Skip to main content

Adventures in Ghost-Hunting


 

You probably already know that you can take ghost tours  in Old Ellicott City. Hoping to connect with both the brave and curious. Maryland History Tours offers a variety of tours based on a variety of different themes. Not all are ‘haunted’, though the ghost ones are the most widely known. Have you ever been on one? What was it like? 

If you are ready for a blast from the past, here’s a video about the ghost tours from Howard County Government’s television channel in about 2013.

“Ye Haunted History of Olde Ellicott City” Ghost Tours

Whether or not one believes in ghosts, these tours are a great opportunity to learn about the history of the area. Compared to Columbia, Old Ellicott City seems ancient: a treasure trove of historical information. Of course, compared to Europe, what we think of as historic is but a flash in the pan, yesterday’s news.

It’s all relative.

The other day I noticed that Old Ellicott City had drawn the interest of some folks from out of our area. The crew of Pasadena Paranormal was in town conducting an investigation.

Pasadena Paranormal? (Love that alliteration.)

I learned a bit more about this group from a 2015 article in the Pasadena Voice:

Pasadena Paranormal Society Continues to Delve Into the Inexplicable, Dylan Roche

“Everything we now know today as scientific fact was once unknown and frightening,” the website asserts. “Paranormal events are merely episodes which have yet to be explained. We seek answers to questions that remain to be asked.”

But it’s not about chasing ghosts. Members of the society come from different backgrounds and joined the society for different reasons, but they share a common goal to understand what happens when a person dies. Some want a scientific explanation, and other want spiritual or religious verification.

And despite what people might expect based on scary movies, the Pasadena Paranormal Society’s practices are science experiments, not séances. “We discourage those,” Przybylski said. “They can make the situation worse.”

You have been warned. Leave it to the professionals.

Unlike the team on Ghost Hunters or other similar programs, Pasadena Paranormal doesn’t have the reach of a national television show. They do have a channel on YouTube.




That’s where you’ll find their first foray into Old Ellicott City:

The Investigation, A Haunting on Main Street: The Bohemian House

 It turns out that Bohemian House was once the home of my favorite toy store, Mumbles and Squeaks. (“Are you hearing mumbles and squeaks in your attic? Call Pasadena Paranormal today!”)

From this episode’s introduction:

The first episode of a haunting on Main Street, the Bohemian House. We plan on going to many businesses along Main Street in Ellicott City Maryland. People from our area know the tales of the hauntings associated with this city. We look forward to finding the past of this amazing historic town still present along Main Street today.

The Bohemian House is a pre civil war building which served as housing for the workers of the original Ellicott Mill. Later it was Fissel's stone shop, then was mumbles and squeaks toy store before becoming the Bohemian House.

The building is mentioned in the book Haunted Ellicott City for the story of 3 children Colin, Lissa and Shawn spirits said to haunt the building since they passed from a battle with Typhoid Fever.

Hmm…in retrospect, what an odd place for a toy store. “Mumbles and Squeaks, where the ghosts of children play with toys in the attic.”

All of that aside, I’m pretty sure I don’t believe in ghosts. My husband, on the other hand, is a huge fan of ghost hunting shows so maybe I’ll get him to watch this one with me. 

If you’d like to report a haunting, you can find Pasadena Paranormal’s Jared Tracey on Twitter @Jaredparanormal. Who knows? You might be in their next episode.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents.  When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...