NEPA's 'other world'
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share thisGhosts, hauntings, telepathy, ESP, psycho kinesis - paranormal activity of all types has intrigued human kind for ages. But it entered a particularly interesting phase in the mid-19th century, when Spiritualism took hold in both England and America.
Religion and newly-emerging science met in a unique way with this movement. Advocates of Spiritualism sought to find scientific, verifiable evidence of an afterlife. Mediums and clairvoyants came into vogue, holding regular séances in the homes of people of all classes. The term séance comes from the French word meaning "to sit" or to hold a session, and people would gather at a séance for the purpose of making contact with dead relatives or friends.
Mediums would go into a trance and receive "messages" from the "other world." Some were even said to materialize ectoplasm, and many séance participants heard rapping sounds said to be communications from the dead.
The term clairvoyant comes from two French words: "clair," meaning "clear" and "voyant," meaning "seeing." Clairvoyants claimed to be able to gain insight into a person, event or place through means other than using the five senses. The Scranton City Directory for 1891 lists one clairvoyant, Fannie Sanborn. The heading is found alphabetically listed just before "clergyman."
Today, the supernatural and paranormal still intrigue people, and Scranton has some of its own ghostly tales to tell. The Houdini Museum has been the site of a number of modern-day séances, and those in attendance have been frightened by the presence of less-than-friendly spirits. Speculations about murders and suicides, and even of Indian burial grounds on the site, have been offered as possible explanations for the eerie presences felt at these séances.
Many historic sites, such as the battlefields in Gettysburg and locations in Salem, Mass., are noted for the presence of spirits. Locally, the figure of Dr. Isaiah Everhart is said to be seen in the museum he gifted to the city. After his son plotted to kill him, Dr. Everhart suffered a stroke in 1907 and, in 1911, he fell down the museum's staircase. Complications resulting from the fall led to his death. Other ghostly figures are said to walk the grounds of Nay Aug Park, the spirits of unfortunate individuals who met their death at the Nay Aug Gorge.
In Jessup, a brown-haired boy is said to play on the swings at the park all day and then, at sunset, he simply disappears. Reports have been made of lights turning on and off and furniture being rearranged at Ward Hall at Keystone College.
Andy Gavin's pub in Scranton is said to have regular visits from a figure called George, who is thought to be the ghost of a 19th-century miner. He engages in mischief, such as moving objects about and playing with the lights.
A trolley car at the Electric City Trolley Museum is said to be haunted. The car once belonged to a Philadelphia line, and the ghost is said to have been felt as a presence on the car, to have moved objects, and even to have been the source of unexplainable whispers. Legend has it that the ghost is a lonely woman passenger whose spirit is trapped in the car.
For these and other stories of haunted historical sites, visit Pennsylvania Haunts and History at http://hauntsandhistory.googlepages.com/pennslvaniahaunts&histroy.
Scranton After Dark: The Paranormal Tours
On Saturday, October 17th and Sunday, October 18th, the Lackawanna Historical Society, along with Northeast Pennsylvania Paranormal Investigations (NEPPI), will take a walk through haunted history. The guided candle light walk begins at 6:00 p.m. each night. For details call the Lackawanna Historical Society at 344-3841.
Cheryl A. Kashuba writes on behalf of the Lackawanna Historical Society. She is co-author of the book "Scranton." Contact the writer at localhistory@timesshamrock.com. Scranton After Dark: The Paranormal Tours
On Saturday, October 17th and Sunday, October 18th, the Lackawanna Historical Society, along with Northeast Pennsylvania Paranormal Investigations (NEPPI), will take a walk through haunted history. The guided candle light walk begins at 6:00 p.m. each night. For details call the Lackawanna Historical Society at 344-3841.
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