Gettysburg Investigation by Donna Jones
The article “Gettysburg Investigation by Donna Jones” details a ghost hunting expedition conducted by the Maryland Ghost and Spirit Association on November 3, 2001, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The team explored several historically significant sites, including the National Battlefield, Sach’s Covered Bridge, the Peach Orchard, Little Round Top, and Steven’s Knoll. Throughout their investigation, they reported various paranormal phenomena such as temperature anomalies, unexplained scents, equipment malfunctions, and the capture of orbs, ectoplasms, vortexes, and apparitions in photographs. The group also described interactions with a spirit named “Matt,” believed to be a Confederate soldier from Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The narrative emphasizes the team’s methods, experiences, and the guidance provided by their leader, Beverly, in interpreting paranormal activity.
November 3, 2001, Gettysburg was my first official ghost hunt with Maryland Ghost and Spirit Association.
Our hunt started off at the National Battlefield across from the Visitors Center. Beverly explained to us how to introduce ourselves to the spirits and ask permission to take their pictures. Beverly also taught us how to use different types of equipment that she distributed to us to get familiar with.
In one part of the battlefield, we all gathered where Beverly was using an EMF Detector, which can pick up electronic and magnetic fields that are disrupted when ghosts are present. She also used a Thermal Scanner to detect significant drops in temperature when spirits are present. At this particular spot we were getting a lot of readings as Beverly was training us in the use of this equipment. We were finding ghosts without even really looking!
From there we traveled to Sach’s Covered Bridge to explore and take pictures while it was still daylight. We were getting a lot of orbs and ectoplasms that could be seen through some of the digital camera users displays. As the sun began to set, we traveled down into the woods to an open area a short distance from the bridge, which Beverly explained was used as a Field Hospital during the Civil War. There, we were getting dramatic drops in temperature; as much as -4 degrees on the Thermal Scanner and everyone was freezing to the bone in that one area only. The temperature outside of that area was in the 50’s. That was an enlightening experience.
On our way to the next location, we stopped at McDonald’s [which might explain some of the ectoplasms later] to prepare ourselves for the next encounter. We uploaded some pictures on one of the gal’s laptops to view our findings as we all got a bite to eat. We then traveled to the Peach Orchard and began introducing ourselves and taking pictures and readings. There we also snapped a lot of orbs, ectoplasms and a few vortexes.
Beverly and some of the group called us over to the far side of the Orchard. There were dramatic drops in temperature and high EMF Readings. We started talking to the spirit and asking some questions with Beverly explaining what the rise and drops meant in the meters during the questioning. From what we could gather, the spirits name was Matt and he was a Confederate Soldier. He seemed very happy to talk to us and we thanked him for his gallant effort in the war. He told us that he was from Harpers Ferry, Virginia [not West Virginia]. It took us a few minutes to realize that Harpers Ferry was part of Virginia during the Civil War.
Our next stop was to Little Round Top where everyone started having trouble with batteries going dead. While we managed to get some pictures while we were there, it was very spotty going. Beverly and some of the group had lots of extra batteries to help some of us out of a jam with our dead flashlights and cameras. [Inexplicably weird.]
We decided to travel to Steven’s Knoll next, after finding a noisy group of visitors at Devils Den. When we reached Steven’s Knoll we began to walk around taking pictures and readings. On one end of the Knoll near the woods, we were getting smells of leather and the smell of a horse, even though there was nothing physically there. There were also a lot of readings around that area. One of our group members, Bill Tarnowski, snapped pictures of 2 different ghosts, in different areas of the Knoll, which were solid forms.
This was a wonderful ghost hunt. We learned a great deal about interpreting readings thanks to Beverly. Her skills are excellent and she is very patient with beginners. Now we can’t wait for the next one.
SOURCE: v2 MGSA Oct 2003
