Post by auntym on Aug 25, 2011 16:51:21 GMT -6
www.weirld.com/Paranormal/Ghosts-and-Hauntings/My-Haunted-Afternoon-at-the-Ohio-Reformatory.html
My Haunted Afternoon at the Ohio Reformatory
24 August 2011 written by Dale Ave-Lallemant
While in the Mansfield, OH area this week, I decided to take a short trip over to the Ohio Reformatory. The reformatory was built in 1896 by architect Levi Scofield. This huge stone structure was intended to look like a European castle, and I will admit, it has a creepy, medeival feel when you first see it driving up the entry lane. The abandoned prison features the largest free standing steel cellblock in the world.
And, it also features ghosts, too. Lots of them...
hallway_in_the_HoleThe Reformatory was originally intended to be a place for reform. Criminals with lesser offenses could go there and get 'rehabilitated' as they transitioned back into society. While this may have been the intention when it was built, it is not the reality of what actually happened. The prison was cited in the 1930s for poor inmate living conditions. Solitary confinement in the prison was referred to as 'The Hole'. It is a set of 20 single person cells with very little light and no facility to use the bathroom. Inmates were given bread and water to survive on while they were in 'The Hole'. Every third day they were given a 'normal' lunch. Often times, the one inmate cell had more than one inmate inside, weaker inmates often had their food stolen from them by the stronger inmates. The living conditions in 'The Hole' were horrible.
I learned of a murder that had taken place in solitary many years ago. It is said that the victim still haunts his cell and the halls ofmirror_on_wall_outside_of_the_Hole 'The Hole'. Many visitors to this area claim to see a shadowy figure that walks the halls around solitary. Other have complained of an overwhelming feeling of dread and anguish when they are there. Still others have complained of instant nausea in this area. While I toured around the area, I didn't see any 'shadow people', I wasn't overcome by instant nausea either. However, I did have this sense of sorrow while I was in the area, but I am sure that is due to the stories I listened to and read about the treatment of those in 'The Hole'.
I spoke with some of the volunteers that were in the Reformatory about any paranormal activity they had experienced, and where they thought was the most 'active' place in the reformatory. One gentlemen helping to set up the haunted prison attraction for Halloween, told me he has only had experiences in the Chapel. He claimed that a full bodied apparition liked to stand in the back corner and watch over the Chapel. After hearing his claims, I had to go check out the Chapel and see if I could experience anything similar.
chapel_sculptureWhile in the Chapel, I felt nothing out of the ordinary. The chapel is a large room with beautiful columns that were made of metal. There Chapelis a nice-sized stage, or platform, at the far end where a preacher or minister would come and speak to the inmates. In my research of the Chapel, I found that in the early days of the reformatory, the Chapel are was used as the gallows. Inmates with the death sentence were hung in the same room they later used to worship in. Knowing this, I can understand how there may be some type of activity in the room. As for me, I didn't experience anything.
The administrative wing of the Reformatory is said to be haunted by Warden Glattke and his wife Helen. As the story goes, Helen was reaching in the closet for a box when she knocked a gun to the floor. The gun went off and shot Helen in the chest. She was taken to the hospital where she later pronounced dead. Rumors ran rampant through the area that the Warden was responsible for his wife's death, but there was never any proof to substantiate such claims. The Warden passed away ten years later in the same hospital as his wife.
CONTINUE READING: www.weirld.com/Paranormal/Ghosts-and-Hauntings/My-Haunted-Afternoon-at-the-Ohio-Reformatory.html
My Haunted Afternoon at the Ohio Reformatory
24 August 2011 written by Dale Ave-Lallemant
While in the Mansfield, OH area this week, I decided to take a short trip over to the Ohio Reformatory. The reformatory was built in 1896 by architect Levi Scofield. This huge stone structure was intended to look like a European castle, and I will admit, it has a creepy, medeival feel when you first see it driving up the entry lane. The abandoned prison features the largest free standing steel cellblock in the world.
And, it also features ghosts, too. Lots of them...
hallway_in_the_HoleThe Reformatory was originally intended to be a place for reform. Criminals with lesser offenses could go there and get 'rehabilitated' as they transitioned back into society. While this may have been the intention when it was built, it is not the reality of what actually happened. The prison was cited in the 1930s for poor inmate living conditions. Solitary confinement in the prison was referred to as 'The Hole'. It is a set of 20 single person cells with very little light and no facility to use the bathroom. Inmates were given bread and water to survive on while they were in 'The Hole'. Every third day they were given a 'normal' lunch. Often times, the one inmate cell had more than one inmate inside, weaker inmates often had their food stolen from them by the stronger inmates. The living conditions in 'The Hole' were horrible.
I learned of a murder that had taken place in solitary many years ago. It is said that the victim still haunts his cell and the halls ofmirror_on_wall_outside_of_the_Hole 'The Hole'. Many visitors to this area claim to see a shadowy figure that walks the halls around solitary. Other have complained of an overwhelming feeling of dread and anguish when they are there. Still others have complained of instant nausea in this area. While I toured around the area, I didn't see any 'shadow people', I wasn't overcome by instant nausea either. However, I did have this sense of sorrow while I was in the area, but I am sure that is due to the stories I listened to and read about the treatment of those in 'The Hole'.
I spoke with some of the volunteers that were in the Reformatory about any paranormal activity they had experienced, and where they thought was the most 'active' place in the reformatory. One gentlemen helping to set up the haunted prison attraction for Halloween, told me he has only had experiences in the Chapel. He claimed that a full bodied apparition liked to stand in the back corner and watch over the Chapel. After hearing his claims, I had to go check out the Chapel and see if I could experience anything similar.
chapel_sculptureWhile in the Chapel, I felt nothing out of the ordinary. The chapel is a large room with beautiful columns that were made of metal. There Chapelis a nice-sized stage, or platform, at the far end where a preacher or minister would come and speak to the inmates. In my research of the Chapel, I found that in the early days of the reformatory, the Chapel are was used as the gallows. Inmates with the death sentence were hung in the same room they later used to worship in. Knowing this, I can understand how there may be some type of activity in the room. As for me, I didn't experience anything.
The administrative wing of the Reformatory is said to be haunted by Warden Glattke and his wife Helen. As the story goes, Helen was reaching in the closet for a box when she knocked a gun to the floor. The gun went off and shot Helen in the chest. She was taken to the hospital where she later pronounced dead. Rumors ran rampant through the area that the Warden was responsible for his wife's death, but there was never any proof to substantiate such claims. The Warden passed away ten years later in the same hospital as his wife.
CONTINUE READING: www.weirld.com/Paranormal/Ghosts-and-Hauntings/My-Haunted-Afternoon-at-the-Ohio-Reformatory.html