Ghost Ships: The Mary Celeste

Launched in 1860 under the name Amazon, the Mary Celeste started her ill fated life.  In the 10 years before she was to become the Mary Celeste, the ship was involved in several accidents and went through several owners.  She was sent to the New York salvage auction where she was purchased for $3,000.  After extensive repairs, she was christened Mary Celeste.

Painting of the Amazon, later christened Mary Celeste

 The new captain Benjamin Briggs, his wife, and young daughter, along with 8 crew members departed New York on November 7, 1872 bound for Genoa, Italy.  The cargo consisted of 1700 barrels of raw American alcohol. 

Captain of ill-fated Mary Celeste

 On December 5, 1872, the ship Dei Gratia came upon the Mary Celeste floundering on the sea.  The captain of the Dei Gratia knew Captain Briggs and was surprised to see the ship derelict as Briggs had a reputation as an excellent captain.  Men from the Dei Gratia boarded the abandoned Mary Celeste to determine what was going on.

The ship was found in good seaworthy condition.  It appeared as though the crew had left in a great hurry.  They discovered that the chronometer and sextant were missing.  There was water between the decks and the Galley was in bad shape.  The stove was knocked out of place and cooking utensils were strewn about.  There were no lifeboats aboard the ship and everything was soaked.  A rope was found hanging over the side of the ship trailing in the water.

The crew from the Dei Gratia managed to get the Mary Celeste into port.  When the cargo was unloaded, they found 9 of the barrels of alcohol empty.

What happened to the crew of the Mary Celeste?  Some feel that the cargo became unstable and that the captain decided to trail behind the ship in the lifeboat until such time that it was safe to board.  However, for some reason, the ship outdistanced the lifeboat leaving the crew helpless on the sea. 

Another theory involves foul play.  However, no evidence was ever found to prove that.  Still others think that the ship was caught in the middle of a seaquake.  And still others claim the crew was eaten by sharks during a swim.

Whatever the reason, the story of the Mary Celeste stills fascinates people.  Something about the image of a ship sailing alone, the crew and captain missing..... without a trace.

My son sees dead people... I think

My son Ethan turned 3 in May, and since the age of about 6 months he has shown signs of being able to see and talk to people no one else can see.

At 6 months he began focusing on the rocking chair in his room, laughing and waving at it as though someone was seated there and laughing and waving back. No big deal really, I thought it was cute.

At the age of one, he began babbling to the chair and having 'conversations' with someone there. Again not such a big deal, though it was strange that he actually paused as though listening to someone, laughed and began answering in his baby speak.

At 18 months, things started getting downright weird. He could say Grandma M---- as clear as a bell but couldn't say cat properly.

Around the age of 2 I really got weirded out. I went to get him out of his crib and he pointed to the rocking chair and asked "Who Dat?" I said I didn't know who it was (there was no one there for me to identify). He again asked "Who Dat?" and I said " I don't know, who is it?" His reply- "Da Man" I said, " Oh a man?" Ethan said, "yeah, dat da man" so I proceeded to wave to the man and say hi (whoever he was I wasn't about to be rude). I had chills as this was the first time that Ethan had been able to voice actually seeing someone sitting in the rocker (a quick aside- the rocker is not old, was purchased new by me and is not thought to be in any way connected to the 'haunting'). Skip ahead 2 weeks later, I had finally managed to hang a photo collage that I had in storage. Ethan saw it and wanted to look at the photos. He began pointing to each picture saying who it was- Mommy, Daddy, Didgit (his sister Bridget), Gamma, Poppy... and when he came to a photo of my great-Uncle- a man he's never met nor ever seen before in photos- he got excited and began yelling "Da man da man!" (picture Tattoo from Fantasy Island getting all excited over planes). I felt relieved that this was the mysterious "man" in the room as Pepop as he was called, was someone I was very close to and I welcome his presence. Around the same time, the family was gathered at my aunt's house (known to be haunted). While seated on my dad's lap in the dining room, Ethan began waving to someone standing in the kitchen and saying bye. My dad asked him who he was waving to, Ethan's response "Da Girl". My aunt asked him where the girl was and Ethan pointed to the door leading down to the basement. My aunt told me her granddaughter has also talked about seeing a girl at her house, and of course, no one likes going down into the basement there.

Ethan also says he sees "Onsters" (monsters). One monster named Chocit Mook (Chololate Milk) lives outside in Ethan's playhouse. Perhaps this is simply a normal imaginary friend. Chocit Mook is apparently brown, doesn't say much, and never comes into the house. Also, he doesn't scare Ethan at all. This is an important observation because Ethan has started to become terrified of his room and the dark.

In broad daylight, the lights must be on in the room Ethan is in- Living Room, Dining Room, Bedrooms... At night, he sleeps with the ceiling light on. Nightlights (he has several) don't work adequately enough for him). He expects someone to sleep in the rocker in his room at night. Sometimes we manage to sneak out saying we have to get a pillow and/or a blanket. This doesn't really work much anymore as he is smart enough to have learned we're lying. When he wakes up (as he nearly always does) he is screaming in terror. It's not a typical 'I want Mommy' type thing, it's full out terror get me outta here now sort of cry/scream.

At my aunt's house again for another gathering, Ethan was concerned about something he saw in the hallway. No one likes the hallway in my aunt's house either. Ethan saw something, and the change in his expression was so telling and graphic it gave me chills. He went from relaxed and happy to sheer terror in an instant and ran into the other room. My cousin and I told my aunt what happened, so we sat in the living room area that looks into the hallway to 'talk'. Ethan came back, began staring at something in the hallway again, was overcome by the same fear and facial expression change but this time he climbed on a chair and turned the hall light on. He then stared into the hallway looking, went back and turned the light off, looked, got scared and turned the light on. Still looking, he again got very frightened, only this time both of my aunt's and cousin saw a shadowy form move from one side of the hall to the other (I of course had my back to the area, but saw Ethan's face and that was enough).

Now Ethan is 3. Ethan had another friend show up, this time, however, Ethan was able to give more information. Seeing him talk animatedly with someone unseen, I asked who he was talking to. He looked at me like I was an idiot and pointed to the air next to him and said "Howard" like duh mom he's right there. I told Howard hello. I began looking into Howards to see if there was one at daycare, or a movie he had seen with someone named Howard, anything to explain his use of the name. Nothing. I was certain we had no Howards in the family, but after day 2 of Howard, I emailed my dad and aunts to see if perhaps I was wrong. My dad responded immediately telling me my Grandmother had a 1st cousin named Howard who had died less than a year ago. FREAKY. Howard hung around for a while, and in that time I got what descriptions I could of Howard. Most of what I got from Ethan matched what was know of my grandmother's cousin. Howard has since left and isn't around anymore so says Ethan.

We've also had unnamed girls at the house, and I believe they are children as they seem to want Ethan's milk. He either offers them his cup to have some or spends time at the dinner table arguing about it being his and snatching the cup away from these unseen people. And again at my aunt's house this summer, Ethan was talking to someone who was sitting under a tree. This one didn't scare him, and according to my aunt, it was Ethan's great-great grandfather who she has seen there occasionally.

Some background info that is pertinent.... My great-great grandmother was a medium. She held "Church Meetings" in her home where she would go into a trance and speak in a voice that was not her own- my grandmother witnessed this personally. My maternal great-aunt who was an Irish immigrant could read tea leaves with such accuracy that her Priest told her she could not do it anymore. And my late mother-in-law was a psychic as well (this would be the Grandma Molyneaux I referenced earlier).

I think it is also important to note that my grandmother is terminally ill. Doctors gave her a year in February of 2008. Some say our departed relatives begin gathering in preparing to help another family member cross. Is this why Ethan saw Howard? and why he saw my grandmother's dad (Ethan's gg grandfather) under the tree?

Ghost, Demon or Guardian Angel?

I recently came upon an article about something called the "Hat Man". This was not something I had ever read about before and became interested. Upon reading the article further, I became somewhat fearful.... before I go into detail, let me share my own personal story.

This took place roughly 10 years ago at my parents' house. My fiancee' at the time was out of town and my daughter and I had planned on spending the night with my parents. It was a Saturday, and being a typical Saturday for us it included dinner and a night of paranormal investigation on the Gettysburg Battlefield. I remember that we were in the area of the Peace Light Memorial located on the 1st day's Battle are of the park.

Here I need to add a little background information to explain some of my thoughts later on. During the time frame, my group was having regular communication with a spirit we dubbed "Ed". He showed up each week like clockwork and "talked" to us through EVP. He followed me home on at least one occasion where I was also able to record EVP. Around the same time I had an experience with a mirror in my room- I had seen a face (not my own) in the mirror and it terrified me to the point where I removed it from the wall. To this day I still refuse to look into the mirror directly. Back to the story...

So, after a night of investigation, I headed back to the house to hit the hay. Sometime during the middle of the night, I woke up to see a shadowy figure at the foot of my bed. There were no facial features visible at all, just the black silhouette. It was a male figure, roughly 6ft tall and wearing a wide brimmed hat. I had the impression he was wearing some type of jacket or coat as I was able to discern cuffs of some sort and a collar. He had his left arm hanging by his side and the right was holding onto the post of the 4-poster bed. I distinctly remember seeing his fingers curled around the post. The post was white so there was a lot of contrast. He terrified me. I can not explain where the sudden fear came from. Afterall, I go searching for ghosts and while they make me edgey and slightly spooked, I have never had a feeling of total terror before. I was so terrified that I immediately closed my eyes tight, held onto my celtic cross necklace and said the Lord's Prayer over and over again. At some point I fell asleep, but it wasn't for at least 2 hours and when I woke up I was still holding the cross in my fist.

The next morning there was no sign that anything had happened except that my glasses were nowhere to be found. I place them in the same spot each night as I have my own personal (nearly OCD) bedtime rituals. They weren't there. My mother and I tore the house apart but found nothing. I need my glasses to see- I wear them all day until bedtime. So I went off to work (15 minutes late) without my glasses. At the time, my manager was also a paranormal enthusiast and often accompanied me on investigations. I told her what had happened the night before and how I lost my glasses. She looked down at my bag of clothes and sitting on top neatly folded were the glasses in question. I personally checked that bag- dumping everything out and going through all the pockets and repacked the bag myself too. There were no glasses.

Around the same time frame I was also seeing a "shadow boy" of sorts peeking at me from around corners in my parents' house. One day I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and I ignored it for a minute and then suddenly turned my head to see what was there. I was able to distinguish head and shoulders of someone small/short pull back around the corner. Thinking it was my brother playing tricks, I searched the house- I was alone.

My daughter was not immune to the paranormal at my parents' house either. In fact, she told one person who stayed in her room that if they felt like someone was leaning over them staring at them it was just her guardian angel and if they heard tapping it was just Ed and tell him to stop. She never spoke of seeing shadow figures.

I always chalked the experience up to something following me home from an investigation. Ed often came home with us (this sounds absolutely crazy I know- but he seemed to have attached himself to me)

So today I read something about this "Hat Man". I can honestly say that I have never heard of him before at all and never assumed that my experience had anything to do with something other than the typical ghost haunting. However, here is some info on Hat Man:

*He is a shadow person who wears a trenchcoat and a large hat. One person described

the hat as being like a witch's hat with the pointy part cut off. (same as mine)

*He is accompanied by dread or overwhelming fear. (check- had that)

*While there is rarely any discernable facial features, eyes, when seen, are described as

red and glowing. (No eyes on mine- Thank goodness)

*Shadow people are also seen in reflections, i.e., mirrors and TV screens. (had that- I still don't

look in that mirror)

*With the exception of the Hat Man, most shadow figures are seen only out of the corner

of the eye before quickly disappearing. (Had that happen too)

I would have to say that I definitely had an encounter with the infamous Hat Man and his band of merry shadow people. But what is most disturbing to me is the speculation over what or who the Hat Man is. Some say that it's possible that the Hat Man and these shadow people are merely guardian angle type creatures, something along the lines of Mothman- in a loose way. While that is a nice thought, and my daughter certainly described something that watches her as her guardian angel, that opinion is shared by the least amount of people. Others claim that the Hat Man is somehow related to aliens- especially those with darker or more sinister intent- specifically lizard men and greys. I don't hold much stock in lizard men (who supposedly live in the earth's core and come out and feed on humans- which explains all the missing people in the world) and while I won't say aliens don't exist (I think it's arrogant to assume humans are the superior race and the only one) I don't necessarily think the Hat Man is an alien. The 3rd and most common explanation is that this Hat Man has some relation to the devil or a demon. Do you know how terrifying it is to know you might have been watched by a demon?? And while I am not Saying that I was visited by a demon, I’m not even sure that I believe wholeheartedly in them (in all my years of paranormal investigation I have yet to come across something like that) I am also not saying that they don’t exist either. Demons are just one of those things that are tangled up in religion and personal beliefs- which in itself is a touchy subject. What I know is that I have never know such instant fear- to the point of reciting the first prayer I could think of over and over until exhaustion hit. I also know that if I were to share this story with my very devout Catholic aunt, I would receive another coffee can of Holy Water (I am not joking- had one can in the fridge so long it rusted).

So, anyway, just wanted to put this story out there. I welcome questions or comments or even a story you might have about the Hat Man

Batsquatch....

First let me say that in 30 days, I will be on a plane to Washington State to look for UFO's. Awesome!

In preparing for the big trip, I decided to see if there was anything to be found on the creature known as Batsquatch since it is supposed to live nearby and I am hoping to catch a glimpse of it. I wasn't expecting to find much of anything as I had not heard about this creature before... and believe me when I say I've heard about some crazy creatures! But there are tons of sites dedicated to Batsquatch information.

From what I've read, Batsquatch is reported to have purple colored skin, glowing red eyes, wings like a pterodactyl and a head similar to a primate and/or bat. Though its name is based on Sasquatch, there is no real link between the two creatures. Some believe that it could be a yet unknown type of North American Fruit Bat.... only problem is that Batsquatch seems to like small animals (dogs, goats, hogs...) and last I checked fruit bats ate, well, fruit. Others think that it is another branch of the evolutionary tree and is some type of winged primate. That's right, Ladies and Gentlemen, a Flying Monkey! I will be sure to bring my bicycle and broom.

Seriously though, I am a believer in the existence of cryptids, or creatures that have yet to be officially discovered. We are finding new species all the time and have rediscovered species that were long thought to be extinct though sightings were still reported (the Okapi is one example of that). And I want to bring up another thought- Mothman. I have no doubt that Mothman was real and was sighted by people in Point Pleasant, WV. What I am unsure about is what Mothman actually was.... during his brief life in Point Pleasant, there were increased UFO sightings and sightings of MIB (Men in Black) and if memory serves me, there were also livestock mutilations going on at the same time.

Both Batsquatch and Mothman have glowing red eyes and wings. Both have been sighted in areas of increased UFO activity. I will also go so far as to say both are seen in areas where tragedies occured (mothman- Silver Bridge Collapse, Batsquatch- Mt St Helens eruption). Are these cryptids unknown species? or are they something more? Something that fortells traumatic or historic events? Is there something big coming? Isn't it interesting that the Pope and the Vatican recently announced that it's OK to believe in aliens and UFOs?

"I scream from the top of my lungs What's going On?" - 4 Non Blondes "What's Goin On"

Trip to the UFO Ranch

Those of you who follow the A&E show Paranormal State are familiar with James Gilliland's "UFO Ranch" in Trout Lake, WA. The Paranormal State episode entitle First Contact was filmed at the ranch and was full of UFO footage. Between the beauty of the area and the paranormal goings-on, this episode became one of my favorites (First Contact) and I hoped I would one day be able to visit Mr. Gilliland's ranch. As luck (or fate) would have it, Kelly and I came upon the opportunity to go- and we're heading out May 14th.

PRS is hosting a 'field trip' at the ranch for 3 days of paranormal activities. We will be camping. Do you have any idea the amount of creativeness it takes to pack camping gear for a flight across the country? And of course there is the paranormal equipment which must be taken on as carry-on. What do we take??! While we have searched for spirits and the occasional cryptid, I've never been on a UFO expedition (side note- there is a mysterious creature in the woods that we will also be looking for called Batsquatch- I know- love the name). At the moment I believe we have decided on the following: cameras (obviously), recorders, video equipment, tripods, flashlights and the stealth game camera (to catch pics of the Batsquatch).

For those wondering, Batsquatch (sounds like something I wouldn't want to step in) is a large bipedal creature with wings. I assume, based on the name, that it must be similar to Satsquatch with large wings. While this may sound slightly silly, please remember Mothman. For those of you familiar with Mothman, you'll remember that this creature was seen in Point Pleasant, WV during a time of heightened UFO sightings. Coincidence? Maybe. Psychedelic drugs? Can't rule them out, but the whole thing is intriguing.

So... as we countdown the days until our departure (36), let's hope that this trip goes off without a hitch. By that I only mean that Kelly and I always seem to have strange adventures... camping in Gettysburg one year we woke up to it raining inside the tent (3 people in a one man A frame + cold outside temps= rain), traveling to Point Pleasant, WV we drove through 4 tornadoes, torrential rain, extreme fog, detoured by flooded rivers, missed a flash flood by mere minutes, got lost in the hills oh and got shot at, and the last camping trip to Gettysburg involved an odd campground full of what looked like carnies.... and that's all I've got to say about that trip.

Stay tuned....