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At The Museum

 

At the beginning of May I was offered what is to me, a dream summer job. I'm working in my town's museum, giving tours, working with the artifacts, that sort of thing. Absolutely perfect for a history lover like me. The museum is three small buildings. The first building is very small, just one room. It has a few displays to do with the towns sporting history, the first settlers to the area and all our books and archives. It is also where the computer and phone is, so that is where I normally work when there aren't any visitors.

The second building is the barn. This is one big room that is full of old farm equipment and horse racing equipment. The last building is the most popular part of the museum and my personal favorite. It's the log cabin.

The cabin was built in 1860 and had families living in it for the next hundred years. We have it set up so it looks like a typical farm home from the 1880s. To enter you go through the back kitchen than up a few steps into the main room. To the right of the main room are two small bedrooms. On the left is the staircase that goes to the attic, which is one large room that is filled with displays of old clothes. This building was where the strangeness started.

Since the museum is so small I work alone, unless a big tour comes through. On my first day I was walking through the buildings, acquainting myself with all the exhibits, so when people had questions, I would have answers. I went up to the cabins attic. There I was hit with a powerful smell of horses. It was like I had just walked into a stable. After five or ten seconds the smell disappeared, and was replaced by the ordinary museum smell. I looked around to try and find where the smell came from and found, thrown over the back of a chair, an old blanket that was used for people riding in horse drawn carriages about 120 years ago. I picked it up and took a sniff, since it was the only thing even vaguely horse related in the building. But it only smelt of old cloth. Well it was a strange thing, but I had work to do so I put it out of my mind.

A few days later I was again in cabin, sweeping the main room, trying to make it pretty for the days guests when BANG BANG, something began to pound on the front door. Now, the front door is bolted from the inside, and only opened on days when there's a big tour. There is a window beside the door so I could see if anyone passed. I opened the door, but, of course, there was no one. This happened again a few minutes later, and again there was no one. By this point I was getting spooked so I started looking for anything that could account for the noise, tree branch, construction, giant squirrel, anything. But I couldn't find a single explanation.

On another day while I was walking past the barn I heard people talking inside. Thinking it visitors had come in without me seeing I went in to check. Completely empty. Later that same day I was in the back kitchen when I heard footsteps in the main room. Now, there is no way anyone could have gotten in there without passing me. Torn between fear and curiosity, I went in to see what was going on. There was no one in the room, but I saw woman's feet at the top of the stairs going into the attic. She had on dark shoes and a long dress. I followed up the stairs, but when I reached the top the room was empty. Fear overcame curiosity and I ran down the stairs and back to the office where nothing strange ever happens.

Since then I haven't seen anything. I do, however, occasionally hear light footsteps, the swish of a dress, and murmured conversations. I am working in the museum until September, and can't really say if I hope to see more of the ghosts and learn who they are, or if I hope it all quiets down. I guess time will tell.

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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, wanderer, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will read the comments and participate in the discussion.

ChrisB (6 stories) (1515 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-18)
Wow great story. I always thought that museums are haunted. No one realy talks about them but for sure you can find some activity in some museums. Thanks for sharring. I hope to hear from you soon and take care
Ohiowatha (11 stories) (415 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-16)
I love this story. You relate it with strict clarity and don't embellish anything. All your emotions and reactions are in line with how most people deal with these sort of encounters--gripping fear that makes one run away! My only advice is to keep a camera handy and be liberal with your shots. If one out of 1,000 turns up with some evidence, it would be well worth the expenditure.

Thanks!
Tonith (1136 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-14)
Yep.Sounds residual to me too. The feet and skirt thing I'm not sure about being completely residual. I think spirits can linger here unaware of other living beings around them as they go about their daily routine as they did when alive. Sometimes I think they can also just visit and are not earthbound. Few seem to have intelligence about them unless they have been haunting the same place and interacting with the living on an intelligent level. Like responding to questions with the right amount of taps or moving something when asked. I have never heard of any materializing on cue to a full body apparition which appears solid. Sounds like a great place to work as long as you are not a scary cat lol. I would keep a journal and see if things tend to repeat themselves. This would indicate residual hauntings. Good hunting and keep us posted.
wanderer (6 stories) (71 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-14)
Hi Kecoughtan. To answer your questions, the office building has been there for 40-50 years, but just as a garage or storage shed (its very tiny) but there's no historical value attached to it. The barn was built for the museum maybe 10 years ago. The cabin was moved from its original setting. The displays come from all over the area. I'm trying to find some neat pics. But can't promise anything. I have another story about the museum that will give a little more about where it is.
Kecoughtan (1 stories) (211 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-14)
Wanderer, thank you for sharing! I have to admit that I am fascinated by your museum experiences. I used to work for an eighteenth-century living history museum in Virginia during the evenings and witnessed some inexplicable sounds and sensations, too. Can you answer a couple of questions? Are the buildings on the original site or have they been relocated? Are the artifacts from that farmstead or have they been collected and/or donated from different sources? I am sure I am not the only one who would love to see photos of the structures if you have them or can provide the museum website link (if it doesn't violate any professional protocol). Please keep us posted with any developments. Thanks.
Biemaster (7 stories) (192 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-14)
Wow! You are so lucky to get a job in a cool place like that! Keep informing us about more happenings!
Biemaster
rhodes68 (14 stories) (1596 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-13)
That sounds like a fascinating place to work at. Lucky you 😊

It's a fact that museums are places that record a lot of activity because of the history they enclose. Think of all those artifacts or even everyday objects of an older era that are displayed. They still retain echoes of the past that are powerful enough to interfere with our present world.

I suspect there's a haunting but I wish I could have been there too to see it all with my very own eyes.

Thank you so much for sharing.
wanderer (6 stories) (71 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-12)
Thanks for the comments. I did wonder about it being residual. I know that lots of babies were born there, six of them in the bedroom that's the most active. Its also believed that people died in the cabin. With that much joy and sadness going on through the years it makes sense that it would leave some kind of mark. I'll write more about the museum soon.
KimSouthO (27 stories) (1960 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-12)
It would stand to reason that a place that rich in history may have some residual energy left, or perhaps some intelligent energy as well.

I would love to hear more!

God Bless!
ElinaIoneki822 (9 stories) (29 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-12)
Yea, I agree with Shada. Those are very interesting! But I think what you should do, to kill that fear, is to look up residual hauntings. That means that there are energies trapped in a certain time, who have no idea you even exist! You did say that the cabin has had occupants for over a hundred years.

So, just look that up and that can explain the footsteps and some random people talking.

Take care!
Elina ❤
shada (1 stories) (26 posts)
 
16 years ago (2008-06-12)
I've got chills running down my spine! That sounds like a very exciting job. Keep us informed, I would love to hear more.

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