CAPS Investigation by:
Tina, President/Lead Investigator
Kathy, Case Manager/Lead Investigator
Saturday/Sunday May 3-4, 2008
We left Charlotte around 9AM on Saturday and drove to Lexington, NC where we met the rest of our group, and then rode all the way to Ohio. After traveling through Amish country, we arrived at the prison around 5PM. We went into town first, and ate dinner. We returned to the prison around 7:30PM. We had to check in by 8PM. It was windy, and clouds were moving in. The temperature was around 45-48 degrees. At one point later in the night, it drizzled slightly but this was the only occurrence of rain. For the most part, it was very windy and chilly as the building could be very drafty in places. To our dismay, a crowd of approximately 100 people was seen milling about the grounds when we entered the driveway. (We later discovered that 110 people had been present for the investigation.)
We entered the building at 8PM, and were given a tour by the guides. We were shown the East Wing, with cells, including solitary confinement. We were also shown the West wing cells, as well as the Warden’s and Assistant Warden’s living quarters, the chapel, the tuberculosis ward, and the morgue, which was in the basement. Kathy and I first attempted EVP work in the chapel. We were by ourselves for several minutes, and took advantage of the opportunity. We took pictures too. She had a digital camera and I had a 35mm Cannon SureShot Owl using 800-speed Kodak color film. We were lead on a full tour, and given specifics on the areas. They showed us the cell that Grant and Jason marked as the one they saw a dark figure run into on the Ghosthunters episode that was shot at this location. For those movie buffs out there, this is the location used to shoot the movie, The Shawshank Redemption. We saw the room where the scenes were filmed.
The prison was in a state of disrepair. Many of the cell doors were missing because they had been taken and sold for scrap metal, until the Historical Society stepped in and put a stop to it. There were many areas marked off by caution tape that you dared not enter. Glass was missing from some of the windows, and large sheets of black plastic covered many of these. That was one reason why it was so cold inside. In addition, there was no heat or electricity in the building. The floor was broken in several places; it was definitely a place to watch your step. The paint on the walls was peeling, and the ceiling was literally falling down in places. Every now and then, some plaster was subject to fall.
At the end of our tour, Kathy and I returned to the gift shop to purchase souvenirs. We then stopped by the gathering room for a hot cup of coffee. From there we left and entered the Solitary Confinement wing to our right. We walked around both sides, and settled on one cell that we choose in which to conduct our investigation. We entered the cell, sat on the old cot mattress in the lower bunk, and attempted EVP work. We had set up a K-II meter as a sensor. We were able to sit in this location for approximately 35-40 minutes without anyone interrupting our efforts. Soon, this area became crowded, so we left and headed to the left side cellblocks. We walked around there for quite awhile, but there were so many people, we decided to vacate due to the noise and movement. Neither one would be conducive to EVP attempts or picture taking. We went back to the gathering room for midnight pizza. While there, we asked the head guide for his suggestions as to where to go for possible paranormal activity. He told us to go to a spot in the warden’s quarters.
After we ate, we headed to the warden’s area. We found many others there, so we went to the other side of the building, which was the assistant warden’s area. We stayed here for 45 minutes or more. Just walking around or staying stationery when we found a place to sit. Taking pictures and attempting EVP work.
After about an hour of moving about this side, down long hallways, in and out of every room we could find (and there were a lot), we went back to the other side and found it empty. This was where the guide had told us to go. There was a room at the top of the stairs that went straight back. There was a small stage at the end of this room, and a couple of rooms that inter-connected off to the left and right sides of this stage. We sat on the stage and set up the K-II as a sensor. We both sat there, taking pictures and attempting EVP work. We had been sitting there awhile when we noticed movement or shadows in the very back of the room. We both took pictures. We shined our lights and there was no one there. There was no one in any of the rooms around us. We were sitting in pitch-black darkness, as there was no power in this part of the structure. Suddenly, we saw blue lights start to flicker on the ceiling. They flickered and flashed and were a brilliant blue color. There was no plausible explanation for this phenomenon. The K-II did not react at all. We were on the fifth floor, so there were no car lights reflecting off something, or shinning in the window. I climbed up to take a look out the window. I looked outside anyway and there was no light source at all outside. We were five stories above the ground. There were no lights in the room or other people’s lights because there was no one else there. Just Kathy and I, and we were both seeing the same lights. While attempting EVP, I started a line of questioning that centered around the warden’s family. I asked him what he thought about his family living here. Was he ever scared something would happen to them? It was at this time that we heard footsteps coming from the room to our left. They were loud and very distinct. They sounded as if someone had crossed the length of the room next to us. No one was in there. During our investigation here, Kathy captured an “orb” in this room. The blue flashing lights appeared for a second time. There was no pattern or specific time in between. Each time it lasted for several seconds, just flickering on the ceiling to our left. We had been there for quite some time before we saw the first occurrence, and we had been there a short time when we saw them the second time. Approximately 15 minutes apart. We remained here for a long time, since this was the most activity we had encountered all night. After 2 hours, we had no more encounters, no more lights, so we headed back down to the gathering room for a break and something hot to drink. It was nearly 4AM by this time. We told the guide of our experience with the blue lights and he told us that they had received reports of this happening before. We made another sweep around the first floor, and then decided to wait in the gathering room for the rest of our group. We had to leave at 6AM. We pushed it to the limit too. We were the very last people to leave. Most of the guides left before we did. Everyone in our group had personal experiences. We captured some photos with anomalies, as well as EVP. I personally feel the place is haunted.
Tina McSwain
