"Paul's house/tuberculosis grounds" - Mt. Vernon, Mo

The owners of this home in Mt. Vernon, Missouri (Paul) contacted us with the hopes of helping to solve a variety of paranormal issues. The most troubling of these issues being that their 3 year old son has reported being repeatedly “pushed” by an entity he calls “the ghost” and his parents witnessed one of these occasions where he visually appeared to be pushed off the  edge of the bed. The female adult has also reported several personal paranormal experiences including seeing small, moving shadows on the walls in the living room, feeling/seeing a peripheral entity standing next to her while doing laundry at 2am, dishes being thrown into the kitchen sink, a “smokey” entity hovering over the bed and even family members, during Skype sessions, saying that they have seen a person walking right up behind her on camera (unknown to her) when she was the only person awake at the time. Anytime a child is being affected by possible paranormal activity, we always bumps these cases into priority status.

During our initial background search, we determined that while no deaths had been reported near the property, there were still many factors making this home/area susceptible to paranormal activity. It's also important to note that the home sits only a couple hundred feet away from the "Hillcrest Cemetery" which was once called the "Old Sanitorium Cemetery" which provides a resting place for the many souls lost in the "Missouri Tuberculosis Sanitorium" just down the road (now the former Missouri Rehabilitation Center).

Risk factors for possible paranormal activity specific to this property
 

               (1) The property where the home sits is surrounded by underground “rivers” (and ground level running water) which may provide fuel for paranormal activity.  
 

               (2)  The property/land (at >8 feet below surface) has a very high concentration of limestone and quartz, both of which are said to be the equivalent of “storage banks” for residual paranormal energy and a source of energy for intelligent hauntings.

                (3)  Sanborn maps from 1907 show the cemetery extending beyond where the current road lies (which would be very near the current property line) before the road was constructed. In the “old days” before eminent domain, the
state would just remove headstones from cemeteries without moving those who were buried in order to justify new roads. (not saying this is the case, they don’t document these instances, but something to consider).  However, there is a map which first shows the entrance to the Hillcrest cemetery being 200 feet closer to the property where the home sits (before the pillars, which sit directly across the street from the home, were
erected).

During our initial walk-through while determining baseline readings, we immediately determined VERY high EMF in the kitchen area being emitted from the microwave and oven (even when not in use). We experienced even higher EMF in the areas in the bedroom (where the computer is located) which almost consumed the entire bedroom. The high EMF pockets were very localized as the outlets and other major appliances all seemed to be very well insulated. We also noticed some routine light play in the living room when cars passed on the road outside, but it would be difficult to confuse this shadow/light movement with an actual human figure.

Personal experiences/EVP's

*all EVP audio links are below*
Photo/video expert and investigator, John reported hearing a voice say his name while manning a video camera in the main family room. Paul (the male renter of the home who was present during the investigation) reported hearing a similar voice saying “who is that” in his left ear while sitting on the couch (referring to investigators asking questions in master bedroom). All three investigators heard a child-like sound which seemed to come from area between closet at the end of the main hall and the closet in the “play room” which was captured on 2 iphone recorders, but was missed by the very sensitive recorder placed on the television stand in the playroom.

The sound above was heard by lead investigator Chris (who was joking with video expert John at the time) and when the audio was reviewed on-the-spot  the multi-directional recorder in the room picked up an EVP which was not heard which sounds like the exact same child-like voice, but the vocal itself (as to what is being said) is still up for debate.

In the “play room” Dustin and Chris asked entity to turn on flashlight (which was placed 10 feet away on a tv stand) for "yes" to answer multiple questions with no luck. When we finally asked "turn it on if you want us to leave", it immediately came on for several seconds, then turned back off. Seconds later, both investigators heard 3 footsteps on the plastic floor mat only feet away in the same room but this was not captured on audio, unfortunately.

While performing an EVP session in the master bedroom (where the hovering entity was witnessed and where the Skype phenomena had occurred)  Chris asked the entity to speak into any one of the seven active recorders in the home. At :14, you can hear what sounds like a child coughing and Chris reacts by saying “what was that”. It must be noted that we can't be 100% positive that there wasn't a random child outside the home coughing, but given the fact that it was pouring rain, 38 degrees and that there were dogs in the backyard who immediately respond to nearby humans by constant barking, we find it unlikely. Had we heard the sound at the time, we would have investigated the exterior of the home, but this one was caught during evidence review. 

 Conclusion(s)

Records of Hillcrest Cemetery/”Old Sanitorum Cemetery” are very sketchy/unreliable. Records have been found which show ten <10 year olds passing due to tuberculosis and others show >30. However, only five 8 year old patients have been found on record and two of them were patients who later passed at home. The remaining three were: Emily Watson, Lyal Shaull and A.G. Fortney, all of who do not have marked graves at Hillcrest (possibly buried on/near the property??). The vocal recordings we recorded sound female, which would lead to possibly Emily Watson, but it’s impossible to conclude given the
evidence.

None of the investigators felt threatened or any kind of malice that would lead to possible “evil entities” in the home and the evidence remains up to interpretation, although valid and represented exactly as captured. Homeowners would be advised to take possession of the property and lay ground rules out loud to any entities which may be present. Home renters have reported activity since the investigation, but stated they have laid down ground rules that the presence is "free to live here and free to play, but please don't scare us".