Did you live in this house?

This recording was made last week in a private residence in Havre de Grace. I simply ask: Did you live in this house?

There seems to be a mechanical sound which could be a man saying something that's hard to make out.

The word "no" follows, in a masculine voice, and can be heard clearly.

Is the "no" a response to my question or is it a response to whatever the other voice is saying?

A Havre de Grace EVP

This brief audio clip contains an EVP that is fairly typical of others that I've recorded. It was captured last week at a private residence in the center of Havre de Grace. We were asking general probing questions hoping to receive responses that would tell us more about any spirits present.

The question heard in the recording asks if there was once a pharmacy where La Cucina is now located on Washington Street. These types of questions are commonly used while doing EVP work to presumably determine the time period during which a spirit lived. The question also anticipates that the entity would know that the building that was once a pharmacy in town now houses an Italian Eatery. That's asking for much!

More important than the question asked is the apparent direct response that's heard. The answer is simply "yeah." First, it needs to be understood that every precaution was taken to control any noise contamination of the room we were in. Any outside sounds, or sounds made by us, were immediately noted verbally on the recording.

Is this recording, and many others like it, evidence that ghosts exist? Is it even a response to the question asked? Does it prove that the dead are attempting to communicate with the living? Is it proof positive that the house is haunted? Could it be the result of a stray radio transmission from a boat, a plane, a truck passing by on I-95? As with all things associated with the paranormal, this short audio clip raises an endless stream of questions.

I know for certain that the voice doesn't belong to anyone in the room at the time. I also know that the voice wasn't audible to the human ear at the time the recording was made. Beyond these couple of talking points, I can't make any conclusive claims about the recording, except that I find it fascinating.

EVP recorded at the Rodgers' House Tavern

This video clip was recorded on the third floor of the Rodgers' House Tavern back in July. Robbin and I heard sounds that led us to believe that someone had opened and closed a door beneath us and was climbing the stairs. The masculine voice saying "they're white" came as quite a surprise. We've tried unsuccessfully to disqualify the EVP by duplicating it.

Just Pick It

This EVP was recorded at Moore's Seafood in Norrisville ... rural Harford County. At the time, I was alone in the building with BJ Moylan from PHPRS. There was no noise contamination other than the chirping of a cricket and an occasional passing vehicle.

BJ, who had previously investigated the site a number of times, made a game of asking a resident ghost, named "Harry," to move things or make sounds.

In this recording, BJ asks permission to play a game. The whispered response is direct, intelligent and nothing short of astounding.

A ghost who likes to repeat

This is one of my favorite EVP and, like the others, it was recorded at the Rodger's House Tavern. Some readers may not know that the Rodger's House Tavern survived the British attack of the town in 1813 making it one of the oldest surviving buildings in Havre de Grace.

Robbin and I were interviewing a young man who had witnessed an apparition in the building. I record all interviews because it's easier and more reliable than taking notes. The conversation changed topics to an experience the young man had elsewhere involving a big mirror which he describes as 8 foot tall by 8 foot wide.

Towards the end of the audio clip you can hear a disembodied voice repeating the words " 8 foot wide" in a whisper. It's almost playful.

Big Bertha

This EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) was recorded at the Rodger's House Tavern. Only Robbin, another lady I'll call anonymous, and myself were in the room at the time.

Robbin was telling us about a notorious Havre de Grace madam named Big Bertha.

Robbin can be heard saying: "they arrested her several times, it was Big ... Big Bertha."

The two feminine voices that follow don't belong to anyone in the room at the time.

Note added Aug. 8, 2010: There's a second EVP on this audio clip. Robbin says "big" ... pause ... "big Bertha." During Robbin's pause, a disembodied voice repeats the word "big."

I'll bet it's fun to fish on the river?

This EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) was captured a couple of weeks ago at the Rodger's House Tavern. Only myself and Robbin Van Pelt were present at the time. We were asking probing questions in hopes of receiving a direct response from a disembodied voice. This EVP corresponds with a spike on a meter that measures electromagnetic fields and a personal experience by Robbin. She heard a man speaking behind her.

In the recording, I ask the question: "I'll bet it's fun to fish on the river, isn't it?" You then hear a man say something that sounds like a response to my question and then you hear Robbin's voice.

Again, there were just the two of us present when the recording was made and the man's voice responding to the question is not mine.