Ghost! Magazine played host at its first convention, held at the Holiday Inn Select Fredericksburg this past September 14th, 15th and 16th in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Fredericksburg may be one of the most over-looked historic and paranormal sites on the East Coast; not only the scene of many Revolutionary War events (and even earlier skirmishes between colonists and Native Americans), this town is notable as the battle site of one of General Robert E. Lee’s greatest military triumphs against Union forces during the War Between the States—the Battle of Fredericksburg, in December 1862. The fighting covered ground in and around the old town area, and resulted in 12,000-plus Union casualties, and 5,000-plus dead Confederates. Many of these are buried in the national cemetery on Marye’s Heights, as well as other places around town. Truly, the streets of Fredericksburg are haunted!

     The weekend got off to a soggy but fun start when we decided to combine the evening Meet and Greet with the Haunted Golf Bash, thanks to the generosity of the Lee’s Hill Golf Club, our venue for the evening hunt and the reported scene of daylight sightings of apparitions. After hot appetizers and some cold drinks, our group climbed into the waiting golf carts, armed with maps of the course, some last-minute directions, and flashlights, to brave the steady drizzle that had begun at sunset. The weather cleared long enough to permit several sites on the course to be investigated, using cameras and some meters (although the humidity made these almost useless). There were several places where Patrick Burke and the American Battlefield Ghost Hunters Society detected some response, but the results were definitely mixed, thanks largely to the weather. As darkness grew, so did the precipitation, and we turned around to head back—only to get lost in the rapidly rising fog. Still, we managed to make it back at the clubhouse, with everyone accounted for, damp but in high spirits. The Golf Bash was an utterly unique event, although we’ll try to evade the sprinklers better next time.

     The main events of the Expo were scheduled for Saturday, and we began early with an impromptu breakfast at the hotel, before proceeding on to the lecture series of the day. Loyd Auerbach led off with a lively presentation, “The Connection Between ESP/PK and Ghostly Phenomena”, in which he explored the various psi factors that are associated with hauntings and poltergeist activity. (His opening was screamingly funny — he showed a comedy clip of TV ghosthunters that was guaranteed to make any real paranormal enthusiast cringe.) Professor Auerbach provided a solid introduction to concepts, theories and terminologies that would prove useful for the rest of the weekend.

Next in the morning’s lineup was Dr. Andrew Nichols, speaking on “Haunted Minds: Ghosts, Electromagnetics and Altered States”, a continuation of the scientific exploration of the “psi” through psychological experimentation, laboratory investigations and the connection with both natural and manmade electromagnetic fields. The latter subject was especially thought provoking, as an actual case that involved the placement of barrier materials to lower electromagnetic interference was presented for discussion. One other interesting point of Dr. Nichol’s presentation was the influence of altered states of consciousness upon perception of phenomena.

     Last on the agenda was Joshua P. Warren, with “The Latest Advances in Field Research”, an overview of the most current concepts and techniques he has been working with during the past year. His footage and still photos from actual investigations were really eye opening, especially his investigation of the Brown Mountain Lights phenomenon. The most popular offering though, was his demonstration of the effects of static electricity, as he showed how it could be used to create “levitation” (see photos). Joshua’s presentation set the tone for the afternoon, as we were heading for the battlefield to do a hands-on investigation.

     A brief break for lunch followed the symposium, and then we were off to the battlefield at Spotsylvania Court House to do a practicum on field techniques, under the leadership of Patrick Burke and the ABGHS. The weather proved a beautiful — clear, cooler, dry, ideal conditions for a walk over. We split up into several small teams, and took different areas of the field and the woods. ABGHS focused on the Trenches, a small area that saw very heavy fighting during the battle. Others took Bloody Angle, another main focus point of the battle, and still others investigated the woods. A few anomalies in the meter readings were detected, but a continuous stream of visitors to the site hampered our research. After a couple of hours, it was time to head back to the hotel.

    A private dinner in the ballroom was set for us when we returned; we had heard that this room was the one most likely to be haunted, as many guests and staff members had reported seeing and hearing unusual occurrences in it. It was also reportedly the remainder of an original building that had stood on the property before the tract was developed for the hotel. The original property owner, Sydney Shannon, is said to make his presence known around here still, and not only in the nightclub that now bears his name. We received permission to set up some equipment overnight in an attempt to record a possible guest appearance, but the data has not yet come in on that.

     After dinner, we were treated to some select footage of ABGHS’ Gettysburg investigations by Patrick Burke; it was especially enjoyable to have personal explanation and real-time discussion of these images with the people who were there to record them. (Much of this footage is available on their website, www.americanbattlefield.com).

     Since there was still plenty of evening left, we headed out for the Pub Crawl, but once we arrived at our first stop, The Blarney Stone, decided to stay for the duration. We had heard that the bar area and its gift shop next door were supposed to be quite active, but the spirits on tap proved the real draw (the music was good, too). After a lively chat with the owner, we received tentative permission to come back some time in the future to do an investigation. Fortified with Guinness, Harp, and other brew, we left a little before closing to go back to the hotel suite to watch some more of Patrick’s footage from Gettysburg and other sites.

Sunday morning dawned all too early, but we were up for the brunch and the Roundtable that followed. The slated topic for the discussion was “Spectral Evidence: Physical Evidence for Ghosts in Photographs, Video and EMFs and EVP”, and was moderated by Ghost! Managing Editor Jack Roth, with Dr. Nichols leading off the discourse. Visual evidence supporting a “pro” stance was supplied by Joshua Warren from his personal files, while Professor Auerbach defined theories and terminology as well as providing a “pro” argument. Dr. Nichols maintained a classically scientific viewpoint throughout the discussion, and functioned as our team skeptic. Questions were taken from all attendees. We unfortunately had to close the roundtable before noon, in order to allow our speakers to catch their airport connections, but left feeling that we had had a truly meaningful debate on a topic that seems to have become over-sensationalized recently. Our roundtable was an effort to find other ways to present evidence scientifically to the public.

     Did we solve any mysteries, or answer any cosmic questions? No, but we did manage to combine serious study and investigation with a sense of fun and camaraderie, with an eye to future issues and needs that we will all focus on for the next year.

     Hope you’ll be able to join us for the next one!

Editor in Chief
 

Additional photos:
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