Maybe not. We all hear about Bed and Breakfasts being haunted, Museums being haunted and any other “touristy” place. Of course looking in from the outside it’s easy for us to dismiss this all as just legends and ploys to increase visitors at these places. Many people do claim to experience “something creepy” when visiting these places. How true that is, I don’t know. I assume that it’s all part of the allure. People in general love being scared.

I tend to stay away from posting news articles like this one since it’s all hearsay and doesn’t really offer much insight into the paranormal; but I wanted to make a point I guess.
The Southern Michigan ParaNormals: Paranormal Investigators (SMP) investigated the museum and set out to capture evidence of ghostly apparitions and disembodied voices.

You can visit the SMP website to take a look at the evidence they’ve captured over the years. Orbs and EVPs mostly.

Do these types of investigations really produce any tangible evidence? I’m not being a jerk, I’m actually asking an honest question. I don’t “ghost hunt” but I do listen to EVPs and view orb pictures from time to time and I have to say that the evidence they present does not look convincing.

Full source: Zwire

LAWRENCE – Could there be paranormal activity at the Van Buren County Museum?
That was a question posed to the Southern Michigan ParaNormals: Paranormal Investigators, (SMP) who spoke last Wednesday, Jan. 20, to members of the Van Buren Historical Society.
The Paranormal Society spent the night of Oct. 5, 2009, at the Van Buren County Museum, located between Hartford and Lawrence on Red Arrow Highway, in search of “spirit” activity.
Dan Holroyd, who led the investigation, told the group gathered at the Van Buren Conference Center last week, “I felt something was speaking to me the first time I set foot on the property.”
The site’s history can be traced back to the late 1800s when the county’s poor and indigent population did not have the benefit of a social support system, and as a result, the care of those people was provided by the county.
The Van Buren County Poorhouse was originally a farm with a wood-frame farmhouse, set on 173 acres. This served until 1884, when it was destroyed by fire, resulting with the loss of many lives. Because of the fire, the county realized the need for a less fire-prone dwelling and built a brick structure. The poorhouse operated until 1952, when it was closed due to changes in the case of the poor.
In 1972, the Van Buren County Historical Society began to create the Van Buren Museum, filling 44 rooms with treasures of the past.
“It is an absolute delight. It is a gem,” Holroyd said of the three- story structure. “I didn’t expect that when I came through the door.”
Holroyd and members of his group, began to set up digital voice recorders and digital cameras at 11 p.m., and continued through 5 a.m.
Holroyd said they picked “prime spots” in and around the building, and also “focused efforts outside the property.”
One of those sites outside the main structure was a blacksmith shop. It was there Holroyd said he experienced a “six-foot-tall dark figure” just outside the shop’s door, while he was inside.The shadowy figure then made its way to the former county hospital, also located near the museum, then disappeared.
Holroyd said a strange mist also was reported near the building.
“It was six to seven feet in the air. It just had some strange properties.” He said there was low-lying fog in the area, but “no explanation for it.”
“The mist shouldn’t be that high in the air,” he said.
The digital voice recorders did pick up “some activity there,” according to Holroyd.
Although they did not hear it at the time, when the group played back the recordings, they were able to pick up what they interpreted as “voices.”
In a former men’s jail cell, the tape recorded a man’s voice saying, “I didn’t do it,” according to Holroyd.
“We can’t figure why the digital recorder picks up voices,” said Holroyd.
Another incident was recorded near the north side of the hospital. “Help us,” was heard from taping inside the infirmary.
Still, another “voice” was recorded from inside the building. Holroyd interpreted a voice to say, “I’m guilty,” as he recalled the county-farm accent, “with a little bit of a drawl to it.”
Holroyd was also told of a murder that occurred at the site. “I’m working, not playing,” said the interpreted “voice.”
Holroyd concluded, “I would say you have activity there. I don’t want to use the word “haunted.” I think you have some spirited activity.”
A museum volunteer, Mary Carpp, of Paw Paw, told of one incident in which she heard “footsteps” in the building, but saw no one.
“I was on the second floor with Jean Puckett, another volunteer. We were in the military room and swore we heard footsteps. We couldn’t see anybody,” said Carpp.
Holroyd said, “We strive to be very ethical and honest,” in our job. “I’m very proud of this group.”
The Southern Michigan Paranormals, a volunteer group, is currently made up of 27 people from all walks of life throughout Southwest Michigan.
More information about the group made be found at www.smparanormals.com.