Where the Past and Present Live Together by Maureen Majors
The investigation, titled “Where the Past and Present Live Together,” explores haunted sites in Frederick County, Maryland. Key locations include the Catoctin Furnace, haunted by slaves and a soldier burned alive; covered bridges like Roddy, Loys, and Utica, with tales of ghostly soldiers, farmers, and a drowned boy’s apparition. Paranormal evidence includes orbs, spectral figures, unexplained sounds, and camera malfunctions. The emotional resonance of these sites is palpable, blending history with the supernatural. Let me know if you’d like a visual representation or more details!
On October 4th, 2003 we (members of the Maryland Ghost and Spirit Association), along with our fearless leader Beverly Litsinger, went out once again to help prove the existence of spirits. This time we proceeded with our investigation into the realm of the unknown in Frederick County, Maryland. We made several stops where ghostly phenomenon have been reported.
Our first stop was the Catoctin Furnace. It is located off Route 15 on Route 806 between Frederick and Thurmont. Thomas Johnson was the founder of the furnace, and it opened up in 1776. Kettles, pots, stoves, cannons, and weapons and ammunition for the civil war were made at this site.
The furnace was built by slaves who where forced to work there. They were very skilled metal workers. The slaves that died there were buried in an unmarked slave cemetery located at the furnace. The graves date back from 1790 to 1840. These slaves are known to haunt this area presently.
Another spirit, who has made himself quite famous, appears to be still guarding the furnace. He was assigned to defend the furnace that was used to manufacture the Union weaponry while the Union troops went out to battle. He was there for about a week when Confederate troops captured him alone.
The soldier was shot and his body was thrown into the furnace. He was still alive when they threw him in. It appears that he still guards the furnace today. Tourists have claimed that a soldier has aimed his gun at them while visiting this tourist attraction. It was dusk as we approached the site. As I looked to the top of the furnace I saw a shadow of a man standing on top of it. A split second later he was gone. I was not sure I was accurate because of it being between evening and nightfall, until Deanna (a fellow investigator) asked me if I had seen the person standing on the furnace.
At this site we took numerous photos. It was amazing. Orbs were plenty and Beverly tried numerous times to take a photo of one of the spirits, but her camera kept shutting down. At least the spirit has a sense of humor. Several people were drawn to a specific corner of the furnace with the feeling that someone was there. The energy in the air was high, causing out equipment to react strangely. At the iron master house, one of the investigators was able to catch a picture of a man. I hope we return to visit again for further investigation.
From here we went to visit several covered bridges that are said to be haunted. Our first was the Roddy Covered Bridge. It was built in 1850 and is located on Roddy Road. The story attached to this bridge is that the Confederate Cavalry was headed toward what we now know as Thurmont. They were tired so they decided to rest by Owens Creek, near the Roddy Covered Bridge. They spent the night and raided the nearby farms to get fresh horses –their horses were tired and they needed to replace the ones that were exhausted. The farmers tried to protect their horses but were killed in the process. There was also a skirmish between the confederate soldiers and pro Union militiamen. A small battle took place near this bridge. This area is said to be haunted by the soldiers as well as some of the farmers who were killed. We were able to catch several pictures that contained orbs at this location.
Our next stop was Loys Covered Bridge. It was built by the Loy Family around 1860. The original bridge was modified in 1929 to 1930. New steel beams were installed to replace the original wooden beams and the lateral bracing under the wooden floor. The bridge was destroyed by arson in 1991. Volunteers restored the bridge using whatever pieces they could salvage from the original bridge. During the Civil War, the Union and Confederate Armies would camp near covered bridges for cover. They also usually avail water for their horses. This bridge is reportedly haunted by ghostly soldiers and people who have drowned at this location. During our investigation several of us could smell tobacco in the air. There was also movement spotted in a nearby tree by two of the investigators.
From here we went to the Utica Covered Bridge. I was most fascinated by the ghostly activity that occurred on this bridge. This is a spot that local kids use as a swimming hole. However, a young boy drowned the river in 1872. He was 17 years of age. The unhappy ghost of the drowned boy still haunts this bridge. There have been reports of a glowing apparition crawling out of the water and up the side of the bank. There have been ghostly cries for help that sound up and down the stream. One night a couple was coming home from Frederick; as their auto approached the bridge they noticed that there was thick fog rising rapidly from below the bridge. As they crossed the bridge there stood a young boy, dripping wet from head to toe. The driver hit his breaks, and the car skidded to a stop, apparently hitting the boy. The driver jumped out of his car and looked under it, but there was nothing there. He then looked towards the back of the car and there stood the boy he had just hit staring at him with blank eyes.
While we were there, one of the women in our group got a great picture of the boy under the bridge. It was fascinating. Some of the cameras were unexplainably malfunctioning on certain locations of the bridge. There were some very strong emotions associated with this bridge. Great feelings of sadness were felt all around, feelings that we were glad to leave behind. One of the girls got a strong impression that he wanted us to leave, and that he was getting angry that we stayed so long. We were joined by a visiting policeman who was making sure that we were a legitimate group of people.
This is where the investigation ended for me. Unfortunately, I lost our group on the way back to downtown Frederick. I can’t wait for the next opportunity to join Beverly on her next trip to investigate places where the past and present live together.
SOURCE: v4 MGSA Oct 2003
