The Empty Spaces

I have a love affair with old houses. What others see may just be an old house, but my eyes see these places in a different way, and I try my best to capture what I see with my photography. What I see is a peek inside a tiny piece of history of lives once lived. The house itself often hints of a personality that, if you look closely, shines through the broken windows and peeks out from underneath the peeling paint. 

Within the walls of these old homes are lingering memories of a time long gone but perhaps not too far forgotten. If those walls could talk, what would they tell us? They might tell of happy times with family, watching growing children, laughter and joy. They also may keep deep secrets, hide lingering sadness, and mourning for their losses. An old house is not just a place made of wood and bricks, it's a big box full of emotions and remembrance. I think sometimes the house may hold on to some of these feelings long after their inhabitants have moved on. 

Over the years as the old house ages, the old memories begin to slowly fade away just as she does. Left forgotten and forlorn, slowly, nature begins to reclaim what was once hers. Exposed to the elements, with aging bones, she begins to break down. Her roof weakens and begins to leak, the foundation may begin to show cracks. The doors and windows warp with the changes in the weather and over time, the vines begin to cover her up face as she is entering her final years, months, days. At some point, she eventually begins to crumble completely, or her fate is determined for her, and she is torn to the ground. 

When she was built, she was likely hand made with delicate care and intricate detail. Her wood may have been cut from the lot where she stood, or her old bricks may have been made from the mud she sat upon. The smallest details from hinges on her doors to her beautiful winding staircase would showcase the fine craftsmanship of her time. But left to decay, she is no longer needed, no longer appreciated or no longer has someone to care for and love her. 

I stumble upon many beautiful old houses when I am in search of abandoned places and I spend many hours just driving the backroads seeking out the next amazing place. I have found many along the way, but only a few have really captured my heart. I travel back to visit them from time to time, through the changing seasons and even over the years, I have watched time and mother nature take their toll. I have been heartbroken though, as I have seen too many of these old beauties torn down. It hurts to see such a wonderful piece of history come crashing down, especially by a bulldozer. 

I love these old homes, I have hopes to see them be restored, loved again and put to good use. I wish in some small way that I can save them all, but I know that is only a dream. Reality hits when I go once again to visit, and she is no longer there, and the only thing that is left is the empty space where she once stood tall and proud. I am, however, very thankful for the opportunities to take photographs of these places, because in the end, memories are all we will have. 

Photos above - Top - House on the verge of collapse in Cabell County, WV. Middle - Recently torn down 1830s home in Mason County, WV. Bottom - Recently torn down 1800s home in Mason County, WV. All photos on this site are property of the author, Melissa Stanley, unless otherwise noted. Photos should only be used with permission of the author/photographer.

The Anchorage

If you like old houses that are haunted, well I have the perfect place for you!

Marietta is the oldest city in Ohio and while there are plenty of beautiful old houses in town, one caught my attention about ten or so years ago. The Anchorage, also known as the Putnam Villa, is a beautiful 22 room Italianate style home that was built in 1859 and sits proudly on a hill overlooking Harmar Village in Marietta. The house was built by Douglas Putnam for his wife Eliza and is built from native oak and sandstone. Eliza planned the homes design to suit her personal style and it took ten years for the home to be complete. Unfortunately, Eliza did not get to enjoy her grand new home for long, she died only three years after it was finished. 

Following the Putnam family, other prominent families owned the house over the years. After the last owners, Eddie MacTaggart and his sister Sophia Russell passed away, the house was turned into a nursing home which operated until the 1980s. After the closure of the nursing home, the house sat vacant for many years. Today the home is owned and being restored by the Washington County Historical Society.

I first knew of this home's reputation for being haunted, and that led to the initial visit years ago to see this it for myself. I have never investigated here, but stories of spirits that roam her halls abound. According to Hidden Marietta, the tour company that operates tours of the home, some 20 individuals have died inside the Anchorage over the years, including past owners, their family members and nursing home residents. Some of the reported paranormal activity includes hearing audible disembodied voices, shadows and apparitions and even the sensations of being touched. Up in the tower, the homes original owners, Eliza Putnam and her husband Douglas has been seen. 

I recently booked a tour of the old house to see it inside instead of just the exterior. Due to Covid-19, the only tours that were being offered were self-guided. We (my husband and myself) received a short summary of the history before we started. I was excited to see the inside of the house, although a fully guided tour would have been great, we ended up with the chance to roam the halls alone. I can't say that I was disappointed, this was a perfect opportunity to take lots of photos without having to wait for other tour guests to clear out of an area before I could snap photos. Trust me, I have done quite a few tours and typically hang toward to back in order to get plenty of pictures. 

During our tour of the home, I took notice of all the beautiful architectural details throughout the house, no doubt Eliza hand-picked them herself. The downstairs has been mostly restored, but the restoration process is ongoing. I walked throughout each room, simply admiring the work of art this house truly is, and with the restoration work, I can only imagine how much more beautiful it will become. The upper floors are still in need of restoration, but nonetheless, it is still beautiful, even with peeling paint, wallpaper and exposed boards. 

Having the old house almost completely to ourselves allowed for ample observation for any paranormal activity. There was an option to include a small investigation into the tour, but I just wanted to explore and if we happened to encounter any ghosts during our time, that was fine. Unfortunately, we did not have any experiences, it felt comfortable and calm inside the house, nothing out of the ordinary happened. We were told by one of the guides that a girl from the tour the previous day had her hair pulled by something unseen, which is another seemingly "normal" paranormal event that has been reported in the house.

On the second floor, it is still evident that the house was used as nursing home. The stairway was enclosed during the time the nursing home operated there, but if you look close you can still see some of the original character on the old steps. There are seemingly hidden rooms and rooms that connect to other rooms, which is pretty typical for houses built in the 1800s. This house has a section that was used as servants' quarters. The attic area is huge, and it is believed that the children liked to play up there.

The final spot we visited in the house was on up beyond the attic, and into the tower, also known as a campanile, or Italian bell tower. The tower has a breath-taking full view of Marietta. The winding staircase to the tower looks to be in original condition and it has a feel of being straight out of a fairy tale, or creepy haunted house movie, or perhaps just a combination of the two. I imagine this spot in the house was probably a favorite. I can envision children laughing and playing in the tower and running up and down the stairs. I can imagine Eliza and Douglas watching over their town below while having a quiet moment of reflection from their little castle on the hill. I can even picture the faint apparitions of the spirits that wander the halls of the Anchorage, peeking out from the tower windows and keeping watch over the house. 

Want to learn more about the house, take a tour or even book a ghost hunt? Visit Hidden Marietta for more information or to check out other haunts in the area.

Want to see more of my photos from inside the Anchorage? Visit Ghosts of Guyandotte on Facebook and check out my photo album. 

All photos on this site and in this article are property of the author, Melissa Stanley, unless otherwise noted. 

The Cholera Epidemic in Guyandotte

Currently, we are living through a global pandemic. This is not the first time in history that humans have experienced a widespread disease that has killed many and it likely will not be the last. 

While sharing stories on the Guyandotte ghost tours, we talked about a pandemic disease that wiped out millions of people worldwide. A series of seven cholera pandemics have occurred throughout the world over the past two-hundred years. Even in modern times, small outbreaks of cholera persist in parts of the world.

So, what is cholera exactly? It is a very infectious disease that causes watery diarrhea and dehydration. Cholera is caused by eating or drinking food or water contaminated with the bacteria from human feces. It was primarily spread through contaminated water in the 1800s due to the lack of sanitation and sewage treatment and was also spread by undercooked seafood that had been in contaminated water. The onset of symptoms would come on quickly and harsh for some, while others only had mild or even no symptoms at all. Death could come quickly for someone infected, often in a matter of hours. 

Cholera was first known in the United States in 1832, likely arriving with immigrants from Europe. Cholera reached the larger cities along the Ohio River by way of travel along the river. Guyandotte was a busy river port on the Ohio River, so it was inevitable that cholera would eventually find its way there and to other nearby river cities. 

In the late 1840s, a cholera outbreak hit the Ohio River area between Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, killing several hundred people. The outbreak brought on panic. One of those who would succumb to cholera was Logan, West Virginia resident Anthony Lawson. 60 year old Lawson was traveling the Ohio River as a merchant, on his way home to Logan. He got off the boat at Guyandotte, sick with cholera. He died soon after arriving at Guyandotte. He was buried in the Guyandotte cemetery. 

In 1849, another non-resident of Guyandotte, Harriet "Hannah" Stoddert, 61 year old widow of Senator George W. Campbell of Nashville, Tennessee was traveling to Virginia with her children when she fell ill with cholera and died just a few hours later. She is buried at Nashville City Cemetery next to her husband. 

I discovered a published memoir from a gentleman from St. Louis. In 1850, fearing for his health, he would go to Virginia to join his wife, she had left ahead of him. He made his way to Cincinnati by steamboat, then the next day boarded another boat bound for Pittsburgh, but the Virginia passengers would land at Guyandotte. Many of the passengers were fleeing their home cities due to the cholera epidemic. The gentleman told of how he stayed at a hotel in Guyandotte overnight, and several of the other passengers that were on board with him had fallen ill. His anxiety about cholera kept him up that night, he only fell asleep after he departed Guyandotte by stagecoach to continue his journey on to Virginia.

A newspaper article from the Baltimore Sun in 1854 provided a short listing of cholera epidemic deaths that spanned from Virginia (West Virginia) to Tennessee, citing that two fatal cases of cholera had occurred in Guyandotte. 

Rev. Robert Fox was a traveling preacher from Catlettsburg, Kentucky. He had traveled to Gallipolis in late June of 1873 to preach funerals for cholera victims. Upon his return, he stopped in Guyandotte to preach at the Guyandotte Methodist Episcopal Church, when he fell ill with the sickness. He died shortly thereafter at the home of Andrew J. Keenan. 

The cholera pandemic was frightening for people living in those times. In the early 1800s, people did not know how it was transmitted or even what caused the disease. It wasn't until the mid-1800s that the bacteria that caused cholera was discovered, but it took another 30 years before information on how to fight it was ever published. Cholera was wiping out entire families and hundreds were dying daily in some of the larger cities, and clearly, smaller towns like Guyandotte were not spared. 

The cholera pandemic finally went away, with no new outbreaks in the since 1911. With better sewage and water treatment, quarantines and hygiene practices, cholera was pretty much eliminated in the United States. There have been other widespread epidemics such as Smallpox, Yellow Fever, Typhoid Fever, Scarlet Fever and the Spanish Flu and today's Covid-19. Reading through the articles about the cholera pandemics of the last hundred years, the similarities to today are a little eerie. As they say, history always repeats itself. 

Photo of a grave in the Guyandotte Cemetery. All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley unless otherwise noted.

Andrew J. Keenan House

Located on Main St. in Guyandotte, this home was believed to have been built in the 1820s by William Stone. The home later was purchased by Mark Russell. Russell was the first Gentleman Justice of the County Court; he was also Sheriff. Andrew Keenan purchased the home from the Russell's in 1845. 

Andrew was born in Nicholas County in 1819 and was a saddle maker by trade. He first married in 1838 but his first wife died in 1849. Keenan then married again in 1850 in Cabell County to Sarah Scott. In 1865, he married for the third time after yet again becoming a widower. His third marriage was to Mark Russell's daughter, Melcena. According to census records, it appears that Andrew Keenan married for a fourth and final time in 1867.

On November 10, 1861, Guyandotte was stormed by Confederate troops and a total of 98 Union soldier recruits that were camped in town as well as citizens known to have Union sympathies were captured and taken prisoner during the raid. The Keenan home was used to house these men overnight. The next morning, the men were tied together, two by two, and marched out of town heading to Richmond. 

Andrew Keenan was noted as being an exemplary Christian gentleman. He was a member of the Guyandotte Methodist Episcopal Church, south and he was a leader in that denomination. In 1873, a cholera outbreak that started in New Orleans, reached the Ohio Valley by way of steamboat travel along the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. A preacher by the name of Rev. Robert Fox, had just returned from preaching funeral services for cholera victims in Gallipolis, Ohio. He preached services at the Guyandotte Methodist Episcopal Church upon his return, then fell ill with cholera himself. Rev. Fox died the following day, July 1, 1873 at the home of Andrew Keenan. It is said that during the cholera epidemic, that the Keenan home was used as a temporary hospital for cholera victims. 

The house is one of the oldest in Guyandotte still standing. In the 1980s a fire damaged the interior of the home and destroyed a back addition. During the early 2000s, it housed the KYOVA genealogical society before being vacated and used as a storage building. In recent years it was sold off and has been converted into apartments. The condition of the building has since deteriorated since the above photo was taken in 2011. 

All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley unless otherwise noted. 

Guyandotte High School - A Brief History

The old Guyandotte High School was built in 1893, it was known by many as the Richmond Street School. Although the school was primarily used for high school students, eventually an overflow of elementary school students was also attending.

By 1919, possibly earlier, the school was no longer in use as other larger schools had been built in the area. Huntington High school was opened in 1916 and the old Guyandotte Elementary was opened in 1917.

The school went up for auction and the highest bidder was the Western Star Masonic Lodge #11. The lodge is the oldest in Cabell County and was chartered in 1818. The first meeting was held at the Barboursville court house in 1820, but by 1824 the lodge was moved to Guyandotte. The lodge became dormant by 1826 due to the Morgan Incident. A new charter was 1849, that charter was thought to have been destroyed in 1861 during the Confederate raid on Guyandotte and subsequent burning of much of the town. he original lodge building was located on Guyan Street, near the Third Ave. bridge. Today the building is still in use by the Masonic Lodge. 

Top photo - Guyandotte Masonic Lodge 2020. Bottom photo: Unknown photographer/source of photo. Historic information for the Masonic Lodge summarized from the original context written by Theresa Racer-Cheshire for the Haunted & Historic Guyandotte Tours. All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley unless otherwise noted. 

The Old Rich Creek Baptist Church - Mercer County

This church first captured my attention around 2012 when I photographed it standing along a back road in West Virginia. I was on a short weekend trip to Virginia, and before I left to head home, I wanted to get some photos of the Lake Shawnee amusement park. I took photos of Lake Shawnee and we decided to continue driving on Rt. 19 back to the turnpike so we could explore a little more before we left. We came upon this beautiful yet abandoned church building, we stopped so that I could snap a few photos then we on our way. 

I have some of my favorite photos I have taken on my travels, framed, and hung up on several walls in my home. I have a shot of tombstones lined up on the wall of Colonial Park Cemetery in Savannah, Georgia, a photo from the top of the stairs I climbed inside St. Augustine lighthouse in Florida, an old abandoned farmhouse in Kentucky, and this old church are among my framed favorites. 

Like many of these abandoned places, often I just snap a few photos, but I am left wondering more about their history. Until this week, I had no clue what this building was, its name or history. I decided to share this photo in a Facebook group I belong to and on my Ghosts of Guyandotte Facebook page too, and people started talking! What was just a snapshot on a backroad, years ago, finally has bits and pieces of her story starting to unfold. While I presumed this was a church, its design is not a common one that I have seen around this region. I cannot recall having seen any other church with two front entrances like this one. A comment from a gentleman stated he believed the church entrances were separate for men and women. I suspected he was probably correct and upon doing a little research, discovered it was not uncommon in the 19th century for rural churches to have separate entrances for men and women to enter. They would be seated on opposite sides of the church from one another, men would enter and sit on the right side and women would enter and sit on the left side.

Another gentleman on my page told me that his wife attended this church with her grandmother as a child, and he shared a link with me about the history of this church. What I found out: This particular church building was built in 1898, it was the first church building that the Rich Creek Baptist church had of its own. The church itself was established in 1869, but church meetings were held at the Bethel Meeting House in Mercer County. In 1893, the church meetings were moved to the Spanishburg School House and held there until the new church was built. In 1972, a new church was constructed about a mile away and the church vacated the old building.

Today the church is still standing and it still vacant, I was told it sits on an old farm and is watched over by the farmer. Locals tell me that it has been a used as a hangout spot for teens and young adults in the past, with some even spending the night in the old building. For some however, the church has a spooky vibe and they prefer to stay away. Some say the church may have a darker side, others disagree. I will be interested to find out more if possible. If I come across any new details, I will be sure to update this story.

Old Burlington Jail - Burlington, Ohio

The old jail in Burlington, Ohio has been on the National Register of Historic places since 1978. This was the second jail built in Burlington after the original jail, a log building with clapboard siding, was set on fire by an inmate in 1846. The following year, a new jail was constructed from stone and was used until 1852 when the county seat was moved from Burlington to Ironton, Ohio. 

The old jail was then used as a private residence for many years. By the 1990s, the old jail had been left abandoned and dilapidated. In 2000, a fire destroyed everything except the stone walls. The jail is the last standing government building in Burlington from the time that is served as the Lawrence County seat from1817-1852.

Over the years, there has been some talk of the old jail being haunted, and I do know there have been a few paranormal investigators that have visited the building to search for spirits. I was unable find much information to corroborate the stories, however, I did have one of the investigators that spent an evening there tell me they heard some unusual sounds, one sounding like a lock on a cell door. 

This trip was my first time to stop, get out and photograph the building. Out front there is a large sign says the building is the future site of the Underground Railroad Museum at the Historic Lawrence County Jail. I do not believe that the museum has opened at this time. Regardless, this is a nice stop for any history buff. There are several other historic sites nearby, the Macedonia Baptist Church and the Burlington 37 cemetery are only a few miles away and worth a visit. 

Macedonia Baptist Church - Ohio

This was one of the very first places I explored when I began doing paranormal investigations. One of my former team members told me about this location and how it had long been rumored to be haunted. The evening my old team and I visited, we just walked around the outside of the church and took photos and audio recordings (which really isn't a great thing to do outdoors). We didn't find anything to solidify the rumors of anything paranormal happening at the church that evening, but it is not easy to investigate outside in an uncontrolled environment.

The church has been sitting abandoned since at least my first visit in 2006, I am sure it was abandoned many more years before I ever knew it existed. One could easily pass by this church, thinking it is just another old building that nobody uses anymore, but it is so much more than just an unused church building.

This old church has a very rich history. If you visit, you will notice there is a historical marker on the road in front of the church. This marker tells a brief history of the building.

The church was built in the mid-1800s. A Virginia landowner freed many of his slaves upon his death and provided land for them near Burlington, Ohio. Thirty-two of them settled on the land they were given, which was near a Baptist church. The existing church was a congregation made up of runaway slaves and free negroes. Together, the thirty-two freed slaves and the Baptist congregation built a new church on Macedonia Ridge, which was named Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.



All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley unless otherwise noted. 

Point Pleasant, West Virginia

Due to Covid-19 and travel restrictions, I have not been traveling recently, but I thought that I would share my closer to home (Huntington, WV) favorite day or weekend haunted/historic trips. Once it is safe to get out and about again, this place is worth checking out for any explorer, history lover or paranormal or cryptid hunter or enthusiast. 

Point Pleasant, West Virginia is a small town located at the confluence of the Ohio and Kanawha rivers in Mason County. When passing though, this little town seems any other ordinary small Appalachian town, however, its anything but ordinary. 

If you have never heard of Point Pleasant, WV, you may want to hop on Google for a search (one you are done reading here, of course). You will find links to countless stories, movies, TV shows and books about this area. It is well known to many for its unusual history. I will touch on some of my favorite locations to visit in Point Pleasant, but I can assure you that if you want to find out more that you will not come up short on information!

I live about 40 miles from Pt. Pleasant. I really can't remember my first trip there, but I have visited many times. I can recall the first time I read about Pt. Pleasant and that unusual history I mentioned above: I was around 12 years old and I was heavily interested in strange phenomena, ghosts, UFOs and the like. This was the early 1990s and among my favorite shows was Unsolved Mysteries and Sightings. I would visit the library to pick up books on all sorts of strange and paranormal topics. One book that I read told the story of the Mothman of Point Pleasant, West Virginia. I thought wow! This happened in the state where I live, I was intrigued. The story stuck with me through the years until I was finally able to visit the area for myself. 

Below you will find a list of interesting places you can see for yourself, go on a hunt for Mothman, a self-guided history tour or search for some spooky ghosts.

TNT Area & Mothman - 

The TNT area was formerly a WWII ammunitions manufacturing site. Today the land is a wildlife management area, located just outside of town. This area is where one of the first Mothman sightings occurred in 1966. Reports of a man-sized winged bird with glowing red eyes was spotted in the vicinity of the TNT area. Some believe that Mothman was a military experiment while others believe that he showed up to warn locals of pending disasters. 

Chief Cornstalk Curse - 

Known as Dunmore's War, Native American Chief Cornstalk attempted to block an invasion by the Virginia Militia at the Battle of Point Pleasant, in 1774. He led a force of Shawnee and Mingo warriors, but he was forced to retreat after a fierce battle. As a result, American Indians lost the right to hunt in the area and agreed the Ohio River would be the boundary between Indian land and British colonies. When the American Revolution began a few years later, Cornstalk attempted to keep his people neutral but despite his efforts, he was taken hostage at Fort Randolph during a diplomatic visit. At the fort, Cornstalk and his young son were killed by angry militiamen after one of their men was killed by unknown Indians. Legend has it, as he lay dying, Cornstalk uttered a curse upon the land to those that had murdered he and his son. 

Silver Bridge - 

Nearly two hundred years after Cornstalk's death, December 15, 1967 would bring absolute devastation to the town. The Silver bridge, built in 1928, once spanned the Ohio river from Point Pleasant to Gallipolis, Ohio. During rush hour traffic that December evening, the bridge collapsed, killing 46 people. The failure of a single eye bar was determined to be the cause of the catastrophic collapse. It was one of the deadliest bridge disasters in US history.

Up until the bridge collapse, there had been numerous Mothman sightings in the area that had begun in 1966. Once the bridge collapse happened, the Mothman sightings came to a stop. Some people claimed to have seen Mothman on the bridge just before it fell. Others attribute the curse of Chief Cornstalk to the bridge collapse. A memorial monument stands at the base of where the bridge once stood on Main St. 

Pioneer Cemetery - 

If you like old cemeteries, like I do, Pt. Pleasant's old Pioneer cemetery sits right along Rt. 2 at 9th St. Several Revolutionary War veterans are buried here as well as Dr. Jesse Bennet, who was the first in the country to perform a caesarean section in 1794. There is a historical marker for his gravesite. Want to read more about the cemetery? Visit Theresa's Haunted History of the Tri-State for even more information.

Mothman Museum, Statue & Festival -

The Mothman sightings in Pt. Pleasant may have disappeared, but his legend is still going strong. Mothman has become a constant presence in the town thanks to Mothman Statue that was installed in 2003, which was also the same year the inaugural Mothman festival was held. The festival runs every September and is dedicated to all things Mothman. If you want to learn even more about Mothman, stop by the world's only Mothman Museum, it's easy to find, right next to the Mothman statue on Main St., you can't miss it!

Lowe Hotel - 

Staying overnight in Pt. Pleasant? The Lowe Hotel is where you will want to stay for a unique and potentially haunted experience. Take a step back in time with the décor of this old hotel. The hotel has been part of Pt. Pleasant history since 1901, but it was originally known as the Spencer Hotel. The Lowe family purchased the hotel in 1929 and was renamed. The hotel is a very popular haunted hot spot, with many paranormal groups (some famous!) have explored the halls and rooms of this old hotel. They have captured all sorts of spooky phenomena and have walked away with some scary stories. I have stayed the night at the Lowe, and I also took a history tour and was able to see more of the hotel that the average guests, although we didn't have any paranormal experiences, it was an enjoyable experience. 

All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley, unless otherwise noted. Top photo - Creepy old abandoned house in Pt. Pleasant, taken in 2020 House torn down in 2020 .  Middle photo -TNT area taken in 2006. Bottom photo - Lowe Hotel taken in 2012

Monitor School - Coal Grove, Ohio

I first learned about the old Monitor School in Coal Grove, Ohio around 2006. When I first started up the paranormal group. This is one of those locations that had some extremely vague information listed on the hauntings. Our group got in contact with someone that allowed us permission to check it out the building in the summer of 2007. While we did not find any ghosts during our investigation, we had an enjoyable evening exploring and photographing the old halls of this former school.

The Coal Grove Public School, also known as the Monitor School was built in 1905, it was named for the Monitor Pig Iron Furnace. The school was initially built as the new high school but later became the elementary school. The school closed sometime around 1989 after a new school was built. In 2000, the community attempted to have the building turned into a community center, however, it was purchased by an investor that planned to turn the building into an apartment complex. Again, the community voiced their concerns and wanted the old school to remain as much in its original condition as possible, and it was put up for sale again around 2007. Currently in 2020, I have not found any additional updates for use of the school, other than the fact it is still standing in the community and appears to still be vacant and not in use. 

Reports state that the spirit of a former janitor haunts the building. While we explored every area possible within the building, we found no evidence of any paranormal activity, which was disappointing. The building itself was in pretty poor condition overall, however, structurally it was still good at the time. Areas of the interior were quickly deteriorating, paint and plaster were falling off the walls, and the rooms were covered in bird droppings and dead bats. There were still a few remaining artifacts left behind from the days it was a school. Inside we found an out of tune piano, a ball lying in the floor of one of the classrooms and a photograph of a child who appeared to be in the hospital with a broken leg among other everyday school related items and papers.

This school was one of my first opportunities to explore and investigate an abandoned building. Looking back, I wish I had taken more photos while I had the chance. I would definitely love an opportunity to re-visit this school and explore. I would also love to see the community continue to fight for the school and see it become useful and protected from further decay.








Photos - Top photo taken in 2020. Additional photos taken in 2007. All photos on this site are property of Melissa Stanley/Ghosts of Guyandotte, unless otherwise noted. Historic information was summarized from information provided by Theresa Racer-Cheshire, former historic research manager for Huntington Paranormal.