Since the beginning of recorded history ghosts have haunted us. The religions of Assyria, Babylon, Sumer, and other religions considered ghosts to be created when someone dies. In Egypt, the belief is a continued existence of the soul after death with the ability to affect the living with the possibility of a second death.
The Greeks and Romans accepted spirits were of the dead who kept on wandering the earth and could hurt or upset typical life. They were regarded with banquets and forfeits to keep the soul from frequenting the living. The perished were covered outside of town almost an intersection of a few streets to befuddle the soul.
Now, in medieval Europe spirits fell into two categories, souls of the dead and demons. One could tell them apart by demanding their purpose in the name of Jesus Christ. The soul of the deceased person would reveal their mission, while the demonic ghost would use trickery.
The earliest account of the study of paranormal activity was in Athens in 50 A.D. Pliny the Younger reported a ghost that rattled chains. It was so active no one would occupy his property. Athenodorus the philosopher investigated the property and discovered a shackled skeleton buried in the garden.
Giraldus Cambrensis, in the twelfth century, wrote “Journey Through Wales” and spoke of many unclean spirits. One, in particular, was of William Not. The story is very close to a poltergeist type haunting. He also wrote of the “Corpse Candle”, small glowing balls of light. Today we know them as orbs. Giraldus is noted as taking pains to visit the location and speak to the afflicted to obtain better information.
English philosopher and Fellow of the Royal Society John Aubrey published “Miscellanies” in 1696 which he wrote about many historic and contemporary accounts of spirit activity and other ghostly phenomena. This included disembodied sounds, brief accounts of Ghost haunting tools and was a valuable resource for researchers of the time.
Daniel Defoe, in 1727, writing under the pseudonym of Andrew Moreton wrote “The Secrets of the Invisible World Disclosed”. He cautioned not to blindly accept everything as supernatural as there may be a more reasonable cause. And that only through the process of investigation can we differentiate them.
Later in 1819, Pierre-Simon Marquis de Laplace (remembered as a great scientist) wrote the Analytic Theory of Probabilities where he discussed spirits and the need for careful investigations to be performed.
Harry Price is likely the most popular verifiable apparition tracker. Brought into the world in 1881, Price would build up phantom examination as a significant pursuit according to people in general. He composed numerous books and paper articles on apparition examinations. He is generally renowned for his examination of the Borley Rectory in Essex beginning in 1929. He reads the area for 10 years wherein he was employed by the parsonage to research full time.
Price recruited a team of forty-eight volunteers to assist with the year-long investigation. He produced a book of notes and guidance called the Blue Book. This book was an attempt to lay the ground rules for the standardization of ghost hunting. Price was passionate about psychical research being an academic study on paranormal equipment.
Following the 1940’s ghost paranormal investigation did not progress much. The Society of Psychical Research lost interest in hauntings and investigations. Peter Underwood, most notable of the time, investigated many locations including the Borley Rectory. Underwood wrote extensively about ghost hunting and rejuvenated the lapsed Ghost Club after the death of Harry Price. The Ghost Club claims to be the oldest ghost hunting group in the world dating back to 1862.
Andrew Green is another post-WWII investigator worth noting. He was called the “Spectre Inspector” and was an active ghost investigator for over sixty years until his death in 2004. His most notable book is Ghost Hunting, A Practical Guide, published in 1973. Green is probably the most forgotten historical figure in ghost hunting. He is most responsible for popularizing the scientific method into ghost hunting. Green assisted numerous organizations as a paranormal consultant, including the Disney Corporation. To more about ghosting follow us for the latest update.
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