06-03-03: Ghosts in the neighborhood?

06-03-03: Ghosts in the neighborhood?

By TIMOTHY COX
The Daily Standard

    The unincorporated town of New Corydon, Ind., about 15 miles west of Celina, apparently is a hotbed of ghostly activity.
    Members of the Fort Wayne Indiana Ghost Trackers descended on the small town during the past weekend, determined to find out if there is any merit to a number of reported hauntings in the area. New Corydon has often found itself at the crossroads of historical events, which made it a prime spot to look for paranormal activity, a member of the Ghost Trackers told The Daily Standard.
    New Corydon was established in 1821. Johnny Appleseed is believed to have been in the area and Gen. "Mad" Anthony Wayne fought battles against Indians nearby. A spooky, old schoolhouse also played a central role in the weekend hunt.
    The hunt started slowly, but group member Kristyn Bone, of Portland, Ind., said group members eventually captured digital images of orbs, or balls of light. Tape recordings also captured electronic voice phenomenon. To capture voices, trackers ask questions and then replay the tapes to see if they get an apparent answer.
    Bone said when she asked how old a suspected spirit was, the recording reveals a low whisper that says, "ten."
    The schoolhouse is where Bone said she felt the strongest paranormal activity. She claims to be a "sensitive," someone who is in tune with the paranormal, either through sight, sounds or feeling.
    Inside the school, the group detected a cold spot in the air but a lighted candle showed no evidence of a draft in the room, Bone said.
    "The flame didn't move. That ruled out outside air," Bone said.
    Bone then experienced something she said compares with only one other event during her ghost-chasing experience.
    "All of the sudden, I started feeling an anxious feeling, sick to my stomach, and pictured a tall man standing over a classroom, very sternly. And he was not happy," Bone said.
    Another tracker then verbally described the same scene Bone said she was picturing in her mind. The "whirlwind of emotions" was too much for Bone, who then left the schoolhouse.
    "It took me a half hour to shake it. It's not a feeling I like at all," she said.
    The group left a tape recorder behind in the school. When they played the tape back, they heard faint footsteps, an unexplained bang and the sound of chalk screeching on a chalkboard, even though the schoolhouse no longer has a chalkboard, Bone said.
    Group members will continue to share stories and compare notes from their experiences at future meetings, Bone said. She said at least one other group of trackers who spent time in the school over the weekend also reported the chalk noise.
    The Ghost Trackers are a non-profit organization dedicated to researching paranormal activity and to restoration of cemeteries. Calls placed to Jennifer Zamaites, director of the Fort Wayne chapter, went unanswered Monday and this morning.
    Bone also reported some unusual activity during the Ghost Trackers business meeting they held while in New Corydon. In the middle of the meeting, another female tracker complained that someone had pulled her hair from behind. No one admitted to doing so.

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