Tales of a haunted oil well on the edge of Rosedale Cemetery in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania spread in 1910. Residents reported hearing “blood-curdling groans” and desperate pleas: Help! Let me out! I’m being smothered! A party decided to investigate as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports: It was found that a pipe extended from the casing of the well back into … Continue reading It was (another) pipe.
It was a drainage pipe.
Residents of Joplin, Missouri found out their local ghost story was just “a pipe dream” according to the Joplin Globe (1929). A disembodied voice that sounded like it was coming from the “bowels of the earth” was repeatedly heard near a cottage at 12th Street and Michigan Avenue. A ghost moving around in a pasture next to … Continue reading It was a drainage pipe.
It was the wind.
A schoolhouse in Frankfort, Indiana was believed to be haunted by a man named Entrekin who fell from the three-story brick building (possible image of the school here). “At night,” the The Indianapolis News reported, when the wind cries plaintively among the nooks and crannies of the old building, the believers in ghosts declare that … Continue reading It was the wind.
It was a poodle.
On March 16, 1916, The Republic of Meyersdale, Pennsylvania reported the alleged haunting of a recently deceased Mr. Jonathan Albright. The veteran’s ghost was said to have driven his family out their home (in Meyersdale) on two occasions. “On one occasion several weeks ago, ” The Republic reported, “the family averred, he came and stood … Continue reading It was a poodle.
It was paint.
On the night of February 2, 1932, a ghost was reported roaming around northern Indianapolis. When deputy sheriffs went to investigate, they found John McCarthy (age 24) covered "head to foot" in white paint. He was the passenger of an automobile carrying paint, which overturned and left him painted white. McCarthy was arrested for drunkenness … Continue reading It was paint.
It was a robe.
People reported a flying ghost accompanied by “screeching noises” in an abandoned cemetery in North Manchester, Indiana. An investigation by skeptics revealed the source: […] it was found that mischievous boys had stretched wires across the grounds from fence to fence from which was suspended a woman’s nightrobe. This was drawn back and forth by … Continue reading It was a robe.
It was moonshine.
Witnesses saw odd lights in an old and isolated schoolhouse in Emerson, Manitoba. Citizens assumed ghosts. The theory that it was spirits was not entirely wrong. The lights were from nightly sessions of making moonshine (“and not the Sir Oliver Lodge variety”). “On the teacher’s platform,” The Star Press reported, “they [the police] found a huge still, with a … Continue reading It was moonshine.
It was a possum.
The Dalbaugh Family had an issue with their couch. Each time they sat on it, wires would poke out and cause a painful jab. The cause? Surely a ghost! An investigation of the couch revealed that a possum had "mistaken it for a hollow tree," deciding it was the best location for their winter hibernation. … Continue reading It was a possum.
It Was Not a Ghost 