Long before I joined the Crawford County Illinois Ghost Hunters Society, I wandered grave yards.
By Rebecca Nidey
Everything I Need To Know I Learned In A Haunted House
I was entranced by the headstones with their many designs and etchings. Some had elaborate verses carved into them and some had only simple words. After joining the CCIGHS, I also learned to love paranormal research.
Many places we have investigated are private homes, but we have had our fair share of businesses, schools, hospitals, and organizations. It seems to me that there is a common thread weaving both of my loves together… the ties that bind.
If you have ever visited a cemetery and stopped to look at the stones, you will see why I say that.
First of all, in any size cemeteries, there will often be groupings made up of family members. Husbands and wives are usually buried together, often sharing the same stone. The plots are shared with children, many who have passed before their parents.
Scattered around will be grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandchildren… a family tree laid out in stone. Although it is not the norm today, many older cemeteries are designed as family-only resting places. The stones hold loving words about those who have passed from body into spirit, showing the ties of love were not broken by death.
Some cemeteries are geared to a specific religion or organization.
If they belong to a religion, the cemetery often sprang up around the church that was the spiritual home of those buried there. The stones will have symbols of the religion etched into the surface. Frequently, there will be statuary on the graves or scattered within the cemetery.
The same applies to professional, fraternal or civic organizations. Even in cemeteries that are not devoted entirely to a religion or group, look for the symbolism of the stones or emblems. They will all give you clues to other ties that bind.
In these cemeteries, a large majority of graves will have the stones (and those who lay below them) facing east, the direction of the rising sun. Obviously, this can reference resurrection, but it is also symbolic in several fraternal organizations.
If a grave is outside the boundaries of a burial ground, that can mean that the ties that bind have been cut. The reasons were generally because the inhabitant of the grave was a criminal, had shown signs of mental illness, a member of a religion not recognized in that area, or had taken their own life. In other words, they were considered an outcast who did not deserve to be buried on hallowed ground.
I have discussed Betsey Reed, the only woman who was tried and hung in my home state of Illinois. She was originally buried under the gallows she was executed on because the town fathers would not allow her to be buried in the city cemetery.
On another, slightly bizarre occasion, we found a grave in the woods behind a local cemetery. The person buried there was a hermit who had no desire to mingle with people, even after his death.
If the cemeteries are not attached to a church or organization, they are often tied to a community. Walking through rows upon rows of stones you can see the history of the area. Taller stones may proudly trumpet the grave of a prominent member of the community.
The tiny stones may quietly mourn the passing of a young life, snuffed out before they could contribute anything but dreams unfulfilled. In between, you will find the unassuming monuments to the core members of the community who went about their daily lives without fanfare.
All were important to the community, having lived their lives there and were united by the inevitability of death. If the community is old, there will be generation after generation, all buried there in a march of time and history.
Lest you think I dwell on cemeteries too much, I will move on to the subject of paranormal research.
In many of the homes we have investigated, whether occupied or long vacant, the ties that bind are very apparent. Sometimes the activity is residual, what I call an echo from the past. It can be as simple as the apparition of a mother who had died young, still climbing the stairs to tuck in the children that she reluctantly left behind.
In the peaceful silence of a country cemetery, I have heard a young mother crying over her baby who passed the day before her own death. When doing EVP sessions, members of the group I belong to recorded a young child calling for her mother.
Many homes seem to still be inhabited by the spirits of those who resided there and have very strong opinions of those they feel are intruders. “Get out” is often the response to questions we put forth during EVP sessions, most especially from the males of the household who are still protecting their homes and hearths. Whether residual or intelligent hauntings, they all show that the ties to home and family are strong.
Since I joined the CCIGHS, we have investigated several churches. Some were no longer in use or were being used for other purposes, but quite a few were still active. Because of the strong emotions and events held within the walls, we have found evidence of hauntings and activity in these structures.
At one church that had been ravaged by a tornado long ago, we audibly heard a sermon being preached while there… in the very early morning hours. During an EVP session, a parishioner could be heard asking another member if they could sit beside them, only to be told “no.” Apparently, churches have always had a little bit of dissent in their spiritual families.
In the church I attended during my younger years, one of the members has still been known to attend services. I was acquainted with this kind gentleman and knew that he had lost his wife and only child, so his church became his focus. He played a violin superbly and he is often seen in various areas of the church holding it still, as if ready to once again make beautiful music. Here again, demonstrating the ties that bind are stronger than death.
Any place where there has been emotional events, whether day to day living or something cataclysmic, there will be lingering ‘DNA.’ Battlefields are notorious for both residual and intelligent hauntings. The soldiers are still lingering there, answering the call of duty.
I have heard of apparitions of farmers from long ago being observed going through the fields… still sowing and harvesting with the help of their plodding horses. Working in a hospital, there are medical workers making their rounds even after they have passed from body into spirit.
Although I was not able to attend the investigation, my group went to a local high school that has since been closed. Sometime during its history a staff member had been murdered in the school by her spurned lover. She has been seen walking the halls and there has been some evidence that she does haunt the place of her death.
One of the more interesting experiences we had was not an actual investigation. Sometimes it is good to hone your skills, sort of practice runs at investigating.
Several members of the group had gone to some local fields that held the ceremonial mounds made by Native Americans in the area. I want to emphasize that we are always very respectful of any place we visit and would in no way disrupt or damage an area in the name of research. At this particular place, we did some EVP sessions from both inside and outside our vehicle. We had the usual whispers and some unrecognizable words. After sitting in the vehicle for a bit, we decided to do an EVP session by holding the recorder outside the window.
Being in the country, it was extremely quiet. Playing the recording back we heard a loud and agitated voice screaming words at us in what seemed to be a Native American language. Obviously there was at least one person there that had a tie to the land and was serving as a protector of a place he considered sacred. What was even more interesting, while trying to play the recording back, the voice was not heard. We had several theories as to what happened, including the fact that the spirit might have employed the speaker of the recorder to amplify his otherwise unheard voice.
The point I would like to make with this column is that there are many ties that will always be intact. The ties of family, of history, of home, of fellowship, of duty and most importantly of love will always be the ties that bind. Remember to honor and be thankful for them every day till you pass from body into spirit and perhaps even longer.
About the Author:
Through her work on the investigative team for the Crawford County Illinois Ghost Hunters, Rebecca Nidey has an understanding of the paranormal, spiritual, and metaphysical worlds and how they work together.
Rebecca has trained in the Healing Touch technique (a form of energy healing). She is a certified Psychic Medium trained by Belle Salisbury, and she is a certified Paranormal Researcher.
Rebecca is the associate editor for Bellesprit Magazine and also writes a column titled Everything I Need To Know I Learned In A Haunted House. She has been a co-host of several radio programs for the Haunted Voices Radio Network and HeyZ Radio Network highlighting the Paranormal, metaphysical and literary fields.
To learn more about Rebecca or to schedule a reading you can contact her at https://www.facebook.com/rebecca.nidey.
