Christmas Spirits in Bethlehem

Check out Ghost Hunters on SyFy (that's the Sci-Fi channel to those of us over 30) Wednesday Dec. 7th at 9pm when they'll feature the Sun Inn and perhaps some other local haunts. Here's a clip from their internet site:

Hauntings of Whitefield House

As a lead-up to Halloween, the Express-Times included an article teasing ghost stories of The Whitefield House in Nazareth.

The spookiest tale comes from Kelly Givens, business manager at the Whitefield House, who is the only person to have actually seen a ghost.
Givens said that about two years ago she was alone at the house during the afternoon and walked up the stairs into the museum and passed a woman who she initially thought was a visitor. Then she realized the woman was dressed as a Moravian nurse of the period from when the children were at the nursery.

The Whitefield House Museum, 214 East Center St., is open to the public 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Saturday. The cost is $5 for adults and $3 for students and children to visit. For information, call 610-759-5070.

Gracedale Hauntings Part 2: The Red Headed Nurse

Last week we posted a story Scott Moro told us about some strange goings-on at Gracedale. Here is another of Scott's tales...

Part 2: The Red Headed Nurse

Scott: During the summer of ’93, in the North West 2 wing, the regular staff I worked with was in and out on vacation, so there were times when new or substitute nurses and aides were working the same shifts as me. There were one or two regulars, along with me and one or two subs...People I didn’t know. As I was making my bed-time rounds, I saw a red-headed nurse pass me and go into a linen supply closet. There was definitely nothing out of the ordinary about this. Many times residents wanted another blanket or socks for their feet. What was unusual was the fact that the red-headed nurse was wearing one of those “old – fashioned,” white nurse’s hats. I didn’t think anything of it and continued to make my rounds throughout the floor.

When I got back to the nurse’s station, I asked Linda, the RN on the floor, and one of the regulars, “Who’s the new nurse?” She looked at me, kind of strangely and said, “which one,” thinking I’d meant one of the substitute aides. I repeated my question, this time saying, “The red-headed one, ya know, the one with the old-fashioned hat?” This time, instead of a look at me, she turned to another regular, another nurse named Linda, and they kind of smirked at one another.

Thinking I’d missed out on the inside joke, I said, “What? What’s so funny?”

Both Lindas looked at me and said, “So, you’ve seen her.”

At this point, I was getting pissed and replied that “yeah, I’d seen her, so what.” She works there, just like us. I wanted to know what her name was so I could say hello and introduce myself. The red-headed nurse did seem a bit odd, especially with her style of dress, but it didn’t seem out of the ordinary.

Well, as it turns out, the red-headed nurse that disappeared into the linen closet was not a new Gracedale employee. In fact, she was hired nearly than 40 years before. She was one of the original nurses to work the floor in the 1950’s...and had passed away quite a few years before I saw her. Her spirit “hangs around” the North West 2 wing and what I’d encountered was a ghost!

Gracedale Haunting Part 1: Myrtle's TV

We’ve heard about some strange goings-on in the buildings at Gracedale, Northampton County’s nursing home. A few months ago we got to hear about Scott Moro’s personal experiences while working at Gracedale during college in the early 1990’s.

Between 1991 and 1993, Scott was going to college at Moravian and working at Gracedale to earn some gas and spending money. His job was a “Special Services Helper”, which basically meant he fed the residents who could not feed themselves and transport residents throughout Gracedale. While the first few weeks Scott spent his time wherever needed he eventually got assigned to the North West 2 wing which is in the oldest part of the building.

Scott liked the nurses and nurse’s aides he worked & as he got to know each one better they began to share stories with him, many of which dealt with strange occurrences: strange noises, shadow-like figures, mysteriously misplaced or moving objects. So for the start of the Halloween season we thought it was time to share some of them on WeirdNazareth.com.

Part 1: Mytle’s Television

Scott Moro: One night, just after Christmas in ’91, I was doing the normal feeding and moving of residents. It was well after dinner and getting to be bed time. Bed time at Gracedale was very quiet. TV’s were off, radios off. It was as silent as silent could be. Well, I tucked in an elderly woman named Myrtle. She was a rather large woman, as were most on the floor and had little to no mobility. The head of her bed was propped like normal, which made it more comfortable for her. As I finished with Myrtle, I made my way down the rest of the hall, following the same tucking routine. Upon making my way back towards the nurse’s station so I could gather my things to go home, I heard a TV playing. Shocked, as this was extremely abnormal, I looked to see where it was coming from. It was coming from Myrtle’s room.

Confused, I walked in to see if Myrtle was awake and needed anything. She was sound asleep, as was her roommate, who was across the room and who did NOT have a TV. This was obviously a strange occurrence for a number of reasons: 1.) Myrtle could NOT move on her own, she needed someone to reach the remote control or a book or anything. 2.) The table where the remote was located was tucked against the wall, about 5 feet BEHIND Myrtle’s bed!

I switched off the TV and left the room, figuring I either didn’t turn off the TV completely the last time I was in the room or someone in a nearby room had used their remote and somehow the signal worked on Myrtle’s TV too. It’s not abnormal for garage door remote, TV remotes or other electronic devices to have this ability, so I didn’t think anything of it...EXCEPT that for the next three nights, at exactly the same time, in the exact same room, the same thing happened!

After the 3rd night, I shared the experience with my friends at the nurse’s station. They shook their heads and one of the aides, Eva, told a story about how she experienced something similar a few years back. They had electricians come in to check the wiring. Myrtle’s family was notified that maybe her TV was on the fritz and they may need to purchase another one.

A year went by, and I continued to do my job on North West 2 wing, without incident. No other TV issues, not from Myrtle’s room, not from any other room. We just laughed and shook it off as a weird electrical thing. Right after Christmas in ’92, however, on the same dates in late December...what happened in Myrtle’s room in ’91, happened again! This time, Eva was with me! We just stared at each other and then bolted back to the nurse’s station to share our experience. The others were amazed!

The women tried to see if there was something with the room, or a former resident who stayed there. Nothing. It was amazingly strange...and cool. Again we thought that there was something with the TV. We played with wires, cables, plugs and outlets. Nothing. Someone commented that maybe another resident’s remote was causing the trouble, just as I’d thought a year before. So we searched each room, only to realize, no other residents in Myrtle’s wing had a TV!!! She was one of the wealthier residents, who had a larger room and a cable hook-up. Other residents had TV’s on that floor, but nowhere near this room and none with a mega-powerful remote control.

To this day, I have no idea what happened, how it happened, or why it happened, but the women I worked with and I are convinced, it was paranormal.

More on Newburg Inn Hauntings and the CLPS

I'd like to start off by apologizing for the glut of "ghost" posts on WeirdNazareth.com lately. I realize not everyone is a fan. But that's just how the ball is bouncing right now. Anyway, as we, and the Express Times, posted earlier this month, a local paranormal investigation team, the City Lights Paranormal Investigation Society, surveyed the Newburg Inn. Now they've posted the result on their website here.

According to their summary they checked electromagnetic fields, temperature, and made audio recordings. Their conclusion is "Yes, the Newburg Inn is HAUNTED!!!"

I am just now discovering this group and their website. Their website is well organized and includes photos, text, upcoming events, and best of all, audio clips. Some of the investigation photos are a little disappointing as I find them too small and too dark to really see anything. But overall, it is a great site and worth checking out.

On their upcoming events schedule they have two events that Nazareth area folks may be interested in. First is an open discussion at the aforementioned Newburg Inn on Sept. 20 from 4-6pm. The second is a meet & greet at the Nazareth Library on Sept. 22 from 6-7:45pm.

We're excited to see what the CLPS has in store. And we hope they are able to cover some more Nazareth area locales. Please check out their site.

More Apparitions at Creekside Estates?

Brian P. continues his extended exposure photography in Upper Nazareth. He sees a "face" in one photo while it seems missing in another photo of the same area. What do you think? Comment below.

The Ghost of Monocacy Creek

We received a message from Brian P. of Upper Nazareth who noticed an apparition in an extended exposure photo he took. The photo was taken around midnight at Creekside Estates about a year ago. Brian says:

I took this one at about midnight just playing around with my camera (i have a Cannon Rebel XT). I did some research on how Nazareth used to be called Welagamika and was an indian settlement for thousands of years. I believe in the spiritual realm [& I'm] into nature. I took this picture behind my house. I kept it on my computer for about a year now, and decided I should do something with it. I love the WeirdNazareth website and find it interesting. The apparition is in the center of the picture. I believe this is a native female or some sort of spirit. I only cropped [the photo] and did nothing else to it. [The photo] appears to be lighter than midnight because it is a 30 second exposure. I would never think how I would see the ghost of the Monocacy Creek!

Thanks a bunch for the photos and information, Brian. Keep them coming.

Do you see the Ghost of the Monocacy Creek? Click the photo below to see it highlighted.

Ghosts of the Dryland--Newburg Inn

Monday's Express-Times reported that the City Lights Paranormal Center, headed by Joe Ianetta, visited the Newburg Inn to investigate ghost sightings that have been reported there over the years. A quote from the article:

"The history of the inn includes a grim chapter of the capture of one Indian who was then hung among the rafters in that attic.

Apparently to some, he still hangs around in the bar as a shape and a source of high paranormal activity. Iannetta says he believes the hanged man is haunting the place of his unjust death to assert his innocence."

Not only are other ghosts mentioned ("a black man who greets people at the front door, another small man, a woman" . . . "and a former owner of the inn named Newt"), but also a doll that moves and an unplugged phone that rings! You can see the full article by Tony Nauroth here.

Ianetta took more than 60 hours of video at the inn and as of the time of the article, planned to review it. The manager of the Newburg Inn, Lou Basta, seems to take it all in stride, but Nauroth writes, "As for that disconnected phone that rings, Basta says, 'I don't answer it.' "

Have any of our readers seen ghosts at the Newburg Inn? Anywhere else? Tell us about it. Maybe those specters just want to be mentioned on the internet!

History note: Newburg was part of the area called the Dryland because of a dearth of creeks and springs between the present Brodhead Road and Nazareth.

Ghost of a Driver--the VIA Thrift Store in Nazareth

We received this from reader Debra Borgo:

. . . about the ghost of the thrift store: I used to work there in 1996-1997 and at that time it was Good Shepherd. There would be lights going on and off, things would fall off the racks with no reason or rhyme. So me being the ever-asking 18 year old asked some of the old timers. Apparently there was a race car driver that was killed on the old track.... and his spirit still haunted the section where he passed. Now how true this is I have no clue just was told by more a one person who worked there and it did have a really spooky feeling.

She also sent a link to a page about the driver, Jackie McLaughlin, the driver who may never have left Nazareth. Thank you, Debra. Readers are encouraged to contribute!

P.S.: Not ghost-related, but did you know that there's a song on the album Sailing to Philadelphia by Mark Knopfler with the title Speedway at Nazareth?