There has always seemed to be a strong link between antiques and the paranormal. When you think about the items that define us as people, the things we hold on to but refuse to throw away even after their value is questioned, it would seem that some just don't want to let go. Walking through any antique store is like walking through a room full of ghosts. When you think that these were the items that someone once owned and probably cherished, you think about the ties that they had to the person. Perhaps this item was a gift from a grandchild, and maybe this one was passed down from a great-grandparent, so you think about the original owners of the items.
Psychometry is a paranormal phenomenon that allows one to detect associations by handling objects. In other words, if you pick up an item, you can "feel" its energy field and then know its history. This has been shown in countless Hollywood films. A "psychic" is working with the police department to solve a murder case, she picks up a knife or some other object, and there is a big flash and she sees the killer using the object. Entertaining, yes. Is there any truth to this? As with anything else, it's subjective. Some people, after all, believe they can see Mother Teresa in a cinnamon bun, so anything's possible.
Antique stores, therefore, would seem to be a prime breeding ground for the residual energy of those who are clinging to objects after they pass on. So, if one believed in psychometry, it would seem that walking through an antique store and randomly picking up objects would open up a flood gate of knowledge and feelings of the previous owners.
Which brings us to the Spotted Dog Antique Store in Dickson, Tennessee. The Spotted Dog is located just off of Main Street, and is home to the castaway items that people have abandoned or left behind in their homes as they move on. According to Dickson County history, back when the city of Dickson had the name of "Sneedsville" ( the name was changed to Dickson after the people in Dickson discovered there was already another city named Sneedsville) a fire raged through a row of houses and, as seems to be typical of folklore and history, some children were apparently killed. Could the spirit of the children who died be lingering around the antique store? Could the residual energy of the antiques attract spirits who might think some of the items look familiar to them? Well. . .
One of our investigators had gone to the store the weekend before. She had told us that there may have been the spirit of a young girl, approximately fourteen or so, named Angel, who haunted the store. A motion detector had been placed in one of the spots where activity had been reported. What was strange was that the motion detector keep sounding in response to certain questions, even though no one was moving, and there was no other activity in the store. Could the spirit of the girl have been setting off the motion detector? Also, some loud thumping was heard as well.
So, we went in, set up the cameras, and did an EMF sweep of the store to get a reading before the power was cut so we could compare it to another reading after the power was cut. We set up a camera in two areas of the store. The first camera was placed pointing at the area the motion detector was set up, and the second camera was placed at the area where the loud thumping was heard. We did several tests with the motion detector to make sure that it would not go off unless someone was directly in front of it. Everything was set, the DVR's were placed, and the power was cut.
We did some E.V.P. sessions, which is simply just asking questions out loud and then playing back the recording later to see if you caught any voices on tape. As we sat there, the motion detector started beeping, and then it went off. We were asking general questions and asking for a response by asking if someone was there, to set off the detector with a beep. Sure enough, as if on cue, the detector would go off with a shrill alarm each time (we'll know more about this after we analyze the DVR recording to see if there are any sounds before the alarm goes off).
We turned on our E.V.P. box which is supposed to let you hear sounds in certain frequency ranges that approximate the ranges that E.V.P.'s are caught at, but you don't need headphones. After certain questions, there would be a pronounced hum and shift in the tone of the box, as if someone was saying "no." or sometimes there would be a shift in frequency and it would sound as if there was a two syllable answer to our questions (again, we'll know more after the evidence is completely analyzed).
It might be that there was no spirit of a girl named Angel. It might have been a little boy, or there might have been several spirits there. The motion detector kept going off, but it wasn't randomly going off. It was going off only in response to questions. A logical mind would say that if there was a short or something in the detector, it would be going off randomly, like in the middle of a question, or in the middle of a conversation. But no, the detector only went off after a pause for an answer to a direct question. Very odd.
We wrapped up the investigation about 1:00 in the morning, and the long process of breaking down the evidence began. . .
So, did this antique store hold residual spirit energy? All we have to go on is its history (a great fire, a tragedy), the reports of the owners and those who have been in the store, and our motion detector that keep going off in response to questions. We'll know more after we listen to our audio recordings. If spirits are drawn to antique-like objects, it would make sense to say that they are lingering. Or perhaps the objects in the store themselves hold ghosts. If the things we own reflect ourselves, who's to say that they still don't reflect us after we're gone?
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