Rumor has it that St. Petersburg is scattered with Native American burial mounds, spirits lurking in downtown’s Vinoy Renaissance Resort, and that old Greenwood Cemetery is haunted by the ghost of Beulah Acklin.
But one of the city’s most popular lores? The ghost of beat author Jack Kerouac, who has been known to haunt Haslam’s book store on 2025 Central Ave.
Founder of the local paranormal group S.P.I.R.I.T.S. and USF St. Petersburg alumni, Dr. Brandy Spark, conducted an investigation on Haslam’s paranormal activity. She captured a light fog image with her black and white film camera.
According to Stark, “A ghost is a natural entity that has died, crossed the supernatural barrier, and returned to the natural world as a supernatural being.”
It is theorized, that when a ghost manifests, energy is emitted and, according to Stark, can sometimes cause temperature fluctuations.
Stark uses qualitative data such as sight, smell and feel to record “supposed” hauntings and phenomena. She recommends using a high speed (400) black and white film camera and an electromagnetic field (EMF) meter to track paranormal activity.
Stark also said personal accounts, feelings and dreams are important to document. She suggests keeping a journal and researching the history of an area where a presence is felt.
During her time at USFSP, Stark wrote stories for the Crow’s Nest in October 1999 on the campus haunted lore: The ghost of Nelson Poynter and the haunting of the William’s house.
“Well, there are many rumors about the house,” longtime university employee J.M. “Sudsy” Tschiderer told Stark. “One of them being the spirit of a woman in a dancing gown. She is supposed to be the spirit of the mother of a former owner.”
According to Stark, the sudden death of Nelson Poynter, a stroke just hours after a groundbreaking event on campus in 1978, and strange behavior of an old elevator in Bayboro Hall during 1999, was enough evidence for some to believe that Poynter’s ghost lurked about.
Stark is now a humanities professor at St. Petersburg College. She conducts investigations with S.P.I.R.I.T.S. as a community service, often by homeowner request.
Information:
S.P.I.R.I.T.S. of Season Ghost Tour
Patty’s and Friends Antique Village Mall
1241 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. St N
Oct. 24 from 7-9 p.m.
