Ghost Stories - The famous Pink House of Wellsville New York

On the corner of West State Street and South Brooklyn Avenue in Allegany County, NY stands the beautiful but odd Victorian mansion known as the "pink house" Although the house is a tourist attraction in its own right, it is reportedly haunted and the stories that surround it are quite interesting and have even inspired a 123!
No modern day accounts of any supernatural activity exist but the history of the house prevails, keeping it one of those places that children will take care to cross the street when they get near it. The hauntings have not been verified but the two deaths that did occurred there are factual and do have all the hallmarks of a great ghost story.
The story starts in 1957 and involves a pretty young blond girl named Frances Farnum who was engaged to E.B. Hall, the man who built the pink house. Sadly, Frances was not in love with Mr. Hall, but was in love with "Paul" whom her rich father thought was not good enough (meaning not rich enough) for his daughter. He forbid his daughter to see him again. Furious and vowing to make himself worthy of Frances, Paul set off to law school and the couple wrote to each other and kept their love strong.
Unfortunately, Frances father found out about this and forged a letter to both of them stating neither one of them wanted anything to do with the other, so when Paul came home on holiday from school and passed Frances on the street without looking at her or speaking to her, her heart broke. Within a few weeks she married E.B. Hall and settled into a loveless marriage for the financial purposes of her father. The two men were very happy but Frances was so devastated, she committed suicide. The story diverges here. Some say she drowned herself in the fountain on the property, others say she died in the nearby gristmill. Wither way, the grief-stricken girl died an unhappy soul that was unfulfilled and cheated in life.
A twist to the story was that Frances was immortalized in the poem "Pauline" that was written by Hanford Lennox Gordon who was in reality "Paul". This poem is 123 pages long and was quite famous in its day. It is about a dying soldier talking to his captain at Appomattox about a heartless father, beautiful daughter and her one true love.
Anyway, it would seem that Mr. E.B. Hall wasn't too upset by his wife's demise because he married her sister Antoinette shortly after. When they returned to the Pink House after their honeymoon, they brought a small daughter with them. When the child was about two years old, she drown in the fountain, much like her dead aunt had. Legend has it that the spirit of Frances was angry that her husband had remarried so fast, she took her vengeance out on the child.
After a few more years, Antoinette had another child and fearing the spirit of her sister would harm this child as well, she decided to make a bedroom in the tower room of the house. In the window, was placed a candle that was never to burn out. All servants were instructed to keep the candle burning at all times to keep the candle lit. To this day, although replaced with electric lights now, the light remains in the tower window.
And so the stories go. Two deaths, unrequited love, vengeful spirits and a beautiful poem. I think it's a good story.

If You Like Zombie Movies, You Should Rent This One

Because I love zombie moves, I was searching around Blockbuster the other day and happened across a title that struck me, even though I knew it never got to theaters but went straight to video. DAY OF THE DEAD;THE NEED TO FEED is based on George Romero's "Day of the Dead" and stars Ving Rhames and Nick Cannon.
I gotta tell you for a "B" horror film, it was really fun. If you like zombie movies you know you have your "slow" zombies like the ones in NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and then you have your fast, scarier zombies infected with rage as in the newer movies like 28 days later. The zombies in this movie are even worse. You can still kill them by a good shot to the head, but man are they fast. About the best (in the most frightening sense) zombies I've ever seen. Definitely worth the rental price. I don't want to say too much to give it away, but most are the characters are likable, with one jerk - as usual- and the acting and directing was really pretty decent. If you do rent it, let me know what you think!

There's still time to enter the contest!

To all readers:

There is still time to enter out first ever contest. All you have to do is find the contest post (check the side bar for the post or go through the older posts to find it) and tell us what your favorite horror movie is. That's it. The prize, chosen at random is a re-released copy of An American Werewolf in London on DVD

Tell your friends and stay tuned for more contests coming! Easy to enter, Easy to win! Don't delay. Contest runs through September 13Th!

For All of the Horror Fans Out There, This One is For You...The Scariest Horror Villians Of All TIme...According To Me, Of Course!

I know I've said this already, but I LOVE horror movies. From Elm Street to Zombies, even if the acting is horrible and you can tell it was made in someone's basement...call me crazy, but they are still fun!
There are some movies though, that you find yourself thinking about long after they are over, with some villians that stick in your head for years. Sometimes you can remember seeing a "scary" movie in your childhood that you remember as if it were yesterday because it left such an impression on you. Those are the good movies. Not necessarily because they were really good films, but because they left that impression on you. That is what the horror genre is supposed to do.
With that said, I'm goning to share with you some of my most horrified momments and the villians that I think should win the "scarriest villian award"
When I was 12 years old, My mother, my 22 year old sister and her friend were going to the drive-in to see The Exorcist. I begged to go with them. After hours of this torture, my mother finally caved and I went, snuggled in the back seat of the old 1969 malibu we owned, and saw on the screen a hideous story about the most horrifying things happening to a girl that was just my age...but the worst part of all was those few little words that came on the screen before the movie even began. "Taken from true events". What? This was true? That was what terrified my 12 year old brain. Watching that possessed girl. I was her age. I had played with a Ouija board. My mom was a single mom. It happened to her, why couldn't this happen to me? And that set off about a 3 year period of cold-blooded, mind-blearing terror that still pinches the back of my eyes every now and then (all be it rarely now) when I glimpse scenes from that movie, until I realize again that I am a grownup. Anyway, that was the first movie that scared the hell out of me and left a lasting impression. Nothing has ever scared me that much again. However, I have found some movies, and some villians that I love!

First and foremost, I am a true Norman Bates fan. I love the guy, and love Tony Perkins. No one else could play the part. I know that Vince Vaughn tried. Vince did a good enough job, and I like him. I think he's a good actor, and I like him, especially in comedy roles, but he's just not Norman to me. The whole back story of Norman is fascinating and is actually brought out at the end of the first PSYCHO movie. The sequals are awful. The original is the best, as is usual so rent it if you can. There can be only one.....Norman Bates that is. I would love to stay at the Bates motel.

Then, you gotta love Freddy. He's one of the very few horror movie villians to actually have a sense of humor. That puts him high on my list. He's king of the one liners....Scarey as hell, a disgusting child molester/killer in life and an evil fiend that haunts and kills you in your sleep. What could be scarier than that?

Pinhead anyone? Pinhead and his friends are a pretty awful looking bunch and boy, do they no how to inflict pain? I wouldn't want to run into them....especially that fat one with the turkey waddle thing going on! Pretty scary!

So, that's it for part 1. Who are your favorite villians?

CW's new TV show: The Vampire Diaries

Well, score up another good move for the CW network. Thursday, Septermber 10 at 8:00Eastern time the first episode of The "Vampire Diaries" begins. With all the rage among teens, and even some adults, being vampires these days with the success of the Twilight serries, this series should be a hit.
This story does feature a teenage girl who falls in love with a vampire, and we do have good vampires vs bad vampires but in this case, the town's people are aware of the problem. It will be interesting to see what they do about the problem. Here's a link you might enjoy.

Ghost Stories - Fort Wayne Indiana

Since my favorite season is coming, I thought I'd start telling some ghostly tales that come from different places around the country. I'll pick my cities and towns at random, unless you have a special request you'd like to propose. Today, I've chosen Fort Wayne, Indiana and there's a couple I've happened upon while doing research that sounded a little like urban legends but still sounded like fun. Maybe some of you that live in Fort Wayne can check them out and report back.
In Fort Wayne is a place the locals call "Devil's Hollow" and is located on Cedar Canyon Rd near Auburn Rd. Apparently as you drive, you find yourself going up a hill and you see a the remnants of a burnt chimney stack in distance. A little further, and you see the burnt remnants of what once was a lovely home.
There seems to be two different stories told here. The first goes that because of its secluded spot local satanic cults and witch covens used the area for their meetings and sacrificial rites where goats and pigs and other small animals were slaughtered. Word got around that the woman who owned the land and lived in the house was a witch and not only went along with this heinous activity, but joined in. Since the people of the Fort Wayne considered themselves a Christian community full of God-fearing people, they would have none of this, and decided this must be stopped. One day they made their way to the woman's house,set it on fire, either not realizing or perhaps knowing to well that she was inside, killing her in the scorching flames. All activity stopped at that point. All further cult activity stopped at that point with speculation being that the cults moved on to another location, possible out of the county.
Story two is much milder. It states that a sweet old woman was bothered by the bunch of teenagers who frequented her secluded property, using it as a party spot and lover's lane of sorts, blaring music from their car stereos and leaving the grounds littered with beer bottles and other less appealing items.
Word has it that there were police reports and arrests made regarding the teenagers but nothing was really done about it. Talking the matter into her own hands, together with some friends, the old woman thought if she spread the rumor around that she was a witch, it might frightened the teenagers enough to keep the teens away from her house and off of her property. Her strategy didn't work. In the still of one quite night, her house was burned to the ground with her inside, and no one was ever charged with the crime.
It is said that if you go to the spot around Halloween you're supposed to be able to have a sense that the old woman is still there and haunting her grounds. This feeling of her presence is stronger if you go there during a full moon, which may lend credence to the witch part of the story but maybe not.
Fort Wayne is actually has the potential for being a very haunted city. Pretty much the entire city was the home of Miami Indians with both French and English Forts in the areas. There are sites where wars took place, there are sites of Indian torture grounds, burial grounds, sites where soldiers and settlers died premature and grisly deaths and the whole city is built right on top of those spots.
There are many reports of hauntings in the old city jail (calaboose) housed under the historical center. It has the original cells where at least one prisoner hanged himself. Incidentally, Fort Wayne has one of the top 3 libraries for genealogy research in the entire country so it's a good place to visit if you are interested in ghost stories or genealogy.

New Season of Supernatural to Begin Soon!

Ok all of you Supernatural Fans! Season Five opener begins with "Sympathy For the Devil" and from the short peaks I've seen, it looks pretty good. I think this is a great show anyway, and unlike a lot of similar show it does stick pretty close to the book on urban legend and lore.

As season four left off, the boys are in the convent, Lilleth and Ruby are dead and things are a-shaken' in the convent with old"Lou" getting ready to rise. If you just LOVE spoilers or you need to be caught up on season four, check out this YouTube link and get ready!

Horror Movie Reviews

For readers of The Shadow Watchers I have what I hope will be good news. As part of our normal coverage, we will now be offering horror movie reviews both in theater movies and straight-to-video. I you have any thoughts, feel free to give your opinions. I'm excited about this and can't wait to get started. Occasionally, we will also be reviewing older classics being re-released.

Honest Abe Haunting The Whitehouse

Did you know that the White-house had 134 rooms, a move theater and a bowling alley? Did you also know that it was reported to be haunted?
I'm going to talk about the most frequently mentioned and most famous spirit to haunt the hallowed halls of Pennsylvania Avenue. None other than Honest Abe himself.
When honest Abe himself took office in 1860, his administration was full of strife, namely the civil war which led to his untimely assassination by the well known actor of the day, John Wilkes Booth.

Sometime after Lincoln's death, residents of the White-house began to hear his footsteps pacing around on the second floor where his bedroom suite was. In 1923 First Lady Coolidge stated that she saw Lincoln's ghost standing in the Oval Office looking out the window. Many others reported seeing him there in that same spot with the same pensive look on his face. In fact, President Nixon once said that when he entered the Oval Office and saw the apparition of Mr. Lincoln, he even asked him for advice!

It is noteworthy to mention that during the life of Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln that they often held seances to seek the guidance of the spirit world, a practice Mary continued long after Mr. Lincoln's desk.

Interestingly enough, Mr. Lincoln is said to have had premonitions of his own death several times, including one only two days before the event occurred. If he had prepared himself for the heinous event, why then does his spirit remain in the White-house? Does he feel his country still needs his guidance, or could it be the sadness of his life (losing a dear son to death at a young age and having a wife - Mary Todd - deemed mentally ill for the time) that keeps him pacing and not passing on?

Some of The Most Likely Places on Earth to Be Haunted

There are many places that can be haunted, including our own houses, offices and properties. But those are more of a long shot. Lets take a look here at some places that have more of a chance of being haunted. I'm going to list the four I find to be the most likely to be haunted. See if you can add to the list.

Prisons: Often prisons were (and are) places of torture and barbaric treatment of the inmates, especially prisons of the past. Inmates were often killed by this kind of treatment or by short rations of food and water and even by the filthy conditions of their cells and lack of medical care. In fact, sometimes the smallest infractions led to food and water being withheld. Where ever there was unfair treatment, unfair death, and unhealed pain, there is likely to be unrest and a likely place for a haunting.

Hotels: Especially old ones. Those old rooms and even the furniture had seen some very sad times, sometimes even murders and oftentimes unexpected deaths. When you have such profound sadness lingering in a room it makes the room and sometimes the entire hotel the perfect spot for a haunting.



Cemeteries: Some people believe that cemeteries cannot be haunted because the dead are mostly laid to rest with a religious ceremony that negates any possibility of their souls remaining on earth so instead they "cross over" immediately. I disagree. Cemeteries are places of great sorrow, emotion and great unrest. Some of the buried corpses were people who were murdered, died to young, who weren't ready to die or who just didn't get a chance to say goodbye. There have been many ghost or apparition sightings in and around
cemeteries.




Battlefields: We can't forget these. I can tell you I have been to Gettysburg and the air just feels 'heavy' there, as if there are spirits in the air, trying to communicate with anyone who has the ability to listen to them. It is such a sad feeling. I think if we had the power to see them, there would be thousands just flying around, looking for someone, anyone to talk to. I'm sure all battle fields are like that. Such profound and useless loss. So tragic. So many soldiers not able to see their loved ones one more time. Not able to say goodbye. Many, Many ghost stories and tales of the supernatural center around battlefields and these I believe are true.



These are my top four. Please feel free to add your ideas to this post. I encourage all of you to let me know what places you find to be the most haunted.

EVP: Electronic Voice Phenomena

This is one of my favorite topics because I find it so interesting. Electronic Voice Phenomena is a way of capturing spirit voices or the voices of the dead. The pursuit of this phenomena began with a man named Friedrich Jürgenson who lived between 1903 and 1987. It was completely by chance that he discovered EVP. One day while he was outside with his tape recorder recording the sounds of birds singing, he also recorded some voices when there were no humans anywhere in the area. After replaying his recording over and over, he recognized the voice as that of his dead mother.
Since then, more and more people have begun research into this field with varying amounts of success. Some claim to hear voices of family and friends while others claim to hear frightening demonic voices.
at any rate, if you decide to try to capture some EVP's of your own, you can try it anytime of the day or night with a regular cassette tape recorder. Be prepared when you listen to the tapes. The voices you capture will not be very clear. They will be quite low and muffled an very hard to understand, but the more you listen to them, the more you will be able to make out what they are saying. It's kind of like listening to someone with a strange accent and trying to make out what they are saying.
Listening in a very quite room or using earphones may help you understand what you are hearing a little better.
So that's it, give it a try and let us know your findings.

NEW CONTEST FOR MY READERS! READ FURTHER!

That's right! I'm having a contest for all of the faithful readers of The Shadow Watchers! All you have to do is leave your email address and a comment on this post explaining why you enjoy the paranormal. That's all! The contest will last until September 11, 2009 with the winner being chosen at random on midnight that day. Winners will be notified by email so be sure to leave your address! Prize will be shipped to winner on September 14, 2009.

I hope you enjoy the contest and have a lot of fun. The prize will be a newly re-released copy of American Werewolf in London...one of the best werewolf transformations ever, especially for its time.

Keep your eyes open for a great contest in October, just in time for Halloween!

More reading for any fans.....if there are any out there?

Just in case I have any fans out there, I am also getting some articles published on associated content. If you follow this link and search my name, all of my articles will pop up for you to check out. Mostly paranormal, some funny...so give it a look if you have some spare time....if you like to write, it's a nifty way to make some extra money, so do check it out and let me know what you think!

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