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|  The following account is not only true....
It occurred at a location that you can also visit as well, we HIGHLY recommend the trip!
It is also the story that began our venture into the "ghost" hunting world.
For a calendar of events and scheduling info. visit...
www.staugustinelighthouse.com
St. Augustine, FL
Updated Wednesday, February 22, 2012 5:58 PM
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81 Lighthouse Avenue
St. Augustine FL, 32080
Driving Directions
Thank you St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum Inc. for allowing this story to be posted. The entire staff has always been absolutely wonderful, very dedicated in the preservation of this historical landmark and very helpful with each and every visit we have ever made.
A special thanks to Faith Albers for being especially accommodating to anyone visiting or inquiring of the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum and for the "extra mile" she's been willing to go whenever it is asked of her. Faith has taken the "Dark of the Moon" tour from it's infancy to what it has become today. (Today it has become quite a popular event, where many, like ourselves, have become repeat visitors, (take it just once and you'll understand why!)).
This story was printed with the permission of the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum Inc., actual names have been included and therefore have not been changed. The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum Inc. allowed us to post this story as originally written and did not ask for the story to be altered in any way.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN!
The true story behind the beginnings of Brunswick Scientific Investigations
Have you ever been on a "ghost" tour? We highly recommend the following one to all those interested in partaking in such an endeavor. In this particular location which we have now visited on several occasions, we have never gone away wishing we had not gone. So if you're ever in the neighborhood of St. Augustine, Florida, USA, DO stop by and visit the lighthouse. We recommend day or night, whether you are looking into the paranormal or would just like to enjoy a great memorable afternoon or evening. This city is filled with too much to see and do, making it an excellent vacation choice for anyone. Please let me add that we have never had any sort of frightening experience in this location and you will probably enjoy the sights and history of this place most of all. The best part? to visit this location is giving a helping hand towards the preservation of historical landmarks. Namely this one! Whether you reserve a ghost tour for the evening or just stop by after lunch, you will be donating to a great cause that can ultimately help continue saving lives, as funds are used to preserve this location's structures, inevitably in the hopes of keeping this light burning for many generations to come.
Why post this story? From time to time, we at Brunswick Scientific Investigations are asked what got us started researching "ghosts" of all things. This true account answers that question to some extent for those who wish to know.
Things to keep in mind as you read this account: We are a group that strives to use scientific methods when doing our research. We are a group that is dedicated to keeping an open yet critical thinking creative mindset. (More simply put, think of us more like open minded problem solvers). Therefore, this story is presented with those views overall. The individual who recounted this true experience, is known by members of the group to be very honest, with a tendency towards logical and critical thinking and is also an active current member of Brunswick Scientific Investigations. This individual is one of our most skeptical individuals who actively searches out scientific explanations, as well as actively seeks to educate and encourage creative critical thinking within the team as a whole. While most avid readers are snuggling up to a good fiction adventure to escape the realities of life, this individual is hunkering down deep into a non-fiction subject, harboring little interest in the fiction world. These factors played a large role in the events that would unfold into our forming such a group, due in part to the extreme unlikelihood that this particular individual would be making up some tale or entertaining an overactive imagination.
Is this location "haunted"?
Well, let's just say that our personal views may differ somewhat from our professional ones at times.
What is a "haunting"?
That's what we at Brunswick Scientific Investigations are looking discover. The TRUTH in the field of the paranormal.
*Note: Any skeptical sounding views in the account you are about to read are not meant to discredit the lighthouse staff or any individual in any way. We at Brunswick Scientific Investigations strive to keep an open yet critical thinking creative mindset, therefore this story is sprinkled with an adequate supply of skeptical points of view worth considering. We encourage individuals to approach the paranormal with a healthy helping of skepticism as well. The views you are about to read are solely the views of Brunswick Scientific Investigations and not of the St. Augustine Light Station or any of it's staff or employees.
Scoot a little closer to the campfire now and snuggle up tighter in that blanket, for you're about to hear a tale you may not soon forget... Nor want to!
HAUNTED? HALLOWEEN GHOST TOUR
St. Augustine, Florida is a wondrous place seeping with history from it's every crevice. It's about a 2 hour drive away from Brunswick, Georgia and worth every minute of the mileage it takes and then some. It is actually the oldest city in the United States and even if you don't enjoy history there is certainly something for everyone. One day is hardly enough for an adventure however, for it's a city that's just bursting at the seams with things to see and do. When the daytime streets are rolled up, evening horse and carriages stretch forever waiting to prance proudly on command. Yet the most magnificent sight for miles around though, is the majestic black and white spiral marked lighthouse. With red trim surrounding it's beacon to the ships at sea perched high atop it's 219 step structure, this impressive sentinel watches faithfully over it's city and would seem to see it's inhabitants from every angle. This beloved Light Station is the eighth tallest in the United States, yet it is more than just a landmark to this city, for it's part of the city's heart and soul of colorful history as well. We had recently learned it was allegedly "haunted" which is why we came there that Halloween night...
It was a beautiful October night that Halloween. The breeze had kicked up gently as if to say a storm might blow it's way in from the darkness before the morning light arrived to reawaken the busy little city. Fortunately, the wind was not strong enough to cancel the long awaited trip up the spiral staircase inside the towering structure that loomed high into the air above us. Darkness had now descended around us and with it had come the freshness of the night ocean kissed air, thrilling our nostrils as it stirred fragrant rustling leaves. A wooden area embraced the antique tower we had come to get better acquainted with, while a bench beckoned for someone to rest in the courtyard where the tower stood poised for the next tour group. Quiet voices of excited newcomers danced on the breeze as they slowly arrived with mixed expressions and twinkling eyes in the night.
There she stood, the oldest surviving brick structure in St. Augustine. To lay eyes on her once will ensure you that the memory of her will burn strong in your mind for years to come. She appropriately wears a bright red hat that keeps her festively dressed whenever she looks from her island home towards the delightfully entertaining city that embraces her. This lady faithfully scouts out over these ruffled waters, on duty day and night with never a moment's rest from her weary lifesaving task. There she has stood for well over 100 years and no doubt she will stand well into her next century, continuing to gleam her lights towards the Atlantic through the night, as she signals to those at sea from her Anastasia Island home where she dwells.
As we arrived to the courtyard that evening, little did we know what adventure awaited us. We only knew for the moment, that the bench near the tower was empty and we had a bit of a wait until our tour was to begin, so we decided to have a seat to wait it out. This turned out to be the best decision of the evening. We had previously engaged conversations inside this very same courtyard that would seem to set into motion what was to come. The wide eyed participants for the long awaited tour slowly arrived and soon enough the presentation began. Ghost stories about the place galore mixed with a generous sprinkling of history, most certainly added that perfect touch of completion to the evening for us. We ended up enjoying this tour so much, that we actually later decided we would have much more fun returning in the daylight hours in order to see and learn more so that we might thoroughly appreciate our new surroundings that seemed to be just brimming with historical information at every turn. It was during this first presentation a revelation of sorts came into being.
We had been sitting on the bench for quite some time. It was a perfect evening, comfortable and hardly what one might consider either warm nor cool. The tour presentation had begun, but it was early yet and the groups had not yet been split into two as they usually are for these limited participant events that often require advance reservations as well. The tour was called "The dark of the moon tour". So far there was nothing sinister about it, only friendly staff and the wonderful sight of the tower shimmering into the darkness. There we were, at the skirts of such a dutiful lady patrolling without pause. What an exciting feeling she awoke in those who looked upon her this night, almost as if we too were a part of her most important task. As the stories for the evening droned on, it happened! This is the account that started it all...
*Note: So as not to constantly interrupt this account with scientific sounding babble, we will leave our observations as footnotes at the end for this particular true tale. PLEASE READ THEM, there are probable scientific explanations for the account you are about to read. Our motive for posting this is not to say we've discovered something new and incredible, but rather to answer the question of what got us involved in the paranormal field. Remember, our search is for the truth in the paranormal field whatever it may be and we remain dedicated to approach each account with a critical thinking, creative and open mindset.
"I was sitting on the bench next to my spouse during the pre-tour presentation. I had been thinking to myself the entire time how wrong we had been to come to this place of tragedy and former despair. After hearing the tragic history of the lighthouse I had become very much opposed to joining the group that evening. I myself had been fairly recently exposed to 2 deaths which undoubtedly left their residue on my current state of mind. I felt like some unwelcome guest who had barged their way into someone's life to gawk at their pain from so long ago. What if "ghosts" truly were individuals who could not pass on for whatever reason? Who am I to enter into their world for a lark? Yet, how could I spoil an annual tradition for everyone else who enjoyed it so. It brought people together that hardly had time for one another and I did enjoy the ambiance of their companionship during these annual outings we had been taking. Yet this place was different. This place had a heartbreaking past that I just could not shake. I had decided to come only because of my adoration of lighthouses and for the opportunity of climbing one at night.
So there I was, sitting on the bench collecting my thoughts and chastising myself for having made the trip, when from behind me came what I can best describe as a warm spiritual-like feeling, that I immediately recognized; It was a feeling I had also felt many times in my life prior to this, including immediately following the death of my father in law many years prior, when my spouse was on route to see him before he passed. There was little notice and I was unable to leave at the time, so I had stayed home. When my spouse called later, we determined the time of death followed near exactly the time of the experience. (Interestingly, I hadn't realized he had died yet and we hadn't expected him to pass quite that soon.)
The first interesting thing about this sensation I was encountering at the St. Augustine Light Station courtyard, was the fact that this particular sensation was very warm. On top of that, was the fact that the feeling was incredibly very strongly felt, an "obviously there" no doubt about it type of sensation. The warmth that surrounded me, was as warm as the body of a person might be cuddled up against and around someone to protect them from the elements on a cool evening. My spouse next to me would soon remark how cold it was getting, while I experienced the next few moments, (cozy and toasty warm the entire time), that would put in place a destiny I would never have dreamed of.
Immediately I knew what I was experiencing. Only, had I not known of the documentation of "haunting" claims to this location I would never have been the wiser. I would have chalked it up to the same thing I always had when this feeling had come over me on the many occasions in the past. Now as I experienced this, I wondered why it had never dawned on me before, that this was what a "haunting" was often referred to as.
A few interesting notes about the encounter are as follows: We had been sitting for quite some time on the bench, therefore we had not been exerting ourselves in any way for me to have suddenly felt the warmth I did out of no where. The feeling came from behind me and try as I may, I saw nothing behind me that could have brought on this sensation. The bench is located near and next to the lighthouse tower. My spouse next to me had the exact opposite reaction I was having, intense COLD! We were sitting in front of 50 people when this occurred, in the lighted courtyard. There was a faulty spotlight in the vicinity that hadn't started acting up yet so we were unaware of it. It was windy and we were outdoors. The entire event lasted for what seemed to be about 5 minutes.
While I was surrounded by this warmth, my thoughts to myself were that of always hearing ghostly encounters were supposed to be cold weren't they? Then there were the thoughts that came into my mind almost immediately. I felt WELCOMED! As if someone or something knew my thoughts or had heard what I had spoken aloud earlier and had come over to comfort my concerns. I felt like it was alright for my family to be here this night and we should not feel like unwelcome guests at all. I felt like I had been given a personal invitation to visit this home. The encounter did not end there however. It was such a warm and wonderful feeling I hardly wanted to let it go. It was at this time I felt a feeling as if a large hand was placed upon the crown of my head with fingers extending to my temples as well as around the circumference of my head. I felt my emotions click on one by one as if something were trying them on for size. As if someone wanted to feel sensations lost long ago. As I was experiencing this latest event, as Faith Albers the presenter, was continuing on unaware of my encounter as was everyone else standing there that night, a faulty spotlight switched itself off and then back on almost on cue to her words: "Give us a sign" Now, it's important you know she wasn't asking for a sign exactly, she was actually completing a sentence that happened to have that phrase in it as she was explaining something. Now we did know we were on a ghost tour and all and we were not impressed with the lights acting up because it certainly made it all seem highly suspicious to us. The paranormal field has a tainted history. Faith and the other staff members present that night, insisted the lights had recently acquired some sort of problem and they were in the process of getting them checked out by an electrician as soon as possible, although the timing of the interruptions during tours had been interesting at best for them. Also, I must say, this never occurred on any subsequent visits or tours we have done in this location. Was it a Halloween trick? Your guess is as good as ours at this point. We also have always been impressed with the fact that the staff in this location, have always been willing to accept rational explanations for occurrences and do not rack everything up to "haunting". When something is discovered that may explain an occurrence, they are never shy about adding in the new information to the tour. It is certainly one of the most quality ghost tours we have ever done.
After the light turned itself back on, it shone so bright before returning to normal that even Faith made a comment. After this event, the sensation I was experiencing gave me reason to question what was really encircling me. This also was the one particular thing about the experience that troubled me and gave rise to why I decided to get into the field. It was something so subtle that I hardly noticed it at all at the time, but later found it truly gave me reason for pause. Something about the sensation felt counterfeit, not right. Like an impostor. It was a wonderful feeling. Yet something didn't feel right about it. It was very subtle but not correct. As the experience caused a sort of journey through my emotions, when reaching the emotion of love, it wasn't what love is. Was it a child entity that didn't understand the concept of love yet? Was it something more sinister pretending to be something it wasn't using a cloak of pleasantries for camouflage? Was it my own overactive imagination? Was it the scientific explanation concerning electromagnetic energy and its effects? *See note (this is important). That's what we at Brunswick Scientific Investigations are looking to discover.
When whatever it was had finished, I hardly wanted this event to end and for whatever it was to leave at all. At this time, I had the specific thought that whatever this was, it was trying to reassure me that it would come back to check on me so to speak, but for now it had much work to be done and it needed to get going. Then I had the exact same sensation as when it arrived, except that this time it left from the front of me. Although it had gone, I felt like I knew what it was doing and like it had told me in a sense. I felt like I could sense it going from person to person as if to say hi to everyone present, as if it were it's appointed job as some kind of greeter. I also felt the same sensation return briefly while I entered the first floor dining area of the keeper's house, that typically begins the house segment of the tour. I continued to feel the sensation for a short time while in the room and then it left again. I did not feel the sensation again at any time while touring any other indoor location including the basement of the keeper's home and the lighthouse tower, after this.
The tour in our group's opinion was rather uneventful that night. We were shown some tiny footprints the staff insisted had appeared recently. Before Halloween imagine that! However, the staff did NOT insist they were ghostly footprints by any means, only that things of this nature occurred often and were usually found at times when a rational explanation was hard to come by. Also, in all fairness, our group does find it hard to believe a museum such as this would allow staff or anyone else to deface property for any reason even for Halloween. The prints were from very small and narrow feet like a child. A guest? Who knows.
We were also shown not by the tour staff, but in a private conversation with another employee, when most tour goers were leaving and as they were beginning to close up for the evening, a set of child sized hand prints a left and a right positioned just as a child would have left them after peering curiously through the glass, centered perfectly on a far above window which was too high up to get at without an exceptionally high ladder. He further confided that these windows had just been professionally cleaned and how it made him uneasy to have discovered the prints, because he had no idea how in the world someone could have got those tiny prints up there in the first place. It was again rather interesting, but of course not impossible either.
A tour participant took a picture of a finger pointing to another individual wearing a witch costume on the tower. We weren't impressed with that either, after all there were 50 people (well, 25 per group that is) and who hasn't accidentally got a finger in a picture before.
So, it's not as if we were just going to believe anything we were seeing, hearing or feeling that night. Again, it was a ghost tour in a town that wrote the book on such things. Yet through all the scoffing of our little group, I knew something I would very cautiously divulge later. The fact that whenever I was in the courtyard, in absolutely any location of it, I would briefly feel the same sensation I had felt as the evening begun, surround me before it would seemingly go on and back to whatever else it was doing.
I had no meters to detect energy with me that night. I did however have a cell phone that from that night and for the next 3 months, would turn itself off and then back on, I tried in vain to repair the problem with no luck. As the 3 months passed, the event happened less and less frequently until finally it stopped happening all together. By the way, the phone in question had been new approximately 6 months prior and had also been new at the time of purchase. I continued to use that very same phone for almost a full year after the event. The phone had never done this before and when it finally stopped, it never did it again. In fact, whenever I had experienced any phone turning itself off in the past on a rare occasion, I had always been able to determine the problem to prevent repeat, but I had never (and still have not), experienced a phone turning itself right back on again. The first time this ever happened was on the trip home from the lighthouse that very night immediately following the tour." Strange or just coincidence?
*Note: Electromagnetic energy is a tricky thing. It may possibly increase the likelihood causing sensations such as those in this story, to occur in even non-sensitive individuals that are experiencing bereavement. *Note: The above individual was experiencing such. Basically from the information we have looked into thus far, it apparently has the capability of causing an individual to be prone to an occurrence of tiny micro seizures in the right temporal lobe of the brain. Which can cause an individual to experience an account just like this one recounted here and then some. Yes, this sensation could exactly be described as that and yes, the individual who experienced the event in this account does agree that this is a very likely explanation. Electromagnetic energy is often detected in "haunted" locations which brings into question a sort of which came first? The electromagnetic energy causing these effects, or the "haunting" bringing with it a sort of carry on sized electromagnetic energy field (or EMF as it is often referred to as). Was that the case? We remain open minded as we creatively and critically, research all the possibilities.
For this case? We have returned and had some unusual discoveries such as a different team member than the one in the above account, believing they heard a woman sigh next to them in the woods when all of the tour group individuals were well involved on a tour. An energy meter lighting up immediately after this statement was made by one of our group while in those same woods: "It would need to be on top of me for me to feel it." Ghost with a sense of humor? Coincidence? Odors tend to be explainable, but we had an unusual occurrence with an odor of oil arriving immediately after one of our team stated: "Are you here? We've come a long way to meet you, is there something you can do to let us know you are here?" Instantly, there was a smell of oil that seemed to originate SUSPENDED about 1/3 to 1/2 way up the tower. The smell was strong enough that it could be smelled from the ground floor faintly. Was it just a smell that had permeated the brick long ago? In the center of the tower? The smell lasted a bit and was not above nor below the seeming area or origin as strongly. Coincidences do happen, so did the smell come conveniently on cue from outside a window? On this same particular evening, which for the record had also been prior to our forming a research team, our tour was ending and when the staff stated so, our meter lit up. Was something glad we were going?
Also, we have been unable to locate a current source of energy that we feel would have caused the sensitivity in the above account. Remember though, that even the earth emits energy. This particular location experienced the effects of the largest recorded earthquake in the south on August 31, 1886 for 40 seconds. The quake was centered in South Carolina. South Carolina is quite a distance from St. Augustine, Florida, but it must be noted that locations that experience earthquakes also experience energy emissions from the earth that can cause an individual to experience effects that could easily be referenced as "hauntings". Do we believe the above account was a bereaved individual's sensitivity to energy? Again, we remain open minded while we creatively and critically research this location. Science tells us the most likely answer is a sensitivity and that may very well be the case. Also of note, other individuals when feeling depressive thoughts usually because they haven't experienced a "haunting" experience. Have apparently had similar sensations while sitting on this particular bench according to the last tour we participated in when in this location. Hmmmmm.
One of the objectives of Brunswick Scientific Investigations is to help discover if such occurrences are really random energy, hallucinations or something more. In order to do this we must first discover if it is possible to document any sort of proof of intelligence or not. For example: Random energy will not be able to communicate with people. As a group dedicated to using scientific methods, we must not only discover if it is possible to document communication, but we will need to be able to repeat the process (much more than a few times), without fail as well. We also will need to be able to prove that tampering has not played a role unfortunately, this is one of the biggest hurdles with this field, due to the high probability of foul play that is plagued within the field's history as a whole. The paranormal field is considered a pseudoscience (A.K.A. ridiculous science) and therefore the scientific community rarely wants to touch it with a 10 foot pole (preferably longer actually). In science controls are a must, so the job won't end at just finding something to document. So we have our work cut out for us and we have a long arduous journey ahead if this field truly has anything more to be advanced in it at all. According to science it likely doesn't! Can paranormal intelligence be proved in this location? We remain diligent in our research.
The individual who related this account is a very honest individual. When this story was related to the eventual founder of Brunswick Scientific Investigations, he wanted to know more. This is basically where it all began.
This night set in motion the founder's eventual desire to start a group. Why? No one really knows.
Except the idea seemed to come from... Out of the Blue?
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