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Zak and the team head just outside Utah to Tooele to investigate perhaps one of the oddest buildings they’ve come across. It started as a poor house for the local residents, but then due to population expansion turned into an ill equipped hospital. They didn’t have the staff, funding or supplies to tend to the needs of their patients. They apparently had no morgue to deal with those that passed away.

The building now stands as a haunted attraction called Asylum 49. But there’s more. It’s not just a haunted house built out of an asylum it’s an actual nursing home for the elderly with 59 patients and a full nursing staff. Not many places can boast such a combination.

The owner claims to have seen apparitions. The nursing staff claims to have seen several different things as well. They claim there is a lady in white, a man in black and a little girl. Not much is mentioned about the nurse such as why she lingers or if she causes any mischief. Very little is known about the man in black other than he is an apparition that appears. There are multiple stories of people being attacked and scratched but is this dark figure responsible? And the little girl foretells of death. When patients start to mention her it usually signals someone is going to pass. But who is this little girl? Was she a patient? Did she lose her parents here?

Nurse Marie who gives the tour seems to be on the verge of hysterics the entire time. You get the sense that at any moment she is going to bolt from the room. No matter which room they go in she seems deathly afraid of it. If this place is so scary why does she stick around? If hates going into all these rooms why not get a job somewhere else? She seems to be tormenting herself.

Again, there are multiple accounts of people getting scratched. People have been scratched across the chest and on the back of the neck. Are they getting hung up on something and hurting themselves by accident or does something sinister roam the halls?

One thing to note, there aren’t the usual stories of abuse or bizarre experiments we’re used to hearing about from asylums. And the between clip graphics are certainly playing up that fact with lots of scenes of blood and nurses taking joy in patient suffering. Sure, the hospital had problems but did they go out of their way to hurt the patients? They’re building up the dramatic effect but I don’t get the sense it really happened. These little cutscenes are trying to build an atmosphere of something that was never there.

So what happens during the investigation?

For the second time we have some ridiculous theatrics to start the lockdown. Seriously, this is just stupid. I’m sure it was fun to do but it really comes across as juvenile. A hearse where slaves were bought and sold, now a fake ambulance where the elderly reside. This isn’t coming across as classy.

They start off in room 666 where they play with the Jacob’s ladder and try to talk with the spirits. This is where one investigator claims to have gotten scratched on the back of the neck. As Zak and Aaron start to provoke the spirits the electrical arc on the ladder climbs to the top and hovers there. The electricity seems to point toward the person yelling, first at Zak then at Aaron. It actually does this several times. Is this a machine with perfectly normal behavior or are we seeing something more? I thought this was actually pretty interesting.

In the basement Zak and Nick claim doors slam in their faces and that they hear footsteps. They capture evidence of a ball moving on its own, more footsteps and Zak jumping out of his chair at the sight of small shadow figures.

Since this is a working hospital are the footsteps and noises just patients and other workers wandering around and we should discount them? Is the Jacob’s ladder just a cool trick and it doesn’t mean anything? Is someone from the other side really calling out Zak’s full name?

I have to say I love investigations that involve asylums and hospitals. They have this past that just gets under your skin. Aside from the silliness with the skiing and showing up in the ambulance I really liked this episode.

Other Articles of Interest:

• Ghost Adventures – Asylum 49 – S14E11
• Ghost Adventures – Tuolumne Hospital – S08E03
• Ghost Adventures – Pennhurst State School and Hospital
• Savannah Tunnels – Underground Railroad, Yellow Fever, Secret Autopsies or Shanghai Route?
• Ghost Adventures – Hill View Manor S04E06
• Ghost Adventures – Clovis Wolfe Manor
• Haunted History – Pennhurst Asylum – S01E04
• Ghost Asylum – St Vincent’s Mental Asylum – S01E04
• Paranormal Lockdown – St. Ignatius Hospital – S02E04
• Paranormal Lockdown – Waverly Hills Sanatorium – S02E05

The Ghost Adventures team head to Kentucky to investigate the Maysville Slave House. A house that started its life as a slave home but then became part of the Underground Railroad helping to free the salves it once sold. And now sits as a museum to those dark times.

William Phillips built the home complete with slave jail and dungeon. Slaves were bought and sold on the property. And I would think there is little doubt that slaves were beaten and killed there as well. The blood stains on the wall make it hard to ignore.

Jerry, the owner has seen several apparitions. He has seen a figure down in the tunnels where slaves would wait to make their escape. He’s seen the figure of a man with a brimmed hat. Many visitors feel a strong presence when they visit.

There is even rumor that a man shot himself in the head in one of the rooms. But the details as to who he was and why are somewhat vague.

But what does the team turn up? I first have to say I’m not really thrilled with their entrance. Showing up in a police escorted hearse and doing a parody of Ghost Busters seems a little inappropriate for a slave house. I don’t think these little comedic follies add anything to the investigation.

To summarize the guys claim to get lots of EVPs on their recorders. They have very few experiences other than being cold. But there seems to be a lot of voices coming through. They capture fragments in the white noise but the Ovilus has even more to say. When asked of Mr. Phillips the voice says they need to beware and that he’s a wolf. They hear the words kill and bone as they ask for more details. If they really are communicating it paints a pretty grim picture.

While sitting in a tunnel with multiple voices being recorded, Nick gets the chills and feels someone is close by. Even the recorder seems to agree as they capture the words "close".

I’m not a fan of the devices they use to capture these EVPs but the sheer abundance of them makes you wonder. It seems like plenty of voices are asking to be heard and not everyone made it to freedom.

Other Articles of Interest:

• Ghost Adventures – Loretta Lynn’s Plantation – S05E06
• Ghost Adventures tries to gain access to the White House
• Deep South Paranormal – Dead on the Bayou – S01E06 – Season Finale
• Ghost Adventures – Myrtles Plantation – S09E02
• Ghost Adventures – Snug Harbor Sailors – S07E19
• Ghost Adventures – Lizzie Borden House – S05E05
• Deep South Paranormal – The Good the Bad and the Ghostly – S01E05
• Ghost Adventures – Point Sur California – S07E03
• Ghost Adventures – Lechtworth Village – S05E06
• Ghost Adventures – Yost Theater and Ritz Hotel – S08E05

For this episode the Ghost Adventures Team heads down to Tennessee to investigate the Hales Bar Marina and Dam, a location that is said to be under the curse of Chief Dragging Canoe. The Cherokee land was taken away by white settlers so the Chief put a curse on it to make it unproductive and uninhabitable. Ever since, many people say they feel the effects of his curse. For example the Hales Bar dam has never worked properly and was even torn down. People claim it interfered with the natural flow of the land. There are also claims by investigators of being scratched, hair being pulled and of being touched in general.

One of the legends about the dam is that if a worker died while on the site they were simply added to the concrete and added to the structure. But the main source of concern is the underwater burial ground. When the area was flooded to make the damn it covered a cemetery. None of the bodies were removed before the water came in. The bodies were left in place and are still down there today.

Before the investigation begins the team tries to head out and see the refuge of the Cherokee Chief, but a massive storm comes ripping through knocking over several buildings. Of course they attribute this to the Chief and that the spirits are taunting them.

So how does the investigation work out? As Aaron is investigating he has his usual meltdown and fit of hysterics when he claims to get touched. He says something grabbed him. When they analyze the footage they claim to get a figure moving on the catwalk and believe they hear people chanting. Aaron also starts claiming something entered his body. These guys make this claim a lot. Unless I’m mistaken each one of them has claimed to have been taken over by an entity at some point. Who knew it was so easy to interact with the living?

After this incident Aaron is basically ranting like a ferret on speed. His mouth is racing a hundred miles an hour and nothing he says makes any sense. His wild monologue is interrupted by claims of more sounds and another EVP of "I’ll shoot you all". Unfortunately all the EVPs the guys get sound like garbled mess. Supposedly the entities are spewing vulgarities at Zak and team but of course you can’t hear that one because it sounds like a mess and gets bleeped out.

When you take into account the back story of the place and their playing around in the rain this investigation is only around 20 minutes long. Quite honestly I don’t think they walk away with too much. Aaron having a fit while standing in the dark scared out of his mind is nothing new. We’ve been down this road dozens of times before. The figure they claim to get near him is somewhat interesting but that really could be anything moving there. It’s a pretty big leap to say that’s an Indian figure or something else moving in the shadows. The EVPs are static and the rest of the team doesn’t experience the hair pulling, touching or scratching.

There is no doubt the Hales Bar Marina has some turmoil and makes for some wild and spooky tales but the evidence we get from this episode isn’t bringing any of those tales down to earth.

Other Articles of Interest:

• Ghost Adventures – Bonnie Springs Ranch – S04E17
• Ghost Adventures – Old Fort Erie – S04E12
• Ghost Adventures – Sacramento Tunnels – S04E23
• Ghost Adventures – Waverly Hills Sanatorium – S04E04
• Ghost Adventures – Return to Bobby Mackey’s – S04E03
• Ghost Adventures – Stardust Ranch – S12E12
• Ghost Adventures – Dorothea Puente Murder House – S13E05
• Ghost Adventures – Hellhole Prison – S12E07
• Ghost Adventures – Amargosa Opera House – S04E11
• Ghost Adventures – Hotel Metlen – S13E07

So the guys heads to Sacramento to investigate the tunnels that are actually part of the original city. Because of floods and fires the city was basically rebuilt on top of itself. The tunnels now contain artifacts and trapped energy from the lives that have passed. While there are no specific incidents involving tragedy to individuals, the flooding, fires and cholera have certainly taken hundreds of lives over the years. Are those souls now trapped in the original walls of the city? People report feeling a presence in the tunnels, they see shadows moving around, furniture gets moved in the courthouse and voices call out to people.

As they begin the lockdown they hear lots of banging and footsteps right above them. The visitor center is right above them so they break away from the lockdown to check it out and find no one is in that building. It would make sense however that it would be real people walking around up there, someone on a bike or one of the many cars rolling right by where they’re investigating causing an echo and making that sound. It just seems like too much of a natural occurrence to put a paranormal spin on it.

As the investigation continues they claim to get multiple EVPs. There is a woman who doesn’t appear to like Aaron. There is a child that could be looking for help. Someone asks that the guys stop talking to them. And there are several other male voices that don’t actually make any sense. There is even a voice that is throwing out obscenities. It’s interesting stuff but once again it’s coming from those devices I just can’t stand and have no confidence in.

After the main investigation the guys split up to cover two other sites – the courthouse and the Eagle Theater. Nick supposedly hears what sounds like furniture moving around, but he doesn’t actually find anything out of place. Aaron, who is still in the tunnels, starts flashing some cash around and says the spirits can have it if they talk to him. On a recorder in another room there is a voice claiming it will take the cash.

On two different occasions Zak claims to see a large shadow moving around. They claim to get one of them on the camera. I think it’s a bit of a stretch to say that’s a shadow figure walking away from them. It also seems a little odd that Zak can see a dark figure moving when he is supposed to be in complete darkness himself. How exactly does that work?

Another odd thing is the claim of the mist leaving the spirit box and taking the voices with it. All of that seems pretty strange to me. Are we sure the device didn’t just burn itself out? And as anyone who’s been around computers for a long time know, once you let the smoke out the box nothing works right any more. I will admit, there does seem to be something going on with the box right at that moment.

I thought the tunnels were really neat, but like the Madame Tussauds episode I’m really not seeing the paranormal connection. There is no definitive haunt or happening that they’ve come to check on. Being in a dark and dank tunnel will surely make your mind wander but that doesn’t immediately make it haunted. I sort of wish they would have spent more time talking about the history of the place, I actually find that to be the most interesting part.

Other Articles of Interest:

• Ghost Adventures – Portland Oregon – Shanghai Tunnels – S06E01
• Ghost Adventures – Salem Witch House – S04E19
• Paranormal State S04E03 – Dead Legends
• Ghost Adventures – Double Eagle Restaurant – S14E04
• Ghost Adventures Hales Bar Marina & Dam – S04E24
• Ghost Adventures – Valentine’s Day Special – LongFellow’s Wayside Inn – S04E18
• Ghost Adventures – Washoe Club and Chollar Mine
• Ghost Adventures – Old Gila County Jail – S16E04
• Ghost Asylum – Castillo de San Marcos – S03E05
• Ghost Adventures – Mizpah Hotel – S05E02