THE HAUNTED MUSEUM

TROY TAYLOR'S HISTORIC AND HAUNTING GUIDE TO THE SUPERNATURAL

Welcome to The Haunted Museum, a collection of exhibits on the History of the Supernatural, Spiritualism and Ghost Research. Discover the strange story behind the creation of the Museum and then browse the various Halls and immerse yourself in the history of the occult and the supernatural. As you make your way through the halls and corridors of the Museum, We ask that you please do not try to enter any doors that might be locked and always remain in the lighted passageways. Some of our exhibits will have a tendency to stay with you long after you have visited them -- and we don't want to be responsible for any that might follow you home!

The history of the Haunted Museum began in the latter years of the 19th Century, a time of adventure and exploration that sent American and British adventurers into the far-flung regions of the world -- and to little known and haunted places within the borders of their own countries. This was the Golden Age of Adventure and Ghost Research, as passionate travelers began to try and decide if the stories they heard were actually true! Legendary cities, strange places, and haunted sites began to be discovered and reckless adventurers scoured the most mysterious corners of the globe, returning from their exploits with fabulous tales that stirred the imagination and sparked wild interest in the occult among those who had never heard of such things before. With the rise of the Spiritualist movement, the supernatural began to attract both the thrill-seekers and those in search of forbidden and esoteric knowledge. 

Books began to be written by those who sought out ghosts and hauntings, contact with the dead, and the lure of exotic and dangerous places. The written page spurred even more interest in the unknown and soon, occult groups were formed to practice séances and spirit circles. On the other side of the coin, organizations formed to investigate the claims being made by the Spiritualists and other occultists about the manifestations that had allegedly witnessed, their contact with the spirit world, and the physical manifestations appearing in our world.  

In time, stories, photographs and strange objects began to come from these investigations -- both from the séances of the Spiritualists and from the exotic tombs and forbidden sanctuaries that were investigated by the researchers into the unknown. Many of the objects were connected to weird tales and many claimed to have supernatural influences connected to them, which made then unsafe in the homes of the unwitting collectors who had acquired them. Over the years, many of these objects have become a part of the collection of the Haunted Museum and exhibits have been built around them to keep these objects safely stored away. They can be studied, learned from, and displayed -- but keep visitors free from the dangers associated with them. 

Just a few of these objects include:
* A Haunted Tintype Photograph from the American Civil War
* A brick from the infamous St. Valentine's Day Massacre
* A Burned Bible that inexplicably smells of roses
* A haunted doll said to bring death to those who own it
* A stone idol acquired at a temple in the Mexican jungle
* A cursed Ouija board, said to have contributed to at least one death

The Museum has also collected scores of objects and artifacts from the heyday of Spiritualism and the Ghost Research in the early 1900s.

With a history dating back more than a century, the Haunted Museum today is a place of learning -- a true guide to the history of the Supernatural. With 1,000's of rare books, photographs, collections of unique and haunted antiques, and the special halls below, we offer a rare look into an important (and sadly forgotten) world of yesterday, when ghost research was just beginning and the occult was a part of everyday life!

Please browse through the Exhibit Halls below at your own leisure and enjoy the history that was have compiled for you over the last century and a half. No flash photography is allowed inside of the Museum (so please don't copy the photos) and all of the written work is copyrighted, so please don't use it without permission. If you have any questions or comments about the Haunted Museum, please return to the Front Desk and we will do what we can to assist you. Thanks!

SPIRITUALIST HALL

History & Mystery of Spiritualism
The Beginnings of the Movement

The Fox Sisters
Founders of Spiritualism or Supernatural Frauds?

The Man Who Could Fly
Who Was Daniel Douglas Home & Did He Do the Impossible?

Davenport Brothers
Mediums or Magicians?

The Koons' Spirit Room
Why Athens County, Ohio is Regarded as so Haunted Today!

Florence Cook
and the Enigmatic Katie King. Truth or Fiction?

Eddy Brothers
Were they Really some of the Greatest Mediums Ever Known?

Eileen Garrett & the R101
Evidence from the Séance Room

Eusapia Palladino
Psychic Wonder or Blatant Fraud?

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Creator of Sherlock Holmes and his Spiritualist Crusade
 

SPIRIT PHOTOGRAPHY HALL

History of Spirit Photography
The strange history of taking photographs of ghosts

William Hope
The Crewe Circle  of Spirit Photographers -- Fact or Frauds?

The Cottingley Fairy Photographs
The Edwardian Era Humbug that changed the history of mysterious photographs
 

OCCULT HAPPENINGS HALL

Seances
Connections to the Next World?

Table Tipping with the Spirits
The Creation of the Home Spirit Circles

Spirit Cabinets
Special Chambers to Commune with the Spirits

Ectoplasm
The Riddle of this Mysterious Substance - Fraud or Phantasm?

Ouija Boards
Their Strange History & Uses

Automatic Writing
Communications from the Other World?

GHOST HUNTER'S HALL: THE BEGINNING OF GHOST RESEARCH

Harry Price
The "Original Ghost Hunter"

Harry Houdini
The Master Among the Spirits

The Haunted Friendship
Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Ghost Hunters
The SPR and other Early Researchers

Gambols with Ghosts
Exposing the Frauds with William S. Marriott

The Magicians & the Debunkers
Investigating the Supernatural

"Cold Reads" & More
How Fraudulent Mediums Trick Friends and Influence the Gullible

How to Have a Séance
Tricks Employed by Fraudulent Mediums

Smoke and Mirrors
Making Ghosts for Fun and Profit