Date / Time: April 28, 2017 8:00pm - April 29th 7:00am EST
A Brief History
The Houghton Mansion was built by the first mayor of the city of North Adams in the year 1890. Mr. Albert Charles Houghton was the president of Arnold Print Works, which is where he obtained his fortune and could be easily assumed by viewing the luxury of his third home in the city. Mr. Houghton lived here with his family including his wife, and his daughter Mary in the summer months. In 1914 the family purchased a vehicle, and in a pleasure drive up towards Brattleboro VT, the family’s chauffeur Mr. Wither’s, attempting to veer around stopped horses on the side of the road, caused the vehicle to loose it’s footing on the shoulder and tumbled down a steep cliff. Mary at the age of 23, and Mrs. Hutton, a family friend and neighbor, were killed as a result of the accident. Struck with guilt, the chauffeur Mr. Wither’s killed himself with a horse pistol a couple of days later on the property. Mr. Houghton himself died just 10 days after the accident in his own bedroom. Years later, the property was sold to the Freemasons by the Houghton’s eldest daughter and they built a large temple attached to the mansion to use in their secret meetings and rituals. An important fact to also note was that the mansion was built upon an already existing foundation of a prior home which was moved before the Houghton Mansion was built. (Houghton Mansions Haunted History, n.d.).
The Investigation
My girlfriend Jen and I went to The Houghton Mansion as a part of an investigation through the company Ghost Hunts USA, which offers investigations in many of the country’s most haunted locations. This was the last overnight investigation offered at the Houghton Mansion as the city of North Adams had recently declared that no investigation groups can remain the in house past 3am EST until it goes through renovations to bring it up to code. There is no estimated date at which these renovations will be started or completed so I do feel lucky that we were the last group allowed to stay overnight.
After a brief orientation with the lead investigators and a “lights-on” tour from one the the Freemason’s who actively works in the building, Rick, we all met in the Masonic Temple for a guided experiment / investigation orientation. I volunteered to sit in one of the Freemason chairs as they spoke about the spirit’s dislike for women in that room specifically. Multiple times while sitting in the chair in the dark I felt waves of chills come over my body. We all experienced multiple EMF spikes as well as voices coming through EVPs and the Phasmabox, which the first time I was introduced to this Spirit Box-like software.
After the initial excitement of the group investigation we were split off into 3 separate groups with about 10 people per group. Our group started on the third floor, which is considered to be the servant’s floor, then down to the second floor where Mr. Houghton and Mary’s bedrooms are located along with the Freemason temple, and lastly we moved down into the basement. Our group met with about 2 lead investigators at a time on each floor for about an hour at a time, where they operated equipment like the SB7 Spirit Box, REM pods, Electromagnetic Field Detectors, and my favorite new discovery the Phasmabox. This part of the night is actually where we experienced a lot of activity, not only through the equipment but physically as well.
After this portion of the night had concluded, around 2:15am EST, we were free to explore and investigate of our own accord until the morning came. Although we did bring and set up an air mattress in a dining room on the first floor, we did not pause to rest once until packing up and heading out the next morning around 6:30am EST.
The Experience
THIRD FLOOR
Mr. Wither’s Room: Mr. Wither’s room is the only room in the mansion where there is no working electricity. There have been reports from neighbors that they would see lights on in this room when nobody is present in the building. We did not experience this personally, but did happen to catch an orb on the disposable camera. Minimal voices came through the SB7 Spirit Box, but when they did it almost sounded like a little girl which was concerning.
Scrying Room: Outside of Mr. Wither’s room there is a very small room, with a small closet which is painted black on the inside in it’s entirely. There was an old armchair, and a mirror against the wall with electric candles on the ground (there is no flame allowed in the building.) Jen and I volunteered to give it a shot and try scrying. A lead investigator shared with us a photograph of what appeared to be an apparition of a women’s face in the corner of the mirror which a guest had caught in a prior investigation. This was the first time either of us had tried the art of scrying which involves clearing your mind, holding a candle underneath one’s face and staring at one’s self in the mirror until in a trance-like state. One person would sit in the armchair with the candle and the other would stand behind the armchair, also looking into the mirror. We both experienced a change in our facial features but with neither of us having any experience with scrying it is hard to say if it was a natural experience or something paranormal.
Sword Room: I am not sure what else to call this room as it was more of a main landing point for the third floor. There were a lot of locked cabinets and furniture in this room which we were told was storing swords and other masonic artifacts. During our first investigation of this room, no voices came through the Spirit Box, but we did get words coming through the Ovilus along the lines of “Slay” “Blood” and “Sword” which was eerily relevant. Later, in the early morning we revisited the room and got a voice through the Spirit Box identifying as George, a Freemason as well as a lot of high EMF spikes. Another guest who joined us on our solitary investigation kept asking questions about the basement and George would go silent.
SECOND FLOOR
Masonic Temple: During the orientation investigation with the entire group, there were many voices coming through the Phasmabox, both male and female. Upon asking how many spirits were in the mansion, there was a voice that said “Eleven.” It would go silent anytime anyone asked about what was in the basement. Like what was mentioned earlier, I experienced waves of chills while sitting in a Masonic chair unlike I have ever felt before. There was also a few times that flashlights that were strategically placed throughout the room would go on and off in response to questions. Later that night during our solo investigation I asked if anyone could please knock to let us know if they were there. I knocked twice on a wooden table as an example, and directly after that we heard two small knocks coming from the back right corner of the room where a piano was located.
Mr. Houghton’s Room: During the guided investigation the Phasmabox was used this room. There were multiple voices coming though both male and female. My favorite part of the whole thing was when a woman sneezed in our group and the Phasmabox came though clear as day and a female politely said “bless you.” Later in the night, we did re-visit Mr. Houghton’s room but it had gone quiet.
Mary’s Room: Easily one of the most active rooms in the mansion. I caught multiple orbs on the disposable camera as well as on video during the guided investigation. There were high EMF spikes and even periods of times where it would spike and then stay at that level. During the guided investigation a female voice came through the Phasmabox when being asked about the basement and said the word “AGGRESSIVE.”
BASEMENT
Main Area: In my opinion the basement is an area of controversy. It is believed by the Masons that the spirit of a small child or multiple children reside in the basement. This belief has caused many visitors and guests to bring and donate many children's toys which were left in the main area of the basement as an offering. However, it is my belief that there are no children in the basement but something much darker, and solitary. Many people, even throughout the rest of the night described seeing a shadow figure here. During the guided investigation of the basement the Phasmabox was used to ask questions and we were getting responses but it would go silent every time someone asked what year they were born, how old they were etc. A question about the height of the entity in the room as asked and “7 feet” came through. The energy in the basement was very different than the rest of the mansion. A self proclaimed “skeptic” was asked to sit in a chair alone in an adjacent room in the basement while the rest of the group remained in the main room looking in on him. (This was captured in a film photograph where an orb was pictured in the middle of the room.) This individual alone in the other room reported feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand up and feeling something touch the top of his head.
Electric Chair Room: There was another very small room adjacent to the main room in the basement where an old and decrepit electric chair was housed. There is no detail as to why this chair was in the basement, but it had been there for years. It is my belief that it had something to do with the Freemasons. In the very early morning, we chose to go into the basement for a last attempt at catching our own evidence down there. We brought EMF detectors, the digital recorder, the SB7 Spirit Box, and the disposable camera. There were minimal spikes on the EMF, and no voices coming through the spirit box. We attempted an experiment with a small ball on the ground but it did not move the entire time we were down there. Lastly, we entered the electric chair room and when I brought the Spirit Box to the right hand corner of the room, where there were a few wooden cobwebbed crutches against the wall, we heard a voice come through the Spirit Box for the first time while we were down there but it was unintelligible. Jen said out loud that she wanted to take the last few photos on the disposable camera of the electric chair before we left, and the Spirit Box came through very clearly saying the word “CHAIR.” In the photos of this chair, you can see a dark mass coming from the same right hand corner where the crutches were, so thick that it starts to block the view of the feet of the chair almost entirely.
OTHER AREAS
The Attic: During the “lights on” tour, Rick made a point to bring us up the staircase behind the auditorium which was located on the first floor directly underneath the Masonic Temple. At the top, there was a small pathway which lead to one small open room with one window which was identified as the attic. Rick suggested that if we were interested in experiencing some strange activity to spend some time up here alone. Naturally, this is the first location that Jen and I went during our free time, but it was very quiet and there was no activity at that time. At the suggestion of our new friend who stayed up with us all night investigating while his friends went to get some sleep, we re-visited the attic. The three of us sat in chairs around an overturned bucket which I used as a table for the Spirit Box. This is where we met our second spirit by name, Bill. This was actually the first full-blown intelligent conversation that I have ever had with the other side. Bill let us know through the Spirit Box that he came to the attic looking “for quiet.” He refused to throw a pebble or make a noise to let us know where in the room he was because he “didn’t want to.” We asked if he knew any of our names, and he said “Justin” which was the name of the guy who was with us. We asked if he worked for the Houghton Family and he said “yes,” we asked if he worked inside the house and he said the words “field worker.” Jen asked if spirits ever sleep, almost out loud to herself as it was then 5am, and Bill came through again saying “kind of.” When Justin asked about what was in the basement, if there were the spirits of multiple children down there like many believe, the word “one” came through multiple times.
CONCLUSION
The 10-11 hours spent inside the Houghton Mansion were easily the most paranormally active hours we have ever spent inside of a location. There is so much history to this location, both told and untold. If I could re-do it, I would want to make sure that I have recorders going during the guided Phasmabox sessions, and a higher quality night vision video camera. The experiences we had inside that location greatly outnumber the evidence which was actually caught. However, I am extremely grateful for having the opportunity to be some of the last over night investigators allowed inside the Houghton Mansion and I am greatly looking forward to the day in which I am able to return.
References:
Houghton Mansion's Haunted History. (2012, April 02). Retrieved July 15, 2017, from http://www.travelchannel.com/shows/ghost-adventures/articles/houghton-mansions-haunted-history
Hogle, J. E. (2002) Cambridge companion to Gothic fiction. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press.
The Gothic is a research topic which has been inspiring University of Sunderland staff and students for some time. The growing portfolio of modules and companion library resources reflects this.
Walpole, H. et al. (1994) Four Gothic novels. Oxford : Oxford University Press.
Starting with MA modules LITM70 Gothic Cultures, LITM67 Irish Literature and the Supernatural and LITM25 Late Victorian Gothic: Dr Jekyll to Dorian Gray the demand for the Gothic has now spread to undergraduate modules with the introduction of ELL350 Modern Gothic.
University Library Services supports this teaching, learning and research in various different ways. As well as providing library skills session to give awareness of all the tools that are on offer and information to use them effectively we have a range of books and ebooks on a huge range of topics related to the Gothic plus peer-reviewed academic journal articles found via search tools such as Discover coming from quality academic databases including JSTOR, Literary Reference Center Plus and more.
Punter, D. and Byron, G. (2004) The Gothic. Oxford : Blackwell.
As well as Gothic texts, analyses and criticism find research on Gothic art, architecture, fashion, culture, cinema, identities and more - it really is an excellent topic to explore across all areas and subjects in the library.
Beckett-Griffith, J. (2008) Gothic art now. Lewes : Ilex.
When studying Gothic modules you’ll find a wealth of information available on the free internet - from full text novels to creative writing forums, images to descriptions of gothic literary terms, study resources and blogs and even free online peer reviewed journals such as Le Fanu Studies and Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Studies.
If you’re not sure where to start with searching through wider internet sources then why not check out the Gothic Literature subject tab at What’s New in English... on the English Support for Your Subject pages.
Monstrum is a new journal published by Spectral Visions Press - their aim as stated on their webpage is “to publish the best and most interesting articles about Gothic literature, monsters and the monstrous.”
A call for papers gives an insight into the content of the journal, with typically gothic themes such as the monstrous human, monstrous taxonomies and famous monsters - Frankenstein’s creature and Dracula of course.
Today’s ‘Spectral Visions’ post comes courtesy of University of Sunderland student Jenah Colledge who gives a unique insight into the inspiration and creativity that Spectral Visions and all it entails prompts, and what it means to Sunderland students. Thanks Jenah for telling us your experience...
Check out more of Jenah’s work on her tumblr blog, SuperCreativelyLoudMe and on wordpress.
University of Sunderland English department has a history of encouraging creative writing students to flourish, for example previous publications include Asylum
Spectral Visions: the collection followed and with the launch of Spectral Visions Press at the University of Sunderland there is soon to be a Spectral Visions: grim fairy tales collection plus the launch of Monstrum journal.
Check out our library display of original artwork from talented Spectral Visions illustrator Neda Barani - now on show in the Murray Library upper level display cases. (See more of Neda’s work at her website).
If you’d like to know more about Spectral Visions Press find them on Facebook and see the article written about the press in What’s New in Publishing.
