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“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

Released Thursday, 28th March 2024
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“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

“THE HAUNTING OF CRENSHAW MANSION” and More Fortean-Related Stories! #ParanormalityMag

Thursday, 28th March 2024
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VTW. VTW by law. Welcome

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to Paranormality Magazine. Each

1:23

week Paranormality Magazine explores

1:25

all Fortean subjects, from

1:27

phantoms to UFOs, and

1:29

every cryptid creature in

1:31

between. Each

1:33

week you are treated to a collection

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1:38

and reports on cutting-edge paranormal

1:40

projects and topics they know

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you crave. And here in

1:44

the podcast, I share stories from

1:46

the magazine to give you just a

1:49

taste of what you receive in every

1:51

issue. I'm Darren Marlar

1:54

and this is Paranormality

1:56

Magazine. At

2:06

the quest of Hickory Hill in

2:09

Gallatin County, Illinois stands a classic

2:11

Greek-style house painted a deep shade

2:14

of cranberry sporting three

2:16

stories, a balcony, and multiple large

2:18

white pillars in the front. Once

2:21

a magnificent sight to behold, the

2:24

Crenshaw Mansion was a masterpiece that

2:26

held a terrible secret. The

2:29

home was the site of the

2:31

Reverse Underground Railroad, a

2:33

station where free black men and

2:35

women were held before being trafficked

2:38

and illegally sold back into slavery.

2:41

The third floor of the home served as a

2:43

prison for free slaves. It

2:45

is said that the men, women, and children were

2:47

chained, raped, and beaten inside

2:50

the historic home. Shortly

2:52

after the home was built, it became

2:54

a station for the Reverse Underground Railroad,

2:57

a system used for transporting and selling

2:59

escaped and freed slaves. The

3:02

third floor of the 12-room home

3:04

held areas divided into cells. Cuffed

3:07

chains used to trap free black slaves

3:09

hung from the attic walls. Shackles

3:11

littered the third floor of the home

3:14

built before the Civil War. This

3:17

savage harboring of souls is undoubtedly

3:19

why it has christened the most

3:21

haunted house in Illinois. Scores

3:24

of black people fell victim to

3:26

the abuse and cruelty of John

3:28

Crenshaw. Curiously, the crimes took

3:31

place during the time of the

3:33

anti-slavery movement, 1830 to 1870. Built

3:38

in 1834, what is now known as

3:40

the Old Slave House was the residence

3:42

of John Crenshaw and his family. Crenshaw

3:45

was a prominent and slaver and

3:47

descended of an old American family

3:49

with, quote, ties to our country's

3:51

founding, unquote. A profoundly

3:54

political businessman, Crenshaw lived on Hickory

3:56

Hill with his wife, five kids,

3:58

and seven hundred. enslaved people.

4:02

Being a lessee of multiple salt reserves

4:04

in Illinois allowed Crenshaw the right to

4:06

enslave people in a free state. Bizarre

4:10

noises, whispering, and rattling of chains

4:12

are heard inside the old slave

4:14

home. Disembodied voices,

4:17

cold spots, and the feeling of being

4:20

touched happen frequently within the home. Unexplained

4:23

occurrences have been reported since 1851,

4:26

when a German family was hired to look after

4:28

the home. Crenshaw

4:31

sold the property amid legal trouble

4:33

in 1864. Seven

4:35

years later, he would be dead. They

4:39

say there is no such thing as death,

4:41

that our spirits either ascend to the heavens,

4:44

travel to an unspeakable place, or

4:47

linger as spirits here on earth.

4:50

They are seeking a lost love, closure,

4:52

or possibly even justice. Is

4:56

it Crenshaw who is haunting the home,

4:58

looking for more people to pillage, rape,

5:00

and murder? Or is

5:02

it the slaves, once shackled by Crenshaw,

5:04

that are haunting the mansion today? He

5:08

not only dabbled in the trafficking of

5:10

free slaves, but John Crenshaw also owned

5:12

a store, a post office, a sawmill,

5:15

and was also involved in the local

5:17

railroad construction. He was political,

5:19

a member of the Whig party, and

5:21

wealthy beyond measure, once serving as a

5:23

director of the Bank of Illinois. At

5:27

one time, Crenshaw's pockets were so deep,

5:29

his taxes were equal to one-seventh of

5:31

the total revenue of Illinois. In

5:35

1829, as America began its unfolding from the

5:37

evils of true racism, black

5:39

families began to surface in Illinois.

5:43

Priscilla Baltimore, who bought her freedom, started

5:45

the first black community in the state,

5:47

calling it Brooklyn. In 1836, a man

5:50

named Frank McWhirther established

5:53

New Philadelphia. These

5:55

communities became critical sanctuaries for the

5:58

survival of many black men women

6:00

and children. MacWhirther's sons

6:02

assisted in getting others seeking freedom

6:04

to as far away as Canada,

6:07

but it was not enough. Some

6:10

blacks were not so fortunate, falling into

6:12

the dirty clutches of the evil John

6:14

Crenshaw and his henchmen. In

6:17

an attempt to increase his

6:19

slave population, Crenshaw sent out

6:21

nightstalkers, men he ordered to

6:23

sit in the fields during the dead of

6:26

night, waiting to capture innocent enslaved people running

6:28

for their lives. Crenshaw

6:30

would have them captured, lock them

6:32

up, and sell them for a profit. He

6:35

was known to keep some of the people

6:37

captured for his own labor purposes. Rattling

6:40

chains and whimpering cries are some of

6:43

the terrifying occurrences happening on Hickory Hill.

6:46

Although the home has been abandoned since it

6:48

was sold to the state of Illinois in

6:50

2000, on one occasion a

6:52

ghost hunter, intending to spend the night,

6:54

attempted to free the anguished spirits of

6:57

the dead, to release

6:59

them to their final resting place. Unfortunately

7:02

for him, and maybe the spirits too,

7:04

the place was so terrifyingly spooky

7:06

that after just a few hours

7:08

the petrified ghost hunter fled the

7:10

building, quickly morphing into ass and

7:13

elbows all the way home. Until

7:16

the end of the reign of tours at

7:18

the old slave home, no one has ever

7:20

been able to last an entire night in

7:22

the company of the spirits lurking inside the

7:24

Crenshaw mansion. Salt was

7:27

big business in Illinois during the 1830s,

7:29

and someone needed to mine it. Although

7:32

Illinois was technically a free

7:34

state since 1821, a well-placed

7:36

legal loophole allowed John Crenshaw

7:38

to occupy 700 enslaved people.

7:42

The loophole, allowing the exception, insisted,

7:44

quote, no free white men would

7:46

be capable of such difficult and

7:49

arduous work, unquote. The

7:51

bigoted line separating the willing and the

7:53

capable is a gray one indeed. Adding

7:57

to his already eleven thousand acres,

8:00

Crenshaw leased 30,000 more from the

8:02

state of Illinois. The

8:04

massive property was adjacent to the Saline

8:06

Springs in a town known as Junction.

8:09

Around the time that Crenshaw was amassing

8:11

his fortune, salt was in high demand.

8:14

It was not only a necessary nutrient,

8:16

but salt was also used to preserve

8:18

food. Illinois happened to be

8:20

the mother lode of salt. Crenshaw

8:23

leased the land surrounding the salt

8:25

reserves and used his stockpile of

8:27

enslaved people, free labor, to work

8:29

the mines for a massive, bloody

8:31

profit. The state then turned

8:34

over the money from selling the Saline

8:36

Springs to build necessary prisons. Prisons

8:38

that would, unfortunately, never

8:41

see the likes of Mr. Crenshaw. Crenshaw

8:44

was indicted multiple times for the crimes

8:47

he had committed, but was never

8:49

convicted of. Many people

8:51

and incriminating documents disappeared on

8:53

John Crenshaw's watch, but

8:55

the closest the state came to a conviction

8:57

was an acquittal in the form of

8:59

a technicality. Proof of

9:02

the crimes Crenshaw had committed came by

9:04

way of contemporary letters, ones

9:06

that mysteriously disappeared, making a conviction

9:08

of the dreadful man all but

9:10

impossible. Children haunting the

9:12

old slave home? Maria and

9:14

her kids were eventually sold off in the state

9:16

of Texas? Or is it

9:19

the ghost of Frank Granger and fifteen others

9:21

roaming the mansion? These

9:23

souls were a few of many

9:25

sold downriver by Crenshaw in Tipton

9:27

County, Tennessee. Nothing

9:30

lasts forever, as John Crenshaw

9:32

soon found out. In 1842,

9:34

during the year of his last

9:36

indictment, significant salt reserves were discovered

9:38

in Ohio and Virginia, making

9:41

his load less valuable and causing

9:43

the eventual decline of the Crenshaw

9:45

fortune. Adding salt to

9:47

the wound, legend states that it

9:49

was around this time that John Crenshaw was caught

9:51

beating a black woman working in his fields. The

9:54

black man who spied his brutal attack

9:56

of the woman took vengeance on the

9:59

evil Crenshaw. by hacking off his

10:01

leg with an axe. It

10:04

was not long before rumors began running rampant

10:06

around the town of Hickory Hill. Reports

10:08

of the violent atrocities taking place at

10:11

the mansion were circulating, and

10:13

soon Crenshaw's mill was burned to

10:15

the ground. The

10:17

mansion was eventually sold in 1913

10:19

to the Sisk family. Capitalizing

10:22

on the mansion's dark history, the

10:24

family turned the home into a

10:26

museum. Advertising a

10:28

thrilling experience, the Sisk family permitted

10:30

the public to roam the halls.

10:34

After paying a nominal fee, of course.

10:37

The Crenshaw mansion is currently closed,

10:40

awaiting $7 million for renovation

10:42

fees. A little paint,

10:44

a public bathroom, up to code. Good

10:48

luck with that, Illinois. There

10:57

are many strange and rare medical conditions

10:59

out there that most of us have

11:02

never, ever heard of. Here,

11:04

we're going to discuss five of the

11:07

weirdest syndromes that you probably haven't heard

11:09

before. These syndromes can

11:11

range from causing odd physical symptoms

11:13

to making people act in bizarre

11:15

ways. Although many of

11:17

these syndromes are still not well understood,

11:19

scientists are working hard to find treatments

11:21

for them. So, what

11:23

are these strange syndromes, and what

11:26

do they entail? Well, keep listening. Alice

11:30

in Wonderland Syndrome This

11:32

syndrome is named after the Lewis

11:34

Carroll novel, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland,

11:37

as it can cause people to

11:39

experience distorted perceptions of size and

11:41

distance. People with this

11:44

syndrome may feel as though they are

11:46

either shrinking or growing, and objects around

11:48

them may appear to be either larger

11:50

or smaller than they actually are. This

11:53

can be a very confusing and disorienting

11:55

experience for those affected by it. There

11:58

is no known cure for Alice. Alice in

12:00

Wonderland Syndrome, but some treatments

12:02

can help lessen the symptoms. CAPCRS

12:07

DELUSION The Capcres Delusion

12:09

is a rare condition that causes people

12:11

to believe that their loved ones have

12:13

been replaced by impostors. This

12:16

delusional belief can be so strong that

12:18

people may even act aggressively toward the

12:21

impostors. The cause of

12:23

Capcres Delusion is still not fully understood,

12:25

but it is thought to be linked

12:27

to damage to the brain's facial recognition

12:29

area. There's no known cure

12:31

for this condition, but treatments such as

12:33

cognitive behavioral therapy can help manage the

12:36

symptoms. FORAN

12:38

ACCENT SYNDRUM Foreign

12:41

accent syndrome is a rare condition that

12:43

can occur after a person suffers from

12:45

a head injury or stroke. It

12:47

causes people to speak with a foreign

12:49

accent, even though they are native

12:52

speakers of their own language. The

12:54

exact cause of foreign accent syndrome is

12:56

still not fully understood, but it is

12:59

thought to be related to changes in

13:01

the way the brain processes speech sounds.

13:04

There's no known cure for this condition either,

13:06

but speech therapy can help people to learn

13:08

how to speak with their new accent. JERUZALUM

13:13

SYNDRUM Jerusalem syndrome

13:15

is a condition that causes people

13:18

to develop sudden and intense religious

13:20

beliefs after visiting the city of

13:22

Jerusalem. People with

13:25

this condition may feel compelled to preach

13:27

or sing religious songs in public, and

13:30

they may also have delusions about being a

13:32

biblical figure or having a special mission from

13:34

God. The exact

13:36

cause of Jerusalem syndrome is still not

13:38

fully understood, but it is thought

13:40

to be related to the stress of visiting a

13:42

holy city. There is no

13:44

known cure for this condition either, but treatment

13:47

can help people to manage their symptoms. And

13:50

finally, there's Zombie Apocalypse

13:53

Survival Syndrome. This

13:55

may sound like something out of a

13:57

horror movie, but Zombie Apocalypse Survival Syndrome

14:00

or ZAS is a real condition

14:02

that affects some people. People

14:05

with ZAS may have intense

14:07

fears about a zombie apocalypse

14:09

happening, and they may also

14:11

experience symptoms such as anxiety,

14:13

insomnia, and paranoia. The

14:16

cause of ZAS is still not fully understood,

14:18

but it is thought to be linked to

14:20

a combination of psychological factors. As

14:23

with the others, there is no known cure for

14:25

a condition, but treatments such

14:28

as cognitive behavioral therapy can

14:30

help people to manage their symptoms. Want

14:39

more paranormality? Subscribe

14:42

to Paranormality Magazine, and

14:44

each month get it delivered digitally or

14:46

via mail in our print version. Paranormality

14:49

Magazine is a collaborative endeavor

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featuring works from people like

14:54

you who have a passion

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for all things mysterious and

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unexplained. Our goal

15:00

is to pursuit of knowledge, gathering

15:03

captivating stories from our own team

15:05

of writers, researchers, and

15:07

investigators, as well as

15:09

from writers such as yourself. Each

15:12

monthly issue also includes a list

15:14

of paranormal, horror, UFO,

15:17

and cryptozoology events around the

15:19

country, incredible paranormal-themed

15:22

artwork, articles, and writing

15:24

sent in from our readers, suggested

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books and podcasts to consume,

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and more. Visit

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paranormalitymag.com and subscribe today

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That's paranormalitymag.com.

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August 2010, I embarked on

17:37

an epic camping trip through Glacier

17:39

National Park, Montana, with my travel

17:41

buddy, Sarah. Upon

17:43

returning from our backcountry adventures to the

17:45

city of Great Falls, Montana, we had

17:48

one more goal on our checklist. That

17:50

was to see the abandoned Silver

17:52

Mining Town, Castletown, which at its

17:54

peak in the late 1800s was

17:56

home to around 2,000 residents,

17:59

including... infamous gunslinger Calamity

18:01

Jane. Our instructions,

18:03

according to an old-school website featuring

18:06

sparse information and a few pixelated

18:08

maps and photos, were to drive

18:10

out onto Forest Service Road 211

18:13

off Highway 12 and follow

18:16

signs for Castletown. This

18:18

route was used frequently by campers and

18:20

other adventurers, and we didn't think much

18:22

of it after the terrain we had

18:24

traveled elsewhere on our trip. On

18:27

our random McNally map, it looked like we'd reached

18:29

the ghost town about two-thirds along the way on

18:32

the service road, then drive another

18:34

short distance out to connect to another

18:36

highway on the other side. This

18:38

would be nothing more than an afternoon jaunt.

18:41

Or so we thought. On

18:44

the day we set out, it rained

18:46

heavily and was chilly and quite foggy.

18:49

Clouds would pass periodically in front of

18:51

us on the highway and envelop our

18:53

car, a rented soccer-mom minivan that

18:55

had so far been faithful to us

18:57

throughout our trip. The sight

18:59

of clouds on the road was

19:02

both awesome and unsettling. In

19:04

fact, I had an uneasy feeling about

19:06

this excursion altogether. We

19:09

had already faced our share of dangers,

19:11

including multiple bear encounters. There were

19:13

two killers on the loose in Wyoming

19:15

who were making their way to Canada

19:17

when they were reportedly spotted at campsites

19:19

near us, as well as

19:21

allegedly driving the same color, make,

19:23

and model of minivan. We

19:26

had our cell phones turned off during

19:28

the camping trip and when we left

19:30

the park and turned them back on,

19:32

our phones were inundated with concerned or

19:35

excited messages about the killers. We

19:37

had already learned about them, however, while

19:40

crossing the border into Canada to visit

19:42

the Waterton Lakes National Park. Border

19:44

Patrol had searched our van and showed us

19:47

photos of the suspects, asking if we had

19:49

seen them or knew anything about them. Our

19:52

reaction to the killers and bears

19:54

was one of awe. What

19:57

stories we had to tell. It

20:00

didn't quite make sense now that a

20:02

simple day trip following all that excitement

20:04

would set me so much on edge,

20:07

but I felt uneasy. Sarah

20:10

admitted later that she was nervous

20:12

too, but downplayed her trepidation until

20:14

we were on the service road

20:16

and our anxiety became reality. We

20:20

found the service road and naively expected

20:22

a smooth or at least loosely graveled

20:24

path. But in the

20:26

rain, mud, muck, and fog, it was

20:29

more like an obstacle course that ambled

20:31

up and over a steep mountainside. There

20:34

were no other cars on the road with us

20:36

that day and we lost cell phone service

20:38

immediately upon departing the main stretch of highway. Our

20:42

minivan was not meant to drive on this kind

20:44

of road. There were times when

20:46

all four wheels weren't touching the ground at once,

20:49

or we were in deceptively deep mud and

20:51

almost got stuck, or straddling

20:53

the edge of a steep drop-off. Herds

20:57

of cattle greeted us along the way,

20:59

the bulls aggressively stomping and fake charging

21:01

the van. We

21:03

passed two lodges, complete with longhorn

21:06

bull skulls adorning old wooden gates,

21:08

and they were each dark inside with no

21:11

cars parked around them. It

21:13

was a bad situation. The

21:15

weather was worsening. We didn't

21:17

have overnight water and food or

21:19

appropriate clothing, and it took

21:21

us several more hours to reach the ghost

21:23

town than we had planned for, leaving

21:26

us badly shaken. The

21:29

ghost town was in a valley on

21:31

the other side of this steep ridge,

21:33

which was a relief to us as

21:35

the small pixelated photos we'd seen online

21:37

showed the ghost town along a relatively

21:39

flat road. I remember

21:41

how we laughed that anyone approaching from

21:43

the flatter side would only have a

21:45

simple drive there and back out to

21:47

the highway again, and here

21:50

we took the long, torturous winding

21:52

route. The bad

21:54

weather had momentarily led up, and we could

21:56

see the town was comprised of a few

21:58

buildings surrounded by a single historical

22:00

marker and plenty of danger

22:03

no trespassers and violators will

22:05

be shot signs. I

22:08

was thrilled and at the same time

22:10

a little disappointed. The

22:12

town is located on private property and

22:14

while there were some cool things to

22:16

see, our frazzled state of

22:18

mind didn't permit us to explore much

22:20

and of course we were not supposed

22:22

to be snooping around here anyway. At

22:26

this time my ominous feelings worsened

22:28

by a lot. I

22:30

had a nagging feeling we were

22:32

being watched and didn't belong there

22:34

and that we needed to leave immediately. This

22:37

wasn't because of the no trespassing signs,

22:40

this came from a deeper, more

22:42

primordial place in me, that

22:44

gut feeling. We

22:47

got out to stretch our legs, snapped

22:49

some photos, took a quick look around

22:51

and both quietly agreed that

22:53

was enough. Time to go. Sarah

22:56

had been the driver for the first leg of

22:58

the journey and it was now my turn. We

23:01

really, really didn't want to go back the

23:03

way we came. We knew the

23:05

rest of the flat looking stretch of road was

23:07

only a few miles long but the

23:09

idea of going that way made me feel

23:11

sick. It not only looked

23:14

bad but it seemed to be the physical

23:16

direction the bad vibes were emanating from. There

23:19

were deep, muddy puddles everywhere

23:21

and places where the road

23:23

disappeared under ambiguously shallow mud

23:25

or water. It looked

23:27

like, if nothing else, our minivan tires just

23:30

would not be able to navigate the terrain

23:32

and we'd either bottom out or get stuck

23:34

along the way. The idea

23:36

of turning around and going all the way back

23:39

didn't inspire confidence either but

23:42

this other way, the easier

23:44

way, felt like death

23:46

to me. We

23:48

both understood that our situation could

23:51

become extremely dangerous in a short

23:53

time. We were deliberating

23:55

nervously about what to do when,

23:57

out of quite literally nowhere, A

24:00

pickup truck appeared. We heard no

24:02

sounds like a vehicle approaching, only noticed that

24:04

it was there as it rolled to a

24:07

stop alongside us. This

24:09

pickup and its occupants were like something out

24:11

of a movie. The truck was

24:13

old and white. There was a

24:15

friendly-looking man and woman inside with

24:17

weathered Montana skin, wearing iconic flannel

24:20

shirts with suspenders and jeans. The

24:23

man who was driving had a long beard,

24:25

and the woman two long dark braids. In

24:28

the back seat was a handsome black Labrador

24:30

retriever wearing a red collar. They

24:32

regarded us, even the dog,

24:34

with genuine concern. They didn't ask

24:37

who we were or what we were doing

24:39

there, but asked us how we were, and

24:41

specifically if we planned on driving down that

24:43

flat stretch of road. We

24:46

explained what a nightmare coming over the mountain

24:48

had been, and that we were considering taking

24:50

our chances and just going the rest of

24:52

the shorter way out, even though it didn't

24:55

look good. The

24:57

man shook his head and explained in

24:59

a kind manner that we should not keep

25:01

going. He said their pickup

25:04

had barely made it through. It was

25:06

extremely unsafe, and we'd best turn around

25:08

and go back the way we came.

25:11

We explained how badly we didn't want to

25:13

do that, that the road had been a

25:15

nightmare, and he replied that it would all

25:17

be okay because they were going the same

25:20

way as us, and would follow closely behind

25:22

us the whole way back. As

25:25

he spoke, I noticed the pickup didn't

25:27

have a drop of mud or rain

25:29

on it whatsoever. Our

25:31

minivan, meanwhile, was covered in

25:33

mud splatter. In

25:36

any case, we felt relieved. I

25:38

was trying to calm my inner

25:41

voice from being too melodramatic while

25:43

somehow utterly certain they were

25:45

right, that we would never make it off

25:47

that service road if we kept going those

25:49

last few miles, even though it

25:52

seemed so easy. We

25:54

were incredibly grateful for the company

25:56

and kind reassurance, thanked them,

25:58

and started back the way we again. The

26:01

pickup remained behind us, as promised, for a

26:03

little while, and then fell back. Until the

26:05

next time we glanced behind us, it

26:07

was out of sight. I remember there

26:10

was a point where we were almost at the

26:12

top of the ridge, and we could see the

26:14

road zigzagging all the way down to the bottom

26:16

where it flattened out. We had

26:18

a clear view, but the pickup

26:21

was nowhere to be seen. It was

26:23

simply gone. It was

26:26

a long way. We continued, knowing it was

26:28

more important to keep going than to stop

26:30

and wait. We were

26:32

moving steadily uphill, meaning we couldn't

26:34

really stop on the muddy terrain

26:36

without starting to roll backward. It's

26:39

difficult to explain, but we

26:41

could sense the presence of the pickup

26:43

truck behind us and took great comfort

26:45

in knowing while assuming it was behind

26:48

us somewhere. This gave

26:50

me the confidence I needed to keep

26:52

driving. We never

26:54

saw the pickup again, but thankfully

26:56

finally made it back out onto

26:58

the highway before sunset. Realizing

27:02

we were safe, we both started talking

27:04

nonstop about what we had just experienced.

27:07

Even though my friend Sarah was not

27:09

paranormal-ly inclined, she shared her premonition that

27:12

something terrible would have happened to us

27:14

on that road if that couple and

27:16

their dog hadn't shown up. She

27:19

insisted they weren't real or

27:21

at least not alive and

27:23

went so far as to call them our guardian

27:25

angels. I'd never

27:28

heard her use that kind of

27:30

language before. We

27:32

were mad at ourselves, too, of course. We

27:35

had been so thorough in preparing for our

27:37

camping trip, and the day trip to Castle

27:39

Town was, admittedly, an

27:41

afterthought. At the same

27:43

time, people utilized that road all the

27:46

time, yet we found ourselves isolated in

27:48

poor conditions, and our situation

27:50

became serious faster than we were equipped to

27:52

handle it. If

27:55

the couple and their dog were spirits, they

27:58

didn't seem like ghosts in the each

28:00

traditional sense. It felt

28:02

like they materialized off the pages of a

28:04

classic novel and were exactly who we needed

28:06

at that moment to comfort us and convince

28:09

us to make the right choice. I've

28:12

been hearing a lot about

28:14

Third Man Syndrome lately, an

28:17

inexplicable and comforting appearance of

28:19

a person, presence, or voice

28:21

that guides people in imminent

28:23

danger to safety. There

28:25

are many fascinating stories about this

28:27

phenomenon, and I wonder if we

28:30

experienced it. I've

28:32

always wondered what fate would have awaited

28:34

us otherwise on that last flat stretch

28:36

of road, visions of

28:39

a stalking mountain lion periodically ran through

28:41

my head that day, and even now

28:43

as I remember the incident. But

28:46

my menacing, almost surreal feelings

28:48

of dread amounted to

28:50

and still feel more sinister than

28:52

that. I'll never

28:55

forget those kind strangers,

28:57

their beautiful dog, and

28:59

their old white pickup. We

29:02

spoke for less than a minute, but I'm

29:05

eternally grateful for their help and

29:07

have some of the warmest feelings for them

29:09

that I've ever had for anyone, whoever

29:12

or whatever they were. Thank

29:40

you. Again,

30:01

our website is

30:03

paranormalitymag.com. I'm

30:05

Darren Marlar and I'll have more paranormal

30:07

for you next time from

30:10

Paranormality Magazine.

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