Miscellaneous Visits and Sites of Interest
Haunted Buildings
The Variety Theater
One of the very first haunted buildings that I ever investigated was the Variety Theater on Lorain Avenue,
Cleveland, Oh. I started working there as an actor back in 1984 while it was a haunted house. The theater
was built in the early 1900s and was a Vaudeville house, where a lot of famous people got their start. This is
where the rumors of haunts begins. The first story was that a stage hand was crushed by the organ lift and
his body was not discovered for about 2 days. After that, a woman in a white dress was seen appearing in
the balcony area. It is said that she was pushed or fell over the railing of the balcony and landed in the
seats below breaking her neck. After that the building was closed for some minor repairs and reopened as a
movie house. The owner at the time hung himself in the projection booth during the Depression and he can
still be felt and seen in the balcony area. People that have seen him describe him as a shadow with red eyes
and a top hat. I do remember there were rooms up in the balcony area and when people worked in this
area, they would claim seeing the shadow and someone touching or pulling at their clothes. Another ghost
that is said to haunt the theater is that of an elderly couple who used to live in the back apartment as
caretakers. As one story goes, there was a fire back in the early 50s that killed the couple and it is said that
they also haunt the theater always watching over the building. Outside there is a alley that dead ends at the
building and in the 70s a woman was raped and killed back there, you can still feel her on dark cold nights.
In the basement of the building is the boiler room and down there is where you get the most depressing
feeling and you will hear the strangest sounds ever! I have heard growling,crying, and screaming when no
one was in the building. The building is now a wrestling school and I don't know if the ghosts like that but I
do know that in the building the dead do walk waiting for some release. (submitted by Alan Mellinger.)
Sagamore Hills State Hospital
One of the biggest buildings I ever investigated was the Children's State Mental Hospital in Sagamore Hills,
Ohio. I got the chance to go out there when I was a member of Spirit Seekers. The building looked like a
school from the road but as you went up the driveway you got to see just how big it really was. The building
was built in the 1950s and housed a gym,classrooms,theater,swimming pool,an OB-gyn clinic,auto shop,and
sleeping as well as hospital rooms. It was closed down in 1996 due to an overwhelming suicide rate. As the
story goes, the hospital would average 2 to 5 suicides there a week. When the state found out about this,
they decided the hospital would close due to budget reasons. On the night I went out there to investigate you
could feel the hurt, confusion, and the anger from the building, even the local police wouldn't go out there
due to the haunting. Some of the patrolmen I talked to told of stories of the alarms going off and phone calls
from the people who lived across the street who said that they have seen children in the building. When the
police would arrive to check the building out they would find nothing. So after awhile the police would do just
a drive by of the building. I went back to the hospital this year in June and the building is no longer there.
When I talked to the local police about it they said the state came out in March with bulldozers and in two
months they had leveled the huge building to the ground. All that is left are the driveways and some trees.
When I went out there I still felt the spirits of the building on the property and I do feel sorry if they build
houses on the property without somehow making peace with the children of the hospital. (submitted by Alan
Mellinger)
UPDATE:
Three LT-Ohio members did stop by this site on December 14, 2006. Members arrived around four o'clock in
the afternoon and took a brief time (approximately two hours) to walk and visit the grounds of this great
piece of history. Although the main buildings no longer exist in our optical vision, signs of the foundation
and other land-markings can still be noted and visible to the human eye. In the back of the facility area
looks to be an old campsite area, possibly used to enjoy the outdoors with the residents at one day in time.
This area really can easily remind one of the "Jason movies", as it is in a pretty well solid wooded area with
abandoned buildings and pieces left behind. Between members visit to this back area not much was actually
felt or encountered out of the ordinary. Members then returned to main building site and walked about and
took some pictures, then left the area. Again nothing out of the ordinary was felt or experienced while on the
grounds-- other then the feel of being watched- this was explained by neighboring residences of the area
peeking out of their windows curious as to our objectives. (submitted by LT Admin,2006)
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Houses
There is a house located at 46th and Storer Ave in Cleveland. The house has been lived in by the same
family for 65 years until the haunting became too much for the family to bear. The haunting began in the
early 70s with the usual strange footsteps at night and doors closing by themselves. But, by 1992 the sounds
had become worse and the appearance of a tall hooded shadowy figure began to float out of the main
bedroom and make its way through the living room until it had reached the kitchen then it would disappear.
The house is always for sale or rent. Side note: strange but people who move into the house will stay only 6
months and they leave without no reason. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
Tinkers Creek:
There is an abandoned house and a big red barn located at the intersection of Valley View Road and Tinkers
Creek Road. The house is said to have sat on a beautiful farm back in the late 1800s. It was owned by an
old woman who had raised pigs there. In legend, it is said that if you stop to look at the house you will see a
light drift from room to room and the old woman will appear in the lower windows. Back in the 1980s, a
young man was found hanging in the barn from one of the rafters. Legend also says that he is still
wandering around the property.
Update
On December 14, 2006, around 6:30pm, three members of LT-Ohio (Lori, Patti & Alan) stopped by this
property for a brief look around. The night was cloudy and there was NO moon out. Patti and Lori stood by the
van as Alan crossed the street to get a better look at the house and barn to read posted signs. The house
appeared to be under some sort of construction and Alan did see some lights in the house. (But that could
have been from the street lights and passing cars). Nothing else noted to be unusual. Meanwhile, Patti and
Lori were taking photos from across the street. During review of photos, Patty had noted she captured what
looked to be a giant whitish blue orb, almost like a full moon over Alans head as he was approaching the
barn. Members immediately rechecked current outdoor conditions, and once again it was cloudy with no full
moon. Matter of fact, they were unable to locate the exact locale of the moon, due to the cloudy skies above.
Is it possible that Patti may have caught the old woman or even the young male, who may still be watching
out over the property? Take a look at the pictures below and you decide.
Original photo Lightened copy
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Cemeteries:
WEST PARK
There is a cemetery located on the West side of Cleveland that has a strange beginning. West Park Cemetery
is still in use today but back in the 1850s it was a different story. A hospital stood at the back of the
cemetery its name lost in history, it was for the poor and downtrodden with consumption diseases and the
property was used as a paupers field. The story goes that the hospital burned down one night in 1923 and
curiously to this day it is very difficult to find any record of it. Although if one knows where to look, there is
evidence of a very large foundation with many old medicine bottles, etc, strewn around and some buried in
the ground. Strange lights have been seen in the back where the hospital once stood and there were reports
of misty figures being seen on stormy nights. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
UPDATE:
LT-Ohio members have visited this site twice within the 2006 season. Once in late June and once again in
August. Our visit in June was during daytime hours, while visit in August was during the early evening (late
dusk) hours. Nothing was captured of interest during either visit although members do feel a need to
continue to revisit this area and plan to so periodically. (submitted by LT-Ohio Admin, 2006)
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Cadiz, Ohio
Cadiz is 36 miles south of Dover, Ohio it is a sleepy little coal mining town where there are ghost stories told
about the surrounding countryside and also about the coal mines. I grew up hearing these stories and I will
share some of them with you. There are also stories about the towns close to Cadiz that I will tell those tales
as well some of them were investigated and some of them will be. Cadiz is also known of the birthplace of
Clark Gable and it is said that his boyhood home is haunted, doors opening and closing, footsteps walking
through the house when nobody is there. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
UPDATE:
Two members of LT-Ohio visited the Cadiz area in mid Aug, 2006. The old mining area was visited and found
to be quite interesting. I believe the mine closed down in the late 1980s and legends have strung the stories
that it is very difficult to find a security guard to watch this property from vandals, as they do not want to
work at this particular site for long and choose to quit their job mainly due to strange, unexplained "heart
stopping" encounters from a very dark, fast-floating, evil-felt shadow who loves to fly down from one of the
upper floors into the lower docking area! Most of the actual maintence/shop and weigh area is beginning to
self destruct from weather and age. Although the area of which the legends have spun from the docking
area, did feel quite uneasy compared to the rest of the building and adjacent office building area. (submitted
by LT-Ohio Admin, 2006)
Mt. Pleasant Ohio
About 22 miles outside of Cadiz is a small town called Mt. Pleasant. It was founded by Quakers in the 1700s
and it was also used as a hub for the underground railroad. I went to this town in June of this year and
spent most of the day walking and trying to talk with the locals but only a few would talk of the ghosts that
haunt the town. I did talk to one of the patrolmen who work there and he told me of a story of a woman in a
white flowing dress that appears when somebody in the town dies. She appears towards dusk and walks
down the main street holding her head in her hands crying, if you spot her somebody you know will die. As
he told me the story I had asked him if he knew of anybody who had seen her and he had said yes that his
boss on the force had seen her three times and each time he had seen her somebody he knew had died.
There are also a few houses that we will be investigating in the new future so stay with us for updates.
(submitted by Alan Mellinger)
The Variety Theater
One of the very first haunted buildings that I ever investigated was the Variety Theater on Lorain Avenue,
Cleveland, Oh. I started working there as an actor back in 1984 while it was a haunted house. The theater
was built in the early 1900s and was a Vaudeville house, where a lot of famous people got their start. This is
where the rumors of haunts begins. The first story was that a stage hand was crushed by the organ lift and
his body was not discovered for about 2 days. After that, a woman in a white dress was seen appearing in
the balcony area. It is said that she was pushed or fell over the railing of the balcony and landed in the
seats below breaking her neck. After that the building was closed for some minor repairs and reopened as a
movie house. The owner at the time hung himself in the projection booth during the Depression and he can
still be felt and seen in the balcony area. People that have seen him describe him as a shadow with red eyes
and a top hat. I do remember there were rooms up in the balcony area and when people worked in this
area, they would claim seeing the shadow and someone touching or pulling at their clothes. Another ghost
that is said to haunt the theater is that of an elderly couple who used to live in the back apartment as
caretakers. As one story goes, there was a fire back in the early 50s that killed the couple and it is said that
they also haunt the theater always watching over the building. Outside there is a alley that dead ends at the
building and in the 70s a woman was raped and killed back there, you can still feel her on dark cold nights.
In the basement of the building is the boiler room and down there is where you get the most depressing
feeling and you will hear the strangest sounds ever! I have heard growling,crying, and screaming when no
one was in the building. The building is now a wrestling school and I don't know if the ghosts like that but I
do know that in the building the dead do walk waiting for some release. (submitted by Alan Mellinger.)
Sagamore Hills State Hospital
One of the biggest buildings I ever investigated was the Children's State Mental Hospital in Sagamore Hills,
Ohio. I got the chance to go out there when I was a member of Spirit Seekers. The building looked like a
school from the road but as you went up the driveway you got to see just how big it really was. The building
was built in the 1950s and housed a gym,classrooms,theater,swimming pool,an OB-gyn clinic,auto shop,and
sleeping as well as hospital rooms. It was closed down in 1996 due to an overwhelming suicide rate. As the
story goes, the hospital would average 2 to 5 suicides there a week. When the state found out about this,
they decided the hospital would close due to budget reasons. On the night I went out there to investigate you
could feel the hurt, confusion, and the anger from the building, even the local police wouldn't go out there
due to the haunting. Some of the patrolmen I talked to told of stories of the alarms going off and phone calls
from the people who lived across the street who said that they have seen children in the building. When the
police would arrive to check the building out they would find nothing. So after awhile the police would do just
a drive by of the building. I went back to the hospital this year in June and the building is no longer there.
When I talked to the local police about it they said the state came out in March with bulldozers and in two
months they had leveled the huge building to the ground. All that is left are the driveways and some trees.
When I went out there I still felt the spirits of the building on the property and I do feel sorry if they build
houses on the property without somehow making peace with the children of the hospital. (submitted by Alan
Mellinger)
UPDATE:
Three LT-Ohio members did stop by this site on December 14, 2006. Members arrived around four o'clock in
the afternoon and took a brief time (approximately two hours) to walk and visit the grounds of this great
piece of history. Although the main buildings no longer exist in our optical vision, signs of the foundation
and other land-markings can still be noted and visible to the human eye. In the back of the facility area
looks to be an old campsite area, possibly used to enjoy the outdoors with the residents at one day in time.
This area really can easily remind one of the "Jason movies", as it is in a pretty well solid wooded area with
abandoned buildings and pieces left behind. Between members visit to this back area not much was actually
felt or encountered out of the ordinary. Members then returned to main building site and walked about and
took some pictures, then left the area. Again nothing out of the ordinary was felt or experienced while on the
grounds-- other then the feel of being watched- this was explained by neighboring residences of the area
peeking out of their windows curious as to our objectives. (submitted by LT Admin,2006)
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Houses
There is a house located at 46th and Storer Ave in Cleveland. The house has been lived in by the same
family for 65 years until the haunting became too much for the family to bear. The haunting began in the
early 70s with the usual strange footsteps at night and doors closing by themselves. But, by 1992 the sounds
had become worse and the appearance of a tall hooded shadowy figure began to float out of the main
bedroom and make its way through the living room until it had reached the kitchen then it would disappear.
The house is always for sale or rent. Side note: strange but people who move into the house will stay only 6
months and they leave without no reason. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
Tinkers Creek:
There is an abandoned house and a big red barn located at the intersection of Valley View Road and Tinkers
Creek Road. The house is said to have sat on a beautiful farm back in the late 1800s. It was owned by an
old woman who had raised pigs there. In legend, it is said that if you stop to look at the house you will see a
light drift from room to room and the old woman will appear in the lower windows. Back in the 1980s, a
young man was found hanging in the barn from one of the rafters. Legend also says that he is still
wandering around the property.
Update
On December 14, 2006, around 6:30pm, three members of LT-Ohio (Lori, Patti & Alan) stopped by this
property for a brief look around. The night was cloudy and there was NO moon out. Patti and Lori stood by the
van as Alan crossed the street to get a better look at the house and barn to read posted signs. The house
appeared to be under some sort of construction and Alan did see some lights in the house. (But that could
have been from the street lights and passing cars). Nothing else noted to be unusual. Meanwhile, Patti and
Lori were taking photos from across the street. During review of photos, Patty had noted she captured what
looked to be a giant whitish blue orb, almost like a full moon over Alans head as he was approaching the
barn. Members immediately rechecked current outdoor conditions, and once again it was cloudy with no full
moon. Matter of fact, they were unable to locate the exact locale of the moon, due to the cloudy skies above.
Is it possible that Patti may have caught the old woman or even the young male, who may still be watching
out over the property? Take a look at the pictures below and you decide.
Original photo Lightened copy
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Cemeteries:
WEST PARK
There is a cemetery located on the West side of Cleveland that has a strange beginning. West Park Cemetery
is still in use today but back in the 1850s it was a different story. A hospital stood at the back of the
cemetery its name lost in history, it was for the poor and downtrodden with consumption diseases and the
property was used as a paupers field. The story goes that the hospital burned down one night in 1923 and
curiously to this day it is very difficult to find any record of it. Although if one knows where to look, there is
evidence of a very large foundation with many old medicine bottles, etc, strewn around and some buried in
the ground. Strange lights have been seen in the back where the hospital once stood and there were reports
of misty figures being seen on stormy nights. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
UPDATE:
LT-Ohio members have visited this site twice within the 2006 season. Once in late June and once again in
August. Our visit in June was during daytime hours, while visit in August was during the early evening (late
dusk) hours. Nothing was captured of interest during either visit although members do feel a need to
continue to revisit this area and plan to so periodically. (submitted by LT-Ohio Admin, 2006)
******************************************************************************************
Haunted Cadiz, Ohio
Cadiz is 36 miles south of Dover, Ohio it is a sleepy little coal mining town where there are ghost stories told
about the surrounding countryside and also about the coal mines. I grew up hearing these stories and I will
share some of them with you. There are also stories about the towns close to Cadiz that I will tell those tales
as well some of them were investigated and some of them will be. Cadiz is also known of the birthplace of
Clark Gable and it is said that his boyhood home is haunted, doors opening and closing, footsteps walking
through the house when nobody is there. (submitted by Alan Mellinger)
UPDATE:
Two members of LT-Ohio visited the Cadiz area in mid Aug, 2006. The old mining area was visited and found
to be quite interesting. I believe the mine closed down in the late 1980s and legends have strung the stories
that it is very difficult to find a security guard to watch this property from vandals, as they do not want to
work at this particular site for long and choose to quit their job mainly due to strange, unexplained "heart
stopping" encounters from a very dark, fast-floating, evil-felt shadow who loves to fly down from one of the
upper floors into the lower docking area! Most of the actual maintence/shop and weigh area is beginning to
self destruct from weather and age. Although the area of which the legends have spun from the docking
area, did feel quite uneasy compared to the rest of the building and adjacent office building area. (submitted
by LT-Ohio Admin, 2006)
Mt. Pleasant Ohio
About 22 miles outside of Cadiz is a small town called Mt. Pleasant. It was founded by Quakers in the 1700s
and it was also used as a hub for the underground railroad. I went to this town in June of this year and
spent most of the day walking and trying to talk with the locals but only a few would talk of the ghosts that
haunt the town. I did talk to one of the patrolmen who work there and he told me of a story of a woman in a
white flowing dress that appears when somebody in the town dies. She appears towards dusk and walks
down the main street holding her head in her hands crying, if you spot her somebody you know will die. As
he told me the story I had asked him if he knew of anybody who had seen her and he had said yes that his
boss on the force had seen her three times and each time he had seen her somebody he knew had died.
There are also a few houses that we will be investigating in the new future so stay with us for updates.
(submitted by Alan Mellinger)
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