Hey Guys! Guess what time it is?? It’s time for the recap of Bill and Danielle’s annual Halloween ghost hunting adventure.
If you’re a regular reader you remember our visit to Nemacolin Castle in Brownsville PA in 2011 and our visit to the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston, West Virginia in 2012. Last year we stayed at the Omni Shoreham, which is supposedly the most haunted hotel in Washington, DC but I didn’t write about it because the only thing that happened was that the bathroom door in our room had a tendency to open by itself, which could just be attributed to the sloping floor in an old hotel room. Booorrrrring! This year our visit was to Hill View Manor in New Castle. Hill View is an abandoned nursing home that is reportedly a hotbed of paranormal activity.
Before I get into the details of Hill view, let me tell you that the reason we do this stuff each year is to celebrate Halloween. I mean, what better way to get into the Halloween spirit than with a real ghost hunt! I've never had a problem ghost hunting because I'm such a skeptic. I do believe our loved ones who have passed on watch over us and maybe occasionally visit. But when it comes to actually seeing, hearing, feeling or otherwise sensing a ghost or spirit, I've always been on the fence. Sure it's possible but I haven't really seen any proof.
Before I get into the details of Hill view, let me tell you that the reason we do this stuff each year is to celebrate Halloween. I mean, what better way to get into the Halloween spirit than with a real ghost hunt! I've never had a problem ghost hunting because I'm such a skeptic. I do believe our loved ones who have passed on watch over us and maybe occasionally visit. But when it comes to actually seeing, hearing, feeling or otherwise sensing a ghost or spirit, I've always been on the fence. Sure it's possible but I haven't really seen any proof.
Even after touring Nemacolin and the Lunatic Asylum my skepticism remained unchanged. The nursery at Nemacolin definitely had a creep vibe and at the Lunatic Asylum there was a point when I thought something touched my butt, but in the back of my mind I've always thought it could have been my imagination playing tricks on me. When I walked out of both of those buildings, I was still a non-believer.
And then there was Hill View Manor…
First, a little background: Hill View opened in 1926 as a home for the poor, the aged and the mentally ill. Although the building was intended for adults, a few children reportedly lived there through the years. In the 1960s the building was converted to a nursing home and an addition in the 1970s turned it into a state-of-the-art facility. Due to financial constraints, Hill View closed in 2004. Today it sits empty except for an odd assortment of medical equipment, miscellaneous furniture and a basement room full of personal items which were left behind by patients (or "inmates" as they were called in the 1920s.)
| On the outside Hill View resembles an old elementary school and doesn't appear scary. |
Hill View's haunted status is possibly linked to the numerous natural deaths and suicides that took place on the property over the years. At least three residents are known to have committed suicide. Two of them were people who either jumped or fell to their death from the roof and one person either hung -- or was hung -- inside one of the bathrooms. It is estimated that about 10,000 people died in Hill View with many being buried in the cemetery behind the building. Because exact records weren't kept during the early years and because most patients who passed on were indigents, exact figures aren't available and most graves aren't marked.
Inside, the halls of Hill View are supposedly haunted by several colorful characters who died at the home. There’s Jeffrey, a young boy who has a room full of toys. Rumor is, anyone who sees Jeffrey dies soon afterwards. There’s also Mary Virginia, an elderly woman with a fondness for dolls and jewelry; and Jimmy Snaps, an elderly man who would charge a dollar to take your photo even though his camera had no film and several others.
On the day we visited, we were allowed a three hour tour of Hill View. The first 90 minutes consisted of our guides showing us around the building, helping us become familiar with the layout and giving us background info. We were told that reported activity includes voices, footsteps, doors slamming and miscellaneous items moving on their own. Dark images have been witnessed and photographed lurking in the halls and rooms. Shadows are seen throughout the building, sometimes peeking out of rooms and paranormal activity has been detected in the graveyard behind the building.
For the second 90 minutes they turned us loose on our own and allowed us to go wherever we wanted. The only places that were off limits were the roof and the old boiler room, with both being deemed too dangerous. We were allowed to explore the basement, which consisted of a pitch black hallway dotted with pitch black rooms. It was spooky as you would expect a pitch black basement in an old abandoned nursing home to be and we did have something happen down there that I'll tell you about later.
For the second 90 minutes they turned us loose on our own and allowed us to go wherever we wanted. The only places that were off limits were the roof and the old boiler room, with both being deemed too dangerous. We were allowed to explore the basement, which consisted of a pitch black hallway dotted with pitch black rooms. It was spooky as you would expect a pitch black basement in an old abandoned nursing home to be and we did have something happen down there that I'll tell you about later.
Surprisingly, it wasn't the basement that gave me the creeps. That distinction goes to the third floor, which once was home to men who were mentally ill or had recently been released from prison or were otherwise considered "bad." While Bill and I were exploring there after our guides left, my first thought was, “Get me off this floor. NOW!” Maybe it was just the shock of suddenly being alone, maybe it was my mind replaying the ghost stories we had just been told or maybe it was the fact that the third floor just flat out had an ominous vibe. It's hard to describe unless you actually feel it but it really did make the hair on my arms stand up.
For fun, Bill and I brought some ghost hunting equipment. It was cheap stuff I bought that consisted of an EMF meter, a sensor sweep and an EVP detector.
An EMF meter is the tool that real ghost hunters swear by. It reads fluctuations in magnetic fields since ghosts supposedly cause an increase in magnetic fields. It looks like this:
For fun, Bill and I brought some ghost hunting equipment. It was cheap stuff I bought that consisted of an EMF meter, a sensor sweep and an EVP detector.
An EMF meter is the tool that real ghost hunters swear by. It reads fluctuations in magnetic fields since ghosts supposedly cause an increase in magnetic fields. It looks like this:
Our second tool was a Sensor Sweep. A Sensor Sweep "sweeps" the room. If it detects a ghost, a dot appears on the screen and the little gadget beeps. It looks like this:
An EVP detector is a device that supposedly allows ghosts to communicate with you. When a spirit chooses to talk, a word appears on the screen and a computer sounding voices says it for you. When I was trying out the EVP detector at home I'd turn it on and it would chatter at me all day but never with anything that made any sense. For example, at home I tested it when I was drinking iced tea. I said, "What am I drinking?" and it said, "Sergio." At that point I labeled it a Random Word Generator because it didn't seem to do much of anything else. Here's a picture:
Many people have debated whether or not this stuff actually works and I'm not going to delve into that because I honestly don't know if any of it is legitimate or not. Instead, I'll just tell you about our experiences using it.
Back at Hill View, there were about 10 people in our group. The average age was about 50 and there was an equal mix of men and women. There was one little boy who was at least 12. Besides him, there were no other children. The first part of our tour with our guides was pretty uneventful. We walked around the first floor, saw the chapel, the community room and the basement.
Things got a little livelier on the second floor when we were in the cafeteria getting lowdown on where the food lines where and where the tables were and I don't know what else. I stopped listening because something pulled my hair. At first, I thought my hair got caught in my jacket. Except that my hair wasn't in my jacket. And then it got pulled again. This wasn't a typical hair-pulling tug. It felt like something was picking out one or two hairs on the top of my head and then giving them a yank. This went on for about 5 minutes. While everyone else was standing in a group talking to the guide, I was in the back of the groups swatting at my head whispering "Stop it!" (I know. I know. It sounds ridiculous.) Finally Bill said, "What are you doing?"and I had to tell him, "Something is pulling my hair!"
The hair pulling wasn't scary. It was just different and kind of playful. Fortunately, it stopped when we moved on to the third floor and the guides left. Once they were gone, everyone split up and went exploring on their own. Bill and I wandered into the old surgery room, which was an extremely small room with marble walls and a drain on the floor. (Yuck!) I said out loud, "Is anyone here? Do you want to talk to us?" and the EVP detector/random word generator said, "Obama."
Seriously??!! That's our first communication from a ghost?
We explored the third floor hallways and rooms. Bill felt nothing. I felt completely and totally creeped out, like we were being followed or watched. I didn't know if it was my imagination or not. At one point, when I REALLY felt as if something was right behind me I stopped and said to Bill, "Something is behind me. Stand behind me with the EMF meter." He did and guess what? The needle swung the whole way to the right. A GHOST WAS CLOSE!!
Jeffrey's Room
After we explored nearly every room and hallway we went down to the second floor. There we went first to Jeffrey's room. Jeffrey is said to be a young boy who lived and died in Hill View. People who have toured Hill View have left toys and pictures in his room for him to play with.
I picked up Jeffrey's teddy bear and said, "Jeffrey, I like your bear. What's his name?" and the EVP meter immediately said, "Matthew." Finally, an answer that made sense -- even if it was a coincidence. (Still the skeptic!)
| When we took this picture we invited Jeffrey to show up in it too. As you can see, we got nothing but me, a bear and some toys. |
We continued to move around the second floor playing a game with the EMF meter. I'd say, "I feel something behind me" when I actually did and Bill would run his meter by me and every single time the needle swung to the right. Once I tried to trick him. I lied and said, "Something is behind me" and when he checked, the needle didn't budge.
Hmmmmmmm. Maybe there might be something to this ghost stuff.
Room 138
Down on the first floor things got a little more exciting. In a bright room that looked into the parking lot in the front of the building, the needle on the EMF meter when off the chart when Bill stood in a corner of the room. Don't ask me why. Neither of us knows enough about this stuff to say. I will tell you this, it was the strangest thing. Like something was hiding in the corner watching us. It didn't feel scary. It just felt like we were being watched.
Next we went into Room 138. It was a small room with a closet and a bathroom that connected it to the next room. Bill walked in first. At the time he had his EMF meter on and I had the Sensor Sweep on. As I walked into the room past the closet, something grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the closet.
I AM NOT KIDDING.
At the same time, the needle on Bill's EMF meter swung to the right and my Sensor Sweep STARTED BEEPING LIKE CRAZY while showing a dot on the screen right in a position that would mean something was right beside me.
It sounded like this: BEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEPBEEP!!!!
And I sounded like this: HOLY FUCKING SHIT!!
For a few seconds, things seemed chaotic. I didn't scream but I did suck in a large amount of air and -- I'm almost ashamed to admit this -- started crying. The hair on my arms, the hair on my head, the hair all over my body was standing straight up.
Bill said, "What's happening?" and I said, "SOMETHING JUST GRABBED MY ARM!" and then I yelled, "DON'T TOUCH ME!" to whatever -- or whoever -- it was. Instantly all the beeping stopped, everything went completely silent and it felt like we were alone in the room.
I AM NOT KIDDING.
We stayed in Room 138 for about 5 or 10 more minutes. Bill walked into the room next door and I stayed there alone to prove to myself that I will not let this stuff scare me. That I am brave! That I can do this! Off to the basement!
The Basement
Let me tell you this, things in the basement got REALLY, REALLY weird, and it wasn't just nerves making it feel that way -- even though the walk to the basement was scary enough to give even the bravest person a heart attack. There's a yucky, dark, old staircase to go down, there's a long dark hallway, there are dozens of dark doorways and there are NO lights down there. As we were strolling down the basement hallway with only a tiny flashlight lighting the way, this is what my mind pictured lurking ahead of us:
| Ha ha! Anyone remember that from Scooby Doo? |
The room we were heading to was the furnace room. According to our guides, an old man named George once worked there. In life, George was a gruff former military man who loved the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was said his ghost still hung around the furnace room where he worked for so many years. People on previous tours left Steelers mementos for George and there is a little Steelers shrine in the boiler room for him to enjoy.
It's also been said that George dislikes Browns fans and on one occasion, smacked a Cleveland fan in the head. If you know me, you know I am not a Steeler fan (although not necessarily a Browns fan either). I did not, however, confess that while I was in the boiler room. I already had my hair pulled and been dragged to a closet, I wasn't up for a smack in the head too.
There were about six people from the group in the boiler room and they decided to do a test test to see if George was present. The lights were out and the room was completely black except for a flashlight that one of the other people on our tour placed on the floor. As a group, we asked George to make himself known and shut off the flashlight. Nothing happened. We asked again. Nothing happened. We asked a third time. Nothing happened. The forth time we asked a little more firmly, adding, "If you're a true Steeler fan, shut off that flashlight." Guess what? The flashlight got dimmer. And dimmer. And dimmer. And dimmer. It kept getting dimmer until it was almost out and we were all sitting in nearly complete darkness -- until it switched back on. FOR REAL!
It was another "Oh my fucking God!" moment. One of the people in our group captured it all on video. Does this mean the ghost of George was there or does it mean someone had a wonky flashlight with batteries that just happened to grow weak at that exact moment -- and then turn back on? I'll let you form your own opinion.
We put the lights on in the room and explored a little more. For a few seconds, there was a very cold spot in the room and everyone who had EMF devices picked up the same readings at the same time.
| Bill checking things out in the furnace room. |
Mary Virginia and Angelo
Back upstairs we checked out Mary Virginia's room. Mary Virginia was a older woman who lived in Hill View for several years. She had a fondness for trinkets, makeup, stuffed animals and jewelry. We found nothing happening in her room but here's a picture:
We also investigated a bathroom where a man name Angelo either hung himself or was hung by someone else. Either way, Angelo died in that bathroom, but he wasn't there on the day we visited.
| Angelo's Bathroom |
We spent some time in the chapel where the sensor sweep beeped repeatedly and the EMF told us there were GHOSTS IN THE ROOM! but at that point we needed a little rest and just sat there in the chairs and let them swirl around us. (If that is what they were doing. We don't know for sure.) Nothing showed up in any pictures we took of the chapel.
There was no activity in the community room. An old organ was said to play by itself but it was silent when we were there. The room itself reminded me of the church basement where I had Brownie meetings in the early 1970s! Check it out:
Lastly, we had a little ghostly session in this room on the second floor:
We called this room The Black Shadow Room because there was some freaky-ass black shadow/mist hanging out in that doorway you see in the back of the room. Let me add that there was no reason for this particular shadow/black mist thing to be there. Oh, and it wasn't actually a shadow of anything because the room was empty.
Bill and I were walking around in there keeping our distance from the shadow/mist when the one kid in the group came bounding in saying "Guys! Watch what happens when I walk to the back of this room." This kid was basically fearless because he was walking towards the big black shadow. The further back he walked the further right the needle on his EMF detector moved.
Not to be outdone by a 12 year old, Bill got into the action, walking to the back of the room with his EMF detector. When both he and Little Mr. Fearless walked to the back of the room, their meters went up. When they walked to the front of the room their meters went down to the normal level. And then that black thing moved to a corner of the room. OF COURSE Bill and that kid rushed over there and trapped it in the corner. I waited in the hall with that kid's mother until those two were done messing around with that thing because I wanted no parts of that.
The Embalming Room
Other interesting things we noticed on our exploration of Hill View was gray hair clippings still in one of the sinks in the beauty salon along with bottles of old shampoo, a container of old perm rods and other old beauty supplies still sitting on the counter. Looking at those was being in a time warp. Very eerie indeed!
We also visited the embalming room where one of the men in our group layed down on the embalming table and then jumped up, saying something pinched his finger!
| The embalming table in the Embalming Room. The stain on the floor to the right of the table was the. drain, which has since been sealed. |
| That's right, there was an arm and a leg sticking out of the ground... |
Overall, it was a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon. It definitely got us in the Halloween spirit and definitely makes you wonder if and why some people remain Earthbound after they die. Despite the hair pulling, the arm grabbing, the hand on my leg and the funky black mist, I'm still skeptical. Or maybe I just don't want to believe. I don't know.
To end this post, I'lI show you a picture of a door I took. It was a door that sat at the end of a super spooky hallway that NO ONE had the guts to walk down. It just felt weird and scary and wrong. I'll leave it to you decide what you see in the window on the left side. Is it a reflection? A face? A tall man with his right arm outstretched? Or nothing at all?
Bye Bye Hill View! It was fun!
RELATED POSTS
We Spent the Weekend at the Haunted Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum
Nemacolin Castle: Our Trip to a Real Haunted House
Movies That Supposedly Have Real Ghosts In Them
Haunted Bookstore in Ohio: Owners Discover a Ghost Who Loves Toys
Three Real Life Spine Tingling Ghost Stories
