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Possessed Possessions

What is a possessed possession and how does it become a haunted object? The first law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed, it can only be transferred. So one theory about a "haunted object" is simply that energy is being deposited onto an item instead of it floating around the ether and popping up at inopportune times. The energy leaves a residue that enables the object to present itself to people sensitive enough to pick up on its activity in the way of movement, talking, feelings of doom, etc. An item may also be used as an agent for the spirit to manipulate, such as a chair being thrown across a room. Other objects such as roads, houses, and waterways may also be haunted through the transference of a great emotional experience. Haunted objects can lurk at estate sales, flea markets, antique fairs, thrift stores, antique shops, auctions, roadside finds or through an inheritance.

I came across some scary looking dolls encased in glass on display in the gift store inside the haunted Miramount Museum in Manitou Springs, Colorado. I was attending the reenactment of Emma Crawford's Victorian wake. This was an annual Halloween fund raising event at the museum.

Looking at these dolls I thought about the people claiming to have haunted possessions such as antique chairs, tables, clocks, watches, books, and of course dolls. Almost any inanimate object can hold latent energy and become a haunted possession. Can spirits really be attached to objects?

One theory states that individual, collective, or residual energy may remain with a specific object after the passing of the owner. They may have had a strong connection to the object in life or had a traumatic event that had taken place associated with the particular object. There may be a spirit or many who are connected to this particular object. If the object is haunted; uneasy, or unnerving feelings may be experienced when handling these objects.

One of the most widely reported experiences occurs with items that have been picked up on wartime battlefields or artifacts that have remained in the possession of the original recipient until their passing.

Famous psychic Sylvia Browne claims that a spirit might have a lingering fondness for an object they once possessed and may want to come visit it. She also states that every object is capable of holding an imprint and it may not always be a positive one. She recommends before purchasing an antique item, be sure to handle it and spend a little bit of time with it before making a decision to bring it home. She says if you handle it, you may be able to pick up negative energy. Then if you sense this, of course it is not advised to bring it home. Perhaps, this may be a haunted object. Strange occurrences may happen if you bring the item into your house. This can include unexplained thuds, bangs, knocking, and creaking sounds. Ghostly murmurs, shadows, cold spots, or various other paranormal activity may also occur.

My aunt told me of a scary experience that she encountered when she went shopping at a local antique store in Tucson, Arizona. She was attracted to a beautiful antique Tiffany lamp that sat on a table in the back of the store. She was immediately drawn to it as soon as she set foot inside the store. She picked it up to examine it and as soon as she touched it she had a vision of an old woman lying on her death bed. The woman seemed to be alone, angry, and had a very negative and evil disposition about her. The lamp appeared to be sitting beside her on the nightstand. Then the old woman touched the lamp. My aunt was still holding it and suddenly the vision ended. She decided against buying it. She felt there was a lot of negative energy associated with the lamp.

One of the most terrifying reports of paranormal phenomenon associated with haunted objects is the belief that a doll can be possessed by a spirit. Porcelain dolls are probably considered the most disturbing. I think this is because dolls with jointed arms and legs seem to be the most life- like and often have been reported to have a presence that resembles a human being. There have been many cases reporting spirits attaching themselves to certain dolls. Some theories suggest a doll can be possessed due to a traumatic event that happened near the doll, or a child's emotional attachment to the doll as being comforting and inviting to a nearby spirit. The energy focused on the doll may result in the summoning of a spirit, which may attach to the doll. Some of the phenomenon that is reported with possessed dolls include: cold spots, laughter, sadness, crying, and feelings of being watched. Sometimes, there is unexplainable movement of the doll or furniture and objects near the doll. The dolls personality has been described as ranging from comforting to evil. I guess this depends on what type of spirit may be possessing the doll. In life, there are good people as well as bad people. The same holds true for death, there are good spirits as well as evil spirits. It is hard to determine what type of spirits may possess a certain object. I feel I have sensed this phenomenon.

Movies and television programs play a big role in shaping today's popular belief that haunted objects exist.

I remember in the 1970's when I was a little girl; I saw two Twilight Zone episodes pertaining to this. One was about a ventriloquist and his doll that took on his own personality and terrorizes its owner titled "The Dummy". This was first aired in 1964. The ventriloquist is convinced that his dummy is alive and evil so he plans on creating a new act with a new dummy. The original dummy named Willie doesn't like this so he takes his revenge by driving his owner crazy. In the shocking ending the owner takes on the same characteristics as the dummy and the doll becomes more human like resembling the owner. The other was called "The Living Doll" which was first aired in 1963. This was a very famous episode about a possessed doll. A man is displeased when his wife buys an expensive doll named "Talking Tina" home for his step daughter to play with. A battle begins with the man and the doll. It taunts and says evil things to him eventually driving him to madness and death.

In the 1980's, the movie "Child's Play" was very popular. It was about an evil villain that was killed and reincarnated into a psychotic, murdering doll.

In the 1990's, the movies "Puppet Master" and "Demonic Toys" portray toys getting possessed, coming to life and going on a murderous rampages.

"Puppet Master" is about psychics who are plotted against by a former colleague, using puppets animated by an Egyptian Spell "Demonic Toys" is about two cops chasing some criminals into a warehouse. One is shot and his blood somehow awakens an ancient demon that possesses a bunch of electronic toys.

In 2008, a new reality show called Paranormal State became very popular. In the episode "The Haunted Piano", antiques collectors bring a certain piano into their home and they experience bad feelings and infestation of mice. Lorraine Warren, a famous "demonologist" is called in to lend her expertise to dismantle and destroy the instrument.

In 2010, a new paranormal documentary show called "My Ghost Story" featured an episode on a haunted ceramic giraffe statute. The figure was about 25-30 lbs, about 2 ft. tall, and it came from Africa. A man brought it home one day for his son and nephew. They placed it on a sofa table in the living room. The two cousins claimed that strange occurrences started happening shortly after the statue arrived. They heard footsteps in the living room, they felt cold spots, and saw shadows in the hallway. They sensed a strong presence in the area where the statue was located. The object would seem to move around at night. The next morning it would appear somewhere else then its original location. The boys decided to set up a video camera in the living room to see if they could capture the movement. Sure enough, they caught on tape something move behind the TV and then dart away very quickly. Then they could see the figure of the giraffe peek around the corner, near the hallway. This figure was on the floor on the other side of the room from where it was originally placed on the sofa table. It was amazing.

There was some other strange phenomenon going on in the father’s bedroom. The owner’s son started hearing noises and a female voice in the bedroom. He decided to video tape the occurrences. He claimed to have sensed a weird energy or spirit every time he entered the room. He also felt a squeezing sensation on his chest and it was hard to breathe. In the mirror, he caught a reflection of an older man looking at him, which scared him. He ran out of the room after seeing this. He was afraid to go back into that room again. Later that night, he set up a camera in the living room. He fell asleep on the couch near the recorder. He was sleeping peacefully until he heard a loud banging sound. He abruptly woke up and walked around the living room. He inspected the room thoroughly but could not find anything unusual. The next morning he reviewed the tape. He was shocked and frightened when he saw the footage. The tape revealed as he was getting up from the couch, a transparent grey arm swooped out of nowhere and tried to grab him. It just missed him by a few inches.

A few days later when the boys returned home from work they noticed the giraffe was missing. They found it broken in several pieces all over the floor near the hallway. After this incident, everything in the house went back to normal. No-more paranormal activity occurred.

In May of 2011, a new reality paranormal TV show aired called "The Haunted Collector". John Zaffis, a famous "demonologist" heads the team of paranormal investigators. John has worked on both the "Amityville Horror" and "The Haunting in Connecticut" cases. John's team investigates hauntings pertaining to objects that may be haunted or possessed and are causing paranormal activity to occur. He then removes the objects from the location that is experiencing the haunting and re locates them to his museum in Connecticut. The museum contains hundreds of possessed possessions that he has collected over 30 years.

In one episode, John and his team go the Backside Ale House in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When he arrives, he asks the owner about some of the Native American artifacts he notices displayed around the restaurant. She claims that she purchased an authentic tomahawk and an old whiskey jig from an antique store in Albuquerque. She has also found an arrowhead on the property. His team finds a wooden box that contains a detonator in the attic.

The Backside Ale House claims some unusual occurrences: such as a fireplace that ignited itself, beer taps that open on their own, footsteps and shadows. The gas on the stove turns on by itself.

The team did a daytime sweep and discovered voice responses on the EVP. Also one of the team members experienced hearing footsteps, and seeing shadows outside the bathroom door. All of the team members experienced something burning but there was no fire anywhere.

At night the building seems very hot and the attic has very high EMF readings. John brings the detonator to a coal mining expert the next day. The expert tells John that the old mining box was used for dynamite. He says in the 1920's, there was a mine explosion where several workers were killed. The bodies of these men were never recovered because the mine is still on fire today.

Could this be what is causing the haunting at the "Backside Ale House" The owner asks John if he can take the detonator with him and add it to his museum. He gladly accepts it in hoping to put the haunting to rest.

I went to the Backside Ale House in August 2011. I took photos inside the restaurant and outside on the property. I saw an orb appear next to the hanging fireplace near the bar. I also went into the ladies bathroom and I felt a little uneasy. It felt like someone was in there with me. I snapped a photo near the wall next to the toilet. A huge orb appeared hovering next to me. Could this be one of the spirits of the miners? It seemed to be just as curious about me as I was about it.

When I was seven years old before I was influenced by any of these TV programs, I was convinced that my life sized baby doll was alive and possessed by an evil spirit. It was actually my height at the time. I don’t remember where it came from or even asking for something like that. I remember the doll had blue eyes that seemed to stare at me and watch my every move. At night time it would take on a different mood and almost look real and life like in the shadows. It would be sitting in the chair at the edge of the bed and then suddenly appear in a different part of the room. I don’t ever remember moving it because I didn’t want to touch it. There was something creepy about it and I was afraid to even go near it. There were some other weird occurrences going on in the apartment that I lived in. Such as my brother and I seeing apparitions of an old woman sitting in the same chair rocking back and forth and a misty figure resembling the devil or a demon looming over me when I was trying to sleep. These two stories are in my first book "Walking with Ghosts."

I remember telling my parents about these apparitions. My father opened up the closet and pulled out the huge doll and showed it to us and said" this is what you saw" and dismiss this as our over active imaginations. I protested and said "no that's not what I saw. I saw an old woman and a devil figure at my bed", however this doll was just as scary. I felt really uneasy and sick around the doll. I begged and pleaded with my father to get rid of this doll. When he finally did, I don't recall seeing anything else in the bedroom. I never saw the apparitions again. The room felt lighter and brighter. I didn't feel afraid anymore. I believe there was a negative spirit associated with this doll. It could have possessed this object and caused the occurrences in my bedroom.

Many years later, I asked my father where he bought that huge, life like doll. And he said "I didn't buy it, someone that used to live in the apartment before us must have left it behind". He said when we moved in he found it in the closet.

Another weird incident that happened to me was when I decided to buy a weird looking Halloween decoration. This was much later on when I was in my late 20's.

I saw this 3 ft figure of a devil in a local hardware store called Luhrs in Milford, Pennsylvania. The strange thing is that I would never go into this store all the times that I passed by it. However, something that day made me curious to go inside and check it out. I was in the process of moving and wanted to go look at some various paint colors for my room. As I was walking over to the paint section, I glanced over to my right and discovered the scary looking figure.

The figure had a red porcelain face and small black horns. The hair was coarse and made of a thick straw like material. The body was made of two sticks covered by a burlap robe. The contours of the face were shaped perfectly, given it high cheekbones a pointy nose and chin. The eyes and face were intricately painted making it look very realistic.

When I brought it home, my dog was immediately afraid of it. He would growl and bark at it. I thought it was funny because it was so tall and he was small, he thought it was a real person. My dog Kiki, is a pug, which is a small dog, so anything to him would appear big. The figure had a pitch fork attached to his hand. I would chase my dog with it and he would run away. I then began to realize my dog seemed to be truly frightened of this figure. I decided to stop teasing him with it. I noticed every time he walked by it, he would duck quickly and run away from it. Almost as if it was lounging towards him to grab or startle him. It would fall over and my dog would avoid going near it. I photographed it and some orbs appeared hovering above it and around it. Could there possibly be a spirit attached to this object? I had the figure for a few years and it started to get worn. The face cracked and I decided to dispose of it. The problem was that I got attached to it and I didn't have the heart to get rid of it. I finally moved it out of my apartment and left it in the hallway. I turned it around and faced it towards the wall so it wouldn't startle or scare me when I walked around the corner. Something prevented me from throwing it away. I asked my friend to get rid of it for me. I told her not to tell me when or how she was going to dispose of it, just do it. One day I returned to my apartment after work and I realized the Devil statue was gone. I asked her, when did you get rid of it and she said "today but I had it in my car for a week. I kept riding around with it every day but kept forgetting to throw it away?. I couldn't believe it was finally gone.

I had a startling experience when I attended a ghost tour in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The tour guide brought us up to the attic of the Farnsworth House. He showed us many artifacts such as bullets, swords, guns, and various other objects that were recovered from Devils Den and other haunted areas of the battlefield. They were encased in glass displays but you could get close enough to examine the many artifacts. There were even several hooks that were used to pick up the body parts that were scattered all over the battlefield. Could these objects hold energy from the soldiers that were killed? They could have been holding on to that particular object at the time of death and transfer their energy into that object.

As we were viewing the macabre display, I noticed the door started moving and we could hear banging sounds. The door hinges made a creaking sound and it flew open. The tour guide got startled and closed it behind him. However, it continued to open and close several times during his presentation. He acted as if it didn't bother him. He continued to talk over the commotion. He claimed this type of activity happens frequently and it wasn't anything to be frightened of. Finally, he put a chair against the door and propped it up under the doorknob to stop it from opening up. I found it fascinating that this type of paranormal activity occurred in the room with possible haunted objects.

The popular reality TV show "Ghost Hunters" featured two episodes with haunted objects that were the main premise of the investigation. One was about the "Titanic Museum", which has authentic artifacts from the famous ship that tragically sank. Erie sounds, flashes of light and cold spots have been associated surrounding the Titanic artifacts. In May 2011, I went to the Luxor Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada and photographed the outside of the entrance to the "Titanic Exhibit". I captured several orbs floating above this area. Could the spirits energy trapped in some of the objects still be lingering around after all these years? I think this is possible.

The other episode was about investigating objects that were in Cooperstown, New York at the "Baseball Hall of Fame." There have been many reports of hearing voices near certain pictures, footsteps heard walking in the hallways and dark shadows seen late at night.

The thorough investigations concluded that both museums were haunted. Recently, I was talking to a friend about haunted objects. She told me that since she received a porcelain clown doll from her sister in law she has been experiencing sadness, depression and an overwhelming uneasiness inside her house.

It was ironic that she was experiencing this at the same time I was doing research on haunted dolls. She asked me if I thought negative energy can be associated with certain objects. When she told me that the doll she received was from an antique store, I thought this was definitely possible and asked her if I could see it. We both work together in the same medical facility. She brought it to work the following day. She put it on my desk and sand fell out of it all over my desk. I reached over and touched its hand. I immediately felt nauseous and extremely sad and depressed. I took my hand away and asked her if she could carry it to another room where it was darker so I could photograph it. She agreed, but placed the clown back in the bag and walked over to the back room. When she took it out of the bag she said it felt like it was hard to breathe and she felt sad and depressed again.

I took pictures of the doll with a full spectrum digital camera. This camera is a favorite among ghost hunters. It is able to photograph anomalies in the infrared spectrum of light as well as the ultra violet spectrum of light. This is where ghosts are usually found. A normal camera cannot capture images in these fields. This device is good in ruling out certain anomalies that may appear to be a camera glitch. There is also a higher chance of actually capturing something truly paranormal. I tried taking several pictures of the doll close up and far away. I also took pictures of the doll on my desk and in complete darkness with a flash but the camera could not focus. When I used the flash the picture came out like a blank white screen. Only one clear photo was processed out of all the pictures that I took. It was almost as if the clown didn't want to be photographed. This is typical in some ghost photography. Sometimes a spirit doesn't want to be filmed or photographed. They may manipulate electronic devices in order to prevent this from happening. The most common occurrence is a camera malfunctioning.

My friend told me that she also noticed she started seeing shadows in the first two rooms in the front of the house. Her son saw this as well. He also stated that something grabbed the tail of his shirt and tugged on it. He was startled and turned around quick to see if it was his mother but no one was there. He also felt sad and depressed when he was working in the front room. He said he felt uneasy and like someone was watching him every time he entered this room.

My friend told me that the clown was hanging in the doorway of this particular room. I came to the conclusion that she needed to get rid of this doll. She double bagged it and took it out of the house that day. She claimed the atmosphere of the house changed instantaneously and no longer felt depressed. She felt happier and more energetic like her usual self. Her son also felt the change in the house and no longer felt scared, or sad, or like someone was watching him. Everything in the house went back to normal.

My friend got rid of the clown at our place of employment. It was in her desk drawer for three days before she threw it away.

Ironically, another coworker witnessed an unusual paranormal experience. Within 24 hours after my friend disposed of the doll, he saw a shadow like figure. He saw a face and part of the upper body of a figure peek around the corner, and look directly at him. It was near the doorway to the right side of his desk. He saw it so quick out of the corner of his eye and then it disappeared. He walked over to the door to see if it was a patient that was still in the building. There wasn't anyone there. The area where the sighting happened is near an entryway into the examining rooms. The only people who have access to that area are employees and supervisors. The door has a combination lock with a keypad. There isn't any way a person could sneak through that area. He also said he didn't hear the door click, which usually happens when someone enters the room.

The strange thing is that he sits directly in front of my friend who had the clown doll. This also occurred a few minutes after she left the building when no one else was around to see it but him. Could this possibly be the spirit that was possessing this doll? Was it looking for its host (the clown doll) or possibly my friend? Could it possibly be attached to my friend and confused because it was thrown away at her place of employment?

It seems too coincidental that this happened a day after the doll was thrown away. One of the physician's working in the same area experienced knocking sounds on one of the exam doors. When she opened the door no one was there. This was around the same area where the figure was seen.

After I started researching material for this story I remembered another odd incident that happened to me in 1995. My friend and I would go to the Bushkill Flea Market in Shawnee, Pennsylvania.

As I was walking through the various buildings, I would always end up in a certain corner of a building that housed various guns and swords from the Civil War. I was always fascinated with swords in particular and thought they had a unique beauty to them. I was always drawn to a particular area where this one unusual sword was mounted on a wall.

This flea market was huge and had many inside buildings as well as many outdoor vendors. Sometimes I would get lost, but the weird thing was that no matter where I was lost or wondering around, I would always end up walking past or stopping directly in front of this sword.

One day I decided to pick up the sword. It was very long and thin, with a large handle. It reminded me of a fencing sword. As I held it, I had the impression that many people have been killed with it. I was intrigued with this weapon and I almost bought it. Studying it carefully, I could see every nick and dent. I wondered how this sword could have so much wear and tear on it unless it was definitely used in the Civil War. Years before I knew anything about haunted possessions, I felt this sword held a lot of energy of the victims that were slain and it disturbed me. The negative energy associated with this sword was so overwhelming that I decided not to buy it.

I had been looking at this sword for several years and every time I went to the flea market, I was compelled to go visit it.

I hadn't been to the flea market for quite some time after the day that I held it. Finally, several months later, I went back to look for the sword to show one of my friends. To my amazement, I couldn't find it anywhere. I looked all over. This was so strange because I had decided after many years of contemplation and uncertainty that I would finally purchase the sword. I felt like something had prevented me from buying the sword years before and now I had the courage to finally buy it. How could this sword be gone? It had been hanging on the same wall for years. Could it be possible that someone actually bought this cursed object that haunted me for so many years?

I was very upset and disappointed at the time, but looking back now, I am glad I did not buy it. I truly believe that I would somehow be affected by the negative energy in this sword because I am very sensitive to this type of paranormal activity. Something or someone prevented me from experiencing this situation. I am very thankful for that.

In May of 2012, I went on vacation and traveled to San Antonio, Texas. I visited the Alamo. The Alamo, its remaining buildings, as well as the surrounding area, is one of the most haunted places in the nation. Many deaths have occurred at the site. For two centuries, many tales of apparitions at the old mission have been reported.

I was not able to photograph inside the Alamo or any of the buildings. However, I walked around the grounds and did capture a few orbs around the area were an apparition of a tall man has been seen. I also had a strange incident occur when I entered the Long Barracks. This area was once the first Hospital of Texas. So it makes sense if there is a lot of residual energy left over from people who have died there.

Also between the years of 1724-1793, before the Battle of the Alamo, the ground that takes up most of the Alamo Plaza today was utilized as a cemetery. About a thousand people were buried here during those years. Most of the men fighting on both sides of the battle were also buried in the area.

As I entered the Long Barracks, I noticed that my Trifield Meter, which picks up natural electromagnetic energy, started moving. The needle measured half way on my scale as I got closer to a sword that was encased in a glass. I moved the meter around but it only registered a high reading when it was directly in front of this antique sword that was on loan from legendary drummer Phil Collins from the rock group "Genesis." This sword was used in the Battle of the Alamo. Imagine how many people have died from this sword and how much energy may have been transferred on to this object in order for this meter to detect it.

The Trifield meter does not pick up on any man made electricity or devices only natural energy occurring from the earth. So how could this high spike be explained? Unless it was something paranormal.