explained.
Therefore, it is the group's belief that the building does indeed seem to be paranormally active, but additional hard evidence and possible follow-up investigations will be necessary to say with any accuracy that the building is haunted. Our personal experiences, as powerful as they were, are examples of subjective evidence that can't be studied scientifically. While we did get some examples of objective evidence (the potential EVPs, the high EMF readings, etc), that can be studied, we feel that more objective evidence is needed. Although, based on our experiences that night, we feel that further investigations by our group or other groups should be successful in providing more objective, solid evidence. Our group would like to ask for permission for a follow-up investigation which could prove very useful as a method of either finding new evidence or could possibly help us find the cause of and discount old evidence.