Wednesday, I shared part one of the McPike Mansion photo tour and, yesterday, I shared part two. Today, we participate in a Seance and finish out the tour!
After we got to look inside the upstairs of the house and had the presentation on the family history of the property, a very nice lady took center stage. She introduced herself and said she was a medium and would be giving us some tips on being courteous to the spirits and being open to paranormal activity in the basement cavern we were about to enter. She said the device she uses were Dowsing Rods, explained how to use them, and said that she would be handing out six or eight sets to various audience members to use during the seance session. And, low and behold, she chose your humble narrator as one of the lucky audience participants to get a set of rods!
After the presentation, we headed around to the back of the building, down the dark trail, and in to one of the doors leading to the cellar.
They had some paranormal investigation equipment on display…
They directed us into an arched chamber with a single entrance. It was going to fill up rapidly, I could tell. Maybe not the best place for someone who is claustrophobic, but I was excited.
The owner and the medium took their places at the front. They warned us that the large iron doors would be shut and the lights turned out. They asked us to turn off our cellphones and refrain from taking pictures until after the seance. After the room was full and every chair taken, they closed the door and plunged us into nearly total darkness.
Now, I have to say, I used the dowsing rods briefly, but I handed them The Girl Child, so she could have some fun with them as well. (You can see the picture of that here, where I shared that and her portrait I made of her in the front of the house.) I could not say that I saw or felt anything paranormal, but at one point, The Girl Child felt that one of the rods was being tugged out of her hand. It startled her to the point that she leaned over and asked me if I was messing with her, which I wasn’t.
At one point, just before they turned the lights back on and ended the seance, they allowed us to go ahead and take some flash pictures, to see if we caught anything on camera. I didn’t, but you can get a feel for how crowded the small room was.
And that brought us to the end of our evening! After the lights were turned on, The Hubs, The Girl Child, and I had to get back home, since we had an hour’s drive ahead of us and Monday was a school day. But, I really enjoyed our visit to the mansion and would love to do it again! If you get the opportunity to visit, I strongly recommend you go. The owners are so nice and generous with their time and information and you will be getting a great experience and helping to preserve a gorgeous and historic property in the bargain! It’s a win-win!
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