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Hay Barn Haunting

 

I had ruled out the possibility of ghosts when I was younger but when I grew up and the same events have been happening for the past 8 years of my life I became a believer. I have started to realize the presence of ghosts, spirits, or some energy in my life. Some background information is needed to fully understand the haunting in my life.

I grew up in a small town in Pennsylvania close to Allentown. I lived in a normal size townhouse with my parents and two siblings and our pet dog Abby. My grandparents on my mom's side owned a farm about 15 minute away from our house and we would go there often to visit namie and pop-pop. The farm was a great place for me as a kid growing up I could go outside and find stuff to do all day when I had an imagination.

Many times over the summer we would spend the day out in the barns playing. There were three barns total on the farm. One was home to the 20 some pigs and 1000 + chickens, the other for equipment and the herd of cattle and three horses, and the last which was devoted to hay storage for all the animals. My cousins, siblings, and I spent time shelling cobs of corn for the chickens, hand feeding the cows hay off the barn floor, and giving oats and sugar cubes to the horses. After getting bored of feeding the animals we all would play in the hay barn jumping from the top of the stack into a soft pile of hay below. We also made hay forts or houses out of the hay bales. We would play house and such and the farm dog Holly would always be out there with us. Occasionally our pop-pop would come out and check up on us. We often times got yelled at for making the walls of our forts higher than our heads because he didn't want us getting hurt. He always had us in mind.

Then an unfortunate event happened when I was in the 4th grade. I got taken out of school to learn that my pop-pop had died in a barn fire. He was trying to save some possessions that were in the hay barn while it was burning and the trusses of the pole barn burnt through and collapsed on him not allowing him to escape. This was a huge turning point in my life because now there was a farm that had to be attended to and my grandfather who did it for a living was no longer around.

My dad stepped in and took care of the chores two hours before work every morning and two hours after work adding to his already labor intensive eight hour shift as a maintenance worker at a local area hospital. Slowly changes came about the farm. Taking care of 1000 + chickens and clean that many eggs a day was a huge commitment so they were the first thing to be sold. We kept about 50 chickens to sustain the family's need for eggs. The pigs were soon sold to market and some butchered for meat in the freezer. The horses and cows stayed because they are not as labor intensive. For two years every morning and night my dad feed the animals and took care of the operations of a working farm.

It was getting too hard not living on the farm in case of emergencies with the animals. Too many calls in the middle of the night where the cows got on to the road are not good. So the summer of 5th grade we packed up our town house and moved to the farm. My siblings and I entered a new school at the end of August and fit in well with the new environment. Now living on the farm everyone had chores greater than mowing the lawn and taking the garbage to the curb.

Every morning there were animals for each of us to feed before we went to school. Also in the winter months each of us had to bring in a load of wood for the furnace to heat the house. I started to become accustom to waking up at 5:30 to do chores before school. The farm life was getting to become natural to me.

Being the only boy in the family I had the job with all the heavy lifting which was transporting hay bales from the newly constructed hay barn to the cow barn where the horses also had their stalls. Every day I would load up a wagon with six bales and made four trips to feed all the steers, cows, and horses. Un-stacking hay bales was a chore done twice a day. I became proficient at climbing the stack and throwing bales off the top as not to create a deadly avalanche of 60 pound hay bales. Every time I was done throwing down hay I made sure it was safe to climb down to transport the bales and also that it would be safe the next morning to climb back up there. Several times I would notice that only one bale was out of place off the top of the pile. I thought nothing of it and picked it up and thought of it as one less I had to throw down.

One particular day I feed the animals early in the afternoon because I had an away sporting event in which I would not be home until late. As I opened up the doors to the barn I heard a muffled voice. I looked around and saw nothing. While I continued moving the hay I kept hearing the same sound. I still disregarded it and thought it was just in my head.

A couple weeks had gone by and I continued seeing misplaced bales but had not heard the strange noise. Then on a Friday I had the day off of school I fed the animals later in the morning. After opening the doors to the barn I heard the same noise that I did a couple weeks ago and I felt a strong energy. The hair on my arms and legs stood on end and I was freaked out but continued with my chores.

I had not had any encounters with this energy or whatever it was for the next several years. My chore was still feeding the cows and horses but now we had large round bales. They were easier to make over the summer time, easier to store, and easier to feed. So naturally we bought new equipment to handle these larger bales. Each round bale weighed about a half ton and would feed the herd for the day. So I only had to feed once a day now which was a great time saver not to mention I could use a tractor. Now with the large round bales I also noticed that some were being knocked off the top of the stack. This is very dangerous because 1,000 pounds is falling from about 15 feet. I never witnessed a bale being knocked over but even bales set upright on the ground would be knocked over the next day which was very suspicious. Considering that these bales are not movable by a person it would take a large group effort the put the bale on its side.

On a Saturday morning in mid September I went out to feed and got the same feeling I had several years ago and heard that same noise. This time I knew it was no joke. I turned off the tractor and ran inside for the camera. I took several pictures of the barn. I consistently came up with a bleached out spot in a shot on a digital camera. Once I didn't feel the presence of that energy I took several photos again and nothing was wrong with the photos. To this day I cannot explain what has happened but I think that it is the spirit or energy of my pop-pop, who died in the same place where the new hay barn was constructed.

Hay Barn Haunting 1
Hay Barn Haunting 2
 

I have attached two photos. One is normal and the other is a shot of the energy of my pop-pop. If anyone has had a similar experience please share it with me. I want to know if there is any way to rid his spirit or energy from the barn because it is potentially dangerous. Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

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Comments about this paranormal experience

The following comments are submitted by users of this site and are not official positions by yourghoststories.com. Please read our guidelines and the previous posts before posting. The author, ajn9424, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will read the comments and participate in the discussion.

paranormalskeptic (1 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-11)
This story is well written and fairly believable. But when reading all of these stories I can't help but notice that there are simply better explanations for the events occurring in the stories. Isn't it possible that someone else had been in the barn between feeding times? Perhaps his father sold a couple bales of hay during the day while he was at school and threw down one too many. There are endless possibilities rather than paranormal activity. I am sure everyone can make up a more believable explanation of why hay bales would be knocked down.

I was glad to see that some people were skeptical of the photos provided as evidence. One person pointed out that the photos are exactly the same besides the one white spot. Isn't it possible that these were fabricated with a photo editing software. The photo could have been copied and edited Two photos couldn't not be identical if taken at two separate times.

When it comes to the evidence provided to support there is an eyewitness account and also photo evidence. The eye witness account my not be totally credible because these events happened over at least 10 years. Several details may have been lost and not communicated. Our mind tends to remember events based on our beliefs, expectations, and view of the world. So if he was expecting to see or hear a ghost that is exactly what he would remember. It is the same as looking at clouds in the sky. One person my see a dinosaur the other may see a bird while looking at the same cloud who is right? This is an example of our minds at work.

The photo evidence can also be discounted. It is very likely that the film was touched while being processed or there might have been a speck of something on the lens. Also with the technology today it is easy to duplicate a photo and do what ever you want to it within a matter of 20 minutes.

Since there are better explanations for every piece of evidence presented for paranormal activity in this story there is reason to be skeptical.
faerielike (15 stories) (268 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-09)
After my Pap Pap died I had a similar experience. I find the best thing to do in such a circumstance is to verbally tell him you know he is there. Tell the prescence to stop moving the bales, and if it must show itself do so in a safer manner. Most times entites just want acknowledgement. Maybe pay more attention next time you hear that muffled voice. Good luck! 😁
mustang (5 stories) (749 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-09)
Hi ajn9424. I feel that this is not your grandfather, he definitely would not try to hurt anyone. It seems to be some other negative energy messing around with the barrells of hay. Who, what and why this is happening, who knows. But something must be done about it. The pictures you took are pretty good. The misty white haze looked very real. I'm not an expert by far but have you had it analysed by a professional. That's if you even care to. I think that you should do a smudging in the barn and the surrounding property/are. Thanks for sharing the story.

SHELBY ❤ 😊
ozonalions (guest)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-09)
Wow! Very strange. I love the pictures!
that happens to me a lot I would like to put some stories on here but I can't because he disabled the thing 😠

cool

Lauren
whitebuffalo (guest)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-07)
Hi Ajn,
Advice on how to rid the barn of the entity. Hmmm. You have some provided two photo's that are identical down to the last photo dot except for the star formation in the one as proof of the entity. You have me thinking and squinting a bit here. Is the camera mounted on the wall of the hay barn, therefore immobile?
I see your explanation as to why you are wanting to rid the entity from the barn as it appears that it might be dangerous.
You have written a beautiful story about a very warm, wonderful, loving and giving man. It would be tough to accept the accident that took him from you in an untimely manner.
The reason I am thinking so hard on this, is, I have not read (or heard of) too many stories of Grandparents ghosts harming family members. I have seen them get our attention in a variety of ways, but how many pounds does one of those rolls of Hay weight? A lifetime farmer would know, that in allowing, or forcing one to fall on someone would quite possibly result in death. Do you seriously think your Grandfather would want any of you to fall to that fate?
This is an impeccably written story. Your feelings show through every new paragraph that opens up. You have painted a glorious picture of a man that would make people envious of the relationship he shared with the entire family.
IF there is an entity in the hay barn, I would HAVE to say it is not your Grandfather. Someone who loved so completely would not make the error of placing any of his loves in danger.

I think you should do a smudge ceremony on the barn. There are instructions with a complete list of items needed in the "article" section of this site provided by Shane.
Thank you.
Bellissima (12 stories) (792 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-07)
Hi ajn. FRAWIN, with his skeptometer, has a good point and Ohio, our cynical eye, have noticed an interesting point about the photos. I can't see any difference in the 2 pics either. Your story is heart-warming and it's lovely to think that your pop-pop was coming back to visit. As Tonith mentions, the large bales could be dangerous but it seems they are only knocked down when no one is around. A helping hand maybe? Thank your pop-pop for the help and let him know you love him and miss him. Tell him that as much as you want him around you he has to move on to the loved ones who are waiting for him. Even if it isn't pop-pop who's at your farm, they will hear you and get the idea, they have loved ones waiting for them too. Thanks for sharing your story.
AllieRN (1 stories) (26 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-07)
AJN,
What a wonderful story! I find your story very well written and very credible. As for the photos, I am not a self-proclaimed photography expert. Did you see the white presence with your eyes or just in the photo? Thanks for sharing and God Bless!
AllieRN 😁
Ohiowatha (11 stories) (415 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-06)
Ho! Frawin brings up a good point! Unless a tripod was employed, I, too, find this worth noting.

--AJN, a little explanation, please? Not doubting, just curious.

Thanks.
FRAWIN (guest)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-05)
This is a very interesting story, well written and very credible. I have no doubts at all that AJN is experiencing paranormal activity in his haybarn. The only doubts I have is with the photos. They are too perfect. They are EXACTLY alike except for the blur in one, yet they were took at different times. What are the odds of that happening? I am sorry but my skeptical side is showing.

FRAWIN 😐
Ohiowatha (11 stories) (415 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-05)
Awesome-o! Detailed account and photographs to support it! Man, I wish we had more posters like you, AJN. You will find the help you seek on this site. Kim, Shane, Martin, Abby, WhiteBuffalo and Bellisima know their stuff.

Thanks so much for sharing.
Tonith (1136 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-05)
ajn
It does sound like you have a spirit but I don't know if it's your grandfather. He would seem to be the logical explanation but don't you think he would know better than to mess with large bales of hay that could possibly endanger someone? Or again maybe he just used this method to get your attention. Was the barn rebuilt on the existing foundation? Just curious.
KimSouthO (27 stories) (1960 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-02-05)
As your pop-pop died in an accident, he may very well be attached still to the barn, a place he tried to save in the fire and was his livelihood.
I also think it important for him to be able to cross over to peace, and as you indicated get rid of the possible danger of falling hale bales, etc.
When you feel the 'energy', tell him it is okay. Let him know that your family is working to care for the farm and the chores to keep the family together. Let him know it is okay to go and rest and find his peace, that he had worked hard enough through out his life, that now it was time to let other members of the family do the chores.

Hopefully, his hearing this will assist in relaxing and placing his mind at ease enough to move on.

I am very sorry for your loss, he sounds like a wounderful man.
Thank you for sharing your story!
God Bless!

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