In the time I have spent in the paranormal, listening to stories, researching the area, and even doing the investigation/hunting, I have to say the most interesting aspect is the stories to me. Now don’t get me wrong, the research comes with its perks, I get to dig back about a place and know the history about a house, or even land, and get some very interesting facts and correlations with other things. Even the investigation is great to do, it can be exciting at times, but other times can be dull. If every place was haunted though, who would want to be a paranormal investigator?? Thats another tangent though. So what makes does any of this have to do with History Channel’s “Haunted Histories?” Well that will come out in time (don’t worry, it’s sooner than you think…. just keep reading), first lets answer the question:
“Why are the stories the most interesting part of the paranormal investigation?” Most investigations always start out with a story, rather it be about some sort of tragedy, personal story, story on the history, or even the ”paranormal story.” lnformation from these stories can be used during an investigation to try to draw out spirits, or can be used to research the site. Some stories can be very beneficial to everything we do, and those are stories that provide the facts, and can either be debunked or classified as being a cause of the paranormal presence. There are other stories are just that… STORIES . Now I would never discredit someone’s story without proof, unless it was so far off the wall that it makes it seem more like a scene out of “Gothika” then real life (and I am not in anyway dissing that movie, I rather thought it was good). These stories, like my good pal and fellow investigator Dick pointed out in one of his vlogs that stories (such as this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgmgqmCiStE&feature=g-all-c&context=G261d2a4FAAAAAAAAAAA) can be found just about anywhere on the internet. Movies, television, and even radio even help add to the “list of stories” that are going around though.
With all of this now, I will answer the question on what any of this has to do with “Haunted America.” Living in the Chicago area, I know the stories and history quite well on some of the locations. Someone close to me bought me the “Haunted America” collection, and it was fun and entertaining to watch. Here it comes: BUT while watching the Chicago one, I ended up losing some respect for the “History Channels” ability to research a little more instead of listening to money. Now I understand that in a previous post, it was mentioned that it is about giving the audience what they want to see…. but this is the History Channel. Anyone who is interested in the paranormal, (and even those who are not) knows about Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery (*DISCLAIMER* I have been there only during the day, never at night… I DO NOT CONDONE anyone trespassing after dark) have heard many stories about the cemetery. Again some are stories that are either hard to prove or never happened, or they are the facts that lead it to being one of the “Most Haunted Cemeteries. ” What the History Channel did though was throw in an off the wall story that there was a woman in white who is believed to behead men she brings into the cemetery. Now, for anyone else saw the episode, knows that there were other things that raises eyebrows, and those are more stories than facts (a house appearing in the woods?). Again, I am not discrediting that someone saw it, but in all seems highly unlikely that a house would appear out of the middle of nowhere (this isn’t the Blair Witch Project afterall). I can deal with the house story though, I can not deal with the story about the woman in white who beheads men. Do I believe in demonic entities? I guess it is possible, but how often do you actually hear of a “spirit” committing murder. Some can argue that spirits who possess the living could cause such things to happen, but other than in the movies I have never witnessed or read (factual resources) about a knife be held by a spirit harming someone. It bothers me that channels like the History Channel would actually put a documentary out with information like this. We have all come to expect it out of Sci-Fi, Travel Channel (which surprised me at first) and even A&E. The History Channel though? Where does this band wagon stop? How many more times must we watch an off the wall story take over a place?
As stated before, no matter where you listen or read, there are stories everywhere. Some people let them influence how they research and investigate. A great team has to remember that there are some stories out there that are completely off the wall. I would never discredit anything unless you do your research first, for the sake of the client(s). Unfortunately, with all of these different mediums to gather these stories, it makes it harder to screen what is real, and what is not.
Now, I am sure my point has been made thus far, I am interested in hearing opinions and answering questions. Even if you believe the opposite of what I believe, please feel free to comment.
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