2000: The haunts of El Paso

October 31, 2000

Victor R. Martinez
El Paso Times

El Paso reportedly has its fill of ghosts

At the turn of the century, El Paso was a rowdy city with rough-and-tough characters. The ghosts who roam the halls and basements of our oldest homes and buildings can attest to that.

Although there have been no ghostly sightings of John Wesley Hardin, Dallas Stoudenmire or other gunfighters, El Paso is filled with buildings and houses inhabited by spirits, according to legend, folklore and, some researchers insist, historical fact.

"Texas is a very haunted state," said Lisa Farwell, the author of "Haunted Texas Vacations: The Complete Ghostly Guide" (Westcliffe Publishers, $19.95). "Rowdy cities tend to have more of the ingredients for a haunting. I rated El Paso the most haunted city in West Texas and the Panhandle. It is a very active city."

Which means more work for El Paso ghost hunter Edward Weissbard and his assistants.

"I was always interested in the paranormal," Weissbard said. "I was reading a lot of books, but I never heard of people going out to check out some of the places that are supposed to be haunted, and writing about the experience."

Weissbard, 26, who works at a manufacturing company on the East Side, started investigating ghost sightings about a year ago.

He and his gang of spirit-seekers conduct about two investigations a month during the fall and one a month in the summer. The investigations consist of an interview with the owners and three to five hours of waiting.

These sojourns are like indoor camping trips, with equipment that includes a 35-millimeter camera, infrared film, video cameras, audio cassette recorders, a detector that measures electromagnetic activity in the area and compasses.

"I'm still not 100 percent convinced that there is life after death," Weissbard said. "That is my main purpose, to try to find out as much as possible if there is survival after someone dies."

Last year, Weissbard and his assistant, Heidi Crabtree, interviewed an El Paso High teacher who heard screams near windows of her fourth-floor classroom. It is speculated that a young woman jumped to her death in the 1930s.

Weissbard said his investigation was inconclusive.

One site not listed in Farwell's book but investigated by Weissbard is Building Four at Fort Bliss, an abandoned building that was used as a hospital in the 1930s.

"It was used as an isolation ward and as an infirmary for soldiers who were sick with tuberculosis," Weissbard said. "There were a lot of stories in the '70s and '80s of workers hearing a lot of strange noises in the building. People actually reported seeing figures coming down the hall."

His team decided to spend last Halloween in the building. They set up cameras and an electromagnetic detector in the area.

"The only thing we experienced was what sounded like footsteps with somebody with heavy boots on coming down the steps," he said. "We know for sure there was no one upstairs because we were the only ones in the building. We had the keys, so it was pretty much controlled on who can come in and out."

Weissbard acknowledges his work is not scientific.

"Working with the paranormal, you can't place it in a testing facility," he said. "In science, you have to have a control area. And with this, if it happens, it happens. That is why it is harder to determine whether the stories are true or not because people tend to make things up a lot. It is very hard to prove it."

Farwell, who contacted Weissbard for her research, began her own studies on the Internet.

"Ghosts are trapped and confused," she said. "They are that part of us that survives the death of a physical body.

"They may not understand that they have died and no longer have a physical body. It's a lot of negative emotion that confines a ghost."

Farwell, whose research included only public places, found the basement of the Camino Real Hotel to be haunted by a woman in a white gown who roamed the halls with a melancholy expression.

"I have heard stories, but I have never seen her, so I remain skeptical," said Michelle Kait, director of sales and marketing for Camino Real. "Whenever you work at a historical place, you are going to hear stories like that. You have to believe ghosts exist, and I have heard stories from very credible people."

Other places listed are the auditorium and a fourth-floor classroom at El Paso High School. Farwell said some school staff members and students have heard the sounds of a large group of people talking and laughing when no one was in the building. Some of the staff working at night have heard rustling feet and seen shadowy figures walking the dim hallways.

"My sister used to tell me about all those ghost stories, but I never believed her," said Jennifer Sanchez, a graduate of El Paso High. "I thought she was just trying to scare me. I really didn't want to believe her until I heard someone call my name. I was the only one in the classroom, and there was nobody in the halls."

That's the spirit

·Most ghosts appear for 15 seconds or less.

·Researchers have documented increased supernatural activity during new and full moons.

·More than 10 percent of the U.S. population claim to have seen a ghost.

·One-fourth of ghost sightings occur immediately upon waking.

·Witnesses of paranormal phenomena report experiencing physical sensations such as not being able to equalize the pressure in their eyes, uncontrollable watering of the eyes, and feeling energy coursing through their bodies in addition to the more common standards of goose bumps and hair standing on end.

·Many paranormal researchers theorize that approaching storms can increase the chances of seeing a ghost, giving new meaning to the phrase, "Once upon a midnight dreary ..." (first line of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven").

·The most common disturbances in a haunted house are: electrical malfunctions; glimpses of dark objects moving out of the corner of your eye; doors that open and close on their own; and unexplained breezes.

·Pets have been known to come back into families as ghosts after they die.

·The most common psychic experience is a heightened feeling of not being alone - even when you know you are.

Source: Lisa Farwell, author of "Haunted Texas Vacations: The Complete Ghostly Guide."

Who you gonna call?

Think your house is haunted?

·Call El Paso Ghost Research investigator Edward Weissbard at 751-8420.

·Check out the Web site at www.epgr.50megs.com

Did you know?

·According to a recent Gallup Poll, 90 million Americans believe in the existence of ghosts.

Comments

[Leah Pearlman]

Hello,
I am a seventh grader from Wiggs Middle School and I am recently doing a project over the Haunted Hot Spots of El Paso. Seeing that you "dig up" newspaper articles from the past, I was wondering if you could help me find old articles about paranormal activity in buildings, or sightings, anything would be of great help. If there is a way I could even search for articles with you or anything in that case, is would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Leah Pearlman

[Mercedes Lubo]

hey,
i used to live in El Paso, i was always intrigued with the history of the town and all the ghost and urban legend stories. I was wondering if there was book on the ghost and urban legends in el paso? it would be great if you could help me find a book like that.I would really appreciate it.
-Mercedes S.

[Sildenafil]

is not weird to hear about places like this, in this place many people has died, is like the case in Mexico where a train hit a bus with children, and now people say that you can hear the scream of the children in the nights.

[sophia hernandez]

My name is sophia Hernandez, one of the founders of Incognitus Imago. We specialize in finding answers for families nad businesses with paranormal activity. This article is an excellent example of someone helping the community. Many dont realize what paranormal investigating really involves, and how popular methods (provocation, candles, etc.) can make things worse. My team and I would love to help the community understand the paranormal. www.myspace.com/incognitusimagio

[janet]

i live in el paso and have never myself seen a ghost anywhere but i do no that it a very haunted place. sometimes cementarys have a ghost hunting thing and if you are interseted in it check it out to see if u find out some ghosts in el paso