story courtesy of the Tyler Morning Telegraph
By Kelly Gooch
Staff Writer
A Longview paranormal group will descend upon the Howard-Dickinson House in Henderson this weekend in hopes of finding ghosts.
The group, Unknown Paranormal Group, has found evidence of ghosts in about nine locations since it was established nearly a year ago, founder Kevin Weddle said. He noted, though, that not every place it investigates turns out to be haunted.
Its six-hour investigation at the Howard-Dickinson House, which will involve 11 members, is set to begin at 7 p.m. Saturday.
During the investigation, members will carry handheld video cameras as well as other equipment, such as devices to measure electromagnetic fields. Members also have electric voice phenomenon recorders, which they say can pick up the frequency that spirits speak in.
Weddle said the group tries to document things with its equipment, but he said there also are several in the group with psychic medium abilities.
Once the investigation is complete, the goal is to be able to disprove or back up the ghost stories with documentation, whether that's video or audio.
"We're trying to find more local places that either have a lot of paranormal activity or people talk about it or people don't know if it's haunted," Weddle said. "We chose this one because it's local and has stories. We're going to go in there and give them some answers."
Among those stories is the tale of Maida Jaggers, a big name in local preservation efforts who helped save the Howard-Dickinson House. Ms. Jaggers recalled being in the house and seeing a ghostly woman dressed in white go up the stairs.
The house also has been used for many receptions and parties over the years, and legend has it that if someone carries a plate from the dining room to the library and a fork is resting on the plate, the fork will fly off on its own volition, said Cyndi Walker, Main Street coordinator for Henderson.
Ms. Walker has her own story about the house. She was in the parlor giving a tour when a young girl expressed interest in paranormal activity. Shortly thereafter, a picture fell over on the floor.
"It was one of those that had been laying up against the wall," Ms. Walker said. "It was crazy that it chose that moment to fall. I think when you get in there, you're just kind of looking for things."
Two siblings who lived in the house, Pat and George Howard, supposedly were cleaning guns in the basement when Pat accidentally shot George.
To read the rest of the story, click here.
The Howard-Dickinson House was restored in the 1960s after being abandoned and vandalized.
