Author Topic: New Orleans Ghosts  (Read 9710 times)

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Offline skully

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New Orleans Ghosts
« on: February 20, 2005, 09:05:06 AM »
I've recently had the pleasure of visiting what I consider one of my favorite cities in the US, New Orleans.  Arriving just after Mardi Gras, where the streets all smell like puke, I went to work for a weekend event.  The last evening I was there, we spent the evening with a couple really cool people- one a jazz musician and a cool manager of some up-and-coming musicial groups (not of the heavy metal variety, sorry Slade and MW).

After a drink at a really cool neightborhood bar (the coolest little place with the freindliest people), we walked over to one of our hosts houses which happens to be right in the middle of the Uptown/Garden district.  This area of New Orleans is noted for old houses.  When I say old, I mean that it put Massachusetts to shame.  We think that the Pilgrims were the first to settle, boy we were wrong.   Anyway, a whole area of really old 1700's+ houses.  Complete with high ceilings and the character of New Orleans to match.

We were in the front room chatting.  The entire rear of the house was dark behind the door with it's hanging curtain.  The jazz musician scruffled that he had to go take a leak.  The owner of the house told him it was at the back of the house, beyond the doorway, where the lightswtich was.

The lightswtich was not found but he made it blind enough to make it to the bathroom where the lightswitch inside the bathroom was found.  He returned minutes later asking the strangest questions: "So..  Who's the girl back there?".

We all stop the conversation we were in.  The owner of the house responds, "What do you mean?.  "I went back there to piss and this girl was wandering around in the back room.. all looking at me.  Pretty weird", he says.

He saw a ghost.  Skully put his IB hat on.  I had a rush of questions flowing through my mind-

1) What did the ghost look like?
2) Did you just have too much to drink?
3) Has the owner, whom we were with, see the ghost herself?

I probed a little what it looked like but couldn't contain myself.  I got up, walked to the doorway and spread the curtain aside.  Beyond is mostly darkness.

I walked into the area.  Looking around, feeling like there should be a movie soundtrack playing or something..   I unfortunately, saw nothing.

Having a seat again with the living, we had a long conversation about how this area of New Orleans is well-known for sightings.  So much so that it's no big deal.  In fact the owner of the house was upset that "her ghost" revealed itself to a stranger not her the owner!

Apparently New Orleans has got some skeletons in the closet, LITERALLY!  Being a city below sea level, early residents found that they could not bury bodies below ground.  The water table would rise and fall, resulting in bodies and coffins popping out of thre ground.  Early attempts were tried to keep the coffins down by punching holes in the caskets themselves.  By doing this, the casket would rise, fill with water and then fall again (hopefull never to rise again).  This did not work well.  Inside coffins, body parts would jam up again the holes and the coffins would stay above ground.  Yuck.  Finally they decided to build little crypts above ground.  When you're in New Orleans you'll find the vast "cities" of tombs above ground.  From this New Orleans got the name "City of the Dead".

Back to the house...  Around 1853, New Orleans fell damage to it's worst epidemic, yellow fever, carried by mosquitoes from standing pools of water around the city streets.  Upwards to 8,000 people died in the city.  Nowhere to put the bodies.  Many people simply placed rotting bodies under their houses!  Spritmania in the Garden District where so many people were taken so early in their short lives are commonly seen walking around inside buildings around that area.  Cool visit to say the least.
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Offline Photohunter

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New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #1 on: February 22, 2005, 07:37:22 PM »
Cool shit.
That story reminds me that  we are overdue to "hang with children"
It has been a while since I was scared out of my skin.
Abandoned locations can hide but they can't run

Offline metalwitch

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New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #2 on: February 22, 2005, 11:29:55 PM »
Cool deal!
Cool story Skully.
Did you know that on Block Island in the old days, when the ground was too hard to bury a body.
Some people on Block Island simply put the bodies on their back porches!
Just a little morbid RI history.
 

Offline Dakiel

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New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #3 on: February 23, 2005, 12:46:45 AM »
That must have been soon after Block Islanders lured ships into the rocks to sink them and loot them.

 
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Offline Photohunter

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New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #4 on: February 25, 2005, 06:59:44 PM »
Is that wrong?
Should I not have dead bodies on my porch?
If someone had told me when I first moved here that kind of thing was frowned upon I might have done things differently.
Where I used to live people did that sort of thing all the time.
I'm going to have to plead ignorance on this one.
« Last Edit: February 25, 2005, 07:01:06 PM by Photohunter »
Abandoned locations can hide but they can't run

Offline Dakiel

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New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #5 on: February 25, 2005, 11:51:08 PM »
It's ok, but you have to decorate them first, I think MW refers to them just leaving the bodies lying around decomposing, where as you have them all dressed up and posed, the neighbors like that.  
Don't worry, if you die....We'll make it.

Offline urbanexplorer

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Re: New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #6 on: May 20, 2006, 09:00:30 PM »
photohunter could you elaborate on "hang with children" that sounds kinda eiree i would like to read more
When you go looking for ghosts in these places be sure to be a ghost leave no clues to your existence and dissapear into thin air!!!!

Urbanexplorer 2006

Offline Dakiel

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Re: New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #7 on: May 21, 2006, 11:49:15 PM »
skully may still have the original email ......it relates to hauntings at Scalabrini Villa Retirement Homes in North Kingstown, Rhode Island

"Now a retirement home for nuns and priests, Scalabrini Villa Nursing Home is comprised of two buildings. Many say you can hear the spirit of children in the older building, which was once a hospital for children. They can be heard playing and laughing, sometimes crying, and room 103 is thought to be the most haunted."

from http://www.wintersteel.com/haunted_placesp9.html
Don't worry, if you die....We'll make it.

Offline skully

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Re: New Orleans Ghosts
« Reply #8 on: May 25, 2006, 09:38:42 PM »
Who's up for a good old email?  I've dug it up (and keep the sender private):


From: ********@aol.com
Sent: Sunday, August 31, 2003 11:59 AM
To: webmaster@insanebunkers.com
Subject: LETS SEE IF YOU CAN HANG WITH THE CHILDREN

hi all,
first great website. If you would like to check out a totally freaky place, try SCALLABRINI VILLA, we had some college students a couple of months back who had come out on the 3rd shift and couldnt hang with the children who haunt the villa. they couldnt get in their cars and leave fast enough. not much is said in any haunted places website. im sure you will have to get permission from the administrator. Im sure he wouldnt have a problem 3rd shift, when the residents are sleeping. well good luck and have alot of fun exploring.




MessageFrom: Skully
Sent: Sunday, August 31, 2003 5:20 PM
From: ********@aol.com
Cc: webmaster@insanebunkers.com
Subject: RE: LETS SEE IF YOU CAN HANG WITH THE CHILDREN

Hi XXXXXXX,
My name is Skully from InsaneBunkers.  Thanks for the note.  We've been real close to the Villa for some of us worked right next door to it (Quidnesset CC) years ago.  Since it's always been occupied, we never found a way to venture in.  We'd love to do a complete special on the Villa.  It sounds like you have a contact or you yourself is a contact.  Can you elaborate?  We'd keep it in confidence- we promise.  What's the admin's name?  What's your role? 

Very curious,
Skully



  -----Original Message-----
  From:********@aol.com
  Sent: Monday, September 01, 2003 8:33 AM
  To: skully@opdl.org
  Subject: Re: LETS SEE IF YOU CAN HANG WITH THE CHILDREN

  hi skully,
  im a third shift [employee].  the administrator is Father XXXX.  i spoke to a coworker who has been there for 5 years, she said he would most likely to agree to a 3rd shift visit, the only problem would be is that he doesnt allow anyone inside of the buildings because of confidentiality,but he has alound walking of the grounds.  If you are familiar with the villa, most of the activity is the main building nearest the ocean and the building in front of the building to your left. thats were the fire was located, that building was put up in the 30,s after the children died. there is a whole history on the villa. the guys who came out showed my coworker the pictures they tookon a digital camera, she stated they are freaky. it would be great to see how much is fact and how much fiction.  good uck and keep me posted if you can.



-----Original Message-----
From: Skully
Sent: Monday, September 01, 2003 8:38 AM
To: ********@aol.com
Cc: dakiel@insanebunkers.com
Subject: RE: LETS SEE IF YOU CAN HANG WITH THE CHILDREN

Thanks for the awesome info.  We'll be planning a visit.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2006, 09:41:17 PM by skully »
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