AMERICAN GHOST SOCIETY

HAUNTINGS:  residual energy Presented by Troy Taylor, Author of the GHOST HUNTER'S GUIDEBOOK and President of the American Ghost Society

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RESIDUAL HAUNTINGS
This type of phenomena is much more common than people think and I would even go as far as to say that it is the most common type of reported phenomena around. We have to remember not to confuse this type of phenomena with an "Intelligent" haunting because, while it is fascinating and unexplained, it may not be specifically related to ghosts.

The easiest way to explain this haunting is to compare it to an old film loop, meaning that it is a scene or image that is played over and over again through the years. Many of these locations, where these hauntings take place, experience an event or a series of events, which imprints itself on the atmosphere of a place. This event can suddenly discharge and play itself at various times. The events are not always visual either, they are often replayed as sounds and noises that have no explanation. The famous "phantom footsteps" reported in many haunted places are a perfect example of this.

Often the sounds and images recorded are related to traumatic events which took place at the location and caused some sort of disturbance, which we might call "psychic impression", to happen there. This is the reason why so many battlefields have become famous for their hauntings over the years.

In other situations, the images have been created by events or actions that were repeated over and over again and cause an impression. Researchers have suggested that there exist so many haunted staircases because of the number of times people go up and down them and the amount of energy that is expended in doing so.

These locations act as giant storage batteries, saving up the impressions of sights and sounds from the past. Then, as the years go by, these impressions appear again as if a film projector has started to run.

How is this possible? No one really knows for sure but there have been lots of suggestions. Some believe that the building materials of the structure may absorb the energy. In England and Europe, some have suggested that the porous stones of the castle walls may soak up that energy and that may explain why there are so many haunted old buildings there. This might be the case.... even though it would not explain why we have residual haunts in America without the castles. Still, we should remember that many of these residual hauntings do occur in older structures, so there might be something to this idea. Personally, I think it is more likely that the number of people passing through old homes, and the tapestry of history played out in them, are the main reasons why these "hauntings" come into existence.

I have another suggestion though, in which residual hauntings might be related to underground water sources. I have not done an extensive survey of such sites, but I do know of several residually haunted locations which are located above underground sources of water. One site, where I have conducted a number of investigations, is the old gymnasium at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois. Over the years, there have been numerous reports of strange sights and sounds in the old gym and I have found it to be one of the most active residual sites in the area. As it happens, the gym was built directly on top of an underground water source. Around 1900, when the university was being built, the future site of the gym was a small lake. The lake was drained and forced underground, where it remains today.

SIGNS OF A RESIDUAL HAUNTING: Sometimes, this type of activity can make itself known in similar ways to an "Intelligent" haunting, but the most important signs will be different. A spirit, or an image in this case, will not interact with any of the living occupants of the location. The activity, and the sightings, will be random. There will be no missing items. While doors and windows may open and close by themselves, it will be because of energy expending itself and not because of spirit activity. Commonly reported in these cases are sounds of footsteps, walking and breathing and odd, usually repetitive sounds. Apparitions are commonly reported but they will not notice the living persons around them and will usually repeat the same actions over and over again. It is much more common to visibly spot an image in this type of haunting but remember, there will be no consciousness behind it.

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