Skinwalker Ranch is said to be a hotbed of paranormal activity and strange happenings. For over 50 years, reports of UFO sightings, glowing orbs, poltergeists, animal mutilations, crop circles, and even Sasquatch have come to light. Frightening events are just known to happen in this area. Over 100 cattle mutilations and disappearances have been investigated by Colm Kelleher and Goerge Knapp over the years.
The Hunt for Skinwalker Film
George Knapp and Colm Kelleher collaborated to turn their book of the same name to a film based on the ranch and its supernatural activities. The film studies the surrounding areas which are apparently tightly secured by what may be military controlled areas which appear to have Area-51 level security. Could something nefarious from nearby properties be contributing to the UFO sightings and paranormal activity?
Where is the Skinwalker Ranch?
Skinwalker Ranch is a 512-acre ranch just southeast of Ballard, Utah. The Skinwalker Ranch is located at 7500 East, Randlett, UT 84063, USA in west Uintah County. The Skinwalker Ranch is also known as Sherman Ranch but received the Skinwalker name from the Navajo legend of the skin-walker, a shapeshifting witch similar to Wendigo lore.
Stories from the Skinwalker Ranch
Many stories have surfaced over the last 50 years. The property is on the Ute Indian Reservation which adds to the lore. The name and many legends have passed down from the Ute and surrounding tribes.
The Ute tribe members call the ranch “the path of the skinwalker” and the tribe is said to never set foot on the property. The Utes believe the land is cursed by the Navajo tribe placed on the area a long time ago.
The Shermans are previous owners who purchased the land but left after only 2 years. The mutilations and strange occurrences were too much for the family. They say they lost nearly 20% of their herd.
The family reported seeing strange animals on the property that were odd in their movements and reported seeing a UFO the size of “two football fields.”
Experience the haunting and historic Gothic Jail this Halloween, where paranormal activity runs rampant and the walls hold secrets of a brutal murder, suicide and a double hanging. It is not for the faint of heart! Proceeds benefit the Gothic Jail Restoration Project.
The Exorcist is labeled universally amongst film fans as the scariest motion picture ever made. There are others that come close in terms of gory special effects or a sudden plot twist late in the third act. But The Exorcist is still regarded 45 years later as a film that will terrify and disturb. Being a film that old, movie memorabilia and props from the set are very rare amongst collectors.
With only a portion of the cast still alive today, hardcore fans and film buffs are straining to share in a piece of historically shocking film. However, there is still one piece around today that gets plenty of visits both day and night and is completely free to use. The infamous, “Exorcist stairs.”
What are The Exorcist Stairs?
The Exorcist is a 1973 horror film that is based on the novel by William Blatty. The book was inspired by the real-life story of a 14-year-old boy who was believed to have suffered from demonic possession in a house in Missouri. The Exorcist House can be found in a suburb of St. Louis called Bel-Nor.
The Exorcist Stairs were used in the movie version to showcase the violent demise of the character Father Damien Karras.
Director William Friedkin chose to have the movie filmed in the heart of Georgetown, which is deep within Washington D.C, so as to keep the film as close to the book as possible. William Peter Blatty wrote both the novel and screenplay for the film, and being an actual graduate of Georgetown University, he was all too familiar with locations around the city.
The stairs themselves were physically located in the Georgetown neighborhood and were originally constructed sometime between 1890-1895. Their purpose was to ensure employees could make it in and out of the Capital Traction Company which was a railway car line that housed the cars next door.
Over the years, Capital moved and the stairs were seldom used. As a student of Georgetown, Blatty and his friends all jokingly referred to those steps as the “Hitchcock Steps” due to the fact that they were dreadful to approach and go up or down, be it day or night. This coupled with Alfred Hitchcock being the most prolific horror and suspense director at the time, Blatty was already plotting out just how to showcase the stairs in a novel he had long been working on, The Exorcist.
The stairs are still around and much frequented as a popular tourist attraction to this very day and anyone is free to visit and dare to climb the stairs. They actually number seventy-five total and are reputed to be a heavy cardiovascular experience, even for the most physically fit. In October 2015, the stairs were actually recognized as a Washington D.C. area landmark, replete with a plaque commemorating the occasion.
Where are the Exorcist Stairs?
The Exorcist Stairs are located at the corner of Prospect St. NW & 36th St. NW in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC.
In the winter of 2011, Latoya Ammons was under incredible scrutiny for claiming that her house and family were possessed by several demons. The Ammons House haunting was documented in over 800 pages of official records from local police and the Department of Child Services in what may be one of the most well-known hauntings since the Conjuring or Amityville hauntings.
Is the Ammons house haunted?
In November of 2011, Latoya Ammons and her family moved into their new home in Gary, Indiana. It didn’t take long for strange things to happen. Even though it was winter, swarms of flies would appear on the front porch. “We killed them and killed them and killed them, but they kept coming back,” said Latoya’s mother.
Latoya Ammons
Many evenings the family heard footsteps coming from the basement stairs and even witnessed a shadowy figure of a man walking through the house. This would be enough to make anyone nervous about who else was living in the house, but things got worse.
State of Indiana Intake Officer’s Report
A few months later Latoya’s daughter called out to her in the middle of the night. When she entered her room her daughter was levitating above the bed. Not knowing how to handle the situation, Latoya reached out to local churches, but most refused to help.
Finally, she reached out to two clairvoyants, who said the family’s home was occupied by more than 200 demons. Their advice? Move! But moving wasn’t in the cards for this penny-pinching family. So she decided to fight the demons. She built an altar in the basement, covered in a white sheet, and opened a bible. Things got better for a few days but then escalated.
The family said that all three children were under possession from demons. Their eyes would bulge, and their voices would somehow become much deeper. Sometimes they were even physically assaulted by the spirits. They were thrown across the room, choked, and held down so they couldn’t move. Latoya needed another option.
The Ammons finally reached out to their family physician, Dr. Geoffrey Onyeukwu. “Twenty years and I’ve never heard anything like that in my life,” Onyeukwu said. “I was scared myself when I walked into the room.” Ammons’ son began speaking in demonic voices and cursed at the doctor. Other medical staff said the boy was”lifted and thrown into the wall with nobody touching him,” according to a DCS report.
State of Indiana Intake Officer’s Report
Hospital personnel examined the family and found them to be healthy and free of any injuries. A hospital psychiatrist determined Latoya Ammons was of “sound mind.” Regardless of this, DCS took custody of the children, noting in their report, “All of the children were experiencing (sic) spiritual and emotional distress.
After more than six months and leaving the home, the Ammons family was reunited. The next tenants never reported any paranormal experiences.
Where is the Ammons Demon House Located?
The Ammons House was located at 3860 Carolina St, Gary, Indiana, 46409 until ghost hunter Zak Bagans bought the home and tore it down in 2014. You can move the home, but can you move the spirits?
Zak Bagans’ Demon House
Ammons house being demolished
In 2014, paranormal investigator and star of Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures, Zak Bagans, purchased the Gary, Indiana home for $35,000. After investigating the house, Bagans said “Something was inside that house that had the ability to do things that I have never seen before — things that others carrying the highest forms of credibility couldn’t explain either. There was something there that was very dark yet highly intelligent and powerful.” He then had the house demolished as it was deemed too dangerous.
“This is the case that really f***ed me up,” Bagans tells us in the opening of his documentary Demon House. He and his team of ghost hunters spent two years investigating the Ammons house and creating this documentary on the hauntings of the house in Gary. Bagans also included Father Maginot in the documentary, a local Catholic priest who performed exorcisms on the house and some of the victims.
“Going in unprotected really messed with [Bagans], and also it led to the destruction of the house, which is something I disagreed with. I think he could have protected a lot more people [by] owning it, locking it up so people won’t mess around with this. Now that it’s an open lot, as it mentions in the documentary, people are going there doing seances or whatever, and the police have to get called out… to chase the people away. Those people are in great danger, and there’s no way to really protect [them]. And all you need is curiosity. Curiosity is an invitation.” -Father Maginot
What Stands at 3860 Carolina St, Gary, Indiana today?
Since Zak Bagans tore down the old Ammons House, the lot remains empty with only the tree that stood in front of the home still standing. Zak Bagans moved the Ammons stairway to the basement, AKA the stairway to hell, to The Haunted Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the Vegas museum, you’ll also find some of the excavated dirt, ritual items discovered by police, and other artifacts.
1203 Northeast 3rd Street, Bend, Oregon 97701, USA
Bend, Oregon’s Haunted Platypus Pub beneath the old church
Right beneath the Old Church on Northeast 3rd Street in Bend, Oregon is the Platypus Pub. I stopped in here to grab a drink and spoke with the bartender Jon, who by chance also happened to be an Oakland Raiders fan. After a few drinks, I hear another patron shout across the bar asking, “so what’s the deal with the poltergeists?” Jon begins to tell stories of employees who won’t work alone, lights that turn on by themselves and a shadowy apparition that has whisked past people in the past.
Bend Oregon’s haunted bar, the Platypus Pub
This converted church has operated as a few different restaurants since the 70’s and now hosts the largest brew shop in Bend on its upper floor and the Platypus Pub in its basement. The Pub has a great selection of local beers to pair with your ghost story if you catch my drift. Afterall, Bend is a beer-lovers haven. The cozy Pub has a touch of old and new with a wood-laden bar and ample seating. Enter the haunted pub on the side of the church and down the stairwell.
Ghost Stories of the Pub Beneath the Church
Jon, of the haunted Platypus Pub, tells a ghost story to his patrons.
Diners and staff have both reported lights flickering. Some have mentioned a heavy presence and some employees will tell you they’ve seen a dark apparition around corners or in the hallway in the back. The building is old and creeky which can add to the spooky factor. Patrons have mentioned that the hallway in the back that leads to the bathroom gives them an eerie ominous feeling, which is where employees have most often reported the tavern’s apparition.
The owners believe the ghost may be an old cook who worked at the building years ago. Others believe it to be the ghost of an old previous owner. Considering the building is an old church, there are many possibilities as the place has hosted funerals and has a long history
How long will this haunted pub be with us?
Recent news around this old church and haunted pub suggest its time may be coming to an end. The property owner is attempting to fast-track a plan to demolish the building to build a drive-thru. The building does not have historic status at this time and is not protected by the historic district of Bend. Locals are trying to stop the demolition, but the next 2 years could be the end for the church, pub and brew shop.
In 1673, The Whitehorse Tavern opened its doors in the Rhode Island Colony making it the oldest bar in the country. Throughout the centuries, the tavern has been used as a boarding house and British military quarters during the Revolutionary War. It’s no surprise that with all the activity in the tavern over the years, several ghosts have been seen by guests. A poplar spirit being an elderly man who died while renting a room above the bar in the early years of The Whitehorse Tavern. Another is a young girl who can be heard wailing on the second floor.
Not everyone wants to have a drink in a bar that was formerly a morgue, but the Key West, Florida locals don’t seem to mind too much. Before it was a morgue, it is said that the site was used to hang criminals from a large tree. Guests are warned to watch out for the bathroom doors that lock on their own.
422 South 2nd Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204, USA
Is Shaker’s Cigar Bar Haunted?
The self-proclaimed “Milwaukee Haunted Bar” is teaming with ghosts and history for those interested enough to go looking. The ghost of a young woman named Elizabeth has been heard wailing in the bathroom while a former brothel worker named Molly, who was brutally murdered upstairs, can be seen waltzing through the penthouse at all hours of the night. The owner is always willing to give tours of Shaker’s haunted floors to those who ask.
310 W Spring Street P.O. Box 633 Goodsprings, NV 89019
Is the Pioneer Saloon in Nevada Haunted?
In the old forgotten mining town of Goodsprings in the hot Nevada desert, not too far from Las Vegas, stands the Pioneer Saloon. In the early twentieth century, Goodsprings was booming with life and activity, especially in the saloon. It was not uncommon for bar fights to break out between patrons.
In one instance, a hot-headed man was shot and killed inside the bar after he lunged at a card dealer who he thought to be cheating in their game of cards. It is said that the man can still be seen sitting at the small table playing cards. One mixologist has said that in the early evening a kindly looking prospector will sometimes sit at the end of the bar.
Tiger’s Tap Room and Hotel Congress have been buzzing with activity, alive and ghostly, since its opening in 1919. The Tuscan located establishment has had its fair share of unpleasant events, from a woman killing herself in room 242 (the bullet hole still visible for those willing to go poking around the closest) to Wyatt Earp shooting Frank Stilwell across the street.
Many guests have experienced disembodied voices excusing themselves or blessing a living patron after they have sneezed. Others have seen full apparitions strolling through the bar or looking out of windows.
Prohibition was a dark time for bars, but where many failed, others got creative to keep afloat. This Austin, Texas hot spot was a grocery store during the day, but by night became a bustling bar, casino, and brothel. The ghost most likely to be seen in the tavern is a young woman named Emily closely followed by her small daughter. Both are dressed in early twentieth-century attire and make a habit of walking up and down the halls and staring out windows. Emily has been known to cause disturbances in the bar such as changing TV channels, making phone calls from the manager’s office, and smashing dishes in the kitchen when no one is around.
Since its opening in the late 30s, Simon’s Tavern has been hopping with scandalous history and ghost activity. In the 40s, the family-owned tavern faced a fiery love affair with a married woman, a fatal car accident, and an extensive family cover-up. The owner of the Chicago bar, Scott, gives tours of the haunted building for just a nickel. Numerous guests have felt cold spots, heard strange noises and quiet voices, as well as seen full apparitions.
The Menger Bar, along with the famously haunted Menger Hotel, opened its doors in San Antonio in 1859, the time of heated gunfights, Civil War soldiers, and wide roaming, notorious outlaws. Considering the amount of history in the San Antonio area, it’s unsurprising that some of it leaked into The Menger Bar. As many as 32 separate ghosts have been reported wandering the bar and hotel. Most of the spirits have been described as being good-natured, but some seem to be a bit more reserved and intimidating.
Open everyday from 11:30 am to 4am. Kitchen closes nightly at 2am.
Is the Ear Inn Bar Haunted?
Ear Inn is one of New York City’s oldest bars, serving the Big Apple since the nineteenth century. Considering the bar sits next to the Hudson River, it is to no one’s surprise that it would be full of pirates, sailors, and other undesirables. And where there are undesirables, there is typically undesirable activities such as prostitution, constant bar fights, smuggling, and more. It’s no surprise that the spirits of these old customers are often seen milling around the bar. Most often seen is a sailor named Mickey who was shot in front of the bar.
If you’re ever in New Orleans, make sure you stop by its oldest and most haunted bar, Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop. The shop was built sometimes between 1761 and 1762 by notorious pirate Jean Lafitte who used it as a front to hide all of his illegal activity. Guests have reported seeing Jean Lafitte himself sitting near the fireplace, lingering at a shadowy back table, or roaming near the women’s bathroom. It is said that Lafitte hid his gold somewhere near the fireplace and is protective of that area of the shop. An unknown distraught woman has also been seen wandering the back of the building.
