  Inquisitor Member Username: Inquisitor Post Number: 10 Registered: 01-2006 Posted From: 205.56.129.195 |
Anyone know of any Ghost Town areas around the city? (No sarcasm please) | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 91 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
http://freepages.history.roots web.com/~gtusa/usa/mi.htm There is a partial list. There is also a book that you can purchase (I bought it in a local book store) but you can get it at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/gp/produ ct/0932212646/002-5852187-6177 613?v=glance&n=283155 There are also some good ghost sighting places around Detroit and they have books in local bookstores for this, also. Happy haunting. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 702 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
Detroit, Michigan, which has long been referred to as the “Motor City,” has a haunted side that can be seen within some of its historical, cultural and religious buildings. The General Motors Plant is the scene for a tale involving the ghost of a man who was crushed to death in the plant in 1944. He was given credit for rescuing another man from dying in the same manner as he. When you want to explore some of the haunted spots throughout Detroit, you will find a handful located at some of the cultural institutions throughout the city. When visiting the Detroit Historical Museum, there is a stain on the floor located on the lower level. The stain smells like sulfur and has been known to disappear when touched. Some workers have said that sometimes an orb appears by the stain. The Detroit Institute of the Arts has an art piece referred to as the “nail figure.” It can be found within the African Gallery. The sculpture has several shards of wood sticking out of it, signifying “nails” of some sort. Some workers have reported that the sculpture can be seen reenacting a tribal dance at night. As you reach the American Gallery, loud crashes have been reported to have been heard in a room that holds a painting by the name of “Court of Death.” More than one security guard patrolling during the night shift has documented this, describing the sound as similar to a very large painting falling. Upon turning on the lights, there is no trace of anything that has created the loud noise. The theater where Harry Houdini put on his last show is called the Majestic on Woodward; and has now been turned into a bowling alley and pool hall. Located below the theater, the building features the former basement which has been transformed into a small room and hallway that has been bricked up because there have been reports of apparitions exiting from this area. A man can also be heard yelling, accompanied by footsteps, when the bowling alley is supposed to be empty. Within the Orchestra Hall where the Detroit symphony plays, images of the second music director, Ossip Gabrilowitsch, has been reported to walk through his former office and rehearsal rooms. Another popular venue for concerts is called St. Andrew Hall, where many ghosts have been reported to be seen wandering about the basement, which is referred to as the Shelter. Some have claimed to be chased up the stairs by ghosts. The locked doors of the shelter have also been known to open and close at will. The Detroit Masonic Temple is a mysterious building with more than 1,000 rooms, including a variety of secret passages and secret floor sections. The man who supported the funding for this building, George D. Mason, eventually lost his money and wife due to the project. He was also forced to claim bankruptcy. Dejected and poor, he jumped off of the roof and killed himself. It has been said that a transparent form, supposedly Mason, has been seen at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the roof. Other claims include: unnatural cold spots, odd shadows and the sound of slamming doors. Other haunted Detroit spots include the University of Detroit’s Marion Hall where the ghosts of nuns have been reported; Our Lady Queen of Angels Parish Hall; the Department of Transportation’s Main Office; and the Henry Ford Hospital. http://www.unexplainable.net/a rtman/publish/printer_2368.sht ml | ||
Aiw Member Username: Aiw Post Number: 5680 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 64.228.201.159 |
For the ten millionth time, Houndini's last performance was at the Garrick NOT the Majestic. | ||
Ed_golick Member Username: Ed_golick Post Number: 319 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 69.246.55.51 |
The ghost of Mr. Whoodini, from CKLW-TV's Bozo show, haunts the Majestic. | ||
Paulmcall Member Username: Paulmcall Post Number: 787 Registered: 05-2004 Posted From: 68.40.119.216 |
I'd suspect there are a few at the Michigan Central Bldg and Ford Auditorium. No doubt a bunch of ghost shoppers at Grand River and Greenfield too. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 711 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
Who ya gonna call ? http://www.semghs.org/ Check out the pics. | ||
Rustic Member Username: Rustic Post Number: 2665 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 128.36.14.165 |
ghost shoppers haunt empty Kmarts looking for boo-light specials ... | ||
Hooha Member Username: Hooha Post Number: 117 Registered: 06-2005 Posted From: 24.145.153.182 |
lol @ rustic | ||
Treble484 Member Username: Treble484 Post Number: 12 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 69.14.92.85 |
The George D Mason Acrhitecture firm designed the Detroit Masonic Temple, his architecture staff worked on the building, he did not fund any of it, and did not jump from its roof. That is fiction. It was and still is currently owned by the Masonic organizations housed in it. Some have come and gone over the years, but the building was entirely paid for by them. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 712 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
Haha Rustic ... I can always count on you. | ||
Pacypacy_ Member Username: Pacypacy_ Post Number: 197 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 24.192.166.67 |
I can remember tales of a ghost or spook or something that was at, I believe, the old Muller egg noodle factory which was in the Raymond and Culver streets area. I think this one made the either the Freep or News say in the mid to late 1960's. | ||
Lilpup Member Username: Lilpup Post Number: 1188 Registered: 06-2004 Posted From: 69.130.18.100 |
I thought the Masons were all out of the Temple now and that it had been sold. Do the Masons still own it and just have a management group running it? | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 96 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
Greenfield Village is also haunted (something you won't hear on the tour...). I used to work there and can attest to the fact that the Wright home, Dagget farm, Firestone Farm among other bldgs are haunted and ghosts can be seen at night.....some of the workers in these homes might just tell you some stories too. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 713 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
And your experiences at GV with the supernatural, Detroitteacher??? Did you have any? Anyway, I live in Indiana, but grew up in a house that could only be described as haunted (there's no other explanation) from 1982 - 1993. My last years there were terrifying. My sister and father later experienced the same. Many nights I thought would be my last. Seriously. | ||
Detroit313 Member Username: Detroit313 Post Number: 130 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 12.45.2.184 |
Are we talking about real ghost.....like poltergist. If so then my family use to live in a haunted house off Mt. Elliot on the eastside. The house was torn down in the early 70's. | ||
Motorcitymayor2026 Member Username: Motorcitymayor2026 Post Number: 991 Registered: 10-2005 Posted From: 24.231.189.137 |
Hysteria, Care to explain?? | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 714 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
There's a lot to explain so I will be brief ... At night during my final two years in the house, while attempting to go to sleep (I was much younger and would regularly stay up until 2:00AM or whatever) I would hear someone/something coming up the stairs (creaking) to the hallway where my bedroom was (I lived in a quad level house). There would be scratching at the bedroom door which was closed (I slept with a fan on and it was rather loud). You wouldn't hear the door open but rather hear the the floor creak as footsteps moved toward your bed and then stop at the edge of the bed. I could not move. I could hear my heart beating and my eyelashes moving on the pillow case, etc. and sometimes would feel something move across the bed close to my feet. Occasionally, certain it was my last night to be alive, I would turn to confront whatever it was in my room and there would be nothing there. Guests in the house would hear similar noises. I often thought it was someone playing a joke on me, but it wasn't. Once we heard kitchen cabinets opening and closing at night. My sister and I heard pots and pans being taken out of the cupboard below the stove. We got the courage to check downstairs and there was nothing there. Sometimes during the evening when my parents were out we would hear the garage open and footsteps across the kitchen floor as if they had returned home (we were downstairs in the family room). It was not my parents ... After I went on to college my sister and mom lived in the house alone. One night my sister was so certain there was someone in the house she ran down to my mom's bedroom (two floors down) and got the gun. My mom was asleep (she is a nurse and worked evenings). My sister went back upstairs to face the predator and once again, nothing was there. My sister and I have been certain many times that we would not make it through the night. Now, it's time for you all to make fun of me ... Sadly, what I tell you is true. Since leaving the house no experiences like this have happened. (Message edited by HYSTERIA on July 09, 2006) | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 715 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
BTW, this wouldn't happen every night. Maybe once a week or sometimes several nights a week. | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 97 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
Hysteria: Yes, I had many experiences with ghosts at GV. I worked in the barn and tended the horses and gave tours, weddings and such. Most of these things happened at night. Dagget farm has a pungent pipe smell in November (when Sam Dagget would return home after working all summer at another plantation)....Firestone Farm has Sally....a Firestone daughter. Her upstairs bedroom has had many instances. Curtains and furniture moved when no one else is in the house, an apparition appearing in the window...someone drinking cups of coffee (namely mine) as we prepared for the day (hitching horses for field work) at Firestone barn. Spirits of horses in the William Ford Barn....stormy night after a wedding....we were drenched and up in the loft changing out of wet clothes to dry....we heard horses tramping back and forth in the barn....upon going back downstairs, all horses were in stalls and chained....The Wright home...people (the sister) in room windows upstairs..furniture being moved...yes I saw them...The Henry Ford birthplace caught on fire about 10 years back...the only original piece int hat house was a spinning wheel of HF's mother. That is the only piece not destroyed by the fire. I was there that morning...working right across the walkway from the HF birthplace. Like I said, most of this happened at night during evening programs or when we were leaving after those programs.....there are many more instances and a book is in the works (at least it was) from staffers and former staff at the village about the ghost experiences we've had. Very spooky. If you talk to some of the staff persons, specially at Firestone and ask about Sally, they'll tell you. | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 98 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
Hysteria: I've also had similar experiences in my home. I am the 3rd owner. It's a 1920 farmhouse. The owner, a Mrs' Smith was a widow with 6 kids. My closet door will not stay closed, despite the things I put in front of it. I've ben pushed down the stairs (I felt hands pushing me...no one else was in the house). My dogs won't go to certain parts of the house. I hear footsteps upstairs when I am in bed, tools have come up missing while working on projects...all my windows were shut during a storm when I wasn't home...I had left them open. My ghost is weird....at first she was resistant to me living here (the 2nd owner was her grandson) and she did pass away upstairs, but of natural causes. I guess she figured out that I was restoring the house and not ruining it, she became nicer (shutting my windows). Many other things have happend, but if I mentioned them all, they'd cart me off to the looney bin. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 724 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
Oh, wow. I guess I had it good compared to you, Detroitteacher. Where do you live? I have lived in five different places since living in that house. My only nightmares EVER, are of living in there. The house I lived in was built in the late '50s early '60s and each couple/family that has lived there since (as of 1993 it was five)has ended up divorced. (Message edited by HYSTERIA on July 09, 2006) | ||
Motorcitymayor2026 Member Username: Motorcitymayor2026 Post Number: 993 Registered: 10-2005 Posted From: 24.231.189.137 |
thanks for the stories detroitteacher and hysteria. I find this subject to be very interesting, and mind boggling. | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 100 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
I live in the older section of Dearborn. Like I said, I am the 3rd owner of this house.....and I have had weird dreams of dead relatives speaking to me and before I bought this house, that had never happened. Very weird at best. I also think there is a ghost cat. I have a cat who continually fights as if she is fighting with another cat...but no other cat is there, it's just her. I also feel cat steps on my bed at night, roll over and no cat..... We've ripped apart my closet, down the the bare plaster, ripped up the floor. Found old newspaper stuffed in there (not as insultion either) with something wrapped in it. Unfortunately, the thing that was wrapped in it fell into the wall so it is somewhere between the upstairs and the main floor. If I had enough money and enough guts, I'd rip out the wall and see what it was but the whole house is that old paster and it's a biatch to replace and tear down. Living with ghost in harmony, I suppose. At least she stopped pushing me down the stairs. | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 733 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
As Motorcity said above ... very interesting. | ||
Gargoyle Member Username: Gargoyle Post Number: 15 Registered: 04-2006 Posted From: 24.192.189.109 |
I used to work midnights at Harper Hospital. Room 517 in the south corridor of the Brush Building (the Albert Khan designed portion of the hospital) was haunted by an older gentleman in striped pajamas who only appeared to terminally ill female patients housed in that room. Although the staff never saw him, reports of him from the ladies who did were all identical: he would exit the bathroom in the room and stand by the bed for a few moments, then go out into the hallway pushing his IV pole. We initially dismissed these reports as perhaps other patients on the floor wandering into that room by mistake until he was sighted by an Arabic lady whose daughter stayed with her around the clock to translate and do personal tasks. The daughter came to the nurses station very upset because she said her mother was having hallucinations. She kept asking the daughter who the man was by the bed, but of course the daughter didn't see anyone there. We finally asked one of the visiting priests to bless the room and suggest to the ghost that he "walk toward the light". There were no more reports of him after that. Makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it. | ||
Tammypio Member Username: Tammypio Post Number: 70 Registered: 04-2005 Posted From: 68.43.85.165 |
Am I the only one who is dying to find out what was wrapped in newspaper at Detroitteacher's home and fell into the wall? THAT was an intriguing and odd thing. Thanks for all the great stories....they definitely made ME go hmmmmmm! | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 182 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 152.163.100.8 |
Tammy: YOU are curious??? Tell me about it. If I didn't have plaster walls and just had drywall, I'd be tearing them down!! Just too messy top start dealing with 1920 plaster (already did that and it wasn't pretty). If I ever do find out, I'll post it as I'll be doing some more renovating and one just never knows what I might start ripping apart. BTW, the newpaper was dated October 1920 (we managed to get some of it out before it fell to its death in the wall). | ||
Tammypio Member Username: Tammypio Post Number: 71 Registered: 04-2005 Posted From: 68.43.85.165 |
Oh I can just imagine how curious you must be. This is a very cool story you have shared with us! I look forward to finding out about the mystery newspaper package in the future! This reminds me of the show on HGTV called If Walls Could Talk. People are always finding very odd things around their old homes. So..yes, Detroitteacher...keep us updated! | ||
Lilpup Member Username: Lilpup Post Number: 1198 Registered: 06-2004 Posted From: 69.130.18.100 |
C'mon, Detroitteacher, all you need is a good flashlight, a hole in the wall to fish through, and some patience. The older houses don't have fire breaks so if the thing had any weight to it and the wall doesn't have plumbing or ductwork, it's probably sitting at the main floor level. Consider it a challenging game. Or a good excuse to put in a clothes chute. | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 185 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 205.188.116.137 |
Aha, hence the issue. It's stuck between floors. My bedroom closet overhangs on the stairs going downtairs (they curve). So, I'd have to rip out the whole ceiling to my stairway...it will eventually get done but I'm not into messing with the plaster at the moment. More pressing things to work on. I am dying to know what it is...and, my house has a hard time taking nails in the walls. They seem to bounce right back (it's like hammering into a steel door). I need to figure out a good game plan and start dating a carpenter! | ||
Paulj Member Username: Paulj Post Number: 448 Registered: 12-2003 Posted From: 68.248.75.129 |
theres metal mesh under that plaster... try drilling a small pilot hole and then puttign a wall anchor in that, and use a screw :-) home-depot atcha | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 189 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
Paul: It's weird but even drilling doesn't work (the bit will only go so far into the wall then stops). We thought of that one a while ago. I'd love to see HGTV come in here!! | ||
Wabashrr1 Member Username: Wabashrr1 Post Number: 192 Registered: 03-2006 Posted From: 172.129.213.226 |
That's because the plaster is more cement than plaster. It may be on wood lathe rather than wire as well which is fine until it breaks loose from the wood. If you want to drill through it, use a masonary bit. Great stories btw but I wonder if it's what the OP was after.. I think of ghost towns, I think of places that were long ago abandoned (plenty in Detroit, I know) not creatures from beyond.. | ||
Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie Post Number: 526 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 35.12.22.122 |
Larry Wakefield has written several books in recent years about ghost towns throughout Michigan. The books are readily available at major bookstores. Roy Dodge's classic "Michigan Ghost Towns" books from the early '70s are a good resource but only cover the northern lumber country. Around Metro Detroit, the first ghost town I always think of is Kensington, of which little now survives except its cemetery. It's on Grand River just west of the Kent Lake Rd. I-96 exit. From http://www.milfordhistory.org/ September_2004_newsletter.htm ------------------------------ ------------------- The Ghost Town of Kensington Most of those traveling along Grand River Avenue and crossing the bridge over the Huron River are unaware that the town of Kensington once existed at this site. Paralleling Grand River today is I-96, bordered by Kensington Metropark on the north side, and Island Lake State Recreation Area to the south. The town was later known as Kent. Why here? To begin with, Grand River, a former Indian trail, was a main east-west toll road. Stagecoaches once rumbled back and forth between Detroit and Lansing. Rivers were used as transportation routes and a source of water power. Thus, the junction of a river and a main road was a logical site for developing a town. The completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 resulted in an enormous influx of immigrants from the east into the Great Lakes region. Rapid population growth in the 1830s gave rise to many aspiring communities, some of which were destined for success, some to failure. Kensington, unfortunately, was in the latter category. Initially, there were high expectations. The first building erected was a sawmill operated by Joel Redway. Constructed in 1834, it served the community for many years, using waterpower from the Huron River. Before long, with an increase in population, other businesses became established. The town had two hotels, a large livery stable, three general stores, a doctor's office, a church, a post office, a tavern, a bank, and a blacksmith shop. Besides serving as a tavern, the "Kensington Inn" also served as a doctor's office. The attending physician, however, was not a licensed practitioner. According to many long-time residents of the area, "Doctor" Tom Curtis was a patent medicine man who specialized in back plasters made from sawdust and red pepper. In addition to dabbling in the healing arts, Dr. Curtis also practiced "painless" dentistry, relying on whiskey from his tavern as the anesthetic. As in most small towns, homes often served dual purposes. The home of Abe Wood, a one-armed Civil War veteran, served as the Kensington Post Office until 1900. Thus, Kensington appeared to have a promising future due to the favorable location and rapid growth. Yet, it became a ghost town by 1890. What went wrong? With its location on the Huron River, it was suggested that a dam be constructed to provide waterpower for the town. However, this proposal was not supported by landowners' up-river. Such a project, they felt, would flood their lands. Therefore, no dam was built. During the 1830s a period of inflated and worthless currency came into being. It was during this period that the Kensington Bank was founded (late-1837). Founders of the bank included Alfred Dwight and Sherman Dix. The original stockholders sold stock to other residents, among them Neil Butterfield and Chauncey Crouse. In 1838, the holders began to issue notes. When sales did not proceed as well as expected, Dwight and Dix left for Milwaukee, unbeknownst to the remaining holders. They disposed of several thousand bank notes, keeping the proceeds. The Michigan Legislature passed laws requiring banking corporations to show real estate security. As the only two landholders, Butterfield and Crouse issued a reward for the return of Dwight and Dix. Shortly afterwards, the two were arrested in Milwaukee and returned to Kensington. We have no knowledge of the trial's outcome. As with many "wildcat banks," the Kensington Bank collapsed due to a lack of assets. The building later became a Free Methodist Church, and then a storage shed. Bank notes form the Kensington Bank became worthless, perhaps being relegated to use as wallpaper or tinder. Today, the surviving notes are collectibles, with a value far exceeding their original denominations. Kensington Bank circa 1970 As the town's economy faltered, many residents moved away without notifying their creditors. After many months of non-payment, their eastern creditors came to check on their debtors and found empty stores. Thus, all unpaid bills became known as goods that had "gone to Kent." A later factor was the lack of a railroad. At that time, a railroad was essential to the economic success of a community. Towns competed with each other to attract a railroad. In 1871, rail lines were built. Milford and South Lyon were on railroad routes, Kensington wasn't. Today, remnants of the town are few. Two cemeteries exist, one along Grand River west of the town site, the other at the junction of Grand River and Kensington Road. At the latter is a bronze plaque marking the former site of the Kensington Baptist Church, a stone edifice erected in 1853, razed in 1952. We have a tendency to equate the term "ghost town" with the mining towns of the far west or perhaps to the abandoned lumber, copper and iron mining communities of northern Michigan. However, the Detroit area has some of its' own. Kensington no longer exists as a town but the name survives as the first of the Huron-Clinton Metroparks that were established in the five-county region around Detroit. Contributed by Bob Hataling, Supervisory Interpretive Naturalist, Kensington Nature Center ------------------------------ --------------------- Like Wakefield and Dodge, I don't necessarily define a "ghost town" as necessarily having any buildings surviving. It simply needs to be a former town site, not altered much by newer development. | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 194 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 205.188.116.137 |
Wabash: Yes, the original post was about towns. Somehow we got on the topic of ghosts and it just went from there  | ||
Hysteria Member Username: Hysteria Post Number: 847 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 216.223.168.132 |
And we haven't heard from Inquisitor since! | ||
Detroitteacher Member Username: Detroitteacher Post Number: 196 Registered: 06-2006 Posted From: 64.12.116.204 |
But we've had some interesting stories floating around here (pun intended). |
