In the heart of Michigan lies the minuscule village of Merrill. With a population of just seven hundred and seventy-eight, it’s the kind of place where everyone knows their neighbor’s name, and friendly handshakes and shouts across the street are commonplace. On the surface, life in Merrill seems uneventful, but beneath the quiet facade, a dark secret has lingered for decades.
Two haunted homes, separated by a mere three miles, have plagued the lives of local families. The Midcalf family, desperate for answers, grapples with unexplained and terrifying experiences. Meanwhile, the Pomeraning family seeks closure from the malevolent entity that has made their lives supremely uncomfortable. These paranormal occurrences in such an isolated location raise questions: What connects these two haunted homes? Could there be a deeper, more chilling link?
The mystery of Merrill’s haunted houses remains unsolved, leaving the villagers to wonder about the eerie forces that linger in their midst. Perhaps the truth lies hidden in the shadows, waiting for someone brave enough to unravel it.
A Haunting On Dice Road: The Iva General Store
The current home of the Midcalf family has a fascinating history. Originally constructed in 1845, it served as both the local general store and the post office for the area. For decades, it was the hub where locals gathered, socialized, and exchanged stories. However, as times changed, the store eventually closed down. A new supermarket and an official post office were established elsewhere in the tiny town. The old store transformed over the years, gradually evolving into a livable home, while still retaining its original exterior appearance as a general store.
In 2006, the Midcalf family acquired the property and embarked on renovations. The patriarch, Mike Midcalf, noticed a peculiar phenomenon: a steady stream of people would drive by, park, and reminisce about the home’s antiquated past. Being the friendly type, Mike often extended invitations for tours, but every visitor declined to set foot inside the house.
The kitchen area within this historic home harbors some of the most chilling experiences. Mike’s wife encountered a terrifying incident while washing dishes one afternoon. A pair of ice-cold hands seized her wrists, refusing to release their grip without a struggle! Meanwhile, their son Josh faced his own eerie encounter. Late one evening, he ventured into the kitchen for a midnight snack, only to find himself inexplicably trapped. An overwhelming negative presence seemed to confine him within those walls. Summoning his courage, Josh attempted to pass through, but the room suddenly filled with billowing black smoke. Frozen in terror, he cleared the back kitchen counter, climbed upon it, and spent the entire night in a fetal position, unable to cross the threshold until sunrise dispersed the ominous haze.
However, amidst all the disturbing incidents, there is one family member who captures the entity’s attention more than anyone else: ten-year-old granddaughter Aidabelle. Her connection to the haunting remains a mystery, leaving the Midcalf family to grapple with the inexplicable forces that linger within their home.
Young Aidabelle lay in her bed one fateful night, the room cloaked in darkness. The footsteps—pacing outside and within—echoed through the silence. Her father and grandparents were nowhere to be found, leaving her alone with the enigmatic sounds. Straining her senses, she glimpsed a shadowy figure materializing before her. Its form, an abyss of blackness, seemed to defy the laws of reality.
A shiver raced down Aidabelle’s spine as she closed her eyes, hoping to banish the apparition. But when she reopened them, the figure’s face hovered inches above her, chilling her to the core. Fear clenched her heart, yet she resisted the urge to scream. Instead, she endured the inexplicable presence, even as a searing pain gnawed at the back of her head and neck.
Morning arrived, and Aidabelle recounted her harrowing experience to her father and grandparents. They dismissed it as a mere bad dream, attempting to soothe her troubled mind. But Josh, her father, noticed something amiss. As he reached around her neck, Aidabelle winced. There, etched into her skin, were three deep scratches—a sinister mark left by an unseen force.
Desperate for answers, the Midcalf family turned to paranormal investigators and sought counsel from the home’s former residents. In Aidabelle’s bedroom, an investigator attempted to capture electronic voice phenomena (EVPs). What unfolded was straight out of a horror tale—the recording captured a raspy, demonic voice screaming, “Get! Out!” The walls held secrets, and Aidabelle stood at the heart of a chilling mystery.
The Michigan Hell House: The Pomeraning Haunting
A mere three miles from the Midcalf home, the Pomeraning brothers—Terry and Dwayne—resided in their own haunted abode. Their home, once a fading general store, had been converted into a livable house around the late 1890s. However, growing up within those walls, the Pomeraning brothers would later recall that their childhood was marred by unsettling events.
In 1974, during a fateful June evening, the Pomeraning family settled into bed. Terry and Duane were abruptly awakened by furious rapping on the east side of the house. The knocking echoed both inside and outside, devoid of any discernible pattern—just a relentless, violent rhythm. Alarmed, their father suspected a possible break-in and promptly called the police.
Retired police sergeant Charles Frisby and his partner arrived as the first responders. To their bewilderment, they found no signs of forced entry or trespassing. Yet, the inexplicable rapping persisted, beating relentlessly in their presence—an unseen force orchestrating the eerie cadence.
The following night, Terry and Duane again heard the same haunting knocks. Their father summoned the police once more, but the outcome remained unchanged: no visible source for the unsettling sounds. This unsettling cycle of nocturnal disturbances and emergency calls persisted for six months. The local police department’s records in Merrill documented nightly dispatches, yet officers discovered no prowlers or plausible origins for the ghostly rapping.
The strain on the Pomeraning family’s emotions was immense. Young Duane, overwhelmed by fear, cried himself to sleep each night. Desperate for answers, state police, state fire marshals, and even a geological seismologist descended upon the Pomeraning property, seeking to unravel the enigma that plagued their home. The echoes of that relentless knocking still reverberate through the annals of Merrill’s haunted history.
As the haunting intensified, the Pomeraning family found themselves ensnared in a web of inexplicable events. One seemingly ordinary afternoon, as Terry, Duane, and their father sat watching television, an acrid scent filled the air—the unmistakable odor of smoke. Rushing to the bathroom, they discovered a singular roll of toilet paper ablaze. The fire department was summoned, yet their investigation yielded no tangible source for the fire. Firefighter David Lednicky, among the first responders, confirmed that no other part of the bathroom bore any damage—only the incinerated toilet paper roll remained. The absence of accelerants defied logic, leaving them with a borderline inexplicable conclusion: spontaneous combustion by an unknown force.
But the haunting did not relent. On Halloween night, October 31, 1975, terror struck anew. A back bedroom within the house erupted into flames, threatening not only the home but also the life of young Duane. As firefighters battled the inferno, Duane’s skin turned an eerie shade of blue, and his breath ceased. Amidst the chaos, the fire chief attempted to breach the attic, seeking any clue to the fire’s origin. Yet, with each effort, a mysterious force pushed back against the attic door, thwarting his entry.
Duane, scarred by these otherworldly encounters, remains steadfast in his belief: Satan himself is the malevolent force haunting their home. But as shadows dance upon the walls and echoes of the past linger, the question remains: Is Duane’s assertion correct, or does an even darker secret lie hidden within those haunted walls?
The Haunted History of Merrill, Michigan
Delving into the annals of Merrill’s past, we uncover a chilling tale from the late 1800s—a time when the village was ravaged by the dreaded scourge of smallpox. This now-eradicated virus, once highly contagious and deadly, manifested as a rash, erupting into lesion-like blisters that inexorably led to death. Desperate for relief, afflicted families resorted to an ungodly remedy: setting fire to their own homes and personal belongings, hoping to cleanse and scorch their surroundings.
The eerie echoes of this dark history resonate in the present. The Midcalf kitchen, veiled in unexplained black smoke, and the former Pomeraning home, consumed by inexplicable fires, stand as enigmatic markers. Could these two hauntings be intertwined?
Enter a psychic medium, who ventured into the Midcalf home, attuned to the unseen currents. Within young Aidabelle’s bedroom, the medium sensed choking sensations and glimpses of fire. But the heart of the matter lay deeper: an angry male entity harbored resentment toward the entire Midcalf family, especially Aidabelle. Why? Because their family remained whole, while his own kin perished. This revelation offers a breakthrough—the haunting, perhaps, rooted in a tragic past.
Imagine a family existing during the general store era, struck down by smallpox. Casualties were inevitable, except for one lone survivor who harbored eternal hatred for anyone destined to inhabit that cursed space. And what of the Pomeraning residence? The heavy fires there seem to point directly to a grim truth: hapless victims of smallpox were incinerated and buried somewhere along this unholy stretch of road.
Today, after a ritualistic cleansing performed by the medium, the Midcalfs claim a greater sense of relief. While uncertainty lingers, the home now breathes with newfound tranquility, as if the malevolent energy has been quelled. Perhaps the restless spirits have found solace, or perhaps they bide their time, waiting for the next chapter in Merrill’s haunted history. The Pomeraning brothers no longer live in the home that terrorized them so long ago and a new family lives within the home currently.
