Ghost hunters in Florida make "electric" discovery at haunted site!

Infrared Photo of Bellamy Bridge at Night
(Courtesy Emerald Coast Paranormal Concepts)

A team of paranormal investigators has made a discovery at a purportedly haunted bridge in Florida unlike anything it has ever encountered.

The location is Bellamy Bridge, the oldest bridge of its type in Florida and the scene of a rumored haunting that goes back to the 19th century. The focal point of the Bellamy Bridge Heritage Trail, the historic bridge is located at 4057 Jacob Road, Marianna, Florida.

On two separate occasions, the team from Emerald Coast Paranormal Concepts has verified the presence of electric "pulses" at the old steel-frame bridge, despite the fact that the bridge is located deep in a floodplain swamp, roughly one-half mile from the nearest source of electricity.

There are no lights, no underground or underwater cables, no generators, no radio towers, no cell phone towers and no other sources of electricity near enough to the bridge to explain the strange electric pulses discovered by the team.

According to Susan Todd, an investigator with the group, the discovery was first noted during an evening of research at Bellamy Bridge in May. The team then returned to the bridge last Saturday night (June 15, 2013) and once again encountered precisely the same phenomenon:

Team from Emerald Coast Paranormal Concepts

We set up our meters, to include our Digital EMF detector, in the same locations as we had done previously, again same response from our equipment, with the exception of the Digital EMF detector which did not pick up EMF anomalies. As our meters were reacting we noted the exact time on our digital recorders and IR Video recorders. We were unable to detect a pattern to when the meters would react. At one point, while reciting information on the history of the bridge all meters started to light up to maximum capacity.

The team is working in cooperation with the Friends of Bellamy Bridge to research and obtain footage at the bridge, some of which will be used in a coming documentary that will benefit the preservation and maintenance of the historic bridge and the interpretive trail that provides public access to it.

To see some of the video and read more about the investigation, please visit http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/bellamyghost.

To learn more about the ghost story itself, please visit http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/bellamybridge.

Update: Latest on "Bleeding Walls" at Haunted House in Florida

Russ House in Marianna, Florida

Update 2/24/2013 - The historic Russ House in Marianna, Florida, has attracted quite a bit of attention over the last week thanks to the discovery by employees of a strange liquid coming from a wall inside the house.

The home now provides office space for the Jackson County Tourist Development Council and the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce and is located at 4318 West Lafayette Street in Marianna. The strange phenomenon has had employees there wondering if they might have an a visitor hanging around who wants them to leave!

"Bleeding Wall" at Russ House

According to TDC Director Pam Fuqua, there have been no additional incidents since the one last week where a strange sticky liquid was found dripping down a wall in an upstairs area of the house and pooling on the floor. The staff still has no explanation for the incident.

The Russ House was built by Joseph W. Russ, Jr., in 1895 as a typical Victorian home and remodeled to its present appearance 15 years later. It is one of the most imposing structures in Marianna, a charming community that is the county seat of Florida's third oldest county.

Russ House in Marianna, Florida

There is a long tradition in and around Marianna that the house is haunted. The ghost of its builder is said to roam its halls and various people who have worked in the structure over the years have described doors opening and closing on their own, the sound of footsteps coming from the staircase and upstairs areas of the house, cold spots, etc.  Several groups of paranormal investigators have visited the Russ House and their announced results range from no findings to claims that as many as three restless ghosts haunts the structure.

Whether you believe or not really depends on your own beliefs about such things. Some people around town think the house is haunted, others do not.  What is indisputable, however, is that a strange liquid was found running down a wall of the house last week and that, to date, no explanation has been found.

The story of the Ghosts of the Russ House is among those explored in my new book:

The Ghost of Bellamy Bridge: 10 Ghosts & Monsters from Jackson County, Florida (Book)

The Ghost of Bellamy Bridge (Kindle $9.95)

You also can learn more about the Russ House at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/russhouseghosts.

Are the walls of a Florida "haunted house" bleeding???

Bleeding Walls at Haunted Russ House?

Employees working at the historic Russ House in Marianna, Florida, walked in to an unexpected sight this week - bleeding walls!

The beautiful old structure currently houses the Jackson County Tourism Office and the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce. Various ghost hunter and paranormal investigation groups have visited the Russ House and proclaimed it to be haunted, but none of them encountered anything like this!



Russ House in Marianna, Florida

The mysterious "bleeding" liquid was coming from the wall below a storage area, but nothing found in the storage area could explain the source of the liquid.  It is the first time staff of the house have encountered anything like it and they were visibly disturbed by the phenomenon when I visited shortly after it was discovered to take the photographs seen here.

What is it?  No one knows!

Another View of Strange Liquid

According to tradition, the house is haunted by several restless spirits.  The best known of them is said to be that of the home's builder, Marianna businessman Joseph W. Russ, Jr.  He had the house constructed in 1895 in a traditional Victorian style, but his wife later had it remodeled to its present magnificent design.

Russ committed suicide during the Great Depression and legend holds that he still roams the halls of his beloved house to this day. 

You can read more about the Ghosts of the Russ House at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/russhouseghosts.

Summer Escapes #8 - Eureka Springs, Arkansas

Nestled in the beautiful rolling hills and mountains of the Arkansas Ozarks, Eureka Springs is a major summer destination for visitors from around the world.

The charming little town literally drips with Victorian history and charm and is the per capita wedding capital of the nation. More people get married in Eureka Springs each year, in fact, than actually live in the town.

Founded as a resort community during the late 1800s to serve guests who came in hopes that the numerous springs flowing from the Ozarks held curative powers. Numerous bathhouses were built and the magnificent Crescent Hotel dates back to those days as well. Much of the downtown architecture is beautifully preserved and the entire downtown district thrives with specialty shops, inns, restaurants, galleries and more.

Eureka Springs is home to what may well be America's "most haunted" hotel. The historic Crescent Hotel was built in 1886 and, as it does today, originally welcomed guests. During the early 1900s, however, it was converted into a fraudulent "cancer clinic" by the notorious "Dr." Norman Baker. He bilked his patients of over $4 million for a fake cancer cure, watching many of them die in the process. It is said that many of their restless spirits still roam the halls of the hotel to this day.

Eureka Springs is also home to numerous other attractions including the Blue Spring Heritage Center, the ES&NA Railway, Thorncrown Chapel and many others. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/eurekaindex.

America's Most Haunted Hotel - Eureka Springs, Arkansas

Whether you believe in such things or not, there is no doubt that most Southerners enjoy a good ghost story.

One of the best places to hear some unique ones is at the beautiful and historic Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Built in 1886 to cater to a rich and elite clientel that came to the mineral water spas for which the city was once famous, the Crescent featured beautifully landscaped grounds, elegant dining, carriage rides and even "tea dances."

As America's fascination with the supposedly curative powers of spring water faded, however, the hotel fell on hard times. By the late 1930s, it was in the hands of "Dr." Norman Baker, a radio station owner and former manager of a "mind reading show." Baker came to Eureka Springs to convert the Crescent into an elegant medical facility where he performed a variety of unusual procedures on patients who came to willingly pay for an alleged "cancer cure" that he promoted far and wide. It was, of course, a fraud.

Indicted on Federal mail fraud charges, Baker was sentenced to prison at Leavenworth. During his trial it was revealed that, despite the fact that it operated during the darkest days of the Great Depression, he cleared an estimated $4,000,000 at his pseudo-medical facility.

Once again a beautiful and romantic hotel that overlooks the charming Victorian city, the Crescent Hotel is a focal point for ghost stories, many of which revolve around the structure's association with "Dr." Baker. Some have proclaimed it as "America's Most Haunted Hotel." To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/crescenthotel.

Southern Ghosts Part Two - The Crescent Hotel, Arkansas

It is said to the "America's Most Haunted Hotel."

Rising from a mountaintop in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, this beautiful historic inn is well worth a visit just for its unique history and spectacular views. But if you enjoy a good ghost story, then it is definitely for you.

Construction on the Crescent Hotel began in 1886 and it operated as a hotel for its first 15 years, catering to visitors that came from across the nation to "take the waters" of the springs and spas of Eureka Springs. Many believed the natural mineral water held curative powers and the Crescent provided them a place to stay in style while they visited the resort community.

Hard times fell on the community, though, and the Crescent fell into disrepair. Then came the era from which most of the ghost stories originate. The Crescent was acquired by Norman Baker or, as he liked to term himself, "Dr. Norman Baker."

Baker was a former mind reader that also claimed to have developed a cancer cure. He set up shop in the Crescent Hotel, inviting patients across the country to come and partake of his "cure." Many died and the hotel became notorious for the strange goings on there. Baker was ultimately indicted for mail fraud and spend many years in Federal prison before retiring to Florida.

According to local legend, though, many of his patients still linger in the halls and rooms of the Crescent Hotel. The hotel is notorious for its ghost sightings and has been the focus of numerous investigations, some of which have produced video and photographs of strange figures and other unusual things.

To learn more about the Crescent Hotel and Eureka Springs in general, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/eurekaindex.

Southern Ghosts Part One - St. Augustine Lighthouse, Florida

One of Florida's best known ghost stories swirls around the spectacular tower of the St. Augustine Lighthouse in Florida.

For decades people have claimed to hear and see strange things in the tower. Most of the stories revolve around an unfortunate accident that happened while the tower was being built in 1873.

A cable car of sorts was rigged up to carry construction material from the beach up to the lighthouse site and the children of the construction superintendent and their friends liked to ride the cart back and forth. On July 10, 1873, however, something went very wrong and three of the children died in an unfortunate accident.

It is said that their voices, footsteps and forms can be seen inside the tower. The SciFi Channel television show "Ghost Hunters" visited the tower and recorded several unusual "figures" inside the lighthouse, making the St. Augustine Lighthouse one of the South's best known "haunted locations."

You can learn more about the lighthouse by visiting: www.exploresouthernhistory.com/staugustinelighthouse.

Florida's Haunted Lighthouse

I have always been something of a lighthouse buff, so I have visited quite a few. It seems that almost all have a ghost story or two, but this tower at St. Augustine, Florida may well have more than any other lighthouse in the world.

Built between 1870 and 1874, the St. Augustine Lighthouse replaced earlier watchposts and towers dating back to the late 1500s. St. Augustine, of course, is the nation's oldest city, having been founded in 1565.

Now restored and open to the public, the lighthouse is the focus of a number of fascinating ghost stories. One of the most intriguing revolves around the tragic deaths of three young girls while the tower was being constructed in 1873.

The girls and their friends liked to ride a cable cart that workers used to bring construction materials up to the tower site from the beach. Something went wrong on July 10, 1873 and five children riding the cart were flung into the water. Although a boy and girl were rescued, three other young girls died.

According to local tradition, their ghosts haunt the lighthouse tower and grounds to this day. Eyewitnesses claim to hear the voices of children in the tower and others have claimed to see unusual lights and shadows.

The SciFi Channel television program Ghost Hunters investigated the St. Augustine Lighthouse and recorded a variety of unusual activities there, including strange sounds, lights and a mysterious shadowy figure that appeared to be moving around high up in the tower.

To learn more about the St. Augustine Lighthouse, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/staugustinelighthouse.

New Eureka Springs, Arkansas Section is now online!

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, is - quite simply - one of the most charming little cities in America. Its historic significance, eclectic atmosphere and beautiful Victorian architecture bring hundreds of thousands of visitors it year, making it one of the most popular historic destinations in the South.

In addition, Eureka is the romance capital of America and the home of the nation's "most haunted" hotel. More couples get married here (per capita) than in any other city in America. The total number of weddings here each year, in fact, usually exceeds the total population of the city! In addition, the city's historic Crescent Hotel makes for an elegant but spooky treat.

To learn more about Eureka Springs, the stunning Victorian city of the Ozarks, please go to www.exploresouthernhistory.com and you will see the new heading on the home page.