Tag Archives: Haunted House

The Ghost on the Stairs

Nationality: American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: November 12, 2013
Primary Language: English

                In the house where I lived there used to be a family that lived there and they moved to the city while we were still there because their oldest daughter was still in high school and there were two brothers.  One was a senior in high school and the other was a sophomore in college and they were at a party one night and they were drunk and they had an argument because one of the brothers was going to join the army and the other one was like, “That’s really stupid, don’t do that.”, and so it got so heated that the younger one was like, “Fine.  I’ll just walk home. Don’t give me a ride.”  So, he decided he was going to walk across the freeway and he didn’t make it home and he got hit by a car.  So like in my house.. so his bedroom was right next to my bedroom and we’ve had people come over to our house who don’t like believe in ghosts and spirits and they’ve sworn that when they are coming up the stairs that they’ll like see something at the top of it or they feel a presence there and we assume that it’s the ghost of the boy.

                This story was the first story told in a ghost story telling session.  She was perfectly calm and was eager to tell the story and while she told the story a friend made sounds effects such as screaming during the car crash and a ghostly moan with the mention of seeing the ghost at the top of the stairs.  She truly believes that her house is haunted by the boy who wanted to join the army, but they find that he isn’t a bad ghost, but rather just haunts the house.  The boy’s death was a bad death, because he died young and after a heated argument, which is probably the reason why he became a ghost and haunts this house.  The popular stair motif is exhibited in this story, since at the the top of the stairs is usually the location in which people see the ghost of the boy.  I believe her when she says that her house is haunted by the ghost of the son of the family that previously lived there.

The House on Hodgsen Road

“Alright, It’s recording”
“Ok, so when I was a young man we lived in a house. The address was 5900 Hodgsen Rd. (St. Paul, Minnesota). And we were pretty sure from when we moved in that the house was haunted and probably had some kind of spirit or some kind of soul there was something in the house. And we weren’t sure exactly what it was but there were different things that happened that made us think that something was, probably indicating that there was spirit in the house. So, a couple of things that happened to my family members, not necessarily me, but family members. One thing was my sister Debbie, she was home alone one day and she had gone upstairs to take a shower and when she was in the shower she heard something from the wall like a scratching on the wall and she wasn’t sure what it was and the bathroom was right next door to her bedroom, her bedroom was right at the end of the hall and that’s where the bathroom was. So, she took a shower, and she got out of the shower and when she went into her bedroom, she looked in her closet and all of her hangers which were originally spaced throughout the entire closet were now all pushed to one side of the closet. So, of course at this point, she thought that someone was in the house, but, so she freaked out and didn’t know what was going on in the house and got scared and then realized that there was nobody in the house. She was there by herself, still alone, and nobody was in the house, none of us had come home, we’re all out of town. So that was her experience.
Now the experience of my brother was, he was not necessarily the best kid in the family, and he would sleep in the basement because that gave him the opportunity to sneak out, there was a window he could open and he could sneak out at night. So one day he was at the house, and he snuck out in the middle of the night and then he came home, and he went a laid down on the bed that he was sleeping in that was on floor because it was a mattress on the floor it wasn’t anything specific in the basement it was just a place to sleep. So, he snuck back in, laid down and closed his eyes, and it was dark in the basement and the next thing he knew he heard footsteps coming up to him and of course he’s petrified because he’s sure that it is my dad coming to say something to him about why he snuck out and he thought that he was busted for sure and so his heart’s racing and he’s nervous and thinking that he’s going to get busted for sneaking out of the house. So he’s laying in bed and all of the sudden footsteps are approaching him sneaking up on him step by step, step by step, all the way to the side of his bed, and then they stopped, and he keeps his eyes closed pretending like he’s sleeping pretending like he’s been there the whole time and he waits about 20 seconds and he opens his eyes, there’s nobody there. And at that point he thought my dad was down there, but he wasn’t down there, he was no where to be found, all there was was the footsteps with nothing in front of him. Of course at this point he freaked out, much like my sister did, and ran upstairs. I think that was the last time he slept in the basement.
Personally, my only real feeling that there was something wrong in the house was being a young man that always felt like when I was walking down a hall or being in the basement or going up the stairs from the basement there always felt like there was someone behind me, or something behind me. So I, it was kind of an eerie feeling and I spent most of my childhood running down halls quickly and making sure lights were turned on when I was walking down halls because I always felt like there was somebody, somebody behind me. And there never was, I never had any personal experience, just besides and eerie creepy feeling that I was being followed or watched or there was a presence that was there, but there wasn’t anything so…”
“Do you think there was a ghost in your house?”
“Well, from all the indications that we experienced and everyone’s experiences with it, I’d say yes, there was. And I think my parents, spoke with the people that live in the house now at some point and they said that there was some strange occurrences, that they experienced too so…It was an older house, it was built in 1910, it was an old farmhouse, so I’m not sure exactly what the spirit was, but we were pretty sure that there was some kind of a spirit there.”
That was the account of my father, Major Kevin Grant Heinonen. I’d heard this story once or twice before growing up. The setting in which we recorded it in was appropriately strange. A diner in Santa Monica, terribly filthy, rundown, with some of the oldest wait staff I’ve ever encountered, also, apparently the site where one of the scenes in the movie Zodiac was filmed. The atmosphere of the diner was unsettling and it provided a good backdrop.
My father isn’t given over to flights of fancy. As an officer in the Army he really can’t be. The details of the story, the age of the house, the problems the new residents had, and the details about the experiences that my father’s siblings had sell the story for me. I can agree that there is strong evidence of my father’s childhood home being haunted.

The Previous Resident

Nationality: Caucasian
Age: 18
Occupation: USC Student
Residence: University Housing - Dorm
Performance Date: November 12th, 2013
Primary Language: English

My friend once told me about his dad experiencing some spooky stuff when he was just out of college. He was in his early 20s. He didn’t have too much money at the time. I forget which town he lived in, but he was desperately trying to find a place to rent. Eventually, he realized that it would be financially wise to rent just one room in a house. So he found a location that allowed him to pay for just a bedroom. The seller though had to disclose information that the previous resident who rented the room was a criminal. In fact, this guy apparently was a brutal murderer. I don’t know if he did it in the house, the room, or whatever. But supposedly no one was renting out the other rooms at the time. This guy had the entire house to himself when he lived there. Well, my friend’s dad was pretty curious and would often meander around the house looking for history or clues as to what exactly happened. I guess he started lifting up the carpets and found some sort of satanic markings on the floorboards. After that, my friend’s dad said he always felt some sort of presence in the house. Especially when walking up the staircase. He always felt like someone or something was accompanying him from the first to last step.

 

I heard this story in a USC cafeteria around 3:30pm during a late lunch. The informant is a good friend of mine. He heard this story from a friend of his, who heard it from their father. The father directly experienced this event. My friend thinks it’s creepy, “especially the satanic markings part.”

I found a multitude of ghostly motifs in my informant’s tale. These motifs include satanic markings, murder, and the renting of property with abnormal history. Though the motif that stands out to me most would be the staircase. Ghosts are liminal beings and tie themselves to liminal times, events, and locations. Staircases are arguably liminal locations because they are neither the bottom or top floor of a house. I find it interesting then, that my informant explicitly states that his friend’s father felt the most discomfort on the staircase than in any other part of the house.

The Bell Witch Haunting

Nationality: Asian-American
Age: 18
Occupation: Student
Residence: Nashville, Tennessee
Performance Date: April 2007
Primary Language: English
Language: Mandarin

“The legend of Bell Witch is a famous haunted house story in Tennessee.  There was once a farmer named John Bell who moved to a farm land in what is now known as Adams, Tennessee.  One day, John saw a strange animal in the field, so he tried to shoot it and it disappeared.  After that incident, the members of the family began hearing strange noises around the house.  The noises got worse and the family started hearing voices as well.  Soon, they were physically affected when the spirit would actually pull their hair, slap their faces, throw things, and much more.  After the presence became extremely unbearable, John decided ask around to receive help.  No one was able to get rid of the spirit because it was so powerful.  In the end, John got very sick and the spirit finally killed him after it poisoned him.  Today, it is believed that some areas in Adams are haunted because of Bell Witch.  Visitors have supposedly heard voices and sounds of laughter.  Also, people have taken pictures on the property, but the developed pictures would show a man standing behind the visitor in the picture.”

This legend is popular in Tennessee, so my informant heard about it after she moved to Tennessee from Texas several years ago.  Her friends and neighbors also mention the Bell Witch legend occasionally because of its popularity.  Theresa learned more about the legend after the movies Bell Witch Haunting and An American Haunting were made.  The movies provided her with a more thorough understanding of the story and the haunting that went on in the Bell house.
Because she has been exposed to this well-known legend as a Tennessee resident, my informant thinks about the story when the topic of haunted houses comes up.  Haunted houses remind her of the legend of Bell Witch, so she shares what she knows with people who don’t know the story.
Even though she shares this legend with those unfamiliar with it, she does not believe that it is true.  She does not believe in ghosts, so she does not think that the incidents that happened at the Bell house had to do with spirits and witches.  Although the tale of Bell Witch contains many supernatural occurrences, she does not have any explanation as to why the Bell family was taunted by a spirit.
Since I do believe in ghosts, I think that this story is highly credible.  Some of the incidents in the story do not really make sense, but I think that the Bell family could very likely have been haunted by Bell Witch.  There would not be a legend like this or recent incidents if none of this were true.  The fact that there are museums, researchers, and attractions dedicated to Adams, Tennessee reveals the legitimacy of the legend.  Visitors have experienced supernatural confrontations that relate back to the Bell family.  I do think that the property is haunted, even though I’m not quite sure I believe the entire background story.

Annotation:
Fitzhugh, Pat.  “The Bell Witch Haunting.”  The Bell Witch “Keeping the Story Real.”  16 Jan     2007.  21 April 2007 <http://www.bellwitch.org/story.htm>.

La Casa Matusita A

Nationality: Peruvian
Age: 62
Residence: San Francisco, CA
Performance Date: December 17,2012
Primary Language: Spanish

This house situated in Downtown Lima, Peru is the most famous haunted structure in the entire country. It is famous throughout, you can ask anyone in Lima, and they will all know of it whether they believe in paranormal phenomena or not. The house was first brought to my attention when I moved to Peru by one of my maids, she told me all about it and then my mother confirmed the stories circulated, but said they were all made up. During her last visit, I had her recount a couple of versions of the story of the Matusita which she knew (there are dozens):
At the turn of the twentieth century, there lived in the house a cruel man with two servants (cook and butler). During dinner with friends, the servants decided to get their revenge and poison their master and his friends with hallucinogenic substances. They served the tampered dinner and locked the door of the dining room. A few minutes later, the servants heard  a horrible scuffle. They waited until the noises ceased and then when they opened the door, they saw that the diners were torn to pieces, there was blood spread everywhere. The servants felt terribly guilty and took their lives right there. This version is said to explain the loud voices, conversation and laughter followed by blood curling cries and sepulchral silence that neighbors and passerbyers have attributed to the house.  It is said that if they get close to the house or look in, they will go mad at the sights of gore and debauchery inside.
This version shows the rift between the master and his servants which can be extended to the sentiments that the indigenous and African workers feel towards their European (and later on Asian) masters. This tension is found to this very day since in Peru there is a very strong, but passive racist undercurrent that is perpetuated from generation to generation and never confronted. The race of the master is left unsaid in some versions of the story like this one (it is implied he was white); however , there are also versions that connect this version to version b which I also discuss. In those versions, the master is Asian and a descendent of the Chinese family who lived in the house in the 19th century.