The Flat Earth Theory

This blog will talk about the Flat Earth Theory. Many people believe in a Flat Earth, but is this true? Could Earth really be a flat disk floating in space? I am Abimael Mendez and I will go through the facts and figure out what is the truth behind this theory. Brazil Rachel, the author of “Fighting a Flat Earth Theory” an online article written to prove what is true and not true about the Flat Earth. Brazil Talks about many of the subjects that I wanted to touch over as well and give more information about. “Fighting Flat Earth Theory” Physics World. July 14, 2020. Accessed October 25, 2020. https://physicsworld.com/a/fighting-flat-earth-theory/.

The Flat Earth

t would be very hard for most people to believe such a claim. But as the article states even famous people believe the earth is flat. “the US rapper B.o.B (real name Bobby Ray Simmons Jr) started a crowd-funding campaign to launch a satellite. The rapper, a vocal proponent of “flat-Earth theory”, wanted to seek evidence that our planet is a disc, not a globe.” This is a quote from the article gives us a perfect example, even people with money and power and resources to go out and find the truth for themselves believe the Earth is a disc shaped object. Statistics show that a two percent of the world believes in a Flat Earth. Now this is a big number around 6.5 million people in the U.S, so much so, that people fear that this could cripple physics and science due to people not believing the facts and evidence and just going with what they believe in. The history of a Flat Earth dates way back to the times before Aristotle. That traveled to Egypt and with the new constellations calculated the circumference of the Earth.

For example, the earth can be proven by anyone if you go to a city as addressed by Brazil. A flat Earther may claim that the Earth is flat because we can see a whole city from a distance when we should not be able to see. But they don’t account for mirages and reflections that have been proven to make illusions for objects like those. Or you could just ask any military personnel what the Coriolis affect is. A long-range sniper can tell you that a bullet changes its direction while traveling a long distance when the earth is spinning. So they have to take that into account while making a shot. Even a sailor on a boat shooting the main guns on a ship have to calculate where a large projectile is headed with the Coriolis effect because if not they could miss their target. All this is not accounted by Flat Earthers, any attempt that they have tried to explain this has been flawed or disproven. Because a disc cannot produce this effect.

Even after all these tests and facts the Flat Earthers still believe the Earth is flat despite what the evidence says. What does this say about their mentality? It could just be pointed to a lack of education or just ignorance but it goes a bit further than that as stated by Brazil “Landrum thinks this conspiracy mentality is linked to science denial and a susceptibility to believing deceptive claims on social media”,” she believes those with a conspiracy mentality have lost the ability to judge when to trust and when to be a sceptic. Their lack of trust in authority includes not just scientists but scientific bodies such as NASA, all of whom (they think) are part of a massive conspiracy to prevent the flat-Earth truth being revealed.” These people believe that everything doing with a Flat Earth is a massive cover up and that agencies like NASA and all scientists, astrologists, meteorologists are trying to hide the truth from us and that is that the Flat Earth is real. Or so do they believe.

The Earth

I believe this could be potentially dangerous for future research and amazing agencies like NASA. Because one movement that does not listen to reason could influence to the point that funding for these researchers, engineers, scientists and all these smart people could potentially be cut. Causing the agencies that have accomplished some of our most amazing accomplishments like landing on the moon to disappear just because a group of people would not acknowledge one fact, that the Earth is round.

If you would like to further research this topic here are some links to get you started.

“An astronomer Responds to Flat earth theory”. https://youtu.be/thxbiR-XfJO.

National Geographic Flat Earth v Round Earth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06bvdFK3vVu.

“Are Flat Earthers Being Serious?” https://www.livescience.com/24310-flat-earth-belief.html

#Flat Earth #Round Earth #Conspiracy#Cover ups#Government#Real Evidence#The Real Earth

The Slender Man

Author: J. C. 

Supernatural creatures since then until now has constantly created controversy and debates between believers and non-believers. Society has always tried to separate what is real and what is fake. And in today’s technology ruled world, it is hard to separate the two. The Slender Man is a product of todays technology environment. It took a site and one man to use the advancements we have now to create fear, confusion and arguments. Originally Slender Man was created back in 2009 by a man named Eric Knudsen but goes by Victor Surge on the website called Something Awful. He designed Slender Man to compete against other participants to photoshop existing pictures. This design started off as him portraying to be a tall, weird, slim, spider-like photoshopped in between children playing.

Original picture of Slender Man

This picture soon ended up becoming viral. Soon people started inserting Slender Man into videos, photos, and games. Soon the internet plastered this image and newfound character into the brains of the people. This created newfound conflict between people who believe in supernatural and those who do not. People who did not believe did research and have proof that he is not real.

 This man was showing why the slender man is not real

While the people who do believe made videos that showed that they believe he is real.

Man recording his children while catching Slender Man on film

Watching videos and seeing people post their thoughts could be challenging to believe if brought to attention by a person who does not know who he is. Slender Man raised an audience who was aware of who and what he was, but a different audience arose as well, the ones ignorant to the origin of the so-called legend. Unfortunately, Slender Man brought about unnecessary violence. In May of 2014, two girls named Morgan Geyser and Anissa Weier brutally stabbed their classmate Payton Leutner. Those two girls blamed the Slender Man in that stabbing because they believed that carrying out that deed would please the Slender Man and would stop him from harming their families.

One of the girls charged with stabbing

These girls were tried as adults. The story that had unraveled was that Geyser and her co-defendant Anissa had lured the victim Peyton from a sleepover into a nearby wooded park. Geyser had stabbed her 19 times while Anissa had encouraged her to do so, leaving Peyton for dead when finished. These girls were 12 at the time.

 Case on stabbing

This proved some people views on the Slender Man to be true, that he does in fact prey on children. But unfortunately for them, there is no known proof on whether they were telling the truth. How can a photoshopped picture make such an impact? We will sadly never know what goes on in society brains or what other people can see. But what we do know, is that since the creation of this technology made legend, it has cause much debate over whether he’s real or not.

Works Cited/Further References:

Bonner, Mehera “The True Story of Slender Man Is So Much Creepier Than You Ever Realized” Sweet dreams!  https://www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/a22994728/slender-man-true-story/   October 24, 2019

This article talks about how Slender Man started off as a photoshopped picture. And the children that took his existence way too serious and had some life changing effects.

Bauer, Scott “1 of 2 girls convicted in Slender Man stabbing loses appeal” One of two Wisconsin girls who repeatedly stabbed a classmate because she believed a fictional horror character named Slender Man would attack her family if she didn’t kill the girl has lost an appeal https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/girls-convicted-slender-man-stabbing-loses-appeal-72329368 August 12, 2020, 1:09 PM

This article goes into detail about the stabbing of the12 year old girl by her 12-year-old classmates. They get charged with first degree intentional homicide which put the case in the adult court. One got 40 years in a mental health institution because she was the mastermind behind the operation while the other only got 25 years in a mental health institution.

 Dewey, Caitlin “The complete history of ‘Slender Man,’ the meme that compelled two girls to stab a friend” https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2014/06/03/the-complete-terrifying-history-of-slender-man-the-internet-meme-that-compelled-two-12-year-olds-to-stab-their-friend/ July 27, 2016 at 12:30 p.m. EDT

The Hollow Earth

Author: Nicholas Carver

All throughout the United States and throughout the world, people believe in the Hollow Earth Theory. The Hollow Earth Theory is a concept proposing that planet Earth is entirely hollow and contains a substantial interior. People believe that we live on the outer layer of Planet Earth and on the inner Earth there is a whole new world, people believe that there are multiple subterranean cities and multiple civilizations of people living there just as us humans do on the outer layer of Earth.  It was suggested by Edmund Halley in the seventeenth century, it was disproved by Pierre Bouger in 1740. In 1774 this was definitively disproved by Charles Hutton in his Schiehallion experiment.

 

Image of the inner Earth

Supposably there is a super continent below the earth which goes by the name of “Agartha”. Agartha is 1,300 miles long from coast to coast. From the North pole To the South pole it is roughly 2,000 miles long. The underground continent has a capital city called “Shamballa”, which means “the place of peace”. Inside of this inner earth, it is also believed that there is a sun inside of the earth. Believers call it the “inner sun”. They also say that the inner sun is what causes global warming and the aurora borealis, otherwise known as the Northern Lights are really rays of light escaping from the inner sun. Theorists believe that that the inner sun is the true core of earth, and it is not as bright as are own sun in space.

An image showing the continent Agartha and its surroundings

The first known person to travel to the inner earth was a German sailor named Karl Unger in 1943. Unger allegedly traveled in a U-boat into the earths hollow core. Apparently, he met advanced civilization on “Rainbow Island”. After Unger, there was an American naval officer and aviator by the name of Admiral Richard Byrd. Byrd wrote a document saying that he went on a strange trip in which he lost control of his airplane and that the craft was guided as if by magic through a mountainous region towards a magnificent city pulsating rainbow-like colors. His plane magically landed in the inner world. After landing, he states he was confronted by an alien which it was a part of the civilization. The alien says to him “We have let you enter here because you are a noble character and well known on the surface world, Admiral”.

Image of Admiral Richard Byrd

There are three openings to the inner earth from the outer surface. Two of them are known to be at the South pole and the other at the North Pole. The third one is located somewhere in the Himalayan mountains. Supposably, there are guards somewhere near each pole. If a person rom the outer surface is able to find one of these entrances, the inner world people will ask them nicely at first to leave. However, in some cases if the civilizations of the inner earth deem a person worthy, they will let them in. A popular Hollow Earth document says that an unnamed man was able to gain entry to the inner world and he was able to live there for a year. He said it was magical and that he says that there were giants living there. He says that his giant friend brought it home to his family and he was completely dismayed to see the huge size of all the objects in his home. He states “The dinner table was colossal. A plate was put before me and was filled with a portion of food that was able to feed me for a week. The giant offered me a cluster of grapes and each grape was as big as one of our peaches.”

Image of a giant in Agartha

Work cited:

Wilson R.J. “7 Things You Need To Know About The Hollow Earth Theory” Topic Urbo 3 April 2017 https://www.urbo.com/content/things-you-need-to-know-about-the-hollow-earth-theory/. Accessed 22 October 2020.

Grundhauser, Eric “The Hollow Earth Is Filled With Giants, Germans, and A little Sun” Topic 21 October 2015. https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-hollow-earth-is-filled-withgiants-germans-and-a-little-sun. Accessed 22 October 2020.

Schwartz, Rob “What Is the Hollow Earth Theory” Topic 23 July 2019. https://www.strangerdimensions.com/ency/hollow-earth-theory/. Accessed 22 October 2020.

Links For Further Research:

Staff, Gaia “Hollow Earth Theory; Is The Subterranean Civilization Of Agartha Real?” Topic 15 November 2019. https://www.gaia.com/article/hollow-earth-theory-is-the-subterraneancivilization-of-agartha-real?render=details-v4. Accessed 22 October 2020. This article provides information about the civilization of Agartha and what it is like and its geography.

Wagner, Stephen “Secrets of the Hollow Earth” Topic 02 May 2018. https://www.liveabout.com/secrets-of-the-hollow-earth-2594409. Accessed 22 October 2020. This article explains information to the reader about secrets of the hollow earth and what life is like beneath the surface.

Staff, Gaia “The Hollow Earth Theory and Underground Civilizations” Topic 04 February 2020. https://www.gaia.com/article/hollow-earth-theory-ancient-civilizations-modern-researchers-and-explorers. Accessed 22 October 2020. This article provides information more in depth and more detail about the underground world’s civilizations.

Discovery of Bog Bodies

Author: Coleman Chappell

Bog Bodies are humans that have been remarkably well preserved in the ground for thousands of years due to the acidic, oxygen-poor conditions of peat bogs, which are made up of accumulated layers of moss. Archaeologists have been finding these bodies since 1640 when the first figure was found in Holstein, Germany by a local farmer.

The bogs were reserved as dumping grounds of those who had either been brutally murdered or offered as human sacrifices to the gods. Behind the sad stories of the deaths, they leave valuable clues for us today, showing how their people may have lived, how they worshipped, and what was used to cause the death.

The Tollund Man, the most well-preserved, best looking bog body found to this day. He lived during the 4^th century BC, also referred to as the Pre-Roman Iron Age and was found in 1950 on the Jutland Peninsula in Denmark. The body’s physical features were so well-preserved, he was mistaken at the time as a recent murder victim that was buried in the ground. He was found wearing a painted skin cap made of sheepskin and wool with a smooth hide belt around his waist. Additionally, the corpse had a noose made of animal hide tight around the neck and trailing down his back. Many believe the man was a human sacrifice rather than a executed criminal because of the arranged position of his body, and the fact that his eyes and mouth were closed.

In 1965, the German scientist Alfred Dieck, catalogued more than 1,850 bog bodies, but later scholarship revealed that much of Dieck’s work is incorrect. Hundreds of bog bodies have been recovered and studied, although it is believed that only 45 bog bodies remain intact today.

Works cited:

Mancini, Mark. “Peat Bogs Are Freakishly Good at Preserving Human Remains.” Howstuffworks,  23 January 2019, https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/earth/archaeology/peat-bogs-are-freakishly-good-at-preserving-human-remains.htm. Accessed on 25 Oct. 2020.

Dell’Amore, Christine. “Who Were the Ancient Bog Mummies? Surprising New Clues” National Geographic.18July 2014, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/7/140718-bog-bodies-denmark-archaeology-science-iron-age/#close. Accessed 25 Oct. 2020.

French, Kristen. “The Curious Case of the Bog Bodies” Nautilus. 6Aug2015, http://nautil.us/issue/27/dark-matter/the-curious-case-of-the-bog-bodies. Accessed 25 Oct. 2020.

Staff, History. “What are the bog bodies?” History. 8 May 2008. https://www.history.com/news/what-are-the-bog-bodies. Accessed 25 Oct. 2020.

Links for further research:

Were the Mysterious Bog People Human Sacrifices?https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/03/were-europes-mysterious-bog-people-human-sacrifices/472839/
This site runs through some of events the bog bodies experienced before death by observing their body parts, looking for gashes, shatters, or things missing.

Bog Bodies
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/media/bog-bodies/
On this site, there is a four minute video about archaeologists using their knowledge of chemistry, geology, and human behavior to better understand the circumstances that led to the gruesome deaths.

10 Ancient Bog Bodies That Will Amaze You
https://listverse.com/2017/01/28/10-ancient-bog-bodies-that-will-amaze-you/
This site goes through ten of the most significant bog bodies found in history with an explanation on how it was found, cause of death and what we can learn from that specific corpse.

El Dorado

Author: N. Williams

The El Dorado myth is a theory that began in the early 16^th century, with the Spanish explorers reaching out to the south Americas when they discovered the native tribes that were residing there. There were four big tribes of the Americas: the Aztec, Mayans, Incas, and the Musica. The Musica tribe was discovered around 800 and 500BCE (meaning Before Common Era). This tribe was known as the Musica, or Chibcha, and were a civilization that sparked the myth due to their inexplicable amount of gold! The musica held ceremonies of going across the lakes such as Lake Guatavita , throwing gold in large quantities into the lake to sacrifice to their water gods. Not only did they sacrifice gold and jewelry to the lake, but all the natives also had a outrageous amount of gold in their possession as well! This was the drive to find the trove that they must have, a place where all the gold resided, a city of gold.

The Chibcha tribe had a ceremony before being able to appoint a new leader to the role. Before being able to take the role of leader, they had to go through trials to earn it. The new ruler had to spend time secluded in a cave not being able to see women, eat salt, or go outside during the daylight. The trial before that was the journey across the Lagoon of Lake Guatavita and make sacrifices to a demon that they worshipped as their god. The raft was made of rushes and decorating it with what they had that grabbed the eye, all while burning incense on their braziers. This would cause smoke that would hide out the light of day. The new ruler was stripped to bare skin and covered him in dirt to throw gold dust on him, so he was completely covered in cold dust. He was then placed on the raft and his feet were resting in a heap of gold and jewels to offer to his god. The ceremony was called El Dorado, took many people’s gold hungry lives.

The Lakes they sacrificed to, such as Lake Guatavita, have been a known tourist attraction whilst going to South America. The tourist attraction will tell you the lore behind the myth of El Dorado, also allowing you to see the lakes that were associated with it. They allow you to go see the lakes, that are almost all perfectly circle, and learn about the story that the Chibcha tribe did. The Chibcha tribe is extinct, but the tale still lives on.

Works cited:

Hemming, John. “The Draining of Lake Guatavite” (PDF). SA Explorers. archived (PDF) from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2020 -

Anny Wooldridge. “The Story Behind the Legend of El Dorado”. Culture Trip, May 18, 2017, https://theculturetrip.com/south-america/colombia/articles/the-story-behind-the-legend-of-el-dorado/.

Dotson, Eliane. "Lake Parime and the Golden City" (PDF), Wash Map Society, p. 4. Retrieved 20 October 2020.

Britannica editors. "Chibcha", Encyclopedia Britannica, April 25, 2011, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Chibcha.

Willie Drye. "El Dorado". National Geographic, National Geographic Society, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/archaeology/el-dorado/

Links for further research:

BBC News on El Dorado: The truth behind the
 https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20964114
This news article gives incite on archeologists, real people research to find it, and real traditions kept alive while in their search for the myth in current times.

 The Codex Gigas: The World Library
https://www.wdl.org/en/item/3042/view/1/1/
The World Digital Library (a U.S. Library of Congress project) has digitized the Codex Gigas. At the link above visitors can read the entire Codex Gigas in high-resolution digital format.

Meet the Musicas, the urban indigenous people of Bogota
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-21062727
This short video, along with short description, gives incite of where they are now. It shows where they have tried to bring back their culture.

The Hauntings of St. Augustine, Florida

Author: Gracie Willis

The Lighthouse in St. Augustine

As we draw near the spookiest day of the year, October 31st, you may find yourself craving a creepy experience of your own. As it turns out, there is a bone-chilling city that you can visit all year round: St. Augustine, Florida. Although it is small, St. Augustine is known for its many haunted locations that are allegedly filled with the spirits of past residents. 

One of the most iconic haunted locations in St. Augustine is the city’s Old Jail. It is located in St. John's County  and attracts thousands of tourists every year. It served as the county jail for over 62 years, and during its time, you would not find happy tourists within its walls. The poor conditions of the Old Jail caused it to receive multiple citations. Dana St. Claire, director of St. Augustine 450th Commission, described the inmates as being “sentenced to death” upon their arrival. The inmates were packed into cells, sometimes hoarding up to six people in the small rooms. 

In another part of town, on the western side of Matanzas Bay, the Castillo de San Marcos stands tall. It was built in 1672 and initially served as a Spanish fort to hold prisoners of different Native American tribes. According to a legend, hundreds of years later, a local architect wandered into the fort to explore. After hearing a hollow sound from one of the walls, he decided to investigate. Inside, he found the hanging remains of two people who were believed to be the missing lovers, Delores and Manuel who went missing in 1784. Today, there are many reported sightings of unidentified figures including the “shadow man.” Those who see him, mostly staff members, describe him as a tall and very built man. Since the figure is allegedly so human-like, they report “waiting for him to move so they could continue taking pictures.” The military fort is currently open for both tours during the day, for the history, and during the night, for thrill seekers praying for a ghost sighting. 

Another one of St. Augustine’s most famous attractions is its haunted lighthouse. It was the first of its kind to be established. The lead producer on A&E’s “Ghost Hunters,”  Steve Gonsalves, describes the monument as “the Mona Lisa of haunted sites.” In 1871, after Americans discovered the lighthouse was sinking, it underwent extensive remodelings and it was almost completely reconstructed. The overseer of the task had many children and consistently brought them to the work site. One day, the children were roughhousing and riding around in a cart when it toppled over, sending them down a hill into the water below. Two of the three children drowned. Their spirits are rumored to haunt the island, which is probably why a lot of the ghost reports are of very young children. Workers report children’s laughter in the middle of the night as well as music boxes in the tower’s gift shop popping open and playing by themselves. 

St. Augustine’s long and dark history leaves plenty of room for theories surrounding the ghosts that may reside in its many historical sights. There are new ghost sightings every day. From the many conspiracies of people being buried alive to the old conditions of the Old Jail, these theories aren’t implausible. The dark history of St. Augustine sparks arguments from all sides, and in my opinion, will forever be known as one of the eeriest towns in all of America. 

 

Works cited:

Carpenter, Jenna. “A Look Back: What Happened Behind the Walls of the Old Jail” St. Augustine.com, June 14^th, 2015, https://www.staugustine.com/article/20150614/NEWS/306149965.

Old Town Trolley Tours, https://www.trolleytours.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/st-augustine-old-jail-interior-cells-600x580.jpg.

WJCT News, https://news.wjct.org/sites/wjct/files/styles/medium/public/201907/a_elighthouse.jpg.

“St. Augustine’s Newest Paranormal Experience.” Old Town Trolley Tours, https://www.trolleytours.com/st-augustine/old-jail-after-dark-tour.

Bjorkman, Sue. “The Ghosts of the Castillo de San Marcos.” Ghost City Tours, https://ghostcitytours.com/st-augustine/haunted-places/castillo-de-san-marcos/

“A Look Back: Haunted History at St. Augustine Lighthouse.” St. Augustine.com, October 26^th, 2014, https://www.staugustine.com/article/20141026/NEWS/310269932.

Ghost Hunters. Produced by Steve Gonsalves, A&E, 2004-, https://www.amazon.com/The-Invisible-Intelligence/dp/B01H4HW234/ref=sr_1_1?tag=tluweb-20.

Links for further research:

https://www.ghostsandgravestones.com/st-augustine/haunted-places
This website provides additional information on the alleged most haunted locations in Florida and around the country.

https://www.wheretraveler.com/st-augustine/play/st-augustines-haunted-history
This webpage provides information on the history of St. Augustine and its haunted past.

https://www.floridashistoriccoast.com/blog/ghost-tours-and-spooky-haunts-st-augustine/
“Florida’s Historic Coast” provides information about the best ghost tours and paranormal experiences in St. Augustine based on experience.

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel the Horrifying Truth

Author: Tianna Abney

All throughout the areas of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, guests have been noticing creepy hauntings from ghosts, most are famous. These figures often take over their old rooms that they stayed in before they died. Some of these ghosts are Marilyn Monroe, Montgomery Clift, Caroline and many more.

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel

Most of the stories told about the ghosts show some common similarities regarding there interactions with the guests. Like the author NewsDesk from the Entertainment website, and how he describes in his article, explaining how the Roosevelt Hotel was this grand place that was home to the stars also, how it was one of the oldest hotels in Hollywood. Then, he continues by saying how the hotel is glamourous on the outside but has a more darker side to the story.

 “Exploring the Haunted Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel”

In the hotel one of the most seen ghosts is Marilyn Monroe. As Alex Matsuo says, she is mostly spotted in the room where she used to live before her death, room 1200 which was one of the largest suits in the hotel. It is said that in the room more specifically the mirror guests have said to have seen Marilyn Monroe instead of their own reflections. Because of these frightening disturbances the mirror was later removed from the room.

Marilyn Monroe

Another ghostly figure seen in the hotel isn’t famous, she is a little girl named Caroline. Caroline is mostly spotted by the pool area because the day that she died her, and her brother were playing in the pool while their father went to go run errands and the kids drowned. Now, the little girl Caroline often likes to make phone calls from the hotel lobby phone, play in the jacuzzi with her brother, and ask guests where her mother and father are.

Work Cited:

Matsuo, Alex. “5 Spooky Ghost Stories of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.” The Spooky Stuff. Sept. 2020. https://alexmatsuo.com/5-spooky-ghost-stories-of-the-hollywood-roosevelt-hotel/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2020.
NewsDesk. “The haunted story behind the Hollywood Roosevelt.” Entertainment. Oct. 2020. https://exbulletin.com/entertainment/485633/. Accessed 23 Oct. 2020.

Further References:

Gomes, Mayra Dias (October 11, 2013). "THR's Guide to L.A.'s Most Haunted Locations". The Hollywood Reporter. Los Angeles, California: Eldridge Industries. Retrieved October 22, 2020.

Kern, Will (October 31, 2004). "Hotel has glut of ghosts". The Denver Post. Cited at wilkern.com. Retrieved 23 Oct. 2020.

Lovgren, Stefan (December 4, 2003). "Do Real Haunted Mansions Hold Sway in Hollywood?". National Geographic News. Retrieved 23 Oct. 2020.

"This old hotel is a Hollywood haunt, in every sense of the word". The Philadelphia Inquirer. November 26, 2000. Retrieved Oct. 23, 2020.

Ghost Lights Phenomenon: Marfa Lights

Author: Naomi Owusu

In the growing world, of Marfa Texas comes the cultural phenomenon of Ghost Lights or people even call them Marfa Lights. Specific routes such as Route 90 and the Chinati Mountains are many of the famous places where you can find these mysterious orbs of lights. In this article Diana Brown shows the popularity of these ghost lights and how these are seen in many places such as Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and even in Michigan. The author states that tectonic plates underneath the Earth's surface that cause these ghostly apparitions. Others think that methane gas is the cause of these mysterious orbs of light.

Marfa

Many people have described these lights as just being cars headlights or even a mischievous spirit or ghost with s lantern since Halloween and jack-o-lanterns have been associated with the Marfa Lights. In the article called, “Scientists Can’t Fully Explain These Strange Floating Lights in Texas” by Kaleigh Rogers talks about how these mysterious orbs of light have invested over $720,000 for many tourists and even researchers of science to visit the Marfa Lights Viewing Center in Texas. To get a better view of these ghostly lights, it should be a clear, night sky to witness this phenomenon. These lights change many different many colors such as red, yellow, blue, white, and many more which makes this illusion even more mysterious than ever.

Marfa Lights Video Up Close

In the United States, there have been several more ghost lights that many people have encountered, and these are called the Brown Mountain Ghost Lights which are in North Carolina and have been observed for many centuries. Many Indians from the Cherokee tribe had been made aware of these orbs of light for a very long while which makes these lights still a baffling mystery. The Cherokee Indians have claimed that these Ghost Lights were the spirits of women searching for their husbands who have died fighting a great battle. Many other legends entail that these lights are echoes of a murdered woman in the 19^th century. There is even a song associated with the Brown Mountain Lights called, “The Brown Mountain Light” by Lulu Belle & Scotty. This very song tells about a man being accompanied by a slave was hiking on a mountain and how the man was never to be found and comes back and haunts him with a lantern in the dark, crispy shadows at night.

Works Cited:

Brown. Diana. “Are Ghost Lights, Apparitions of the Dead or Even Aliens” How Stuff Works. 30. Jan. 2018. https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/unexplained-phenomena/are-ghost-lights-apparitions-dead-or-even-aliens.htm Accessed 18 Oct. 2020

Brown Mountain Ghost Lights. NC Ghosts. https://northcarolinaghosts.com/mountains/brown-mountain-lights/ Accessed 22 Oct. 2020

Homeschool Honey. “Marfa Ghost Lights Video Up Close.” YouTube, 8 June 2019. MARFA LIGHTS | June 5, 2019 | Marfa Ghost Lights Video Up Close

Rogers, Kaleigh “Scientists Can’t Fully Explain These Strange Floating Lights in Texas” Vice. May. 2017. https://www.vice.com/en/article/9aeapv/scientists-cant-fully-explain-these-strange-floating-lights-in-texas Accessed 18 Oct. 2020

Texas Monthly. “The Truth Is Out There” https://img.texasmonthly.com/2006/05/TruthIsOutThere-0017.jpg?auto=compress&crop=faces&fit=scale&fm=pjpg&h=662&ixlib=php-1.2.1&q=45&w=1024&wpsize=large Accessed 21 Oct. 2020

For Further Reference:

Brown. Diana. “Are Ghost Lights, Apparitions of the Dead or Even Aliens” How Stuff Works. 30. Jan. 2018. https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/unexplained-phenomena/are-ghost-lights-apparitions-dead-or-even-aliens.htm Accessed 18 Oct. 2020

In this article Diana Brown shows the popularity of these ghost lights and how these are seen in many places such as Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, and even in Michigan. The author states that tectonic plates underneath the Earth's surface that cause these ghostly apparitions. Others think that methane gas is the cause of these mysterious orbs of light.

Michael, D’esteries. “The Mystery of the Marfa Lights.” Treehugger. Jan. 2019.

https://www.treehugger.com/the-mystery-of-the-marfa-lights-4867866 Accessed 17 Oct. 2020.

The author of this article even emphasized specific routes such as U.S. Route 90 and towards the Chinati Mountains in Texas. The purpose of this article is that the author reveals these haunting, mysterious orbs of light which is still an unknowing tale till this day. Many groups who have come to witness this cultural phenomenon just think the Marfa Lights are just car headlights.

Rogers, Kaleigh “Scientists Can’t Fully Explain These Strange Floating Lights in Texas” Vice. May. 2017. https://www.vice.com/en/article/9aeapv/scientists-cant-fully-explain-these-strange-floating-lights-in-texas Accessed 18 Oct. 2020.

The author of this article thoroughly explains on why scientists can’t explain these mysterious lights. These lights have been documented as far as the 1800s. The Marfa Lights has invested $720,000 into expanding this exclusive visiting center.

The Bell Witch

Author: Donelle Eubanks

Throughout Americas history there has been many legends of witches. When most people hear the word witch, they probably think of a woman making potions, putting evil spells on people, wearing a pointy hat, and riding on a broom stick. That is not the image of famous Bell Witch. This story isn’t like any other, it is one of the most horrific hauntings in American history.

According to Alan Browns book “Haunted Tennessee Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Volunteer State” In the year of 1804, John Bell, a farmer from Halifax County, North Carolina moved to Robertson county Tennessee. He moved and purchased 320 acers of land where he would eventually build a log cabin for him and his family. It wasn’t until a decade later where the haunting on the John family began. It was in the year of 1817 where John noticed a strange creature on his lawn. It was said that the creature had the head of a rabbit and a body of a dog. Reacting in fear John Bell shot at the strange creature, and it ran off. After that day John and his family’s life was never the same.

The nights to come were traumatic. In Alyssa Gravitt’s Article “The Terrifying True Story of the Bell Witch” it is said that blankets began to get pulled off of beds, people’s hair was getting pulled, and they were waking up with scratches and bruises. It is also said that the daughter of John, Elizabeth Bell, was tortured the most by the spirit. She was covered in bruises because she was being pinched and slapped by this demonic ghost.

The Spirit soon identified itself as “Kate Bates”. On the Bell witch Cave website, they say Kate was a “mean old neighbor of John Bell who believed she was cheated by him in a land purchase”. They also say in on the website that she swore on her deathbed to haunt John Bell and his family. This spirit that was now called The Bell Witch became so popular the President at that time, Andrew Jackson went to Tennessee to visit this spirit, but didn’t get very far because of the entity stopping the carriage from entering the road up the cabin.

The haunting continued until the year of 1820 where John Bell died suddenly. A vial had been found by John Bell, Jr and he gave some of the liquid that was in it to his cat, that died immediately. The Bell Witch Website says the spirit spoke up and said, “I gave Ol’ Jack a big dose of that last night, which fixed him!”. John Jr then threw the vial into the fireplace where it eventually went up into flames.

After he died it is said that Kate Bates, The Bell Witch, spirit went into a cave, and is still active. People that have visited the cave and the cabin say they still hears noises, and sometimes see lights from the cave. There have been movies, tv shows, and also books made to explain this legend even more, but maybe we will never really know why Kate Bates wanted John Bell dead.

 “Cursed: The Bell Witch: Trespassing”

Works Cited:

Brown, Alan. “Haunted Tennessee Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Volunteer State” Feb. 2009.https://books.google.com/books?id=mSLiFwJzOH4C&pg=PA72#v=onepage&q&f=false

Clarke, Roger. “An American Haunting: in search of The Tennessee’s Bell Witch”. December 1, 2017.https://www.pressreader.com/uk/fortean-times/20171201/281535111243250

Gravitt, Alyssa. “The Terrifying true story of The Bell Witch” The Southern Weekend. thesouthernweekend.com/bell-witch/

Pat Fitzburgh: “The Bell Witch Haunting”. October 28, 1999. http://www.bellwitch.org/story.htm

For Further References:

Jackson Medical Products LLC. “The Bell Witch Cave”. 2010 https://bellwitchcave.com/ This website gives more information about the legend and how to visit the cave.

“The Bell Witch”. Wikipedia, 21, Sept. 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell_Witch. This article gives more information on where this even took place. This article also gives some newspapers that were published during that time.

The Prophet from Different Dimensions

Author: Trevon Riley

Edgar Cayce As a Young Adult

Edgar Cayce was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, on March, 18, 1877, where he spent his early years on a farm and learned about plants and soils. He would remain an active gardener for his entire life and Cayce also believed in herbal remedies. Cayce was the most documented psychic of the 20^th Century. Cayce began to find out about his supernatural abilities as early as his childhood. Cayce displayed that he had a supernatural ability to memorize the pages of a book by falling asleep on it. Also he was able to talk to his deceased father’s spirit. Due to those interactions he was often criticized, where people labeled him as a strange person. All he wanted to do with these abilities were to help others, because he felt like his gift was from god.

Photo of Older Edgar Cayce

Known as “The Sleeping Prophet” due to his psychic readings in a trance-like state. While in this state, Cayce would be in the universal conscious, where his mind would be in contact with all time and space. Cayce found out about this ability when he suffered laryngitis, which made him lose his voice. After a year, Cayce suddenly was cured due to him being under hypnosis. While under hypnosis, it was discovered that he could diagnose and recommend cures for others while in that state of hypnosis. He could respond to peoples’ personal questions and he would give the clients advice. There has been 14,306 of Cayce’s psychic readings documented, where he performed them in his trance-like state. The psychic readings would generally be about health, dreams, business, relationships, and spiritual growth. His final psychic reading was on himself on September 17, 1944.

Cayce made an uncanny amount of true prophecies or predictions in his lifetime. He prophesied on the Stock Market Crash of 1929, World War II, and the death of presidents. The stock market crash was predicted during a reading in 1925. Cayce stated that the client would find himself in a possession of a great deal of money. The reading advised the client to exercise caution in caring for his wealth. Also a few months before the stock market crashed, he warned a stockbroker of the impending “great disturbance in financial circles” that was about to take place. He predicted World War II in 1935, where he warned a 29-year-old client about catastrophic events building up in international communities. Cayce stated, “As to the affairs of an international nature, these we find are in a condition of great anxiety on the part of many; not only as individuals but as to nations.” Cayce would continue to show his godly abilities to the world until his death on January 3, 1945.

Works Cited:

“About Edgar Cayce.”Association for Research and Enlightenment. Accessed 22 Oct. 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20130626070913/http://www.edgarcayce.org/are/edgarcayce.aspx

“Chronology.” Association for Research and Enlightenment. Accessed 23 Oct. 2020 https://www.edgarcayce.org/edgar-cayce/chronology/

Cox, Dale. “Edgar Cayce, The Selma Years - Selma, Alabama.” ExploreSouthernHistory.com – Edgar Cayce in Selma, Alabama. Dale Cox, 2011. https://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/selmacayce.html

“Edgar Cayce’s Seven Prophecies That Came True.” Association for Research and Enlightenment. Accessed 22 Oct. 2020. https://www.edgarcayce.org/the-readings/ancient-mysteries/seven-prophecies-that-came-true/

For Further Research:

Encyclopedia Entry about Caycehttps://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/edgar-cayce

Edgar Cayce short biography http://oaks.nvg.org/cayce-bio.html

The Haunting of Myrtles Plantation

Author: A student

A spot so haunted outside Francisville, La, a small town renewed for plantation houses that are now use for tours; the name of the most haunted house in America has been taken by Myrtles Plantation. There are many stories about this residence, ranging from being constructed on an Indian burial ground to seeing the ghosts of dead children from the past owners of Myrtles Plantation and many more. The most famous story is that of a slave girl named Chloe. It was discovered after a photo of the plantation was taken. After taking a closer look, the photographer happened to find a figure standing between the two houses. Her story starts when, at the time, she was coerced into an inappropriate relationship with the new owner, Mr. Woodruff.

Woodruff, having a wife and several children, Chloe started to fear that his wife would find out of their secret relationship that had been carried on for over a year. To keep her secret alive, she would listen to the family’s dinner conversations for any word of their relationship. Though after being caught listening in to the family’s conversations, an order of punishment was made upon her, cutting of her ear as a warming. Chloe was brought misery and shame as she had to wear a turban to keep her ear hidden from others, humiliated of her deformity, she sought revenge on Woodruff’s family. On the night that Mr. Woodruff had gone, Chloe had served his family with poison in their meals.

Days had gone by and so did the lives of Mr. Woodruffs wife and children. While her success was not too long, the other slaves on the plantation started to worry for their lives, for when he would return and discover the truth of Chloe’s actions. Taking power into their own hands, Chloe was taken by the other slaves and hanged from a tree nearby the house. Once certain that she was dead, her body was taken down from the tree and thrown into a river. 

Works cited:

Carter. Maria. “Myrtles Plantation the Most Haunted Home In America?” Country Living. 11 October 2017 < https://www.countryliving.com/life/a45181/myrtles-plantation-louisiana-haunted/>

Moses, Jennifer. “More Than Just A Place To Stay: Louisiana: Ghosts and atmosphere galore in a rested plantation house.” The New York Times 25 July 1999 < https://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/25/travel/more-than-just-place-stay-louisiana-ghosts-atmosphere-galore-restored-plantation.html?searchResultPosition=2>

Redd, Wyatt. “The Haunted History Of The Myrtles Plantation.” Ati 11 April 2018 < https://allthatsinteresting.com/myrtles-plantation>

Wiseheart, David. “The Myrtles Plantation legends, Lore, And Lies.” American hauntings < https://www.americanhauntingsink.com/myrtles>

“The Myrtles Plantation Ghosts.” Real Praanormal Experiences. 12 January 2016 < https://realparanormalexperiences.com/the-myrtles-plantation-ghosts>

Links for further research:

Internet Archive Wayback Machine

https://web.archive.org/web/20140313194256/http://www.brittonsfarm.com/blog/myrtles-plantation-bed-and-breakfast-haunted-house/

Another article with further more research about the Myrtles Plantation and its multiple hauntings.

Mental Floss The Haunted Plantation

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/23051/haunted-plantation

Posted in 2009 when Myrtles Plantation took the name of “Most haunted homes in America” Detailed information on when the plantation was built and more information as to where it is.

Haunted Rooms. Myrtles Plantation St. Francisville LA

https://www.hauntedrooms.com/louisiana/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/the-myrtles-plantation

About and History to Myrtles Plantations many hauntings and misfortunes. More information about the other plantations that surround it with stories to tell of their own.

Killer in the Backseat

Author: Elizabeth King

This Can of Mystery may have captured your attention due to its terrifying title. The Killer in the Backseat is a very well-known and chilling urban legend. As I was doing research on this tale, I even had my hair stick up on the back of my neck. The tale goes like this: In the Beginning, in 1967, a woman who is driving and she was being followed by a weird car. The mysterious car flashes the high beams, gets super close to her and sometimes even slams the car into her vehicle. This on its own sounds absolutely horrific but it gets worse. She realizes that the driver was trying to warn her that there was a strange man hiding in her back seat! She decides that she just needs to keep on driving as the man behind her kept screaming “Lock your doors and call the cops!”

Thats when she realizes that the man behind her was helping her. Each time the man sat up to get to the woman, the man behind used the high beams to scare the killer in the womans car which causes him to duck down. So, the man who was ramming her car was not the killer and he was trying to warn the lady. Though out the years plenty of variations of the tale as said in this article if you would like to read more. The articles tells another story with the same idea as the original.

I read up on a true story may have been the inspiration for this urban legend and this honestly made the legend more scary. It was based off an incident in 1964 in New York City. A escaped killer hid in a backseat of a car. But, the car ended up belonging to an police officer who ended up killing the man hiding in the backseat. Which just sounds like bad luck on the killers side. The police officer ended up shooting him and that was the end of it. There are obviously some differences between the two stories but they also have the same ideas. I just found it interesting that it is based off of an actual event. The Killer in the Backseat is one of those tales that sounds realistic enough that it gives you a heavy feeling. I quite enjoyed tale about this story and I hope you have as well. Always remember to check your backseat.

Works Cited:

Brunvand, Jan Harold. “TALE OF BACKSEAT KILLER IS SIMILAR TO NEWS STORIES.” Deseret News, 13 Dec.1991.

“History/Origin.” The Killer in the Backseat: An Urban Legend, killerinthebackseat.weebly.com/historyorigin.html.

Laws, Katherine. The Killer in the Backseat, 22 Oct. 2012, canofmystery.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-killer-in-backseat.html.

Maykr, Khan. “The Killer In the Backseat.” Villains Wiki, 2011, villains.fandom.com/wiki/The_Killer_In_the_Backseat.

Schlosser, S.E. “ Urban Legends.” Urban Legends at Americanfolklore.net, 2002, americanfolklore.net/folklore/urban-legends/.

Links for further research:
The Killer in the Backseat
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/backseat.asp
Articles of different places from which the urban legends “The Killer in the Backseat” was founded.

American Folklore
http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/urban-legends/
A website that contains all kinds of urban legends and different types of folklore.

5 Ridiculous Origins of Famous Urban Legends
http://www.cracked.com/article_19800_5-ridiculous-origins-famous-urban-legends.html
More Information of the origins of different Urban Legends and American Folklore.

Are there Aliens Actually Invading Area 51?

 Author: Jacquelynn S. Gresham

Area 51? Aliens? Strange aircrafts? Top-secret? These are all words and phrases that come up when Area 51 is discussed in general public or every-day discussion. This creates the conspiracy theory of if aliens exist or is it really a top-secret place for the government to test spy planes? This theory has created famous writers' and reporters on Area 51. The most famous post was made on Facebook called, “Storm Area 51, They can't stop All of Us.” This is a plan for the general public to take one day out of the year to take over the secretive military site and find the supposed aliens that are kept here. This got 1.5 million people interested, creating a big joke on Facebook. Overall, this got over a million people thinking that aliens are real, and they are stored in Area 51.

What is Area 51 and how did it come about?

Area 51 is a top-secret test and training range that the U.S. Airforce base created in response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Habor. (provide citation) Area 51 official name is the Nevada Test and Training Range, and this is in Groom Lake. Other names for this site that workers use to make it sound more peaceful is Dreamland and Paradise Ranch. (provide citation) The name Area 51 came for the location of where it was geographically located on the map. In this general place the famous U-2 spy plane was test successfully in 1955. Around the same time, the first report of a U.F.O (unidentified flying object) was seen in Newpapers. These sightings have been happening ever since.

In recent studies...

The public found out officially in August of 2013 that Area 51 existed. The public found out because, Dr. Jeffey T. Richelson which is a senior peer at George Washington University who passed a Freedom of Information Act Request in 2005. This was to get information behind what the CIA is doing with these spy planes. This forced the CIA to give informational documents on the history of the famous U-2 Spy plane and others. On the picture below, is a photograph of the U-2 spy plane that was used by the CIA.

Links:

“Area 51 Is the Internet’s Latest Fascination. Here Is Everything to Know About This Mysterious Site.” https://time.com/5627694/area-51-history/ On this website link it discusses what Area 51 is, how it came about, its official name, and raids it caused on media.

“Strange Signals from Area 51” http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.usca.edu:2048/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=5108508b-a686- 4244-9b0d- 18b97ab31b97%40sessionmgr4007&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#A N=794613&db=aph. On this website it discusses the history of UFOs, the experiences people have had, and investigations behind the UFO sightings.

“Inexplicable Moments.” http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.usca.edu:2048/ehost/detail/detail?vid=4&sid=fa5a238e-67ec- 438f-95f2-b7f511cc416e%40sdc-v- sessmgr03&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=2620687&db=aph This website discusses a reporter coming to the town of Area 51, interviewing people on the inexplicable moments they have experience due to Area 51.

Work cited: 

Aguilera, Jasmine. “Area 51 Is the Internet’s Latest Fascination Here’s Everything to Know about the Mysterious Site.” TIME. July 17, 2019. https://time.com/5627694/area-51-history/. October 20, 2020.

Brannan, Amy. “Area 51 Facts and Conspiracy Theories. ” Exploring Life’s Mysteries. October 2, 2014. https://www.exploringlifesmysteries.com/area-51-facts/. October 20, 2020.

Hammer, Joshua. “Strange Signals From Area 51.pp. 62. http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.usca.edu:2048/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=5108508b-a686-4244-9b0d-18b97ab31b97%40sessionmgr4007&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=794613&db=aph. October 16, 2020.

Stampler, Laura. FAA Confirms Spy Plane Caused LAX Chaos. May 6, 2014. Photograph. “U-2 Spy Plane,” TIME, October 21, 2020, https://time.com/89130/faa-spy-plane-los-angeles/.

Webster, Donovan. “Inexplicable Moments. ” Inexplicable Moments, vol. 30, no. 10, January 2000, pp. 26 2p.3. http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.usca.edu:2048/ehost/detail/detail? vid=4&sid=fa5a238e-67ec-438f-95f2-b7f511cc416e%40sdc-v- sessmgr03&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=2620687&db=a ph. October 17, 2020.