Ghost Stories

Warren “Bus” Seymour must have really loved his job because the former Williamsport town clerk and mayor can still be heard pecking away at a typewriter - though he died in 1985. “I've heard that,” daughter Elissa Slayman said of her father's benign haunting. “And they hear him walking and his keys rattling.” “He just loved that town,” Slayman said of her father, who served as town clerk for 42 years before being elected mayor and dying while in office. Legend has it - which is a great phrase to kick off any ghost story - there are some other spirits that roam the halls of Town Hall, as well as the streets and historic buildings, along with Doubleday Hill and Riverview Cemetery in Williamsport, which tour guide Alan Redding expounded upon during a chilly night's tour through the town.

The 19th annual Kreykenbohm Lecture, at Hagerstown Community College's Kepler Theater on April 19, will feature a lecture and film by Tonya and Andy Keyser called "The Other Side: Giving Up the Ghost. " The event, which is free to the public, will be from 7 to 8:30 p.m. "The Other Side: Giving Up the Ghost," is set mainly in Gettysburg, Pa., and is an exploration of the culture associated with ghost stories and paranormal investigation. The film examines what drives our interest in the paranormal and how the media and popular culture influence and capitalize upon that interest.

Dead Civil War soldiers showing up at re-enactments and a camera that predicts people's deaths were among the stories told at the site of the 150th anniversary re-enactment of the Battle of Antietam. Johlene “Spooky” Riley, author, ghost hunter, radio show host, and lead investigator and founder of the Gettysburg (Pa.) Paranormal Association, told stories Sunday of ghostly encounters near Antietam National Battlefield and Gettysburg to a crowd of attendees and re-enactors in the activities tent.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. -- Local authors Athena Varounis and Deborah Heinecker will visit several locations in Franklin County, Pa., and Washington County this month, speaking about the paranormal and their experiences while working together on the recently published "Franklin County Ghosts. " The women, one a retired FBI agent and the other a respected psychic, worked together on investigations of a dozen haunted sites in Franklin County. The book, made up of ghost stories from public and private locations, is a blend of personal accounts and psychic impressions.

Apollo Theater member recounts scary sightings By ANDREA BROWN-HURLEY andreabh@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.Va. - Mike Noll said he saw his first ghost at the historic Apollo Theater in Martinsburg in 1975. He'd heard plenty of ghost stories from theater visitors after he and other members of the Apollo Civic Theater Group bought the old building on Martin Street earlier that year, Noll said. But he didn't believe them until he experienced the paranormal himself.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - A cold wind blows through the aged wood of the Fahnestock Barn. Night is beginning to fall on Renfrew, and the lone barn atop the hill creeks with the edging chill. Some of the children sitting in the dim light of the Colonial structure turn to look into the face next to them, searching for comfort. Others stare straight ahead. "You can scream, but it won't help you," the lady in black tells the children sitting on hay bales, clinging to their mothers, fathers, aunts and friends.

Glen Campbell performs in Hagerstown By LAURA ERNDE laurae@herald-mail.com In the more than 30 years that Glen Campbell has been touring he's never played in Hagerstown. Until now. The country music legend entertained about 800 fans at two shows at the Maryland Theatre Friday. "I've been a fan forever. It takes me back," said Florence Murdock, 63, of Hagerstown. Murdock came to the show with her husband, Bob Murdock, 68, who was largely responsible for his wife's extensive collection of Glen Campbell records.

CLEAR SPRING -- Michael J. Varhola was in town Sunday, offering up some creepy tales fitting for the Halloween season. Varhola studies ghosts and has released a book about the paranormal in the Old Line State. In "Ghosthunting Maryland," Varhola divides the state into six regions and profiles the best destinations in each, according to Amazon.com. Varhola came to the Washington County Free Library's Leonard P. Snyder Memorial Branch in Clear Spring Sunday afternoon to relate to about a dozen people some tales of the spooky, including a trip he made to Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., in May. The Battle of Monocacy was fought July 9, 1864, and pitted about 5,800 Union soldiers against 15,000 Confederates advancing on Washington, D.C., through Frederick County, Md. Varhola, a freelance writer who obtained a journalism degree from University of Maryland, College Park, in 1993, said he went to the battlefield with members of the Maryland TriState Paranormal group.

TRI-STATE -- Apparently, ghosts don't like me. Two years, two ghost-hunting adventures and I've seen not one Thing That Goes Bump in the Night. This year, I went on three ghost tours in three states and saw, heard and felt nothing out of the ordinary. Last October, I spent the night at the Pry House at Antietam Battlefield, a hospital during the Civil War where people claim to see ghosts. I didn't. I'm taking it personally because I'm told ghosts were with us during my final tour Tuesday night at the Old Jail in Chambersburg, Pa. A woman on the tour reported she saw not one, but two. They warn you on these tours that sometimes sensitive people become overwhelmed by the "energy" of a particular place and must leave that area.

kevinc@herald-mail.com Love is in the air, and Cheryl Kenney, well, she loves it. Truth is, the owner of Roccoco on West Washington Street in Hagerstown tries to set a romantic mood every night. But she admits her staff gets ramped up as Valentine's Day approaches. This year is no different. A special menu is in place, and French love songs pipe through her sound system. One year, all women diners received a long-stemmed red rose. Tonight and Friday, Feb. 14, an opera singer will serenade patrons with Italian love songs.

Dead Civil War soldiers showing up at re-enactments and a camera that predicts people's deaths were among the stories told at the site of the 150th anniversary re-enactment of the Battle of Antietam. Johlene “Spooky” Riley, author, ghost hunter, radio show host, and lead investigator and founder of the Gettysburg (Pa.) Paranormal Association, told stories Sunday of ghostly encounters near Antietam National Battlefield and Gettysburg to a crowd of attendees and re-enactors in the activities tent.

Warren “Bus” Seymour must have really loved his job because the former Williamsport town clerk and mayor can still be heard pecking away at a typewriter - though he died in 1985. “I've heard that,” daughter Elissa Slayman said of her father's benign haunting. “And they hear him walking and his keys rattling.” “He just loved that town,” Slayman said of her father, who served as town clerk for 42 years before being elected mayor and dying while in office. Legend has it - which is a great phrase to kick off any ghost story - there are some other spirits that roam the halls of Town Hall, as well as the streets and historic buildings, along with Doubleday Hill and Riverview Cemetery in Williamsport, which tour guide Alan Redding expounded upon during a chilly night's tour through the town.

CLEAR SPRING -- Michael J. Varhola was in town Sunday, offering up some creepy tales fitting for the Halloween season. Varhola studies ghosts and has released a book about the paranormal in the Old Line State. In "Ghosthunting Maryland," Varhola divides the state into six regions and profiles the best destinations in each, according to Amazon.com. Varhola came to the Washington County Free Library's Leonard P. Snyder Memorial Branch in Clear Spring Sunday afternoon to relate to about a dozen people some tales of the spooky, including a trip he made to Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, Md., in May. The Battle of Monocacy was fought July 9, 1864, and pitted about 5,800 Union soldiers against 15,000 Confederates advancing on Washington, D.C., through Frederick County, Md. Varhola, a freelance writer who obtained a journalism degree from University of Maryland, College Park, in 1993, said he went to the battlefield with members of the Maryland TriState Paranormal group.

MONT ALTO, Pa. -- A ghost stories presentation Wednesday at Penn State Mont Alto drew a crowd of 12 -- or was it 13? Athena Varounis and Deborah Heinecker talked about possible hauntings of several Franklin County, Pa., sites, including the college's Wiestling Hall. They talked about the building's attic, one-time bedroom and basement, all of which surrounded them in the student center. The dominant spirit the pair feel they discovered in the building was forestry expert Joseph T. Rothrock.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. -- Local authors Athena Varounis and Deborah Heinecker will visit several locations in Franklin County, Pa., and Washington County this month, speaking about the paranormal and their experiences while working together on the recently published "Franklin County Ghosts. " The women, one a retired FBI agent and the other a respected psychic, worked together on investigations of a dozen haunted sites in Franklin County. The book, made up of ghost stories from public and private locations, is a blend of personal accounts and psychic impressions.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va.- Anthony Atha, 20, was 5 years old when he had his first paranormal experience. "I woke up two nights in a row and saw a full-body apparition," said the Williamsport native. Since then, he's been a believer in the paranormal. Those who also have an interest in things that go bump in the night can join Atha at the inaugural Eastern Panhandle Paranormal Conference. Set at the Apollo Civic Theatre in downtown Martinsburg, the conference opens its doors at 9 a.m. The all-day event concludes with a Victorian sance/message circle.

TRI-STATE -- Apparently, ghosts don't like me. Two years, two ghost-hunting adventures and I've seen not one Thing That Goes Bump in the Night. This year, I went on three ghost tours in three states and saw, heard and felt nothing out of the ordinary. Last October, I spent the night at the Pry House at Antietam Battlefield, a hospital during the Civil War where people claim to see ghosts. I didn't. I'm taking it personally because I'm told ghosts were with us during my final tour Tuesday night at the Old Jail in Chambersburg, Pa. A woman on the tour reported she saw not one, but two. They warn you on these tours that sometimes sensitive people become overwhelmed by the "energy" of a particular place and must leave that area.

The 19th annual Kreykenbohm Lecture, at Hagerstown Community College's Kepler Theater on April 19, will feature a lecture and film by Tonya and Andy Keyser called "The Other Side: Giving Up the Ghost. " The event, which is free to the public, will be from 7 to 8:30 p.m. "The Other Side: Giving Up the Ghost," is set mainly in Gettysburg, Pa., and is an exploration of the culture associated with ghost stories and paranormal investigation. The film examines what drives our interest in the paranormal and how the media and popular culture influence and capitalize upon that interest.

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - A cold wind blows through the aged wood of the Fahnestock Barn. Night is beginning to fall on Renfrew, and the lone barn atop the hill creeks with the edging chill. Some of the children sitting in the dim light of the Colonial structure turn to look into the face next to them, searching for comfort. Others stare straight ahead. "You can scream, but it won't help you," the lady in black tells the children sitting on hay bales, clinging to their mothers, fathers, aunts and friends.

charlestown@herald-mail.com It was a fitting day for Robert Savage to recount his story. The Shepherdstown, W.Va., computer software expert led a reporter down a gravel lane in the heart of Antietam National Battlefield as the cold gray skies started to produce a light snowfall. Savage made his way to the Roulette Farm and began to tell the tale of a young girl named Ariel and the strange occurrences she experienced there. "It's an old-fashioned ghost story," Savage said of his award-winning screenplay titled "Bloody Lane," named after the road that runs through the battlefield.