I lived in Somers Point, NJ back in the late 60's and I'm sure the home was occupied by some sort of spirit. I've always wondered if this house has ever been investigated for paranormal activity. Is there a way to find out?
This house was actually divided into apartments at some point, and we lived in one half of the downstairs section. My bedroom was in the middle of a hallway between the living room and kitchen. I would often see a lady float down the hallway past my bedroom door. She looked young, maybe early 20's, and wore a black cloak type outfit. Although I never saw her face, I just knew that it was a woman. She never stopped or looked at me, just simply went down the hall. As far as I know, she never did anything else to alert us to her presence. Oddly, my little sister had said she had seen her, but only from my bedroom. My sister also did odd things during the time we lived there such as be sound asleep with her eyes wide open and once while she was asleep she got out of bed, walked into the kitchen and grabbed a steak knife. She then came into the living room with knife in hand, looked at me, then put the knife on top of the TV and turned the channel to static and turned the volume all the way up. She walked back into her room and went back to bed - sound asleep. Was the spirit trying to communicate through EVP? I remember one time I was in the basement getting my bike out to ride and all of a sudden I felt like someone was with me. Next thing I know I was freezing cold and could see my breath. I ran out of the basement into the yard - it was the middle of summer and hot outside.
If that wasn't enough, the neighbors in the apartment upstairs and diagonal from us told my mom that they had visitors that swore they saw a ghost while they were there. The lady that lived above us used to tell us kids that she was a ghost and would haunt us if we were too loud playing. After we moved out, the people that took our place were friends with my mom. They had only been there a few weeks and asked my mom about anything "weird" ever happening while we were there. She said that we had spoken of a ghost, but nothing she ever saw. She said that her friend turned so pale it sent chills up her spine looking at her. They had friends stay over and used my old room - apparently they saw what I saw.
I'm SURE that this place is, or was, home to a presence. I've been a believer since then and I honestly feel that someone over the last 30 years must have referred this place to a professional. I'd love to know if this has been investigated, and if not, it should be.
I know the address, but I'll keep that private until I get asked by a legitimate person who might be able to shed some light.
Hi Nelson,
Thanks for sharing your story with us. It certainly sounds like you grew up in an active home. Unfortunately, even if SJGR had investigated the site, we wouldn't be able to divulge this information since we guarantee confidentiality to our clients.
The lady you describe almost sounds like a residual haunting since she didn't appear to have any realization you were there or try to interact with you. A residual haunting is when there isn't an actual spirit or intelligence involved, just the recorded images and sounds imprinted on a location. When conditions are right and there is enough energy, the sound or image plays itself, like a movie on a DVD player.
One other thing to note is EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena. This is where spirits try to communicate by leaving their voice or a sound directly on a recording media such as an audio recorder or camcorder. A piece of electronic equipment must be used and the sound is generally not heard at the time of the recording. If a voice/sound is heard, it's considered a disembodied voice or anomalous audio phenomena.
The incident you describe with your sister may have been a spirit trying to interact with her or other members of the family, but without knowing more about the case, I couldn't speculate as to what the message may have been. Children are naturally more sensitive. We are all born with this sensitivity, but most people grow out of it by the time they near puberty (7 to 10 years old is the average). If your sister was still at an age where her senses were heightened, then it have been easier for a spirit to communicate with her. Another thing we know is that spirits do communicate with us while we sleep. The reason for this is it is easier for them to speak with us as we are not caught up in a daily routine, or deal with a "fear response" from the one they are trying to communicate with.
I can suggest you try writing to the current homeowners to see if they have ever had activity and/or an investigation. Assuming you still have the address, Google Maps Satellite view zoomed in will give you a really clear image to make sure the house is still there. I would also include a self-addressed stamped envelope, phone number, or email address where the current owners can contact you.
Thanks for your response. Yes, my sister was 7 or 8 while we lived there, so that fits together. Also, what you said about being residual makes sense too. As far as I know, there was never any real interaction, just the manifestation of her image.
I know the house is still there, as I feel compelled to drive by whenever I go up to visit my sister. Maybe next time I'll stop and try to find out who lives there. I would love to see if there has ever been any investigations done on this home, and what the results were. I'm really curious to see if the list of people who have witnessed this has grown over 30 years as well.
Again, I appreciate your response. It gives me a better idea of what was happening.
