How about a swim?

In 1928 the tallest hotel, Hotel San Carlos, was built in Phoenix Arizona. The hotel offered air cooled rooms, which was a feature that was before it's time in 1928. If you were to go up to the roof, you would have an awesome view of Phoenix. Now days, however, all you can see is the other buildings and high rises.

A young girl dressed in her white evening gown, was waiting for her boyfriend to come and take her out for a night on the town. The boyfriend never showed up and she was heartbroken. It doesn't state the reasoning for the girl being stood up, but it hurt her so bad that she climbed to the roof of the Hotel San Carlos, which is now where the pool is located, and jumped. Lone Jensen's death was the first suicide of the city of Phoenix. She was 22 and committed suicide on May 7, 1928.

Ever since her death, there have been numerous sightings of a white figure shaped as a woman, a white cloud and cool breezes. The hotel staff will not go to any floor alone due to the sightings and the staff being so superstitious. Little children have been heard running up and down the hallways, laughing and playing. However, these children were not part of anyone belonging to the hotel, but belonging to the school that once was before the hotel. The school had a well, and I am sure you can guess what happened next. I mean who puts a well on the grounds of a school? Any way, records state that there were three or four boys that drowned in the well. The school house was closed down, but the well still remains to this day in the basement of the Hotel San Carlos, for it is the main water supply to visitors.

The penthouse still has running water, air-conditioning and electricity, but it is said no one lives up there and they will never rent it out. Hmmmmmmm.

Sing A Song, Play A Litte Tune

Gainesville Plantation was officially completed in 1861. Thought the mansion was completed in 1861, Nathan Whitfield from North Carolina, started building Gainesville in 1843 in Demopolis Alabama. Nathan was his own designer and his own architect for the Gainesville Plantation. Mr. Whitfield was actually General Nathan Bryan Whitfield. The plantation was actually named Marlmont, but in 1856, Mr. Whitfield changed the name to Gaineswood in honor Gaines, the man that he bought the land from. Mr. Whitfield died in 1861.

~*Mr. Whitfield*~

In 1846, Mr. Whitfields first wife died. After she died, Mr. Whitfield hired a nanny, Evelyn Carter, to help with the house chores and to take care of the children. Ms. Carter would sing songs to the family and even knew how to play various instruments. Not known when, but Ms. Carter died after a long battle of an unknown illness on a cold winters day. Ms. Carter made sure to let Mr. Whitfield know, that if she happen to die before him, she was to be buried in a family cemetery back in Virginia. However, when Ms. Carter died, it was far too cold to get her back to Virginia, so Mr. Whitfield buried her under the house. It is said that Ms. Carter still haunts the plantation due to the fact that she never made it home to be buried the way she requested. People have stated that the voices they hear, the songs that are being sung and the piano being played, even though most of the keys no longer work and the tune is way out of whack, is all from Ms. Carter. Silk skirts rustling, footsteps in the guest stairway and the piano being played at midnight during the restoration of the mansion in 1970's, have also been heard.

There is also a river that flows by the plantation called Tombigbee River. In December 1858, a steamboat by the name of Eliza Battle, had caught fire and most of the two hundred plus passengers either drowned or they died of hypothermia. Mr. Whitfield went down to the river to see if he could be of any help, not sure if he was able to or not. He did manage to paint a portrait of the fire, and it still is hanging in the plantation to this day. People have claimed that they can see the Eliza Battle still burning.

After Mr. Whitfields death, his decedents took over the home and the 480 acres that surrounded it, until 1923. There were two other families that took over the property after that, and then in 1966 the Alabama Historical Commission bought the home and the property. The house was turned into a museum in 1971, and it remains a museum until this day.

"Now I know why tigers eat their young."

It all started in 1829 when, at that time, the most expensive building was built. This building was designed to hold 250 prisoners, but in 1913 it was estimated that it held 1,700. There are five wings that extend outward from the center, just like a wagon wheel. The place is Eastern State Penitentiary, which is known for housing Al Capone in 1929. Mr. Capone stated that he was being haunted by the ghost of James Clark, a rival's brother in law. Eastern State Penitentiary closed in 1970.

 ~*Easter State Penitentiary & Al Capone's Cell.

When ESP *How Ironic* closed down, it was closed for 21 years. At that time it was selected to be a part of the historic preservation. In 1991 reconstruction began.  Reports of unusual activity started happening since 1940. Sightings were rampant.

The prison started housing violent prisoners in 1951, such as murderers and rapists. The prison has a very violent history to what it did to prisoner, such as physical torture as a form of punishment. Many people feel that this type of punishment is what contributes to the hauntings. When prisoners were able to leave their cells, a black hood was put over their face so to not see all the other prisoners or to be able to interact with them.

One form of punishment for the inmates was to be dunked into ice cold water, and then they would be hung on the wall all night. Remember these prisons didn't have any kind of heat system, so if it was winter and this happened, ice would form on the inmates skin before morning. 

 ~*The Water Bath*~

Another form was a chair that an inmate was strapped to. This chair was the "Madness Chair" because the inmates were strapped down so tightly that they were not able to move at all. They were provided no food, and when the circulation in their bodies would almost stop, they would be let out.

Then there is the Iron Gag, this was the most deadliest punishment brought to the prisoners. It was an iron collar that was clamped down on to the inmates tongue. It was then attached, by chains, to the inmates wrists which were bound behind his back. If the inmate moved, it would cause the metal to cut into the tongue of the inmate which caused severe bleeding. Many inmates that were provided this punishment, died of sever blood loss before the torture ended.

~*The Gag*~

Then of course there is "the hole." The Hole was dug under cell block 14. Inmates that were thrown down into this darkness, were provided bread and water, well that is if they got to it before the rats and roaches. The hole had no light and very little air. It was the staff that made the inmates endure this torture, not the Quakers who it was used by.

~*The Hole*~ 

There is a catwalk in this place, if you watched the Ghost Hunter's episode of this place you would know about the big shadow figure that walked up to the camera and then quickly went away. Cell block 12 has reports of laughter, cackling and voices being heard. Shadow figures are also seen, besides the catwalk, in cell block 6 leaning up against the walls. In cell block 4 you have reports that faces of ghosts appear. Also, footsteps are heard throughout the entire prison. Shadow figures have been seen in the watch tower, could they be prison guards that feel they still need to watch over the prison?

~*The Catwalk*~

Another Brick In The.......

Imagine sitting in class and noticing a black figure go across the door way. You are sitting at the back of the class, which is by the door. It creeps you out a little bit, but you thinking nothing on it. It was probably just one of the teachers or another student. You look forward, and notice that the black figure is now just standing there, looking at you with red eyes. You get up to get away, and it vanishes.

You go under the stage in the auditorium where all of the props are kept for drama class. You start to hear talking and singing, yet you are the only one down there. You think nothing of it, possibly just other students, then you see a transparent apparition heading your way. You drop the props and get the hell out of there.

You are trying to get to class, which is on the second floor. You head to the stairs and notice that a family is at the top staring down at you. Some say they have spoken to them only to have the family turn and walk away very slowly. The family consists of a Father, Mother, two girls and a boy.


This my friends, is Kearns Jr. High. The Jr. High that I went to. Now I really didn't see anything while skipping running to class, but I have felt strange things while under the auditorium stage. I did hear the singing and the chatting when no one else was down there, and if there were other people, the chatting was coming from behind a wall no one could get by. I went down under that stage but once. The minute you get yelled at to "Get Out" you tend to not want to go back.

Kearns was farmland, but the military turned it into an army base. Welcome to Camp Kearns. Kearns Jr. High was built on land that was once was an Army Air Force Cadet Training Center. So some casualties happened on this base and possibly families were living here as well. It is said that there are a lot of tunnels underneath the school.

I would always get an uneasy feeling while going to school here, but mostly in the auditorium and on the second floor. It would be really awesome to do a ghost hunt there, but probably will never happen.

~*Kind of boring post today, kind of like the apples post. However, I will do better*~

If You Go In, You May Not Come Out

There was a lot of coughing and wheezing. There were a lot of breaths that were trying to be caught. A lot of chests were compressed and a lot of blood was being coughed up. Eyes were read due to the bursting of the capillaries that burst do to the onslaught of the coughing. Heads were buzzing and had the sense of dizziness due to not enough oxygen getting to the brain causing a fever. The lungs were breaking apart in the bodies of their carriers.  These are the things that people actually experienced while suffering from tuberculosis.

Kentucky had the highest tuberculosis death rate in 1900. Kentucky had numerous swamp lands and was in such a low valley area, that it was an awesome place for the bacteria to breed. The 40 bed two story hospital that Kentucky had was just way too small so in 1926 Waverly Hills was opened. Waverly Hills is a very well known haunted place now days. It was one of the most famous and advanced tuberculosis hospital. Some people that went in made it out, others were not so lucky, and their bodies would be disposed of through the “body Chute” and into the “death tunnel.”

~*Waverly Hills Sanatorium & Body Chute*~

In 1961 Waverly Hills closed down due to a tuberculosis facility no longer being needed because of the antibiotic that was discovered. In 1962 Waverly Hills turned into Woodhaven Geriatrics Sanitarium. Electro Shock Therapy was widely used in those days and was proven to be a very effective treatment, even now days. Due to budget cuts in the 60’s and 70’s reports of unusual and cruel treatments and horrible conditions were reported, and the Sanitarium was closed down in 1982 due to patient abuse.

The hospital was going to be torn down and the world’s largest Jesus statue was to be erected, but the owner was stopped because the hospital is on the National Historic Register’s “endangered” list. The dude tried to get the building condemned by letting people come in and vandalize it. He also tried to get the foundation to crack by digging around it as deep as 30 feet, but it wouldn’t crack.

The Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures did a show here at Waverly Hills, and found a lot of different evidence. There were some orbs and a lot of EVP’s *Electronic Voice Phenomenon* ghosts talking. It is said that certain people’s doppelgangers have been seen when the physical person is not around any where. It is also said that if you run into your own doppelganger, you will die shortly after seeing it.

 ~*The morgue and a draining table that has draining holes*~

People have seen apparitions, shadow figures and voices. Some people have claimed that their hands have been held and possibly children wanting to play ball with the living that have come to visit. Some pictures were left behind in the rooms that they passed away in. A nurse was found hanged in room 502. She possibly had an abortion that had gone bad, It is said she did this because she was unmarried, pregnant, possibly had tuberculosis and was very depressed. It was rumored that she possibly had an abortion that had gone bad, and the fetus was found in the fifth floor well system.

This place is on my “have to visit” lists. If you do decide to go to places for ghost hunting, make sure you ask permission, and do not under any circumstances trespass.

Wavery Hills Sanatorium

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.

You head north 70 miles out of Denver through winding paths of the Rocky Mountains. Once out of the mountains and into Estes Park, your eyes gaze upon what looks like a white mansion with a red roof. It is extraordinary, something out of a fairy tale, though the history of this place is no fairytale.

~*The Stanley Hotel*~

The place is the Stanley Hotel which opened its doors on June 22, 1909. Mr. Stanley, however, sold the hotel in 1926 and it would only be open intermittently during some summers. The hotel was closed during WWII.

One of the most famous reasons that the Stanley Hotel is known for is Mr. Stephen King. Though Mr. King stated that the Stanley Hotel has some inspiration for the book, the book is not based directly on the location. Mr. King did state that he did see a small child crying out for his nanny, though Mr. King and his wife were the only ones at the hotel at the time. However, he did return to the hotel in 1995 to film the mini-series of The Shining. Personally I liked the first movie better.

 ~*The book, not the movie cover*~

People claim to hear the piano playing on its own, though nothing is seen but the keys being pushed down by themselves, in the music room. Conflicting stories are told to who actually might be the one playing it, whether it be Mr. or Mrs. Stanley. However, people claim it is Mrs. Stanley for that is who Mr. Stanley gifted the piano to.

 ~*The music room with the "haunted" piano*~

You enter the hotel and go up to the front desk. You check in and the lady gives you the key to room 217. You enter the room and unpack some of your stuff that you will be using for the night. You go out to wonder the shops or to get a bite to eat and return to your room to find all your stuff is neatly packed away back in your suitcase.

Not wanting to stay in room 217 then try rooms 219 & 222 have been reported to have noises coming from them and the windows and doors open on their own.

Not wanting to stay in room 217 then try rooms 219 & 222. You lay down for a good nights rest, only you get no rest from all the windows and the door opening and closing on their own, and strange noises that occur.

You cannot escape the strange occurrences while staying at the Stanley Hotel, for every room is reported to have some kind of supernatural something going on in it. If you do happen to find a room that you can comfortably sleep in, then you will probably be woken up by the children that are often heard running and playing in the hallways, even though there are no children staying at the hotel at the time of the occurrences.

 ~*Kids running down the hall maybe? Photo from Ghost Videos*~

I did visit the Stanley Hotel for one of their ghost tours. I took pictures and video, but did not catch anything on film or sound. I did not feel any uneasiness when going through the hotel, like I usually do when spirits are present, but they may have not been present on that particular day. One day I plan on staying at the Stanley Hotel for the night, to see what or if any bumps in the night occur. It is a very elegant place and very beautiful. Even if there are no ghosts found, just going in and touring was an exceptional experience.