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Letter from The Owner Of Baerbrook Cottage

The Baerbrook Cottage Investigation

November 17, 2005, 7:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M.

Members Present: Diane Pryor, Kieran Pryor , and Curtis Morgan.

When PIP arrived for the pre-investigation interview at the private residence in Canadensis on Saturday, November 12, 2005, the group members were immediately overcome with the sense that Christine and Cliff Torban and their daughter, Sam, were not the only inhabitants of the beautiful, cozy home.

The gracious couple was more than cooperative, and explained their reasons for contacting the group. According to them, the eleven room (including the attic and cellar), remodeled home has been the focal point of what witnesses claim are, for lack of a better word, hauntings.

Witnesses include Sam, two of her friends, Cliff and Christine, one of Christine's friends, and members of the building crew. Some of the phenomena witnessed include footsteps, knocking inside the closet, the door to another closet unlatching and opening, the sound of a boy humming, sewage-like odors on the stairway, but only detected when one is descending the stairs, what felt like drops of water on Cliff's lips, the movement of objects, and the appearance of what Sam describes as a beam of light which appears "foggy with sparkles." Even the family dog howls and does not feel comfortable in the home. Another dog, now deceased, would just stare in to one of the corners of the house.

One evening, when Sam and Christine spent the night in the house, alone, the keys, which were in the locks of the old furniture, "jiggled independently."

During the reconstruction of the home, paranormal phenomena occurred 2 - 3 times per week. Two of the carpenters felt threatened by the phenomena.

On many of the photos taken during the reconstruction, myriad orbs can be seen, especially on photos of what is now the attic.

On the night of the pre-investigation interview, Kieran's camera failed, and his tape recorder, into which he had just placed new batteries, was drained of its energy.

The investigation was set for Thursday, November 17, 2005.

This is what Curtis had to say of his investigation of the home:

"While I feel that this home definitely is inhabited by a SET number of spirits, I also feel that there are "visitors" who roam between this particular home and the one next door to it. I also felt the presence of animals in and around the property.

'These "feelings" I have were felt BEFORE entering the home or talking to the owners. I arrived early on the day of the initial interview and while I sat out in my car, I got impressions of the place and the area and jotted them down on the back of the directions I had to get to the place. I kept them in my pocket until after the group spoke to the owners and after we had the chance to walk through the home. Many items we spoke of were on my list.

'For instance, I felt a rocking chair and pets buried on the property played a major part in the home and had a connection to the house down the road from it. We later discovered the latter was part of the original homestead and was part of the house next door's property.

'A TV antenna also was mentioned in my notes and, while walking the two properties, I saw that an old TV antenna was lying on the ground between the 2 houses.

'Cutting to the chase, I want to say that there is a good honest aura about the house despite its being a "new" space built over "old."

'I also want to say that I felt a lot of skepticism upon our first entering the place as well as a "hope" that perhaps there were reasonable explanations for everything.

'On a side note, when we did the actual investigation, I felt another presence that wasn't from this house or the area. I feel it may be attached to one of the family members who now own the house but had passed on. I also get the familiar feeling that this spirit had connections or ties to the Poconos.

"I know there were lots of other things that came and went in and out of my head, but these stuck with me for whatever reason."

Diane spent a good deal of the time with Sam, in the attic. While in the attic, the two felt blasts of cold air (It's fair to mention that the room was getting colder that night), and Diane felt someone beside her. Later, an orb can be seen on the video tape on the exact side on which Diane sensed a presence. Diane also felt someone touch her.

Diane sensed that the one presence was the spirit of a concert violinist who had resided in New York, but vacationed in the Poconos. She felt he had died in an automobile accident in the 1930's. Curtis, too, had the sense that this entity had been in an accident, and that his face had been injured beyond recognition. Diane felt that the man was happy the group was present to validate his existence.

Shortly after Kieran set the video camera up in the attic, the camera shut itself off. Kieran's tape recorder, which he had put on "record," revealed tapes that were as blank as if the recorder had been left on "play" instead. There was not even so much as "white noise" on the tape. The player had been on "record," however. Kieran used two new audio tapes while trying to obtain EVP's in the attic and in the bedrooms, and the results are the same on both. The recorder and tapes used were brand new and had been tested immediately prior to the investigation.

Kieran's digital camera stopped working, and brand new batteries had to be replaced, several times, on all electrical equipment brought by PIP members.

Kieran also examined the latch on the closet door. He found that if the latch was not properly closed all the way, the latch would open. This would explain the closet door opening by itself as stated by the homeowners.

In a bedroom downstairs, Diane sensed the presence of an older woman, dressed in turn-of-the-century (early 1900's) clothing. She had sewing in her lap, and she appeared to be a stern woman -- not mean spirited, if you'll pardon the pun -- just possessing a stern disposition.

The group found several orbs on photos taken of various rooms of the house -- especially in the large bathroom, next to a tall cabinet. Curtis does feel, however, that many of the spirits were brought into the house along with the antique furniture.

Unfortunately, attempts to learn something of the background of the home, its property, and that of the house next door, have yielded nothing. The group, however, will continue to see what it can learn of the home's history by interviewing those who have resided in the area for some time.

UPDATE: Kieran was in contact with a neighbor who has lived in this area for all of her life. He was informed that the area in question was a large farm at one time. And over the years, the farm was sold off in lots. As a child, she played in all areas of this farm. She stated that her grandfather and neighbors, would go to the house in question and play music for entertainment.

PIP Determination:

Possible Paranormal Activity.

Letter from The Owner Of Baerbrook Cottage