Investigation: Historic Chapel & Shrine

Prologue: Our team investigated this Historic Chapel and Shrine late one evening. The chapel and shrine sit on several acres. There is a cemetery located on the grounds as well as a gift shop and small chapel.

Historical Background: Don Pedrito Jaramillo is perhaps the most famous curandero of all time. Known as "The Saint of Falfurrias (Texas)," Don Pedrito was a great folk saint -- a personage to whom people pray to combat their illness, change their luck, or as a simple expression of faith, who is not a canonical saint of the church but is neverthless acknowledged as one by the people. Don Pedrito's shrine in Falfurrias, Texas, at Los Olmos (The Elms), is a famous South Texas pilgrimage to this day. The walls of the chapel at Los Olmos are covered with testimonials of people who have been cured by the spirit of Don Pedrito, and stowed in the rafters are the crutches of pilgrims whose lameness apparently vanished. The gravemarker of Don Pedrito, who died in 1907, calls him "The Benefactor of Humanity."

There is a story that states Don Pedrito Jaramillo asked his brother to dig his body up three days after his interment and he would be revived. Due to fear his brother did not follow his instructions. The story of Don Pedrito Jaramillo was also aired on The Discovery Channel.

Reported Paranormal Activity: Unexplained Knocking, and Shadow Persons have been sighted.

Investigation Team: Rudy, Minerva, LeeAnn & Veronique

The Investigation Details: We arrived late one evening as to make sure there were no visitors that might conflict with our evidence or findings. We investigated the cemetery area and did an EVP Session as well as took pictures of the cemetery area. We also investigated the chapel and took some photos of the interior of the chapel. An EVP Session was also conducted inside the chapel as well as at the back area of the property. Two Sony Digital Audio Recorders, Two Olympus Digital Audio Recorders, 2 Digital Cameras, One Sony HandyCam Video Camcorder and One EMF Meter were used.

Finding: Upon reviewing the hours of audio that were recorded the only piece of evidence captured was one EVP. This EVP was captured at the back end of the chapel, outside the chapel doors. We did not notice any anomalous activity on the photos or video taken during the investigation.

"Unknown" EVP

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Here are some photos of the Investigation:

Conclusion: After our investigation of this historic Chapel and Shrine and the absence of any paranormal activity in photos or video other than the EVP; we are concluding that at this time there is not enough evidence to claim this area has paranormal activity.

Investigation: Undisclosed Hotel & Cafe

Prologue-This is an old hotel and cafe with alot of history surrounding it. Being built in the early 1900's it has seen it's share of visitors both real and ghostly. It has housed many travelers and even seen it's share of Hurricane Katrina evacuees. It is no longer in business but it's history and background all tell a story. The Hotel's name is being witheld due to client's request. We would like to express our gratitude for allowing us to investigate this historic Hotel.


Historical Background- This beautiful Hotel and Cafe was built in 1925. It has been a hotel, a quaint bed and breakfast with a cafe, and has even housed Hurricane Katrina evacuees. It has 24 guest rooms, a lobby, and front desk area. Also, it does have a kitchen and seating which was used as a Cafe. After our prelimenary investigation we did some research into the history of the hotel and it did sustain major damage due to a fire. According to the Hotel caretaker there have been persons who have passed away in the Hotel. He did not know if they had been by natural causes or other means.


Reported Paranormal Activity- According to the stories, personal experiences and interviews with personnel and the hotel catetaker this is a place of possible paranormal activity. Shadow persons have been sighted, items being moved and unexplained noises have been heard. Also, a general sense of foreboding accompanies you while in different areas of the hotel.


Investigation Team- Rudy, Veronique, Minerva, and LeeAnn

The Investigation Details- We were given access to the location for 5 hours. We took this time to set up two cameras. One was placed upstairs facing down the hallway and the other downstairs by the banister. Many Digital Pictures were taken and several hours of audio was recorded. We concentrated our investigation for 2 1/2 hours upstairs in the hallway and various rooms and 2 hours downstairs in the lobby, front desk area, and kitchen. Two Video cameras, Three digital cameras, one 35mm camera, two Olympus digital recorders, and two Sony digital recorders were used. Also, a digital thermometer, and a K2 EMF Meter were used.

Findings-
Personal Experience-During the investigation of the upstairs area Investigator Veronique sensed an uneasiness and felt very hot. She had a difficult time breathing and jotted this down in her notepad. After the investigation and our research we discovered that there was indeed a fire at this hotel which may correlate with the reasoning behind what she experienced.
Personal Experience - Both Investigators Minerva & Rudy saw what appeared to be a white ball of light the size being equivelent to a tennis ball appear from an upstairs wall and descend down the flight of stairs. Both Investigators wrote this occurence in their notebooks and there is an audio clip where they both see it and make a note of it audibly.
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Upon reviewing the hours of audio recordings there have been three significant EVP's captured.

This first EVP was captured early into the investigation when Veronique asks if anyone would like to make their presence known. The reply sounds like "sure".
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This EVP was captured towards the middle of the investigation. This was captured upstairs and about 5 minutes prior to Minerva and Rudy seeing the ball of light. It sounds as if a woman says "There they go".
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The last EVP captured was at the end of the night. An unexplained and unidentified tinkling sound was heard while Investigator Minerva spoke with the caretaker. After a follow-up visit we could not determine the location or source of such a sound. This was not heard at the time of the recordings.
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The EVP's have not been enhanced.

Here are some pictures of that night's investigation.













Conclusion- These are our preliminary findings and we have been asked by the owners to return to this location for further investigation. We will continue to analyze video for any anomalous activity or unexplained movements, etc. This evidence warrants another investigation and more research into the colorful history of this building.

Investigation At The Menger Hotel

The Menger Hotel was constructed in 1859 under the direction of owner William A. Menger and architect John Fries. The original two-story building (pictured) occupies a prominent location in downtown San Antonio, only 100 yards from the site of the Alamo. It is the Menger that has housed personalities such as Theodore Roosevelt, Sidney Lanier, Babe Ruth, Mae West, Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Sarah Bernhardt, Captain Richard King, and Gutzon Borglum, just to name a few.

More than 130 years of refinements have created a masterpiece of traditional elegance and atmosphere at the Menger. The hotel now boasts five stories, 316 rooms, and unparalleled amenities. Guests not only get to experience the history and charm of a national landmark, but also to enjoy the comfort of a high-class hotel. Although much of the architecture, history, appointments, and artifacts found at the Menger Hotel certainly qualify as museum-quality, it remains a public hotel - as it has been since 23 years after the fall of the Alamo.

So we are excited to announce that Todd from Texas Ghost Poachers Society has invited us to investigate The Menger Hotel with them on August 22. Thanks to Todd and his team for the invitation and the offer to join them on this extended investigation of this historic hotel.

We will be posting any evidence as soon as we have the opportunity to consult with TGPS.

Investigation: Undisclosed Goverment Building

Prologue-While on a trip to Austin, Texas the team was visiting several buildings in the downtown area and recieved permission to do an informal investigation at this location. Visiting an area called the Vault Rooms.

Historical Background-This building is located in Austin, Texas. Originally designed by Elijah E. Myers, it was constructed from 1882–88 under the direction of civil engineer Lindsay Walker, and a $75 million underground extension was completed in 1993. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and recognized as a National Historic Landmark in 1986.

Reported Paranormal Activity-Many employees and staff discussed with us the apparition of a woman dressed in red who frequents the stairs and the upper balconey. Also, voices have been heard, things are moved around, and shadow people have been sighted. A maintenance employee told us of his personal experience. One day while cleaning the women's bathroom in the East Wing a woman's voice answered him from the restroom preventing him from cleaning it. So he waited for approx. 10 minutes and then knocked and walked in to see if anyone was indeed in the restroom since no-one had walked out. The maintenance employee and his co-worker found no one in the restroom. Both employees had acknowledged hearing the woman's voice and stated things like this always happened.

Investigation Team- Rudy, Minerva, Veronique, and Zelina.

The Investigation Details-Due to the large area to be covered in this building and the presence of other people in the hallways the team concentrated their investigation in one or two rooms with the most reported activity. The Vault Area is said to have been the scene of a crime and armed with this historical information the team investigated this area heavily. Multiple digital audio recorders were used, Digital cameras, 35MM Cameras, video camera, and a Digital EMF Reader were used.

Findings-No Video or Photo anomalies were found. Several locations of EMF readings from 0 to 2.5 were recorded. One EVP was recorded during this investigation. After analysis we believe it says "I wish I could" in reply to a question asked by Investigator Rudy.
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Conclusion: In spite of the investigation performed we didn't collect significant evidence of paranormal activity. At this time we are unable to confirm or debunk the presence of paranormal activity at this location. We will remain in contact with the facility and perform a follow up investigation if reported activity continues or increases.