Connecticut Cases

The first time I visited the Windham Inn was to receive a tour from one of the property owners. Since the Inn is completely condemned and has no running water or electricity, we felt it best to view the layout in the daytime. That way, we could gather preliminary information, pictures, videos, and discuss any safety concerns beforehand. We also performed an electromagnetic field (EMF) sweep to ensure that there would be absolutely no interference on our devices or equipment.

Before we went inside, I walked around the building and took pictures. While doing so, I picked up on the energy of a woman. This woman was young, possibly a teenager or in her early 20s. She seemed sad, yet somehow content at the same time. She was watching me from a wooded area by the road (to the left of the Inn). She let me know she was there and then moved on as quickly as she came.

As I finished my perimeter walk of the property, I moved to the front entrance to go inside. As soon as I took a step inside, I was instantly pulled to the third floor. For some reason, this apartment was calling to me. There was a story that needed to be told or verified, and the spirits wanted my help in doing so. I told them I would be back at a later date and that they could give me their messages then. Their energy was pleasant, and I was intrigued to know their story.

After the walkthrough concluded, we discussed some logistics with the property owner and planned to come back another night to perform the investigation.

The night of the investigation was dark and stormy. Some would say it was a perfect setting for a paranormal investigation, however, it did provide some challenges. For one, the rain and thunder produced a lot of extraneous noise that needed to be accounted for and two, the lightning added random flashes of light to the darkness of the Inn, that also needed to be accounted for. As a professional paranormal team, we try to control as many confounding variables as possible during an investigation. The environment always proves to be spontaneous and unpredictable, so we do what we can with what we have. On the positive side, thunderstorms produce a lot of energy for spirits to latch onto that they can use to come forward and interact. The latter is what we were hoping would happen during our time there.

We set up base camp in one of the apartments on the main floor along with our video equipment throughout the Inn. After everything was finalized, we started the investigation.

I began by tuning in to my surroundings. I asked God and my spirit guides to give me clarity and focus throughout the night and told the spirits that if there was anything they wanted me to know, or if there was any way in which I could help them, that they may communicate with me directly. I also asked God for permission to investigate the property and to offer my thanks for the opportunity to help preserve the Inn. For me, it is a blessing and an honor to be able to do what I do, and I wish to help as many people as I possibly can. For this investigation, I hoped I could shed some light on any questionable history or even verify some paranormal claims for the property owners.

I started by projecting my energy toward the third floor, and after my meditation, I received a name: Margaret. This spirit is associated with the upstairs apartment. I observed a vision in which there were kids running around and playing pranks on the tenants. They were harmless, but significant enough to be noticed. I’m assuming that whoever lived there at one time may have found that their items would move or rearrange on their own, or outright disappear completely. These kids would play hide and seek as well, and it wouldn’t surprise me if the tenants also heard inexplicable noises coming from different rooms. In my opinion, these children are harmless. I’m not sure if they lived there at some point, or died nearby, but regardless, they visit the Inn and have a strong liking to the third floor. I believe that one of the little girls’ names is Margaret. I’m hoping that Eli’s research can shed some light on this vision or offer confirmation on the matter. I’m confident that the children here just wanted to let me know that they enjoy the Inn and its layout offers them joy, even in death.

Throughout the night, there were a lot of spirits coming forward. As a clairsentient medium, I feel as though I’m a beacon of light in the darkness, and they all spot me and instantly want to tell me their stories. It can be overwhelming, so I use a process by which I can filter through the messages and prioritize the most important, or necessary ones first.

The most significant spirit that came forward happened while I was sitting at base camp on the main floor. The same woman that I saw during my initial visit came forward again. This time however, I picked up strongly on her emotions. She was afraid and scared. She had anxiety and fear. I could see her panicking, trying to hide her emotions. Of course, my first thought was “Why?” She wouldn’t tell me. I asked for her name and got no response to that question either.

Upon further meditation, I received another vision. This time, I was shown the young woman being taken out of a house by a couple of men. It reminded me of the Salem Witch Trials; a witch hunt. They were screaming at her and holding her so tightly that her wrists had bruises. The woman was turning toward what I presume to be her father, but the men kept whisking her away and jerking her violently. The father figure barely reacted to the sight or actions of what was happening. They were accusing her of something very serious and he didn’t seem to care. I thought that odd, and I didn’t fully understand what I was seeing in the moment, but I felt that they were either taking her away or exiling her from the community. I thought maybe it had to do with religion, but then I received the image of a shawl.

At first, I couldn’t pinpoint exactly why this woman kept showing me a shawl. She was sitting down and just kept gesturing toward it, almost as if to say “Look!” Except I was looking, and I couldn’t figure out the message! Finally, I calmed my inner frustration down and listened intently. I received these words in this order: baby, death, murdered.

Suddenly, the shawl made sense. I envisioned a baby wrapped in a shawl. It was her baby. I thought she was trying to tell me that her baby died or was killed somehow, and once I tuned in on this information, I began to question her further, pleading for her name. Finally, she gave it to me: Elizabeth. At first, I questioned myself. “Elizabeth” feels like a common name, one that I could pull out of thin air quite easily, but the more I sat with it, the more I was sure that that was in fact, her name. Then it hit me. Elizabeth was using the image of the shawl to give me not only her story, but also her last name. At one point, I asked myself if “shawl” was actually supposed to be “Shaw.” Elizabeth Shaw.

I did not get confirmation of the fact that Elizabeth Shaw was a common sighting around the Inn until later in the night. At this point in time, I was still questioning things and sorting through information in my head. I knew her baby died, and I knew a bunch of men were taking her away. I eventually put two and two together and came up with the conclusion that she was being accused of killing her baby or for fornication outside of marriage. After all, this was a young woman and I wasn’t receiving any indication of a husband in the picture. It’s possible to me that her anxiety and pensiveness arose from her fear of being found pregnant because she knew what would happen – she knew how people in the community would react.

But did she kill her baby or did someone else? Was it an accident? To these questions, I had no answers. I believe the baby was a boy, and I believe it’s possible that she had him, panicked, and either smothered him, or simply left him to die hoping no one would find out. I’m assuming some of the townspeople were aware of her pregnancy and told someone, or she was betrayed by someone close to her. To me, this would validate her sense of sadness and guilt the first time she appeared to me. I’m also not sure if she fully understood the implications of her actions.

The only other spirit that was prevalent throughout the night was a man whose name started with a “G,” but he would not provide me his name, or his purpose for being there. He was a businessman, dressed in a suit. He reminded me of a stern and traditional masculine figure. If we investigate another time, I would like to tune in to this spirit’s energy more to see if he is willing to communicate.

Overall, my experience at the Windham Inn was very positive. Despite the cold, it was a wonderful investigation that provided a lot of insight into the community and the spirits that inhabit the region. I get the sense that the Windham Inn has seen many tenants over its years. It looks like a beautiful space that absolutely should be preserved and restored to its former glory. I’m hoping that our investigation can help bring some attention to this cause and shed some light on the paranormal activity that is said to take place at the Inn. It wouldn’t surprise me if the spirits also make their presence known in other buildings on the street, or possibly even on the street itself.

I can honestly say I hope to revisit the Windham Inn sometime in the future. My team and I are always willing to help whenever and however we can. Hopefully, in a future investigation, we can pick up where we left off and keep digging at the story behind Elizabeth Shaw and separate the fact from the fiction.

Medium Report

By Chris O'Connor

I have been passing by the Inn for at least 20 years. I found the Inn very intriguing. Every time I would pass by it, I would see spirits. Some of them were residual spirits and from time to time, I would see spirits that knew that I could see them. I knew very little about the Inn, other than it was (or used to be) apartments. The spirits I saw were from many timelines. I saw people from the 18th, 19th, and the 20th century. I saw the Inn with an impressive porch and carriage house. The spirits were also many races. There were Caucasian, African American, and Hispanic spirits. I was thrilled when the preservation group agreed to let us investigate.

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The Inn has no facilities, and because the investigation was going to happen in the evening, we decided that a walkthrough would be helpful. The walkthrough allowed us to get a layout of the Inn and identify any safety concerns. The walkthrough also allowed us to get baseline readings and for David and I to connect with the Inn for any possible spirit activity.

The Windham Inn is large. There are three levels in the main building in addition to a full basement. There is also an apartment that may have been converted from an old carriage house. Each room was in obvious disrepair. The Inn has been vacant for 20+ years and was condemned.

When I arrived at the Inn, I immediately connected with it. I brought myself back to the time it was built and inhabited and watched as if I were watching a movie. I saw all sorts of travelers coming and going. I saw people walking from the mercantile that is now the post office. I looked around the entire area and saw interactions from many of the homes in the area. I saw the Inn as I progressed through time. I saw families moving in and out. I saw young adults sitting on the porch reading. The best way I can describe my experience is, it was like a scene from “The Time Machine.” This isn’t uncommon for me to be shown these images. The Inn is very old and possesses a lot of energy.

While Eli was gathering information from our host, David and I walked around the property. I can only speak for myself, but for the most part, the energy was good. However, there was an area of the property that possessed sad energy: the area behind the Inn on the left side (if you were standing in front of the Inn). I picked up on drug deaths and other deaths that occurred on the property. One of the spirits eventually showed up, but I will talk about him later in the report.

There were rooms I wanted to check out once we went inside. I can’t tell you how overwhelming it was being drawn to go inside. I guess it could be contributed to my excitement, but when I went inside, it made more sense. Our host opened the door to the Inn and there was such an energy that was meeting us. I even think David and I looked at each other before going in. As soon as I stepped into the foyer of the Inn, I was greeted by a young woman, maybe in her early 20s. She was about four to five steps up on the first set of stairs, gesturing me to follow. I acknowledged her but I also was being called to the room to the right as you first walk in. There, I met a middle-aged man in uniform. He was standing near the fireplace and was holding a cup. I assumed it was filled with some type of alcohol because he invited me to join him. I drew pictures of both the young woman and the man in the uniform that will be included with this report.

We continued to walk through the apartment that was to the right and this is where I picked up on another spirit. I believe this spirit was one the Inn’s keepers. This man gave me the impression that I was entering his living quarters.

From the right side of the inn, we moved to the left side. David was already on that side and as I came into the room, he darted out of the room behind this one. David didn’t like that room and for good reason. I felt a heaviness as I went into the room as well. In fact, I hesitated, composed myself, and walked in. This room is where the story of a young woman was beginning to unfold. It wasn’t made clear to me right away, but I could tell there was not a happy ending to this young woman’s life. This side of the Inn had a lot of sad energy. Sometime in the history of the Inn, a young family mourned the loss of a child.

We decided to go to the basement from here. The stairs to the basement were slanted and needed to be used with caution. As most basements are, this basement also had the typical oppressed feeling. I can usually weed through that. This time, the air and the surroundings were heavy. I could tell there were spirits hiding. The basement wasn’t a malevolent place. It was just filled with such sadness. I even asked our host if she was aware of any claims or “wrong doings” in the basement. We continued walking toward the back of the basement and in a corner near a trunk were a group of spirits squatted down with their arms folded over their heads, hiding from me. These spirits were poorly dressed, shivering, filthy, and emaciated. I asked if I could help, but I could tell they didn’t trust me. They were confused as to how I could see them. There is a drawing of what I saw in the report.

From the basement, we moved to the second floor. The second floor, like the first, was divided up into different apartments. Not every room had palpable energy. The one apartment that did was the one that had the fireplace in it. This apartment held both good and bad energy. There was a young couple that was from the time of the Inn and there was a family from when it was an apartment. The family included a mother, father, and a boy. This family was residual. The other couple from the time period of the Inn had a story to tell.

This couple stayed at the Inn while they were on their way through Windham. The way they were dressed, I would put them from the early 19th century. How the story goes: the couple set out from the Inn and due to weather trouble, they lost control of their wagon and perished in the crash. Their last residence was the Inn, so they returned. I suspect when there were occupants in this space, they experienced voices, hearing movement, and saw doors and windows opening.

We concluded our tour on the third floor. This floor was more open than the first two floors. Again, I experienced more residual energy. There weren’t any spirits reaching out to get my attention. You can see all the way to the first floor from the third floor. When I looked down the stairs, I could see the woman that greeted me when I walked in.

Our host invited us back to her home, which was two houses down. She also lived in a historical home. My team and I were discussing the plans for the investigation and the future presentation when the spirit of a woman came forward from the room behind where we were sitting and looked at me asked, “Are you going to stay at the Inn?” There is a connection between the woman I met earlier and the Inn. I suspect there will be some research on our end to help to answer that question.

The Investigation                                                                                            

During the day of the investigation, I was able to connect to the Inn. While I was connected, a female whispered in my ear, “I was a criminal in life, I am a criminal in death.” She proceeded to show me how she died. She was either lynched or hanged for her crimes. Also, while I was connecting, someone (male) was asking me, “Where is she hiding?” I messaged Eli with what I experienced.

We arrived at the Inn around 5:00 PM. Our photographer, Linda, couldn’t make the walkthrough meeting, so she began taking pictures of the outside of the Inn. There was one more apartment that we had to look at. We were unable to go through on our first visit. Our host let us in and gave us the tour. This apartment had some residual energy of a vagrant that was able to get in and sleep. The vagrant didn’t technically die here, but he did overdose in this building.

Linda continued getting baseline photos of the inside of the Inn. As I was walking through the Inn with her, I came across the same spirits that I did on my first visit and a couple more. While in the basement, more of the same spirits were there as well. I acknowledged them and told them they can move on if they want.

There was another room on the second floor where Linda accidently opened an exterior door. When she did, I received another vision of a man doing drugs on the floor. I said to her that a lot of drugs had been taken in this room. This vision will need to be verified.

Linda finished taking baseline pictures and the rest of the team was done re-familiarizing themselves to the Inn and was set up for the investigation. It was just getting dark with a storm coming in. We decided this would be a suitable time to go to dinner.

We arrived back to the Inn and began our investigation. We started in Apartment 2. This is the room where I met the military man in uniform. I brought a bottle of whiskey as a trigger object in hopes that he would communicate with us, or maybe even move the bottle. Eli and I sat at the table and David sat in a chair closer to the door, and Linda was walking around taking photos. I began connecting to the spirits that wanted to interact with us. I asked for names so I could address them properly, and I received plenty of them. The first name I received was Elizabeth. She didn’t tell me her name, but a man named George did. I also received the names John, Charles, Tyrus, Priscilla, Mary, Samuel, and a Jeremy or Jeremiah. All these names will need to be researched. Among all these names, Elizabeth was the most prominent.

I asked Elizabeth to speak with me and tell me her story. Strongly, she was the woman who whispered in my ear. I asked her, “Did you whisper in my ear earlier?” I didn’t receive a verbal response but more like a gesture, acknowledging yes, she did. I asked her, “What was your crime?” She didn’t tell me at first. I asked, “Were you hanged for your crimes?” (referring to my earlier messages). Still no response. However, what happened next was weird. I asked Eli, “Was Sam Huntington involved with this Inn?” Eli quickly turned around and so did Elizabeth. Eli replied that yes, he was.

The room to the left of the main entrance was ominous. I’m not sure if this is where Elizabeth’s energy resides primarily or not. Elizabeth is more connected to the land than the Inn itself. Elizabeth’s story has been kept alive and therefore became centered around the Inn. One part of Elizabeth’s story was that this was not the first time she had killed. This is the first time she was caught. I also gathered that Elizabeth was delayed or mentally incapacitated. If this was modern times, she may have been diagnosed as autistic. I gathered she knew right from wrong but her choice to do the wrong thing was due to her abilities to understand right from wrong.

The military man I encountered on my first visit was there as well. He was an intelligent spirit because he walked around the room we were in and would walk to room(s) behind that room. He liked his alcohol. He did say he frequented the Inn and would stay here whenever he traveled. This is probably why he stays at the Inn.

The woman who greeted me when I was first there showed herself shortly after we began investigating. I noticed her when she walked into the room and walked around David. She slid her hand across his back and at the same time, David reacted. I mentioned to Eli that she was the woman that I drew. She didn’t give me much information though. I picked up on the name “Priscilla,” but she didn’t confirm.

The spirits in the basement bothered me the most. They seemed to not have a voice or would not speak. They were horrified that I could see them. The energy they gave off was their fear of being caught and therefore being punished. As much as I tried to reassure them that I was there to help them, they did not trust me or anyone else. If we go back to investigate in the future, I want to spend time with them, working to gain their trust and hopefully help them to move on if they wish. These spirits are extremely sad and in despair. If anyone that goes to the basement has the slightest empathetic ability, they will feel these emotions. Visitors may also hear moaning or crying. The scurrying noises you hear may be them as well.

We moved to the second floor and gathered more audio evidence. There were times the previous occupants would come through. The couple that I mentioned earlier that was from the time of the Inn, stay there because they either don’t want to leave because of their love of the Inn, or they don’t know how to leave. It is the fact that the Inn was the last happy place they were at prior to their death so, therefore they stay. This apartment was the one with the three-sided fireplace. Any of the residents probably heard laughter, walking, experienced objects being moved, and doors opening and closing. The couple did say that they were spotted by a family living there when it was apartments.

There was a space toward the back of the Inn where I encountered the unpleasant vision of drug use. When we have the reveal, I want to ask about that. I could see this individual using drugs. Sometimes they were smoking, and other times, they were using needles. I also saw flashing lights. These could be from police or ambulances.

We continued to the third floor. This floor had more positive energy. I brought myself back to before the Inn was apartments and saw the grandeur of this space. I was made aware this space was supposedly the ballroom. I saw it more as the meeting place for the townspeople. I could hear different conversations. Some were political in nature. Some were ladies’ organizations. As years went by, I could see children running about. I saw the residual energy of multiple families gathering. There is a closet or storage area at the top of the stairs that a young boy was hiding from a group of children in. I saw plenty of celebrations, not just in this space but throughout the Inn. I am trying to fight the emotion one has at Christmas because of this time of year, but I see and feel the holiday cheer.

We moved back down to the first floor. It was getting late, and the temperature dropped to an uncomfortable level. I walked around the first floor to see what other information I could gather. Again, the space to the left was just creepy. This is a space I also want to focus my energy. I want to know why Elizabeth’s energy was so prevalent on this side. There may have been some cause for it. I am only speculating but maybe one of the past residents heard of Elizabeth and had their own séance or Ouija board session and brought her forward and she remained ever since. Again, this is only speculative and further investigation is required.

As many times with past investigations, this one leaves us with more questions than answers. I would like to come back to get more information about Elizabeth and the couple on the second floor. I would love to help the spirits in the basement. I would spend a lot of time there.

I want to thank our host for allowing us to investigate and hopefully in the Spring, we can return. The preservation team or anyone going into the Inn may experience activity. If they do, they should not be alarmed. At no point did I feel any malevolent or dark energy. As work commences on the Inn, you can rely on some type of spiritual encounters.

Objective Findings:

Investigators: David Bray, Chris O'Connor, Eli Freund, Linda Akerman

Photos:

We captured one photo that is currently deemed unexplained. Taken from the outside, a shadow figure appears in a second-floor window. This photo could not be debunked and no explanation can be logically concluded.

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Audio:

Many EVPs and Spirit Box responses were recorded. Both residual and intelligent spirits seem to inhabit the Inn.

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Video:

An unexplained partial apparition was caught on an IR camera on the first floor in Apartment #2. This video could not be reproduced or debunked by the team.

Assessment:

Paranormal Level: Grade 3 – Objective findings include evidence of a manifestation (non-orbs) captured by a photo or video. Audible sounds or voices can be heard by human ears and are documented on an audible device.