Research for Ghost Hunters

When Hollow Hill hears a report of a significant haunting, I research the story before we take it seriously. I'm a professional journalist with over 25 years' experience in genealogy and historical research.

Here's an overview of the research process that we use at Hollow Hill:

1. Verify the age of the site.

Often, especially in areas anticipating tourism, new buildings are designed to look far older than they are. I recently researched some Irish castles. One of them is an old building, but it didn't become a castle--complete with tower and other "castle-like" architectural embellishments--until about 20 years ago.

Likewise, Hollow Hill has received reports that seem appropriate for the apparent age of a building, but the building is a reproduction and has no significant ghostly history.

You can often trace a building's history the same as title insurance is researched. Usually, the local city or town hall has ownership records and building permits to indicate the age of the site.

City directories--19th-century listings, similar to phone books but before telephones--usually include a section listed by address. Use them to learn more about an address: Who was there, what the purpose of the site was, and more.

2. Verify the history of the site.

Our most famous debunked site may be the supposed "Ocean-Born Mary" house. The house was old enough, but something didn't seem right.

Hollow Hill's research revealed that Mary Wilson Wallace never lived in the house that she supposedly haunts, and she only visited it once or twice, if at all.

You may need to trace the homeowners' histories. Start with ownership records at the town or city hall. You may also need to check historical diaries and other documents--especially court and probate records--to determine the reported ghost's links to the site.

Likewise, if someone claims that an event took place at the site, check contemporary records. Look at newspaper reports from the time of the event, and verify the locations or addresses.

3. Verify the ghost's personal history.

At Hollow Hill, we steadily hear reports about "real ghosts" and they often have names and stories. If a story sounds a little like an urban legend, it probably is one. However, whether the ghost story sounds real or not, homework is necessary.

First, be sure that the person really existed. Birth, marriage, and death records, as well as census records, should support the ghost story. At Hollow Hill, we routinely check the free and paid resources at Ancestry.com.

However, those same census and vital records are available to the public at no charge, especially if you live in the area of the reported haunting.

Your public library probably has census records that you can use. Birth, marriage, and death records are generally kept at the town, county, and/or state levels, and may be free for you to examine.

Or, you can check online for helpful research materials. You're doing genealogical research, so the best single source for links is CyndisList.com.

For a quick search on ghosts from the early 20th century and before, we usually check the LDS Church's database, FamilySearch.org. That resource may contain errors, but in many cases it's a fast way to gather information.

This has been more an overview than a tutorial, but if you follow our guidelines and research every site before taking a ghost story seriously, all ghost hunters will benefit from improved credibility.

Before you tell others about a "true ghost story," be sure that there really is a ghost, and that history supports the story that you're repeating.