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P.E.E.R Investigations
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Bechtel Victorian Mansion Inn, East Berlin, PA
February 1, 2008
Nine bedrooms for the guests and plenty of space for Flossie to roam!
Located 18 miles east of Gettysburg, in East Berlin’s National Historic District, is the Bechtel Victorian Mansion Bed & Breakfast Inn at 400 West King Street. While this mansion is living proof of a lifestyle in the late nineteenth century, there are occasions when the non-living has interacted with the living. Her name is Flossie Leas, and she was 22 years old on April 19 1907 when she died from a bout with spinal meningitis. Flossie’s death was not the only blow to the Leas family in East Berlin. Less than two years earlier, on July 10 1905, Flossie’s younger brother Melvin fell from his horse and drowned in the Conawago creek near their home. Three years earlier on March 28 1902, their mother passed away at the age of 42 and another of Flossie’s young brothers, William Jr. died on January 15 1896. How could such tragedy be bestowed on one family? How can a man bear the death of not only one, but of three of his children and his wife at such young ages in an eleven-year period? Perhaps he did not have to get used to not seeing them around. If it is Flossie that has been noticed in the house by its current owners, guests, staff and passersby, then perhaps she never left her family and this beautiful Victorian Mansion. We do not know if William and his surviving two daughters continued to live in the house with the spirits of their family. In 1915, William suffered from a stroke of apoplexy and spent a few days in the hospital before returning to his home where he died only a few days later on September 2. His surviving daughters Beulah and Sara remained in the house for an additional 67 years. They had been referred to as spinsters and many children in East Berlin would cross the street before passing the house if they saw the sisters outside.
From stories of shadow people appearing in photos, to smelling cigarette smoke, to having someone lay a hand or your shoulder, to seeing a full body apparition on the turret balcony, this house seems to have it all when it comes to paranormal activity. The PEER group was called in to check it out and see if they could confirm or debunk any of it. Read on for the investigation details and findings.
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Investigation Details
Ten investigators worked this investigation. We began the evening with an interview with Carol, the current owner of the house / bed and breakfast. Carol told us about many of the stories and encounters in the property. Most of the encounters involved guests of the bed and breakfast however; there were encounters that Carol and her husband had personally experienced. There really wasn't any part of the house that has not been visited by one of the spirits in the house but we determined where we would have the best chance of catching a glimpse of some type of some other paranormal phenomena.
Following the interview, Carol gave us a walk-through of the entire house. We determined that we would hold three vigils in the house; one in the Balcony Suite to the rear of the house on the second floor, one in the hallway on the third floor, and the third in Beulah's Boudoir on the second floor to the front of the house. While these three group vigils were taking place, we also setup cameras in the dining room, the Master Bedroom on the second floor and a third camera with IR in the Turret Room on the third floor.
Below are four pictures capturing orbs in various rooms in the house. There were several hundred photos taken that night but only less than a dozen captured anything out of the ordinary. |
 Click the photo for a closer look. This photo is of an orb near the camera that was setup in the doorway to the bath that is attached to the Master Bedroom on the second floor. Unfortunately, the tape had run out on the camcorder so we could not confirm its presence with the video. |
 Click the photo for a closer look Can you find all ten orbs in this picture? Notice, they are of different sizes, color, and degrees of transparancy. Our first question was, why ten? Well, if it's a family affair at the Bechtel Mansion, that accounts for eight. Did the other two tag along from New Oxford? We'll probably never know for sure. |
 Click the photo for a closer look It's faint but there none the less. Look closely at the draperies on the far right. |
 Click the photo for a closer look
Click here for a look at the Hot Spot This photo was taking during the vigil in Beulah's Boudoir. The investigators noted that the EMF level was beginning to increase. In an attempt to communicate or confirm someone's presence, Steve Bolze said, "Is there someone here? You can touch my hand if you want." At that moment Elaine snapped this picture. All I can say is wow, now that was a close encounter. |
Video Recordings
These two links are clips from a single 93-minute video that was taken in the Turret Room on the third floor. This camcorder using infrared light was directed to capture anything or anyone that would have entered the room from the Turret Balcony. For the first 76 minutes, the room was empty and there was absolutely no activity in the room.
During the last few minutes, four investigators entered the room and attempted to contact any spirits that may have been in the house. Within 90 seconds after entering the room, activity picked up. Keep an eye on the right side and bottom right corner of the clips.
In the first clip, you can see a few orbs fly across the screen if you adjust your brightness and contrast.
The second clip is a bit more interesting. About 15 seconds into the clip, you will see two orbs move across the bottom right corner of the screen. Just after the second orb, you can hear a disembodied voice whisper "Over here." A few seconds later, I heard other voices or sounds but after review, we determined them to be noise from a passing car. This however, gives us a good comparison between the outside interference and the whispers of a spirit voice.
Another video that was taken in the dining room also captured a flying orb move into the room and towards the corner cupboard where a shadow person had previously been captured on film.
Personal Experiences
General Thoughts and Impressions
Out of the ten investigators and the property owner that were present during this investigation, six of us had a personal experience that gave us reason for pause.
At one point in the evening, we all gathered in the first floor guest suite for a quiet gathering. Several of us heard footsteps above us. There was no one else in the house and everyone with P.E.E.R. was sitting quietly together.
Jim and I both experience the smell of smoke in the room, that similar to a dirty ashtray. Brandy smelled the smoke during her third floor vigil and Carol smelled it several times when she was in the kitchen. Take note that this property is a non-smoking facility.
As I was sitting alone in a second floor bedroom, someone tugged at my hair. Jim had the same experience during our first floor group vigil.
And perhaps the best this evening was Stan loosing his paranormal virginity. To this date, Stan had never had any type of personal paranormal experience. He's never felt a cold rush pour over his body; he's never smelled smoke, seen anything, or heard anything that would be considered paranormal. As he was in the sitting room of the Balcony Suite during a group vigil, he saw a shadow person walk across the bedroom at the foot of the bed. From his vantage point, he could see from one room to the other. With a bit of disbelief at first, he did not pay a whole lot of attention to it. Within minutes, the shadow person made a second appearance, walking the same path in the bedroom. Without hesitation, the group investigated this occurrence. Based on the location of the shadow, the windows and doors; it was easily determined that there was no natural source that could have made this happen. Outside lighting from traffic or any other source would not have been seen in this location and the house was completely dark. There were no other sources of light illuminated in the house at that time.
So, is this house haunted? Well, we can say there are many things that happen in this house now used as a bed and breakfast that fall outside the definition of normal. To me, the word paranormal best suits some of the activities at this house. |
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