| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 2:51:09 PM | | Let me start by stating, I am a skeptic. I was never one who believed in ghosts or life after death. I don't believe in psychics. I do believe in hard, scientific proof. Seeing is believing. That being said, I am looking to do a little amateur ghost hunting in the Calgary area (before doing some big time ghost hunting in Arizona next year). No fancy equipment here - just my digital camera, a camcorder, and a digital voice recorder. Just wondering if anyone out there has any suggestions as to some haunted places other than the usual (Deane House, Fort Calgary, Prince House, etc). I am looking to debunk as much as I am looking to prove. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 2:59:02 PM | I'm a firm believer --- have a pretty descent IQ, was raised in a 200 year old home in Ontario - and yeah.....there was/is a tall thin lady named Helen and she had a dog THAT GROWLED.
Anyway, I'd say that for your first experience I'd head outta Calgary. It's too new. You want real thrills, get to the east coast of USA!
Luck. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 3:36:10 PM | You want to go to a hotel and ghost hunt. I worked for a local Calgary hotel part time, we had a haunted room. Tossed towels, messy beds, 911 calls in the empty room. Room was creepy feeling too
Take a trip to the Banff Springs. The most notorious is Room 873 where a father killed his child. Sounds of screaming and a mirror that would be cleaned and housekeeping would return to find children's finger prints on the mirror. Finally it was boarded up. NO hotel will board up a room..it's a source of revenue. There is also "Sam the Bellman" and the Dancing Bride... I went ghost hunting there 2 years ago and it just right wigged me out. All kinds of strange stories come out of Banff. The Palliser & the Sandman on 7th are also haunted. Hotels try to keep the chat about ghosts down..it's bad for business. Check Google.
A friend of mine lived in a haunted house..and she would often sit in front of her computer. Sometimes she could see the reflection of this man ghost. Finally she turned the system around so her back was too the wall. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 5:54:22 PM | | Thanks for the suggestions. I have heard about the "legends" of the Banff Springs Hotel. It's funny some hotels keep the ghost chats down and others hype it up - it seems to me that the ones who hype it up tend to get pretty busy, especially this time of year! | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 6:18:50 PM | | I am a skeptic too. But I have been watching ghost hunters and there is some crazy shiz that happens on that show. I would like to try it, but I think in the end it would freak me out to much. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 6:37:52 PM | Hunting ghosts? What's the point? They're already dead! 
Couldn't resist.... | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 7:02:51 PM | I know you mentioned the Deane House, but have you been there?
There is also The Canmore Opera House, The Rose and Crown and the Cat and The Fiddle
One last note, the area Tuscany of Calgary is rumored to be built on scared Indian ground. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 8:51:45 PM | | To go along with Minnie's comment. What guage gun do you use for a ghost? Or do you trap them? What is a ghost pelt worth? How do you cook one, and what wine do you you pare with one? These are the important questions that need answers. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 9:10:52 PM | No, just insight. I forgot to add bless the creepy ole men who post in the events as well.  Again, bless those who think they are funny and witty  | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/23/2009 9:59:50 PM | | I haven't been to the Deane house yet but was planning a visit there, in addition to Heritage Park. I have heard the stories about the Rose & Crown but I guess no one is allowed in the "haunted areas". | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/24/2009 11:22:00 AM | | Both my daughters work at Sheldon Chumir, They've both encountered a ghost in what used to be the veteran's ward, doors opening and closing, papers moving from one room to another, footsteps. The younger one refuses to work after dark because she is right there all shift. but you can't go hunting there seeing as it belongs to the Health Region | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/24/2009 11:39:54 AM | I saw on Creepy Canada that the Hose and Hound in Inglewood has a "monkey ghost" from when it was a firehall. It's a while since I saw the show but I think the monkey sometimes tossed around pool balls (the pool tables are upstairs).
My old apartment had a ghost in it. It would move the doors and move my clothes on the floor of the bedroom. I lived there 6 months and never once slept in the bedroom, it just creeped me right out.
BTW -> If Ghosts are your thing, Google "Black Donnelly Ghosts". REALLY fascinating story from the 1880's in Southern Ontario. I've visited the Donnelly Homestead and its' truly the most creepy place I can remember going. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/24/2009 7:51:45 PM |
Both my daughters work at Sheldon Chumir, They've both encountered a ghost in what used to be the veteran's ward, doors opening and closing, papers moving from one room to another, footsteps. The younger one refuses to work after dark because she is right there all shift. but you can't go hunting there seeing as it belongs to the Health Region
It seems like hospitals are rich with activity. Too bad one can't just go into a hospital and ghost hunt! I've always hated hospitals as a kid and even moreso now. But it makes sense because nowadays, most people pass away in hospitals as opposed to residences, hence it's mostly older houses/apartments that see a lot of activity.
A friend of mine used to live in an apartment complex in Bridgeland that she swore was haunted. I was a diehard skeptic at the time but now that I think back, it was entirely possible given that there was a known suicide that took place there (a girl leapt to her death off the balcony) and there has always been a lot of "negative" energy there (ie. domestic disputes, poverty, etc). | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/26/2009 8:09:10 PM | Just read this in Yahoo....thought it might be of interest to you ghost hunters. Told ya, hotels are the place to find ghosts.
The Lady in Red is Dancing on the 14th Floor
Fairmont Hotel Vancouver in Vancouver, British Columbia
As one of the most distinguishable buildings in Vancouver and a typical Fairmont chateau establishment, today's version was built in 1939. Amongst is grand architecture and its gargoyles, you may just find another one of its wonders: the lady in red. She has been described as an elegant lady in a red dress walking along an invisible ledge and wandering down the corridors of the 14th floor (or is it really the 13th?). Stranger still, the hotel's elevator is known to make stops on the 14th floor at random, without being requested.
Sam the Bellman & The Blushing Bride
Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta
The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel opened in 1888 and has since then has been the site of two major hauntings and ghost stories.
The first is about Sam the bellman who retired in 1967. He promised that he would return, but died a few years later. Well, he did return, and continues to do so today, especially for late-night arrivals to the hotel or guests who lose their keys. Watch out for a bellman wearing a 1960s classic hotel uniform.
A second story from the 1920s is told about a bride who was descending the grand stairwell in the hotel (rumoured to be closed to visitors today) on the way to her wedding ceremony. She tripped on her veil or it caught fire, and she fell down the stairs to her death, snapping her neck. She can be seen wandering through the hotel in her wedding dress. She is sometimes seen at the top of the stairs, but then disappears quickly.
A Restless Painter
James Bay Inn in Victoria, British Columbia
Famous Group of Seven painter: Emily Carr is known to have died here on March 2, 1945 during World War II. At the time, the hotel was converted by Mother Cecilia's religious order to St. Mary's Priory to service the wounded. The bar in the hotel is said to be haunted by anyone who speaks or criticizes Carr's artwork.
Party with the Ghosts
HI Ottawa Jail Hostel in Ottawa, Ontario
I've heard people tell me about creepy hostels that they've visited and cramped "jail cell" hotel rooms -- but this hostel in Ottawa takes it to another level. Before being converted to a hostel, the building served as the Carleton County Gaol -- the last working gallows found in Canada. When you visit, you'll spend a few nights in jail, and you'll get a glimpse of what early prison life was like. A few famous prisoners who died in the jail still roam through its halls at night -- so much so that the hostel owners host "Party with the Ghosts" evenings.
Banging on the Stairwell at Night
La Boheme Restaurant, Bed & Breakfast in Edmonton, Alberta
This bed and breakfast in Edmonton was built in 1912 as an upscale apartment building. A woman employee of the building was murdered and dragged down three flights of stairs to the basement. There, she was dismembered and fed piece-by-piece into the furnace. The original furnace is still in use -- and the sound of her head banging on the floor down three flights can be heard at night.
Stay Away From the Second Floor
Fort Garry Hotel in Winnipeg, Manitoba
Whatever you do, don't stay in Room 202. Stories circulate all over about a cloaked figure that stands at the foot of the bed in Room 202, though sometimes this figure is described as a lady in a white ball gown. Blood is said to trickle from the walls and hotel staff members are known to report strange lights and noises throughout the second floor.
Noisy Servant Girl
Auberge Willow Place Inn in Hudson, Quebec
It's said that November is the month when this inn's resident ghost, "Maude", comes to play. First build in the 1820s, the story says that a young servant girl was murdered by a group of men at the inn in the 1830s. They buried her in the basement but her spirit remained at the inn. Maude can be heard singing in the hallways, knocking over objects, and stacking rocks outside of the door of Room 8.
A Crying Bride & A Wandering Waitress
The Fairmont Algonquin Hotel in Saint Andrews-by-the-Sea, New Brunswick
The hotel opened in 1889 and has been known as a luxurious yet magical destination because of the hotel's saltwater baths that are thought to have healing properties. Room 473 is known as "The Bride's Room" where a bride is know to have. She can be heard crying and seen periodically in the room or neaby. An older lady, thought to be an old staff member, is often seen in the dining room at night where she rearranges table settings.
Ghost on the Third Floor
Caribou Hotel in Carcross, Yukon Territory
Dedicated in 2008 as a Yukon Historical Site, this hotel was frequented by gold miners coming into town during the Klondike Gold Rush. It was open in 1901 as the Anderson Hotel but renamed in 1903. Caribou Hotel has a long-standing history, including the murder of owner Bob Olson in December 2004. Another story is told of the figure of a woman who often stands from the windows and bangs on the floorboards on the third floor. She is thought to be the ghost of Bessie Gideon, described as a spirit that is "neither friendly nor unfriendly." The Gideons took over the hotel in the 1910's after it was burned down by a great fire on Christmas Eve.
Ghosts Having a Ball
The Royal York Hotel in Toronto, Ontario
A penthouse at the Fairmont Royal York in downtown Toronto is rumoured to hold a grand Crystal Ballroom. It was permanently closed down because it failed to meet the fire code. But, it has been reported that there are times when the service elevator will go to this floor, even though it has been closed off. Guests who stay on the floor below (and who are none the wiser to its closing) have been known to complain about noise, music and talking coming from the ballroom where the chandeliers are also known to shake.
Knock Knock, Who's There?
Hotel Douglas (now Hotel Rialto) in Victoria, British Columbia
The historical Hotel Douglas in Victoria was built in 1911 and located in downtown Victoria. It is undergoing construction under December 2009. Behind the hotel's lobby desk where only employees are allowed, you'll find the only door that leads in and out of the basement. Every once in a while, employees will hear knocking from inside. Upon opening the door, nobody is found on the other side. Apparently, the basement of Hotel Douglas was once a morgue.
Ghosts from the Titanic
Château Laurier in Ottawa, Ontario
As the first of the Canadian Pacific Railway's hotels, Château Laurier was commissioned by Charles Melville Hays, a general manager at CPR. In 1912, Hays traveled to Europe to pick out the furniture that would be used in the new hotel's dining room. Upon his return voyage on a passenger liner called the Titanic, Hays and most of his men drowned with the ship, just 12 days before the hotel's opening. Hays is said to be seen throughout the hotel, making Château Laurier his home because he had worked so hard on it but never lived to see its opening. Guests are said to experience rattling and shaking walls, objects that move on their own, thought to be the ghosts of the other men who also died on the Titanic.
The Ghost of Unrequited Love
Château Frontenac in Quebec City, Quebec
Le Fairmont Château Frontenac is today recognized as United Nations World Heritage Site but it has also been known to have a few lurking ghosts. The ghost of a woman with long hair wearing a nightgown is often seen in guests' rooms and in their beds. Another ghost is thought to be the late Louis de Buade, governor during the late 1600s. He is said to have died in the hotel while his fiancée was in Europe. He is often seen in his 17th century clothes, wandering the halls looking for her, sitting on windowsills, floating through the ballroom, and watching guests when they are sleeping. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/27/2009 5:15:30 PM | I tend to do tours through Calgary Ghost Tours...hosted one a few months back for POFers. However, they are facebook too or just google their name...you'll find them.
However, heard today on 90.3 there's a place just outside of town called Devil's playground. Was supposedly a school and the ghosts are children. Anyone hear of that? If so, got any details on location? | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/27/2009 9:23:34 PM | ^^
Go onto International avenue, off of 52nd street. Take a left at the first set of light's you see after passing the 68th street intersection (84th street I think) . Go down that road about half way and keep looking to your left.
I think this is the approx location on google maps:
http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=h&layer=c&cbll=51.044982,-113.911904&panoid=bahXgddFUAdHicPhcfdcbw&cbp=11,269.68,,0,5&hq=&hnear=35+Hartford+Rd+NW,+Calgary,+Division+No.+6,+Alberta,+Canada&ll=51.045276,-113.912913&spn=0.000732,0.003449&z=18
be careful if you go here. Its private property and I've heard the owner has some dogs that he lets loose. I've also heard stories about the owner shooting at people with salt pellets but I don't know if its true. Also the school is in pretty rough shape and not very structurally sound, so use caution if you go inside. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/28/2009 9:15:39 PM |
Just read this in Yahoo....thought it might be of interest to you ghost hunters. Told ya, hotels are the place to find ghosts.
Why is it that only old buildings are haunted? People die in newer buildings too but you never hear about these places being haunted. | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/28/2009 9:18:20 PM |
be careful if you go here. Its private property and I've heard the owner has some dogs that he lets loose. I've also heard stories about the owner shooting at people with salt pellets but I don't know if its true. Also the school is in pretty rough shape and not very structurally sound, so use caution if you go inside
Is this the one that the city tried to demolish on 2 or 3 separate occasions but for some strange reason, things would happen to prevent it from being demolished? | |
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| Ghost Hunting In Calgary
Posted: 10/29/2009 1:59:28 AM |
However, heard today on 90.3 there's a place just outside of town called Devil's playground. Was supposedly a school and the ghosts are children. Anyone hear of that? If so, got any details on location?
Okay, I've done a little research on this and here's what I found:
The Devil's Playground (also called Symon's Playground or The Abandoned Schoolhouse) is located on private property.
Directions: Go east on 17 Avenue SE, past 68 Street, turn left on 84 Street, at the last set of lights before leaving the city limits you will see a house and a burnt down school on your left hand side. (On 84 Street between 16 Avenue SE & 17 Avenue SE)
The Legend: Back in the day, a fire was started in the hallway of this schoolhouse and it claimed the lives of 3 children. Witnesses have reported the sound of children playing and laughing. After their deaths, they tried to tear the building down (it was left standing for almost 2 years afterwards). During their first attempt, almost half of the city workers fell awfully sick. For their second attempt, they brought in a wrecking ball but the motor just up and died and they couldn't figure out why. However, back at their construction site, it was fine and working again. During their third and final attempt, the wrecking ball actually fell off while the group was still looking at the plans to carry out.
The Stories: There is much Internet folklore regarding this location. People have claimed that they've heard children laughing and playing (even though there were no children around). Others have claimed that their flashlights kept going off while in the schoolhouse (only to work fine after they left). There are also stories of seeing small child-sized footprints made in the snow (when they weren't there before). There are also claims that the property owner was the uncle of one of the children who died there and he's been known to shoot trespassers with salt pellets if they were found on his property. He has also been known to unleash dogs on unsuspecting trespassers.
The Finds: The schoolhouse is in rough shape. Apparently, there are stairs that lead to a basement area where most of the supposed paranormal activity takes place. Next to the worn down structure is a boarded up house, which witnesses have claimed to be more chilling than the schoolhouse. Inside this house, there is an overturned metal sculpture that looks like an old bathtub or woodburning furnace. Some have referred to it as a "magic fountain". Others have claimed seeing dead birds (most likely pigeons), skeletal remains of a dog/coyote/fox and "cut up" gophers and pigeons with blood everywhere.
One person claims to have set his camera down on the stairs briefly to light up a smoke, walking around a bit with a flashlight, then returning to retrieve his camera only to find that it wasn't there anymore (he was by himself). This person also warns others who go there to bring an extra pair of shoes as you will have picked up some post-mortem liquids that have gelled on the floor from freezing.
The Reality: There is evidence this location has been visited so often by drunken/stoned teenagers looking for a good time, amateur ghost hunters, and others looking for a thrill that there is not much left of these buildings. Safety is an issue because the structures are not secure and people have reported to have fallen from shaky foundations and missing stairs because the buildings are so worn out. Some have reported seeing weird writings in blood telling people to "get out" or "look behind you" and if you look around, there is a hole in the drywall that looks like a severed head staring at you (made of paper mache). In other words, someone has gone through a lot of trouble to try to scare any visitors.
Scare Factor: Aside from it looking creepy, I'd conclude that the scariest part of visiting this place is the fear of being shot with salt pellets or attacked by dogs. Why people insist on trespassing instead of simply asking for permission is beyond me. Also, the condition of the old house and schoolhouse is such that one may fall through the floorboards or stairs and that is much scarier than any possible "ghosts" there.
Debunking: The flashlights going off could be explained by the fact that many of the visitors go when it's freezing cold outside and cold temperatures have been known to drain batteries. Also, many have admitted to using dollar store flashlights/batteries. The sounds of children could be attributed to neighboring acreages, as one witness observed. The dead birds/gophers have been described by some to look like like were mauled by a cat. As one witness pointed out, he also noticed the skeletal remains of a dog/coyote/fox which indicates there is wildlife out there that could be feasting on birds/gophers. The tracks in the snow could be attributed to the fact that this location is a big draw for teenagers and young people looking for a "spooky" good time. It is not uncommon for people to go in large groups, split up, and play tricks on each other. Quite often, there is alcohol or weed involved, lessening the validity of claims of paranormal activity.
That being said, I still wouldn't mind checking it out. If anyone is interested, please e-mail me. However, now is probably not a good time as everyone is wanting to do something spooky for Halloween. In other words, everyone and their dog will be there. | |
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