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Episode Summary

When Amy asked if there were enough ghosts in Chattanooga, TN, to open a ghost tour company there, the answer was a resounding “yes!” By some accounts, Chattanooga is one of the most haunted cities in the US, right behind the big shots like Savannah and New Orleans.

About the Guest: Amy Petulla of Chattanooga Ghost Tours

Amy is the founder and owner of Chattanooga Ghost Tours, which can be found at chattanoogaghosttours.com. She’s also an author of nonfiction books on the paranormal, including Haunted Chattanooga (Haunted America) and The Ghostly Tales of Chattanooga (Spooky America). She also wrote a true crime book about The Corpsewood Manor Murders in North Georgia. Keep up with her on IG, FB, Pinterest or check out her shop if you’re local to Chattanooga.

The Story that was too Scary to Tell

What was the cursed object that caused so much trouble for Amy? Who wrapped it in pentagrams? What on earth did it do that made Amy too nervous to ever speak of it again? You’ll have to read about it on Amy’s blog because, frankly, we’re too terrified to talk about it, too.

Why Are Ghosts So Territorial?

We don’t always get responses back from the other side when we seek them out. But when we do, doesn’t it seem like way too often those responses are akin to an adamant “get out”?

Diana’s theory is that, with all the energy it takes for a ghost to communicate, they must reeeeally want to get their point across. Think of what you’d say if you had to put in triathlon-level effort just to communicate a few words? That high-effort communication is less likely to be something helpful like “I’m the ghost of 35 year old Sarah Jane” and much more likely to be whatever is truly weighing on the spirit’s mind.

Or perhaps, ghosts experience us the same way we experience them, like in (I don’t know if a spoiler warning is warranted for a movie that’s old enough to be sold as a vintage item on Etsy, but here it is) The Others. When the ghost sees us, perhaps we scare them so much they want to banish us. In which case, we suppose turnabout is fair play

Brown’s Tavern and Ferry, a stop on the Chattanooga Ghost Tour

John Brown was a 19th century Chattanooga businessman. He owned several local businesses at the time, including an inn and a ferry boat. The story goes, Brown would schmooze it up with travelling merchants that passed through, offering them a place to stay upon their return journey. When the merchant came back through town, they’d spend the night in Brown’s Tavern, and shockingly often, they’d skip town in the morning without paying their tab.

The townsfolk idolized Brown as a good Samaritan when he refused to prosecute the dine-and-dashers. Until, that is, they discovered a nearby underwater mass body dump site that was suspiciously also full of merchant wagons. Turns out Brown knew exactly which of those merchants was stacked with cash upon their return from trading their goods. And, based on the stories of his descendants and the supernatural communication in the location, Brown got them wasted at the tavern, snuck into the room they rented from him (which he obviously had the keys to) and allegedly murdered them in their sleep. Then, he’d presumably drive their now empty wagon with their corpse inside onto his ferry boat, take it out a ways, and dump the evidence.

Can A Ghost Disappear From A Digital Photograph?

Amy tells us of a digital spirit photograph she took which clearly showed an ephemeral figure she thought might be a ghost. She didn’t take this digital photograph in Chattanooga, or even on a ghost tour, but on a trip to Florida to visit Robert the Doll. When she inadvertently captured the silvery figure on camera, she showed it around to the excited docents, who asked her to send them a copy for their collection. But when she went to retrieve the photo off her camera roll, the silvery figure—that everyone had witnessed—was completely missing from the photo. What wizardry is this? Was the corroboration some sort of mass hysteria? Have we ever heard a justification for a paranormal phenomena more condescending than mass hysteria?

According to fstoppers.com, digital photographs (of ghosts and anything else) do actually degrade. JPEGs are lossy formats, meaning the file loses a little bit of data every time you save it, even if you didn’t change anything in the file. According to the author, saving the file just 5-6 times is enough to cause a visible difference in the image quality.

HOWEVER, as our resident digital content expert Becky explains, that’s still not enough reason for the image to go black. Amy did not save and re-save the file. So, how did the image just disappear?

Have you ever had something that was clearly in a photo strangely disappear from that photo, while on a Chattanooga ghost tour or otherwise?

What do you think? File quality loss, or digital photographs of real ghosts? Join us in the discussion on our Facebook group. Either way, just the realization you took a photo of a real ghost probably means you’re having a spooky day.

The post Does Chattanooga Have Enough Ghosts? appeared first on Homespun Haints.

This is not some made-up tale, but part of a plethora of true, scary ghost stories told by the very photographer who experienced them. Hear how this brave woman purchased a haunted condo in Florida, drove through a ghost, and experienced several other paranormal events years after her encounter with the scary demon in the haunted darkroom. Plus, she gives us a little bit of an astral projection guide, because she just happens to do that, too.

We listened to her true ghost stories, our mouths agape, as she relayed one scary experience after another. These haunted darkroom stories are on YouTube:

Or listen to this episode on astral projection right here:

Scary Demon and Ghost Stories About Astral Projection in a Haunted Darkroom

Haunted Pennsylvania: Do home sellers need to disclose a house’s paranormal activity?

If you’re trying to sell a haunted house in Pennsylvania, it looks like you may be in luck. You are actually NOT technically required by law to disclose a home’s haunted status. But, there’s nothing saying you can’t let potential homebuyers know about a home’s unearthly residents. Avallone Law Associates explain more in this blog post, and you can read an article about a home that gained interest when it advertised itself as “slightly haunted.”

Some states, however, do require disclosure if a property is known to be a haunted house.

And, while we’re at it, have you been seeing those “Not Haunted” signs on top of real estate listings? We think it might have started in Texas. I guess it’s important to check that the house really isn’t haunted, though, before making an affirmation like that!

The haunted castle at Arcadia University

Kamila attended a school she knew to be haunted. The campus is a castle. Its grounds sit next to an old cemetery. The art department is in the old stables, where a murder has occurred. What could possibly go wrong?

And what about astral projection?

Oh yeah, almost as an aside to her scary demon ghost story, Kamila tells us of her adventures astral projecting.

What is Astral Projection?

Astral projection is basically an intentional out-of-body experience. Its a fascinating concept where individuals believe they can separate their consciousness or “astral body” from their physical body. Like other psychic abilities, some believe it’s a skill anyone can develop with focus and practice.

Where did astral projection come from?

The idea of astral projection isn’t new. It has ancient roots and is present in various cultural, religious, and spiritual traditions. For instance, ancient Egyptian teachings describe the soul as capable of hovering outside the physical body. The concept also seeps into Hindu scriptures, Japanese mythology, Amazonian and Inuit indigenous cultures, and Taoist practices​​.

Is astral projection real?

From a scientific perspective, astral projection is often viewed with skepticism. Although people who experience it report vivid and profound experiences, there’s no universally accepted evidence that the consciousness can actually detach and travel outside of the body. Cognitive researchers tend to attribute the subjective experience of astral projection to altered states such as during epilepsy, brain injury, or lack of oxygen​​.

That doesn’t mean nobody is looking for evidence that the soul leaves the body…at least once in a lifetime. Mary Roach’s book “Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife,” discusses a soul-weighing experiment conducted by a sheep rancher named Lewis E. Hollander Jr. Around Y2K, Hollander set up a system in his barn to weigh dying sheep. He used a platform linked to sensitive electronic equipment to measure any tiny weight changes that might occur right around the moment of physical death.

The experiment aimed to determine if there was any measurable change in body weight that could be attributed to the departure of the soul at the time of death. Although Hollander cited one transient weight change as potential evidence, others have criticized the rigor of his methods.

How to do astral projection

If you’re interested in exploring astral projection, approach it with an open mind, aware of both its potential benefits and limitations. Learning to astral project often involves meditation and visualization techniques aimed at reaching a state of deep relaxation and focus. You might start by visualizing yourself leaving the physical body by floating up and out of it. Picture in your mind seeing your body beneath you.

Astral projection as a practice may have potential spiritual and psychological benefits, like aiding in self-discovery and promoting a sense of life being more than just the physical. Yet astral projection might not be suitable for everyone, especially those with psychological vulnerabilities. Additionally, it should not be used as a form of escapism or to avoid real-world problems​​​​. If you’d like a real astral projection guide, check out this blog post from a medium who explains exactly how to do it.

Do you have a scary story about a demon or a ghost?

What do you think? Would you put up with frisky ghosts just to get your photography class final project done? Have you ever been in a haunted darkroom (or any darkroom, for that matter)? Do you confront your sleep paralysis demons with astral projecting? Homespun Haints is looking for guests that have a true, first-hand paranormal experience they’d like to tell us about. Please submit your story to tell on our show, and we’ll be in touch! Whether or not you’ve ever done photography in a haunted darkroom, or used astral projection, we want to have a spooky day with you!

The post Astral Projection and the Darkest Darkroom appeared first on Homespun Haints.