Arrival
Noah, Gravy, Brandon and Amber arrived on location at approximately 12:30 pm. Brandon began taking outside video and photographs of the home and yard. At 1:55 pm, Amber started her control recorder for documentation purposes. Approximately five minutes later, Mrs. Neal, the homeowner arrived and let the group into the villa. Mrs. Neal proceeded to give the team a thorough tour of the building, sharing paranormal claims made throughout the home. At 2:57 pm, Mrs. Neal departed and the group, which now included Marilsa and Tom, unloaded their gear into the house and set up base camp in the Dining Room.
A Sony HDR-CX160 full spectrum camera was placed in the 1st Floor Sitting Room facing the Dining Room and the entrance way into the Living Room. A Zoom H1 audio recorder was placed in the Sitting Room. A gray EDI+ datalogger was placed on Goldie’s rocking chair, which has reportedly been known to rock on its own. In the event the chair would move, the seismic vibration would be datalogged by the EDI+. The EDI+ datalogger graphs on a timeline several variables including, EMF, barometric pressure, humidity and ambient air temperature. It also has a vibration sensor, similar to a geophone.
A Zoom H1 was placed in the 1st Floor Men’s Parlor.
A Sony FDR-AX100 4K camera was placed in the 2nd Floor Master Bedroom facing the doorway leading out into the hallway, thus capturing the entire room. A Zoom H1n recorder and geophone were placed in the middle of the 2nd Floor Hallway to capture claims of footsteps, doors opening and closing, disembodied voices and knobs jiggling. Custom built by PIM, the geophone senses seismic vibrations and has adjustable sensitivity. It was placed on the floor of the hallway in case the claims of footsteps heard have any physical impact on the wooden floor. The geophone is also a good indicator of vibrations the building would endure throughout the night from passing traffic, the investigators walking through the building and any other vibrations that might be felt throughout the night.
A Sony FDR-AX53 4K camera was placed in the 2nd Floor Sitting Room facing the doorway leading into the Master Bedroom while also capturing the doorway leading to the hallway. A single-axis EMF detector Mel-8704R was placed in the 2nd Floor Sitting Room. A single-axis EMF detector Mel-8704REM/SDD was also placed in the 2nd Floor hallway.
Two Zoom H1 recorders were placed in the Library located directly across from the 2nd Floor Master Bedroom. There have been claims made of both the Library door and Master Bedroom door opening and closing on their own, doorknobs jiggling and shadow figures are purported to be seen in the Library. A Sony HDR-CX160 full spectrum camera was also placed in the Library to capture the entire room, including the entryway to the hallway as well as a doorway that leads to a connecting bathroom.
A Sony HDR-CX160 full spectrum camera was placed in the 2nd Floor Storage Room to capture the entire room and the doorway. An Extech RHT50 datalogger was placed in the Storage Room. This datalogger takes temperature, humidity and barometric pressure readings once a minute and is used to try and correlate environmental data with any personal experiences an investigator might encounter during an investigation or anomalous audio/video data captured during an investigation. A white Zoom H1 recorder was also placed in the Storage Room to capture audio claims which include screams and disembodied voices.
A Sony HDR-CX160 full spectrum camera was placed in the 2nd Floor Children’s Room to the left of the entryway to capture the full room, where claims were made of dolls and other objects moving independently. A Zoom H1 recorder was put in the room to capture claims of voices shouting as well as footsteps. An orange EDI+ Datalogger was placed on a dresser in the Children’s Room. A single-axis EMF detector MEL-8704SDD was placed on a dresser in the room.
In view of the camera, on top of a coffee table, a trigger object bank was set up. Trigger objects are miscellaneous items that are strategically chosen in hopes to invoke a response. The trigger objects placed on top of the coffee table were a small horse, a jack set, a small doll and a stuffed bear. Baseline photos are taken before and after the investigation to document the starting positions of said objects. Placed alongside the trigger object bank was a touch flashlight. A touch flashlight was placed on a coffee table in the Children’s Room. The touch flashlight is activated by two contacts being touched, thus completing a circuit and turning the light on. The touch flashlight is used in lieu of a flashlight that has had the battery compartment or on/off switch manipulated to function in a way that is not intended and as a result, can create false positives.
Moving upwards through the house, an Extech RHT50 datalogger was placed on a desk in the Attic. A blue Zoom H1 audio recorder was placed on a different desk in the center of the Attic to capture any potential audio evidence.
PIM set up a group of scientific tools throughout the villa’s Basement, which was sectioned off into different areas by brick walls. It should be noted that the wood flooring on the 1st Floor had no subfloor, therefore any movement made by someone on the 1st Floor was easily heard in various parts of the Basement. The floor of the Basement was made of a red clay/dirt mixture, and there were no doors, only brick doorways delineating different “rooms.”
Down the Basement stairs and to the left of the stairway is the Electric Room, dubbed so because it contains the house’s electrical box. In the Electric Room was placed a Hausbell HDV5052 camera capturing the entire room. A DM X-930 Dark Matter detector was also placed in the Electric Room in full view of the camera. The Dark Matter Detector is a device that measures EMF, temperature, barometric pressure and has a high-quality audio recorder. This device also datalogs these measurements for later review should something occur and would need to be referenced.
A second trigger object bank was set up in the Electric Room. In full display of the camera, the trigger objects were placed on a chair and included a bullet, one cigar, one cigarette, a deck of cards with the 10 of Diamonds facing up, a pair of di set to snake eyes, a Playboy magazine, a small bottle of whiskey, a small Bible, a crucifix, a harmonica and Holy Water. A touch flashlight was also on the chair.
The PIM Platter was also placed on the floor next to the chair where the trigger object bank was set up. The PIM Platter is a plate with letters (A-Z) and numbers (0-9) around the outer rim of the plate. A metal rod on a swivel in the middle of the plate is positioned in a neutral location of the rim. The premise of the PIM Platter is to allow something to manipulate the metal rod in the direction of a letter or number in response to questions asked by investigators.
A Zoom H1 was set up to capture potential audio evidence.
Immediately to the right of the Basement stairs was the “Metal Rod Room,” named so because of a claim that a metal rod skidded across the floor loudly and with force. A Sony HDR-CS440 full spectrum camera was placed in that room to capture the entry way into the room from the Basement stairs. In direct view of the camera was a rusted, metal rod approximately a yard long sitting against the wall closest to the Basement stairwell.
Walking through the “Metal Rod Room” was the “Furnace Room,” named because it houses the home’s furnace. There were claims that the Furnace Room once served as a medical space where illegal abortions and other procedures were performed. An old wheelchair as well as old medical instruments were laid out on tables. Claims were made that metal objects could be heard moving in that room. An Extech RHT50 was placed on a table in the Furnace Room to capture any potential evidence.
At 4:27 pm, Amber, with the help of Brandon, took weather conditions using a Kestrel 3500 weather station. During this time, the rest of the group went around the house and began starting and time stamping their equipment. Time stamps, from a designated atomic watch, are used as a point of reference and make cross referencing easier during evidence review.
At 6:54 pm, the group left the house to allow the recording equipment to get baseline readings of the house with no living humans inside. Baseline readings give investigators a baseline of the building to compare possible activity with. Brandon and Amber remained on the premises but a far distance from the home so as not to contaminate any audio equipment. While observing the neighborhood, Amber and Brandon noted during this time that cars were heard passing and car doors were heard slamming. It was also noted that there were cats lingering around the outside of the building and neighbors could be heard talking from across the street.
Pre-Investigation
At 4:45 pm, Marilsa claimed she heard three taps on a wood surface much like a ball bouncing on a wooden floor. The tapping came from the direction of the Children’s Room and, at the time, Marilsa was on the opposite side of the hallway near the Storage Room. She was alone upstairs on the 2nd Floor, while all other PIM members were on the 1st Floor. PIM had audio and visual set up in the Children’s Room and was unable to substantiate this claim.
At 4:59 pm Brandon discovered that the 2nd Floor Sitting Room door was open when it had previously been closed. No other PIM member was in the proximity of the door and no member indicated they had gone into or out of the room. The Sitting Room has repeated claims of doors opening and closing without human interference. No PIM evidence was found to support paranormal activity.
At 5:09 pm, while taking a quick break on the 2nd Floor, Amber and Brandon reported hearing weird pops and knocks near the Master Bedroom. Ultimately, the source was unable to be identified and no evidence was caught to support the claim.
Investigation
At 7:35 pm, the group re-entered the house and started and time stamped their control recorders. From this point on, PIM members are required to speak in full voice and tag any noise they make.
Tagging is the process of calling out noises investigators make during an investigation. Noises investigators make can be anything from bodily sounds, such as stomach growling or breathing noises, to external noises, like squeaky shoes, shifting or chairs creaking. Tagging is required from the moment a piece of equipment is recording to the time it is turned off. This allows for easy identification of noises heard when reviewing evidence. When an investigator makes a noise, it is their responsibility to tag it or say, “that was me.”
Every member of PIM is equipped with a Zoom H1 audio recorder, which is used as their control recorder and an Extech RHT50 datalogger. Control recorders are not only used as another recording device, but also to document the sound contamination that an investigator might create during an investigation. Control recorders are started and time stamped first before any other equipment is started and they are turned off last to ensure any anomalous noises can be cross-checked. Control recorders are also placed in a Faraday cage, if possible. A Faraday cage is a container that can block EMF frequencies. The construction of the cage will determine how many different EMF frequencies the cage will be able to block. Faraday cages work by generating an external static electrical field which causes the electric charges within the cage’s conducting material to be distributed such that they cancel the field’s effect in the cage’s interior. PIM’s cages are designed to specifically block out FM and some AM radio frequencies from interfering with their audio recorders, thus creating false EVPs.
Noah began a Facebook Live stream at approximately 8:15 pm, teasing our location, encouraging viewers to stay tuned for events planned throughout the 2020 Expedition. The Facebook Live concluded at approximately 8:24 pm.
Basement – 8:37 pm
The group spread out in the Basement and began the investigation by observing control silence starting at 8:37 pm. Control silence is the practice of sitting quietly and getting accustomed to the normal sounds of the building. It allows for investigators to get a baseline of normal building sounds. Amber and Brandon sat in the Furnace Room. Gravy sat in the middle of the Metal Rod Room. Noah sat on a chair at the foot of the stairs. Marilsa and Tom sat in the Bird Cage Room to the right of Gravy (in the Metal Rod Room). Noted during control silence was the sound of traffic from passing cars. The furnace made high-pitched sounds, including ticking noises that were distinctly mechanical. Noise could also be heard from an industrial complex that was located nearby. Tom indicated that noises from the industrial complex were high-pitched.
Gravy began the EVP session at 8:42 pm. An EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) session is the practice of asking questions and leaving ten seconds of silence in between in hopes of capturing a response via an audio recording device. Rarely is a response heard by the investigator’s ears and when a response is heard by human ears it is called a disembodied voice.
At approximately 8:44 pm, Noah had to leave the investigation for a personal matter. However, Gravy and the PIM team continued asking questions for the EVP session.
At approximately 8:52 pm, Noah returned to the EVP session. Noah reported hearing or seeing no paranormal activity while he was outside and away from the group EVP session.
At 9:09 pm, Marilsa claimed to hear a soft, female voice. Gravy indicated that he believed the voice came from a woman outside the house.
At 9:13 pm, Gravy and Noah both heard a noise that seemed to produce two syllables like “wuh-wuh.” It was suggested that it could’ve been a dog outside.
No activity was captured, or anomalies identified. The group decided to move on to the next location.
At 9:22 pm, Gravy heard what he described as a pigeon sound, a high-pitched noise on the stairwell to his left that leads to the 2nd Floor. He tried to replicate the noise by walking back up and down the stairs but was unable to hear the noise again. The shadow detector also went off at this time. No audio or video captured this experience.
1st Floor – 9:29 pm
From 9:29 pm to 9:31 pm the group observed control silence as the team members were spread throughout the 1st Floor. Amber and Marilsa sat in the Sitting Room. Noah and Gravy were in the Living Room. Brandon and Tom sat in the Men’s Parlor. All PIM members sit spread out but also so that at least one fellow PIM member is always visible to another. This is done so that, should a member experience a paranormal claim, a second member can provide witness. It’s also done to ensure the safety of all members. It was noted during control silence that vehicle traffic and frogs could be heard outside. There was a faucet dripping from one of the bathrooms. A humming could also be heard from the nearby factory. Noah could hear the fan from his infrared light. Amber noted light bouncing off the house’s windows from passing cars.
At 9:33 pm, prior to the start of an EVP session, Gravy heard a popping noise that seemed to come from the Kitchen or Dining Room, but the sound’s source could not be identified. Noah heard a sound as well but described it as more like a burp. It was proposed that the sound could be the refrigerator kicking in. The group began an EVP session.
After asking multiple questions, no responses or paranormal sounds were captured. This concluded the EVP session of the 1st Floor, and the team decided to take a short break.
2nd Floor – 10:08 pm
The group spread themselves throughout the 2nd Floor. Amber and Brandon were located in the 2nd Floor Sitting Room. Gravy sat in the Storage Room. Noah sat in the middle of the hallway. Marilsa and Tom sat in the Master Bedroom. It was determined that Marilsa and Tom’s REM needed new batteries. This could be an explanation for the high-pitched sound that was heard previously on the 1st Floor.
Control silence was observed from 10:08 pm until 10:10 pm. It was noted that traffic, frogs, people and the industrial plant could all be heard on the 2nd Floor.
At 10:10 pm, an EVP session started. Immediately, Gravy and Noah heard floor creaks. The sounds happened on and off between 10:10 pm and 10:12 pm.
At 10:22 pm, Marilsa heard soft whistling coming from the direction of the camera by the window in the Master Bedroom. Tom, located in the same room, did not hear the whistling.
No audio recorders captured sounds. After several questions were asked with no known response, the group ended the EVP session and moved to the other side of the 2nd Floor.
2nd Floor – 10:32 pm
The group went to the opposite end of the 2nd Floor and situated themselves throughout. Amber sat in the hallway slightly down from the Break Room. Brandon sat on the landing of the stairs leading down to the 1st Floor. Gravy was on the floor outside the Bathroom. Marilsa sat on the stairwell going upwards toward the attic. Tom and Noah were in the Children’s Room. Control silence was observed from 10:32 pm until 10:35 pm followed by an EVP session. The Break Room air conditioner could be heard, as well as the factory down the road. Marilsa reported hearing a train.
The house boasts many claims regarding the dolls in the Children’s Room. The house’s dolls, including one named Esmeralda, encased in glass, are reported to move. There are also claims of screams in the Children’s Room. Many questions asked during the EVP session centered on the dolls, the trigger object bank and requests for screams. After multiple questions asked without any known response, the group ended the EVP session.
10:44 pm Amber claims she heard popping noises down the hall in the direction of the Storage Room. These popping noises were in a similar location to the same noises Gravy heard during the previous EVP session at 10:10 pm.
Attic – 10:48 pm
The group spread out along the long Attic. Tom and Marilsa sat near the entrance. Amber, Brandon and Gravy were spread out in the middle of the room, pushed back towards the walls, and Noah took the far right side furthest from the stairwell. The team began control silence at 10:48 pm, noting that dogs, cars and the factory could be heard.
At 10:51 pm, before the EVP session was started, Tom heard the voice of a young female saying something three to four syllables in length. He said it sounded like it was coming from his right, near where Marilsa was sitting, but Marilsa was not speaking, nor did she tag herself for any reason.
An EVP session was started at 10:52 pm.
At 10:54 pm, Marilsa heard a sound behind her like a knock on wood. She claims the sound did not come from the nearby stairwell but rather from within the attic. Tom, who was seated close to Marilsa, did not hear the noise.
No other responses were heard or recorded during the EVP session, so the group decided to take a brief break.
1st Floor Living Room 11:30 pm
While Noah and Gravy took a brief break, Marilsa, Tom, Brandon and Amber experimented with a Panasonic DR-100, a handheld recorder often used in popular paranormal shows. One at a time, a group member would ask three questions, spacing the questions ten seconds apart. Once the questions were asked, they immediately played back the audio. Each member took a turn asking their questions, then reviewing the audio. No audio evidence was captured.
Quick play back recorders like the Panasonic DR-100 are very popular in mainstream paranormal television shows. The issue with these devices is that sound quality is poor and unreliable. While asking questions, it was noted that paranormal noises could be heard upon playback; however, it was quickly determined that these noises were merely a PIM member’s fingers moving on the device as she held it. These devices are also susceptible to EMF, FM and some AM frequencies. This is why PIM members have their recorders in a Faraday cage, which can block these frequencies. PIM’s cages are designed to specifically block out FM, and some AM, radio frequencies from interfering with their audio recorders, thus creating false EVPs. In comparing the Panasonic recorder’s audio to that of a Zoom H1, the Zoom provided far superior, uncontaminated sound quality. For this reason, PIM does not believe that the Panasonic DR-100 or similar devices are useful for paranormal investigations. Learn more about additional useless investigation equipment on PIM’s YouTube channel here.
Storage Room – 11:47 pm
Marilsa, Tom, Brandon and Amber moved to the 2nd Floor Storage Room, where there are claims of loud, angry screaming.
The truncated group followed the same approach of asking three questions, then immediately playing back the audio. After several minutes without responses, the group ended the session and returned downstairs to join Noah and Gravy.
Basement – 12:11 am
Controlled silence began at 12:11 am. Amber, Brandon and Tom were spread out through the Furnace Room. Noah sat in the doorway of the Furnace Room. Gravy and Marilsa were seated in the Electric Room, which also contained the trigger object bank. It was noted that mechanical sounds were coming from the Furnace Room. Sounds from the factory could be heard.
The EVP session began at 12:15 am.
At 12:23 am, Noah and Brandon heard a metal sound. The sound was heard immediately following Tom’s question, “Why do people accuse you of using this basement for abortions?” Noah indicated the sound came from behind him and was distinctly metallic. Amber and Tom reported hearing a sigh at the same time Noah heard the metal sound, both the sigh and the metallic sound seemingly happened in tandem. Initial thoughts were that the noise could be related to the furnace or metal objects in the Furnace Room. Noah and Tom spent several minutes attempting to recreate the noise by lightly striking the furnace with different objects. None of their attempts mimicked the metallic sound. They also tossed/threw a small stone found on the Basement floor at a birdcage suspended from the ceiling in a room located next to the Metal Rod Room – there were no PIM members located in this room. Taking turns tossing the stone at the bird cage at different angles and with different levels of strength, it was determined the action of the stone striking the birdcage accurately recreated the noise that Noah reported hearing. More specifically, when the stone went through the wires of the cage and struck the bottom, the sound was clearly duplicated. With that said, there was no stone found in the birdcage.
The team reset and began the EVP session once again with Tom repeating his question about abortions being performed in the Furnace Room.
At 12:36 am, Gravy saw a light go up a foot and half to two feet in the air near the chair where the trigger object bank was set. He believes it was a trick of light. No camera or audio captured evidence of this event.
After more questions without any additional experiences or audio events, the team concluded the EVP session and moved to different areas in the Basement.
Basement – 12:46 am
At 12:46 am, the team began another EVP session in different parts of the Basement. No control silence was completed because one had already been done earlier. Brandon and Noah sat in the Coal Room, the room furthest from the Basement stairwell and to the right of both the Metal Rod Room and Birdcage Room. Gravy and Amber sat in the Metal Rod Room and Tom and Marilsa were spaced out in the Furnace Room.
No activity occurred during the EVP session and nothing was recorded via audio or video during this time. The team decided to return to the 1st Floor.
1st Floor – 1:01 am
On the 1st Floor, Noah and Tom sat in the Living Room near Goldie’s rocking chair. Amber and Brandon spread out on opposite sides of the Sitting Room. Gravy and Marilsa sat in the Men’s Parlor. No control silence was observed. The group began an EVP session at 1:01 am.
During the EVP session, Amber and Tom noted a clicking noise. The sound was easily explained – the homeowner’s have security cameras throughout the house that can be heard clicking on and off.
At 1:05 am, Noah heard a noise that sounded like it was coming from the stairwell nearest the Sitting Room. Amber said it sounded like it came from the Kitchen area, which is nearest the Dining Room. Brandon asked if there were cameras covering the stairwell where the noise occurred because he thought he saw something move by the stairwell about two minutes prior to the sounds heard by Noah and Amber. No video or audio caught the noise made or any movement.
After multiple questions with no activity, the group decided to return to the 2nd Floor for a final time. As they began moving to the 2nd Floor, Marilsa noted that several electronic candles throughout the 1st Floor were illuminated. Any such candles were turned off by PIM members during set up. It was posited that the candles were on a timer and turned themselves back on after a set number of hours turned off.
2nd Floor – 1:16 am
The group did not observe a controlled silence and immediately began an EVP session at 1:16 am. Tom and Brandon sat in the Library. Noah and Gravy sat on opposite sides of the hallway. Amber and Marilsa sat on opposite sides of the Children’s Room.
At 1:26 am, Amber and Marilsa heard beeping sounds but could not identify the source. Noah then called the investigation.
The group ended the investigation and began breaking down their equipment. Once the equipment was turned off and collected, Amber turned off her control recorder at 1:54 am. The group retired for the night, excited to sleep in the villa.
Evidence
Starting at 12:19 am, the EDI+ located in the Living Room on Goldie’s rocking chair started to alarm. It did so on and off for about three minutes. While this was taking place, all PIM members were doing an EVP session in the Basement. The reason for this alarm is unknown and is cause for further study.
Conclusion
This was PIM’s first time investigating McInteer Villa. We would like to thank the Neals for the accommodations. The villa proved to be an exciting and interesting place to investigate with its rich architecture, period decorations and colorful history. Although PIM did not capture any evidence of the paranormal during our investigation, we hope to return to continue our study of this wonderful location.
