Can an Object be Haunted?

This is a question we have been asked many times before, and the answer is YES…. The inanimate object in and of itself is not haunted, but it is referred to as a “Trigger Object”. A trigger object can be anything associated with a deceased person that is used to catch the attention of that entity.

These items can be, keys, toys, coins, photos, anything….There have been documented cases where a trigger object (such as a stuffed animal) was placed in a room and that object was seen moving. There is also a case where a ball was placed in a hallway and the ball was also moved from its original location.

Some trigger objects are not so innocent and can attract entities that don’t just want to roll the ball… In some cases these trigger objects have been known to attract poltergeists, and have also ushered in other entities besides the one attached to the trigger object.

IF you think you might posses an object that is triggering paranormal activity, try getting it out of your house for a while. Give it to a friend to hold, or put it in a safe deposit box at your local bank. See if getting rid of the object stops the activity.

What is a Poltergeist???

Poltergeist is the German word for ‘Noisy Ghost’. . Poltergeist manifestations can include (but not always) inanimate object being thrown or moved around a room, knocking, pounding, or banging noises. In VERY RARE cases the person witnessing the event has been physically attacked.

Because the study of the paranormal has no conclusive scientific explanation of this event..(And there are many who do not believe these events even occur) it is difficult to say why and how this phenomenon occurs. Some studies indicate that the troublesome spirit is trying to make contact with a particular person and is doing it in the only way they know how. Other studies suggest that these entities are simply mischievous spirits who like to scare the living.

One study that I have found to be rather interesting suggests that a poltergeist is brought on by the individual experiencing it. Through prolonged periods of unresolved or repressed stress the individual is allowing their negative energy to be used by the entity to fuel its ability to manifest. Often times when the individual seeks counseling (or other forms of help to relive this stress) the reported poltergeist activity stops.

In most reported cases the activity will only last from 1 to 6 weeks and then it will just stop. Once again (as stated before) due to the lack of scientific explanation all we can do is continue to study these cases and hop that one day science can help up understand why these things happen, and how to control the situation.

Your feedback is always welcome!!!

And the Plot Doth Thicken

Hold on to your EMF detectors, ghost seekers!

SCGS is continually trying to follow up on previous investigations. One of the investigations that has puzzled us has been the Fort Douglas Cemetery. There is a section of the cemetery where 12 German POWs are buried. We were unable to find out what happened...until now.

While looking at our new favorite website, we found the death certificates of some of the men killed on July 8, 1945. They all say that they died due to gunshot wounds. All were ruled as "Accidental", but later on, someone went in and underlined "Homicide". Double click on the image to make it bigger and easier to read.

Upon a little further investigation, we found that all of these men were killed in what is known as the Salina POW Massacre. According to Wikipedia:

The Salina, Utah, Prisoners of War massacre caused the death of nine German prisoners of war and the injury of 20 more.

The incident happened on the night of July 7–July 8, 1945, two months after the German surrender. Private Clarence V. Bertucci (September 14, 1921 - December 1969) returned to the camp from a night of drinking, and relieved the guard of the tower nearest the commanding officer's cabin. He proceeded to load and fire a .30 caliber machine gun into the German prisoners' tents. Within thirty seconds of the start, his belt of 250 rounds was expended. Nine were killed and 20 were injured.

Salina was the home of some 250 German prisoners of war (both from Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS) who were being used as workers on the local harvest. At the time of the incident the prisoners were waiting to be repatriated.

Bertucci was from New Orleans, Louisiana and had previously been convicted twice by court-martial for minor military discipline infractions; hence he was still a private even though he had enlisted in 1940. Due to his mental illness Bertucci spent some time at a New York mental institution. He was one of three Americans prosecuted for killing Axis POW's: the other two were related to the 1943 Biscari massacres in Italy. Bertucci died in December 1969.

This puts a new twist to the story. This story was so big that Times Magazine even did an article about it in 1945. We will be heading back to Fort Douglas soon to reopen this case and see if we can visit with the men that were killed under undeserved circumstances.

This is Halloween, This is Halloween!

Happy Halloween ghost seeking friends!

SCGS decided that since it is that wonderful time of year and the best holiday by far, we were going to head to the Mt. Olivet Cemetery in Salt Lake City by the campus of the University of Utah. While searching, we came across the headstone of a beautiful young woman by the name of Cleo Zaharias. She was of Greek decent and was only 20 years old at the time of death.

Upon further investigation in the Utah State Archives, this young woman's death certificate was found. Utah state law allows death certificates over 50 years old to be viewed by the public. They have death certificates as far back as 1905-1959. They also have available the burial and cemetery records of all cemeteries in the state. Since Cleo passed away in 1940, we were able to find out more about her. She was a housekeeper at the general hospital and died from Uremia, or kidney failure, due to mercury poisoning. The officials and doctors ruled her death a suicide. The image of her death certificate can be seen here.

At the bottom of the head stone it read "Lover of Music". At this point, one of the SCGS crew asked if anyone could hear a piano playing "Mary Had a Little Lamb." We were unable to debunk this experience because there are no houses around this portion of the cemetery and there were not electrical devices with this sound on it. Did Miss Cleo decide to pay us a visit on this Day of the Dead? You be the judge.

Halloween FUN

Spooktacular Times!A little Halloween trivia for you: Did you know that Snickers is the most popular treat? And one of the first things parents swipe from their kids treat buckets!

Another one for you: Did you know that 99% of all pumpkins grown are used for Jack-O-Lanterns at Halloween time. And over 2 billion dollars worth of candy is sold every year! That's a lot of Trick or Treating treats!

It's that awesome time of year again when we get to dress up in costumes, have our friends over and throw a party. Our yearly Halloween party was tonight. We had a great time with fun friends, ate some yummy food, grooved to some awesome tunes and played some interesting games. Thanks to all of you who came and partied with us!

Zombie Night Fun

We had a fabulous time with our Zombie Night…thanks to everyone who came out and joined us. We had some great prizes, really good food, and some AWESOME costumes.

Stay tuned for more details on our upcoming Halloween Bash on the 23^rd of October.

Zombie Party….

Our first annual Zombie Party is tomorrow night! We are going to have games, prizes, food, and of coarse ZOMBIE MOVIES….. Please join us for a good time!