Ghost Hunter, Hans Holzer
Book
Ghost Hunter, Hans Holzer, Pickle Partners Publishing, 2016, originally published 1963.
Author
Hans Holzer (Austrian-American, 1920-2009)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Holzer
Sections
Introduction: Ghosts, Anyone?
The gist:
• Opening line, he calls himself a professional ghost hunter. I’m already excited for this book. It’s going to be full of statements and definite answers. I can feel it.
• He chastises the church for being backward.
• Ghosts are spontaneous phenomena, to give them their technical term.
• Hans had an uncle as into the occult as he, and they spent quality time raising spirits. Sort of.
• Dr TK Oesterreich, Occultism in this Modern age.
• He was a vegetarian, unusual in those days.
• Michael Bentine, London comedian.
• Eileen Garrett, then president of the Parapsychological Foundation of New York.
• She taught Hans to look for facts.
• Edgar Cayce Foundation.
• Hans Holzer’s purpose of investigation: establish the facts and contact ghosts.
• Not being any kind of sensitive other than artistic, Hans would bring a sensitive with him. Like an emotional support animal.
• Mrs. Ethel Meyers, medium.
• He researches after the investigation ends. Which is clever. Prevents front loading and confirmation bias.
• Hans spends some time describing what a good ghost hunter is. How they should approach both their medium and ghost. It boils down to you telling them what to do, but in a nice way.
• This is a very long introduction.
• Makes his stance clear: amateurs are a danger to themselves and everyone around them. Only the facts matter.
Interest:
There’s a lot! Got a good feel for his personality from the introduction. He said, in statements, what he does and how he does it.
Read it?
Hans introduces himself, so yes.
The Bank Street Ghost
The gist:
• Year of our lord 1957.
• 11 Bank Street, Greenwich Village, a huge building, and old by American standards.
People featured in this chapter:
Dr Harvey Slatin and Yeffe Kimball (gifted with psychic talents), owners.
Meyer Berger, NY Times ghost reporter and expert on Manhattan folklore.
Arthur Brodie, carpenter
Sadie, maid
Elizabeth Bullock, can of ashes and undead resident who was Irish
EC Bullock, mysterious young man
Ethel Meyers, medium friend of Hans.
Mr and Mrs Anderson, friends of the Slatins
• While these rich people were lying around enjoying the ambiance of their huge pile, they thought they could hear a woman’s footsteps on the stairs. Not sure how they knew it was a woman’s but sure.
• Light hammering.
• Noises heard during the day, rather that at night. Unusual.
• Other people heard the noises, which were almost constant.
• There are some curious twists and turns about remains found in the house.
• Hans arranged to have a séance done. This must be one of Hans’s investigation techniques.
• There is a long and convoluted story and a family drama so it sounds real. And sad.
• Morey Bernstein, The Search for Bridie Murphy
• Yeffe Kimball had often seen Betty Bullock on her travels around the house. Betty was not interested in moving on. She was content to live in her can on the piano.
Interest:
There are some interesting scenarios to read about here. A ghost not wanting to move on caught my attention. And no one trying to force her, either. She may be dead, but she’s interactive. At least, she is through a medium. Sher may be dead, but she still has some rights, it would seem.
Read it?
Yes. As there’s a lot of detail in here. Lots for you to go and research. You can rent an apartment in there as of the writing of this article according to apartments.com.
11 Bank Street today.
The Whistling Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Florence Sternfels, clairvoyant, psychometrist, and friend of police depatments.
Dr Khan, a psychiatrist wishing to test Florence.
Hendersons, young couple known to the Khan’s
Clifford Harmon, former owner of the house, which was a former summer theatre, dead.
Ethel Meyers.
Bower family.
• We open here to Hans getting a phone call from his friend Florence. She would like him to go with her to Dr Khan so he can look after her interests.
• They get there, and there is a crowd of people. I’m not sure what Khan is up to at this point. Hans doesn’t seem surprised or weirded out.
• Florence is a rock star for the afternoon.
• Mrs Khan was sensitive herself and mentions that they have a ghost. I’m not sure what sort of experiments they were running, or if it was a an afternoon jolly. Was this a thing in the 50s? I’m a little confused.
• She hears the whistling; her husband hears the raps.
• Mrs. Khan had some unusual dreams that were full of messages.
• Which she took seriously and found evidence!
• For the first time in my life, I now know there is something called a recuse circle séance.
• No big crowd for this.
• Everyone heard the heavy breathing.
• I don’t know enough about mediums. Makes me want to do the next book on them. The reason why I say this this because Ethel has a control called Albert, who is not in the room, if you know what I mean.
• Again, a human drama unfolds from beyond the grave. A rather energetic reaction happens, with Albert stepping in to mediate.
• There is quite the story around Harmon, which makes the whole episode quite tragic.
• This rescue circle kicked off a night of incidents: lights, noises, ghostly assault.
• Ghosts are possessive, which makes them petty.
• A white mist would eventually show up in the Khan’s house.
Interest:
Yes, if anything because it’s quite medium heavy in this chapter. I did find that interesting. It’s something that I know about, but never investigated beyond when it’s mentioned in other books. I wouldn’t want to look for books on it. Now, I kind of do.
Read it?
There is an unsatisfactory ending to this chapter. Which makes it more interesting to me. There is no particular resolution. Again, I do like the approach to Cliff that everyone has. Despite the rescue circle, no one is being forced to go into the light. I appreciate this level of respect.
The Metuchen Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Bernard Axelrod
Mr and Mrs Kane, the owner of the haunted house
Ethel Meyers, medium
Rosemarie de Simone, friend of Meyers
Pearl Winder, friend of Meyers.
Mr David, friend of the Kanes
Cats, owners of the Kanes
Mr Welch, an historian who had owned the house.
• Metuchen is in New Jersey. Which possesses some colonial houses, one of which appears haunted
• Hans loves cats! Hurray!
• They settle in for a séance, which appears to be the go to for ghost hunting with Hans.
• Meyers has several encounters walking around the house before the séance begins.
• Footsteps, apparitions, noises. Stories passed down.
• We spend quite a bit of time going with Meyers in her trance. Learning that symbolism is often the way ghosts communicate.
• Dr David Marshall, Boyhood in Old Metuchen. Just in case.
• There are quite the reveals throughout this chapter. And some rather touching moments.
• I don’t know a lot about American history, so the lore surrounding the house was interesting
• Hans, afterwards, does some very thorough research looking to confirm what came through Meyers.
Interest:
This is a teaching chapter in many ways. Hans tells us the structure of a séance. How no one should be front loaded coming into an investigation. I’m assuming especially if one is using a medium as a tool.
Read it?
Yes.
The Stranger as the Door
The gist:
People in this chapter:
He mentions a Rohrach, but this may be a misspelling. The artist and mystic he’s talking about is Nicholas Roerich. I will stand to be corrected on this.
Mrs Roland, actress and producer, haver of hunches.
Claudia de Lys, author. Anthropologist who wrote about superstations and folklore.
Ralph Huston, philosopher
Mrs Fosdick, part of a lecture group about mysticism.
• Ironically, Hans lived in a house he had no idea was haunted.
• There were still tea parties in 1960.
• Mrs Roland saw a young man, as clear an apparition as one could get.
• Hans tries to find out more but is refused. So, with humour he lets its go.
Interest:
Not much. Very short chapter, more of a fun one?
Read it?
No need. Unless you have a specific interest in the people mentioned.
A Greenwich Village Ghost
The gist:
People mentioned in this chapter:
Elizabeth Archer, journalist.
John La Farge, deceased painter
Oliver La Farge, grandson and novelist
Feodor Rimsky, artist
William Weber, friend of the Rimskys, advertising exec, psychic
John Alan Maxwell, illustrator.
Bernard Axelrod, director of the Association for Research and Enlightenment (Cayce Foundation)
Ethel Meyers, medium
Leon Smith, artists, resident
Danton Walker, News columnist
Henry Belk, ?
Mrs. Belk and problematic chihuahua
Bernays, Playwright
Margurite Haymes, author
Douglas Baker, advertising man who had once lived in the studio
• This is about the haunting of a studio building in Greenwich Village in NYC.
This is what is did look like. It was demolished in the 50s.
• The ghost of John la Farge, who had his studio here.
• La Farge's most famous painting, the Ascension, hung on a massive chassis. Being an architect also, La Farge had built this also. Bloody thing kept falling down. Might be why John was not resting easy in his grave?
• First report of this apparition comes from the early 40s.
• Feodor Rimsky and his wife lived John’s old studio, and thought they had an intruder. Who vanished into thin air when approached.
• William Weber, friend of Feodor, had an experience in the studio.
• Many tenants of No. 51 had experiences with John: moving curtains, opening windows.
• John Maxwell had in his apartment a walled off rest room. This rest room had once been La Farge's. John and his wife had experiences with John in their apartment. Who appear to be more recordings than interactive in any way,
• The face of the ghost is seen, and it’s not pretty.
• Eventually, would have a large séance in 51, made up of 15 people.
• LaFarge sounds like a prick.
• So far in the book, he gives the most articulate description of being channelled.
• There is also a long history in this building, bits of which come through as well as who they are looking for.
Interest:
Yes! Lots of interest here. The main interest I have in this book, is the use of mediums and channels as ghost hunting tools. The very large séance performed give us one of the more interesting events in this chapter and so far, this book.
Read it?
I would say yes. There are a couple of chapters preceding this one where they’re interesting, yet, they’re…pedestrian? Can we say that about hauntings? LaFarge was a big and important character in the history of New York. So, he gets a big and important treatment. Big personality and ego to match his talent. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was still doing the rounds somewhere.
The Hauntings at Seven Oaks
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Eleanor Small, once from money and had lived in Seven Oaks as a child, friend of Hans.
Mable Merker, 1932 neighbour of Elinor in 1932, told them it was haunted.
Mrs. Warren, previous owner, who for some odd reason, kept things in the house, and would stop by a lot to pick some of them up.
Servants, pulled from their beds, particularly the Black men.
• A haunted house in Mamaroneck, NY. Pronounced MEHMEREHNECK. In case you’re interested.
• A colonial mansion, Sever Oaks. Already gone to a developer even when Hans wanted to investigate it.
• It was an underground railway stop in the Revolutionary war era. Full of secret passageways and door that opened with sliding books!
• Eleanor’s mother was not easily upset: she saw ghosts all the time in the house. Got used to them, wanted to help them.
• Servants pulled from their beds, as were several other people. Eleanor’s stepbrother and his wife had this happen to them when they stayed in the house.
Interest:
Some. As there is no investigation to be done – the house was long gone, this is an entertaining anecdotal chapter of limited interest.
Read it?
It’s very short, so why not. Nothing really in it.
The Central Park West Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Mrs. M. Daly Hopkins, ghost antenna
Mr. Hopkins
Mr. and Mrs. Hopkins’s son.
Annie, their housekeeper
Josephine, another housekeeper
Mrs. Froan, neighour
Helena Daly, Mrs. Hopkins sister
Mr. Lawrence, writer
Ether Meyers, medium
• A couple move into a large apartment in the above neighbourhood.
• The housekeeper soon reports that there is something strange about the place.
• Annie, the housekeeper quits after two years. That’s loyalty, to tolerate having the shit scared out of you daily but sticking around for two years.
• You see, someone kept turning her doorknob.
• They got another housekeeper, Josephine, who was also look, this place is haunted.
• Mrs. Hopkins was like, yep, I know. However, I love this place, so we just have to put up with it. What say you?
• Josephine, who appeared to be made of different stuff said, alright.
• I wonder did Mrs. Hopkins offer her a raise?
• So, for 7.5 years, Josephine stayed with the Hopkins family. She called the ghost Miss Flossie and asked her daily what the problem was and asked her if she could help in any way.
• She really was made of different stuff, this Josephine.
• She never saw the ghost, but the Hopkins’ son did.
• He woke to a lady being affectionate with him, when the nurse was out, and his parents were asleep in another room.
• The husband had no idea all this was going on. He didn’t like it.
• Anyway, shit settled down for years. Then there was another manifestation. This time the son had been packed off to boarding school. The husband was away ‘on business’. The nanny had returned to England, so Mrs Hopkins was home alone.
• There was an attempted burglary which Miss Flossie may well have foiled. Mrs. Hopkins kept schtum about that because it sounds mad.
• Then, there was a kitten who insisted on living with the Hopkins. The ghost hated the kitten, so we now hate Miss Flossie.
• And this was the last straw for Mrs. Hopkins. By all means, make unwanted advances to her son, her nanny and her housekeeper. But how dare Miss Flossie threaten her kitten! Mrs. Hopkins said fuck this, we’re leaving.
• Mr. Hopkins ran into an old tenant who had lived in the apartment building before them. Who told them what happened to the previous tenants. Josephine was right, is all I’m going to say here.
• Mrs. Hopkins then went and spoke with a neighbour, who had known the previous tenants as well. She described a woman, Miss Flossie, as someone who was quite paranoid. I didn’t like this neighbour and would trust nothing from her mouth.
• By the time Hans wants to investigate this, Mrs. Hopkins has gone to Canada. She had a stroke and cannot communicate. Her sister gives Hans the deets and sends him on his way with luck.
• The area had now become Puerto Rican. The Hernandez Family now lived there, but Hans could not contact them.
• Eventually, they would get in contact with the Hernandez family. Hans will describe them condescendingly as normal and not what he was expecting.
• Hans had lied about the reasons why he wanted to gain entry to their apartment. Saying that a great literary figure had lived here, and he was writing an article about it. Considering they were going ghost hunting this may have been for the best.
• Just how he explained about the séance when they got into the apartment is unclear.
• The séance was quite jumbled, and I think they were reading it to fit some things, but I wasn’t there so I can’t say. That’s what it looks like.
• Another rather abrupt end.
Interest:
Yes, it’s very interesting. A look at early 1930s NY of the well to do, but not overly do. They were a family of two adults and one young son, they had a nanny and a housekeeper and an eight room apartment. I found that the most interesting part. More human tragedy, of course. Happy people apparently do not leave ghosts.
Read it?
Yes!
The Ghosts at St. Mark’s
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Rev. Richard E McEvoy, archdeacon of St. John’s, but rector of St. Mark’s
Foreman Cole, clock winder
Ray Bore, RC organist, friend of Cole
Mary RM, singer and psychic
• A haunted church deep in the bowels of the Bowery. I read the Gangs of New York, so this is very exciting for me.
• The Rev tells of one anecdotal story of a female ghost from one parishioner. Then one he have have seen out the corner of his eye years ago.
• Mr. Cole, a winder of church clocks, had seen full apparitions, as had his friend, Mr. Bore.
• She appears to have been a residual ghost, or at the very least, a non-interactive apparition.
• There were other apparitions and noises heard by Cole.
• Hans’s psychic friend, Mary, went with Hans to see if she could pick up any impressions.
• There was a man and a woman on the day they were there, which could be sensed/seen by Mary.
Interest:
Some, though not as much as you would imagine. In a place like the Bowery, and the utter misery of its history, I would expect more. But no.
Read it?
If you want. There is nothing that interesting here.
A Visit with Alexander Hamilton’s Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Jean Karsavina, writer, artist and occupier of 27 Jane Street since 1939
Hamilton died in 80 Jane street; this is his doctor’s house.
Upstairs neighbour
Ethel Meyers
Various dead people
• Which now has several strange noises as heard by the current occupant.
• I also think someone from the 18th century would find a flushing toilet exciting.
• An upstairs neighbour had an 18th c visitor. Looking for the flushing toilet?
• Ethel got many impressions of layers of lives that had unfolded in that building.
• It had been owned by many doctors over the years. Han’s investigations on this one lead no where to proving that Hamilton was haunting here. Only that he had been here. There was a lot of people on and out of this place over the years, of which Ethel picked up on several.
Interest:
Not really. No proof at all that Hamilton haunts here. He may have managed to confirm some of Ethel’s impressions, but that’s it. It’s vague at best.
Read it?
Seeing as you’re reading the book.
The Conference House Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Ethel Meyers
Rose de Simone
Perl Winder
Butler family, owners of the estate next door
• Staten Island, the land that time forgot, it would seem.
• A place of interest in revolutionary history.
• The house became a museum. Moaning of a brokenhearted woman was still heard echoing throughout over time.
• Ethel was quite excited in her impressions of the house.
• Popular site for native American target practice. There was a tunnel at one point as an escape route to a nearby waterfront.
• Lots of bodies buried here.
• Billopp, a former owner of the house, possibly the builder of the house, murdered a slave here.
Interest:
Some. Again, not a chapter to get your teeth into like some of the earlier chapters. It’s brief, a bit rushed. Lots of information though for research. I’d like to know if there are still hauntings there. Billhop seems like a despicable character, a cruel and hard man. I’m so surprised he is not haunting the place.
Read it?
Yes, as you’re on your way through anyway. Perhaps you can expand on Billhop.
The Clinton Court Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Wainwright Evans, psychical writer.
Ruth Shaw, artist in haunted house.
Mr. Oates, former neighbourhood druggist and a man at 90 in 1959, keeper of lore.
Mrs. Butram, neighbour in 424, unfairly described as an old crony. She seems to be very nice, and informative.
Ethel Meyers, channel
422 1/2 West 46th Street. Let us look at this half house. Best I could fins, dudes.
• This was the coach house of Governor DeWitt Clinton and is now a NY secret in Hell’s Kitchen. Tucked away at the back of 420. In case you’re interested.
• Ghostly encounters here from quite early, but no date given on that one.
• A little girl ghost. Who ironically died playing ‘ghost’. And she is one who goes bump in the day: a full body apparition.
• Hans admits here that he has a low opinion of police intelligence.
• Besides generally deriding the police, even in 1960 Hans sought permission to do an investigation from the landlord. Even though Ruth Shaw had left the apartment and it was now standing empty.
• Ethel does a walkthrough, peeling back layers of experience in this house.
• More human tragedy and stupidity. Which is a resounding theme in nearly all these hauntings.
Interest:
More for the address. It’s a successful hunt if you consider the way it’s done. Ethel appears to never fail. Or else Hans just includes the successful ones. Which makes sense. A book full of failure is not something most folk would like to read. Except me. I would like to read that.
Read it?
Yes’m. Because it’s an interesting bit of New Yorkery.
The House Ghost of Bergenville
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Ethel Meyers
The “B’s”, owner of the house.
Mr. S, previous owner
Various friends.
Cat, dog.
• Off to the Garden State.
• It’s pre-revolutionary, so this is very old for Americans. It’s like, 10 mins ago for the rest of the world.
• The owners at restored what they could.
• I would like to congratulate Mrs. B. For thinking someone else was in house and getting up and doing the investigating herself. I would not. I would have hidden under the covers hoping I would be unconscious when ‘it’ killed me.
• A home alone evening for Mrs. B: with the footsteps, opening and closing doors, and the cat in an excited state.
• A while late, something of a similar nature happens to Mr. B. And then some, full body apparition over the course of a week.
• Their friends also saw several unusual things.
• All very distinct happenings.
• Ethel assumed the position in the oldest part of the house, and the voice of the builder of the house came through. He was German. As far as we know, Mrs. Meyers did not speak any German.
• Graves on the hill behind the house. Makes you wonder, how many graves we are walking across daily.
• There are Indian bones….
• Interestingly, the ghost thought that Ethel’s body was his, and freaked out a bit.
• He leaves, and a woman comes to the fore. She talks of her children, and that and that the Indians had taken one.
Interest:
This is an interesting one. That the “B’s” were quite okay with the presence of the ghost. He turned out to be quite congenial. Lonely and not destructive. There were other things going on in that place that had nothing to do with this ghost. Which were not explored in any depth. Who was in the car?
Read it?
Yes, do read it. It’s one of the fuller accounts in the book so far.
The Fifth Avenue Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Danton Walker, Broadway columnist
Captain Davis, owner of haunted apartment
Bernard Axelrod, ECF, hypnotist
Nelson Welsh, ECF
Stanley Goldberg, ECF
Ethel Meyers
Meyer Berger, NY Times columnist
Mr. And Mrs. Bertram Long, friends of the Captain
Countess de Sales, another friend of the Captain
2 cats – Hans likes cats, so he always mentions them if there are any.
Zoe Britton
• This chapter opens strong, and I’m quite excited.
226 Fifth avenue today
• Captain David is an erudite man, well-travelled and explored.
• There were tapes and transcripts made of all the investigations in this book. I would very much like to hear them.
• They performed their channelling in a semi darkness. Not sure why, but it seemed to be conductive to atmosphere.
• Ethel, before she even sits down, grabs her throat, as if being strangled. She calms down with the help of Bernard.
• They did so many sessions here, that the rest of the chapter is broken up into sections about them. All dated. This was prefaced by Hans talking about a “disturbed personality.” That if the manner of passing is particularly fraught, there may be an accompanying violence to a revisit from the spirit. Again, I’m rather excited by the whole thing.
• Sitting of 11 July – First session:
• “Mad laughter full of hatred”. This is descriptive to say the least.
• More puzzlement over finding themselves a woman’s body.
• Albert will eventually weigh in on this. Albert is Ethel’s control.
• Albert warns them. This man is violent, has also suffered violence is not disclosing honest details.
• Albert also suggests that they end this trance.
• They change up the séance at this point, but Ethel continues to feel off. And will continue to do so.
• The Captain heads off on a worldwide trip soon after this, and the new tenant in uncooperative. Which, sure. Understandable.
• They continue in the Edgar Cayce headquarters.
• Sitting 14 July – Second Session
• Hans explains that once a ghost has knocked loose, they can be contacted anywhere.
• Guychone is shocked by the passage of 80 years. I would be too, so I’m feeling quite empathetic toward him. He has volunteered some information about himself and has also tried to hit Hans.
• Hans does a bit of amateur psychiatristing here that I’m cautious of. He speaks with authority of things that he understands in a lay man’s way, but he is no way trained for. So, caution here for everyone as well. He speaks with the authority of a man in what is at best a pseudo-scientist. At worst, an unwitting bullshitter, yet maintains he is right. Caution to all here.
• I’ll get off my soapbox now.
• Sitting 21 July – Third Session
• Albert appears first, explaining the moral code of spirits and why he is going to be a bit unhelpful.
• Eventually, Guychone comes and asks to look around the room at several things. Like the tape recorder, and to read the date.
• They asked him more questions, he answered some of them.
• Ethel says this was the first time she had her eyes open in a trance. She said she could see the people, but it was like looking through them.
• Sitting 25 July – Fourth Session
• Planchette session in Zoe Britton’s house.
• Guychone says he has a living son in West Virginia.
• Hans tells us that the evidential material is mounting up. They have a lot of material on this period to go through.
• Sitting 28 July – Fifth Session
• Mentions one of two colleges and his mother.
• Sitting 4 August – Sixth Session
• The name McGowan comes up, as well as a name for his living son.
• Sitting 18 August – Seventh Session
• The naming convention has changed from Guychone to McGowan.
• More information and uses what we presume to be his real name.
• Information about the house in New York, his landlady, the rent collector, where he fought in the civil war.
• Sitting 25 August – Eighth Session
• Now calling him the Colonel, he now introduces himself with his real name. The progression has been amazing.
• The Colonel is now a lot more lucid and is giving up a huge amount of information about himself, his family. Wants his son to know he didn’t kill himself.
• He’s still hazy on precise dates, etc. But very good on situations and relationships.
• Sitting 1 September – Ninth Session
• There is still a lot of confusion about who this guy really is. He’s confused a lot of the time or doesn’t want to say.
• They are trying to find out if he’s a General Samuel McGowan. If he is, he doesn’t want to admit to it.
• Sitting 8 September - Tenth Session
• Speaks of his death, that he was murdered.
• Speaks of some of his wife, and that the war ruined him financially.
• Sitting 15 September – Eleventh Session
• Is asked more about his death and what happened to his body.
• It’s quite sad, the whole affair.
• Sitting 22 September – Twelfth Session
• His mother shows up for a bit and speaks French.
• I’m not sure this man is who he says he is.
• He also liked the attention of the almost weekly sits.
• Sitting 29 September – Thirteenth Session
• Hans is testing him with a list of made up names and real names.
• He reacts to some of the made up ones, but not to his supposed wife.
• Bet he did react to a made up name of Sumpter, by saying Colonel. Fact was, there was a Colonel Sumpter in the Confederate army.
• Sitting 14 October – Fourteenth Session
• Says he had two daughters.
• Tries reading his tombstone again.
• Sitting of 20 October – Fifteenth Session
• McGowan panics at one point because of a necklace the medium is wearing. Calms down.
• Talks about his wife, and the US congress and what a corrupt mess it was.
• Talks about his wife’s family.
• His grandson comes into the picture then. Who confirms what we were all thinking: he had a love and it was not his wife.
• Sitting 29 October – Sixteenth Session
• His deceased grandson says McGowan's son was illegitimate.
• He wants the son to know that he did provide for him in a will, but there was a judge in the family who had other plans.
• Sitting 3 November – Seventeenth Session
• Speaks of some incidents in his life, and that he found his mother and father. I’m a little emotional reading these sections, I’ll be honest.
• Hans has mentioned this is the recue circles, so the disturbed soul can move on and not return to the pace of harm.
• Sitting 6 November – Eighteenth Session
• This session happened when it was only Hans and Ethel.
• McGowan speaks of the last few years of his life. About Mingon and Gregory, his love and his son and what happened to him, how he died.
• Things were hard after the war, land was gone etc. He came to NY with his wife and children, his parents. He found Mingon, the love of his life there, with his illegitimate son. He lived with his life but found his girlfriend and son a place to live also.
• Mingon had a new man, and she was carrying his baby. She was black, and the new man was black. The new man killed McGowan.
• Sitting 10 November – Nineteenth Session
• Talks about a duel.
• They found more proof.
• There was no research done util after the last sitting, to rule out mental telepathy to the channel.
• There is a lot of interesting facts thrown up by the research. Hans and co., are doing a deep dive into the records of the states, colleges and battles mentioned. Fantastic work.
• Sitting 17 November – Twentieth Session
• Questioned on various aspects of New York life at the time: what sport did he like, sayings, who was the mayor.
• Sitting 26 November – Twenty-First Session
• In flying form by this stage, McGowan is giving a shit load of information now, a lot that Hans can confirm later. Neighbours, janitors, cost of living, where things are.
• McGowan, even though he has mentioned that he had lost a lot in the war had access to money. He was not living the life of a pauper.
• And that’s it. Hans confirms some of the information. Reckons he didn’t die in 1873, but in 1897.
• Something traumatic may have happened around that time, though, that upsets him so.
Interest:
Lots and lots. This is the longest and most in-depth story so far. There is a lot to unpick in here. The historian in me is very excited to hear the stories of NY around that time. As well as what life was like after the American civil war for all concerned. The fall out, to me, is the more interesting aspect of that particularly brutal war.
Read it?
Yes, indeed. The sheer number of sessions it took to unravel this story, which was not finished, but Hans stopped. And dropped us, quite abruptly. It’s insightful for the glimpses into ghost hunting via Hans.
Good Mediums Are Rare
The gist:
People mentioned in this chapter:
Giancarlo Menotti, wrote an opera called The Medium
Ethel Meyers, medium well known to us at this point.
Nancy Hendriks, a Black medium
Marina Brian Agostini, artistic medium
Clara Howard, medium, sister of
Sophia Williams, a noted medium on the west coast of America
Dorothy Jackson, a secretary who is also a medium
Betty Ritter, medium
Florence Sternfels, a psychometrist and clairvoyant, she of the Khan haunting.
Carol Chapman, medium, someone he calls the Dean of Mediums.
Marion Klein, psychic
Luigi Bartolomo, sculptor.
John Myers, psychic photographer and medium
• Hans states right here that a ghost hunt cannot happen without a medium. I disagree. There is no way to measure a medium, as any research can fit the medium’s revelations. It’s not scientific. All through this book Hans has used Ethel as his tool of investigation. The facts appear to match up to what she says while in trance. I have no way to verify any of this and take him at his word. Now, Dave Shrader of Darkness Radio, has a tv show all about Hans and his cases. I haven’t watched it, but can he shine some light on this?
• Hans wants to get through things fast. Not interested in doing the painstaking groundwork. So mediums, and the conviction that Ethel is always on the money. But would this stand up to peer review? Does Hans care?
• This triggering (for me) chapter is about finding good mediums, and how to develop the skill.
• I would like to know what the scientific aspects of a medium’s rare gifts are.
• We spend some time on Marina and her experiences, which are very interesting, to be fair. As are Ethel’s.
• Marina had visions, clairvoyance, mediumistic abilities, and met other beings. She was the whole package.
• Hans, with no shame whatsoever, shows us one of his songs. Which does show some strange connections, indeed.
• Dorothy Jackson saw the dead, could predict deaths because of this. Would dream she was in foreign places and would wake up with tired feet.
• There is an adman who had recently killed himself. He was haunting both his apartment and his favourite restaurant, the Da Vinci. Leaving empty martini glasses around. Hilariously still scribbling slogans for ads.
• Hans does stick in a warning here about being on guard against self-delusion in one’s mediums.
• Psychic photography on PM-East, a television show John Myers and Hans were on in 1961.
Interest:
It’s interesting to read this. I have not the time to verify any of this. It’s all so old now, it would be hard to anyway. There’s lots of name drops, and I’m assuming they’re real names. Some research for the intrepid/bored amongst us.
Read it?
Yes, for some proper insight into Hans’s approach to ghost hunting.
The Ghostly Lovers
The gist:
People mentioned in this chapter:
Betty Ritter, medium
Dr. Nandor Fodor, psychoanalyst and parapsychologist
Edith Berger, a patient of the above
• Was Edith suppering from split personality, or was she haunted?
• She was being physically assaulted by a dead suitor.
• Betty tried a form of exorcism. Her spiritual contact took the menacing former boyfriend away. Who had just visited Betty in her room. And he was naked.
• The young doctor, who had died in the tropics, couldn’t accept that he was no longer alive and able to enjoy that.
• He may have had a twist to the violent anyway, is my thinking. People don’t change when they are dead, I would think.
• The main victim, Edith, was naturally mediumistic. Quite high strung, as they would have said in the olden days. She was a natural foil for her dead boyfriend. Who sounded like a controlling prick, tbh.
• I wouldn’t call a case of ghost rape an amorous occasion.
Interest:
Somewhat. I think they were a bit indulgent with this ghost. But it was sound advice that was given to Edith in the end.
Read it?
It’s short, so why not. Not much for the researcher.
The Case of the Murdered Financier
The gist:
People in this chapter
Serge Rubinstein, the murdered financier himself
John Latouche, friend of Hans
Edith Meyers
Estelle Gardner, sort of girlfriend of Rubenstein
Pat Wray, another someone sort of acquainted with Rubenstein
Stella Rubenstein, his mum
Eugenia Forrester, his aunt and mother’s sister
Jack Zweiback, reporter for the White Russian newspaper
Cholly Knickerbocker, there was a time when this was a graet pseudonym. The explanation for it is hilarious, and I’m glad it’s in existence.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cholly_Knickerbocker
Hy Gardner, columnist and tv presenter
Edith is on the ball here from the get-go.
• There was no report of a haunting. Hans was hoping that there might be one. Rubenstein was a horrible rich dude who died violently in his own home.
Rubenstein is the one dressed as Napoleon. This is fitting from the small amount of reading I did.
• He was a controlling and jealous man, like the young doctor from the last chapter. Except extra. So much extra.
• The trance session that happens makes me think that this could be an awesome novel written by Clive Barker.
• There are so many names and brief descriptions, someone needs to get on this and write the novel.
• This séance was totally done to invoke a spirit rather than deal with an extant haunting. They did indeed poke the beast.
• Transcripts of the seances were always sent to the police. I mean, if I heard what I read, I would want to report it as well.
• During a routine séance a while later in Hans’s house, up popped Napoleon Rubenstein.
• He was a chatterbox this one.
• They returned to Rubinstein’s house. To Hans’s house. Other locations. Rubenstein would get activated, name names, places, try to get Ethel out onto the street.
• There was a lot of information given. But it was hard to verify. It was bordering on dangerous to do so.
Interest:
This is a high profile case, where Hans and his psychic chums genuinely tried to solve a case. Like a creaky scooby gang. There is probably a fair bit to go on if one wanted to get scooby-ish themselves. Or write a Clive Barker style novel.
Read it?
Yes. In many ways, this was one of the most interesting chapters in the book. Mostly because of the mystery, and otherwise because the strength of the personality of Serge.
The Rockland County Ghost
The gist:
People who people this chapter:
Danton Walker, the newspaper man, current owner of haunted house
Mrs Eileen J Garrett, a clairvoyant
Andreas, the ghost with an attachment to Danton
Abrams family, former owners of the house
Dixon, a banker, another owner.
Succession of ‘mountain people’, squatters in the house.
Johnny, Danton’s butler
Pietro, repair man
Danton’s secretary
Dr. L, Park Avenue psychiatrist and psychoanalyst
Lenore Davidson, Eileen’s assistant
Dr. Michael Pobers, Secretary General of the Parapsychology Foundation
Uvani, one of Mrs. Garrett’s spirit guides
• A haunting so intrusive, Danton built himself a sperate apartment on his estate so he could live in peace.
• Mrs. Garrett cliarvoyanted from afar.
• A colonial building, fully restored by Danton.
• Near the epicentre of several important American War of Independence sites.
• Mad Anthony Wayne. He makes for some interesting reading. His HQ was on the very same site.
• It seemed to be local knowledge that the house was haunted.
• Not all the hauntings were audible. Some physical manifestations, such as: dents in pewter objects, missing glass (ja, this is a weird one).
• Areas of chill so cold they felt like cramps.
• There are some extended quotes from Danton Walker. To be fair, he was a big of a big swing back in the day. He also would write a lot of books on the supernatural. Including I Believe in Ghosts, which were stories told to him by famous people.
• 1952, a rescue circle was gathered.
• Included here is quite a large chunk of transcript, detailing not only the ghost but of Uvani. This is quite interesting. Especially when reading Hans’s description of the medium during this.
• Uvani makes the unsettling report that the spirit who joins him may be that of a man who was not of his right mind.
• Uvani nopes out, and the spirit enters the medium, and he is quite physically unwell. There is a lot of pain and sobbing, inarticulate sounds.
• There is a prolonged interaction with someone who was beaten to death, on refusal to disclose some plans.
Interest:
There’s a lot to get into in this. While there' no way to verify who this spirit was, his manner of death and how he carried it through to the medium is fascinating. The medium’s spirit guide and the large amount of control he appears to have is equally fascinating.
Read it?
Yes, this is what you came here for.
The Haunted Nightclub
The gist:
People in this chapter:
Rick Allmen, owner
Renee Allmen, wife of above and a psychic
Ethel Meyers, medium
Richard Mardus, historian of the Village
Aaron Burr, famous dual winner against Alexander Hamilton and previous owner of the site.
• Café Bizarre! Of course, they wanted a séance.
• On a side note, as I’ve been going through this book, it’s an historical document to New York in the ‘50s and early ‘60s. Café Bizarre is gone now (https://www.villagepreservation.org/ia_image/cafe-bizarre-106-west-3rd-street-this-building-was-demolished-and-replaced-with-an-nyu-law-school-dorm/), and I feel sad about that. I’m not American, so I’m obviously not from NY. However, as a fan of the Beat generation, Kerouac and Co., I feel sad that it’s gone. Many of them performed here.
• There were a lot of people at this séance, but Hans doesn’t list them all.
• Murdered girl. No more on her.
• Aaron Burr may or may not be the ghost with the penetrating black eyes.
Interest:
This is an incredibly short chapter. Worth it for the Café Bizarre and a bit of Village history.
Read it?
Same as above.
The Riverside Ghost
The gist:
People in this chapter
Edward Karalanian, Parisian jeweller, subject of haunting
Dr. Dersarkissian (seriously), a teacher at Adelphi College
Ethel Meyers
Three young ladies (who may or may not have been at a school gym locker looking at me)
• These, folx, are full on multiple full bodied apparitions. Ghostbusters would probably call them a Class III.
• This was a rather successful séance, as it turned up unambiguous researchable information.
• More sad humanity.
Interest:
Not much.
Read it?
Very short, nothing new apart from some interesting names. You could skip this.
The Haunted Chair
The gist:
People in this chapter
Bernard Simon, a writer and medium
Joan Lowe, his wife, actor, and niece of Joan Crawford
Ethel Meyers
• Bernard bought a chair that came with someone already sitting in it.
• A startling ghost propelled breakage.
• This, interestingly, is a reincarnation story.
Interest:
That it’s a reincarnation story. That’s it, really.
Read it?
If you want. I mean if you’ve come this far. But there isn’t much to this one.
The Ghost in the Window
The gist:
People in this chapter
Ethel Meyers
Brian Flood, editor of New Voice
Countess Catherine Buxhövden (where does Hans find these people. http://www.dharmacafe.com/index.php/news-briefs/article/artists-among-us-countess-catherine-buxhoeveden/)
• On the hunt in a haunted mansion for the spirit of a man who had taken his own life.
• They found a bit of paper and Ethel had an impression.
Interest:
The countess who was counted but did not come into this story at all.
Read it?
Skip it.
A Rendezvous with Houdini
The gist:
People in this chapter
Joseph Dunninger, friend of the late escapologist
Florence of Edgewater, a psychometrist, first of her name, queen of New Jersey
• Dunninger wanted to contact his friend, still looking for proof of the afterlife.
• Florence had some success with the handcuffs, but whether it was from the beyond or something from his life? Who knows. She also knew him slightly.
• The coded message that Houdini gave to his friend is still unknown in this chapter.
Interest:
Honestly, no.
Read it?
You can skip this as well, unless you’re a big fan of Houdini.
Epilogue
Hans tells us not to fear ghosts. They are humans after all. Yeah, but they be dead ones.
Request from the Publisher
Begging for reviews, which is understandable.
Conclusion
There is not one here.
Buy it?
This is a classic to have in the collection. Unless you’re very into the paranormal, you possibly have not heard of Hans Holzer. I have been a fan of all things paranormal for years, and I had not heard of him until recently. He is having a resurgence now. As I said in one of the chapter notes, this is an historical document in many ways. Old New York gets an airing, the city and state. I enjoyed strolling the street from my computer, looking up lost buildings and people. There is something quite cosy about it all. I like the approach that Hans takes to his work. While he’s a shameless namedropper, clearly enjoying rubbing elbows with the Z listers and swingers of his day, he still manages to humanise a haunting. He is never disrespectful. Frustrated at times, but like he would be with a a live human. The dead are still people to him. He doesn’t antagonise or insult. The appears to be a genuine desire to help. They have rescue circles to help ghosts achieve peace. This is the very opposite of many of contemporary ghost hunters s who run around in perhaps haunted buildings in tee shirts with their logo on, challenging the dead to come and entertain them. I bought, and happy to have it in my collection.
