The story of a shadowy “black ghost” captivated the imagination of New Philadelphians. For about two weeks in March 1914, a neighborhood in the city of New Philadelphia found itself captivated by an unlikely visitor. A mysterious “black ghost” was said to be wandering the neighborhood around Minnich Avenue. Residents discussed the appearance of aContinue reading “The Black Ghost of Minnich Avenue”
Category Archives: Paranormal
The Churchyard Ghost
In November 1904 readers of the New Philadelphia, Ohio Daily Times were treated to a story about a haunted Tuscarawas County church and cemetery. While the newspaper story never mentioned the name of the community or the church itself, it did share some of the stories associated with the haunted location and the effort ofContinue reading “The Churchyard Ghost”
Lights Over Oldtown Valley: The 1964 UFO Sightings
Mysterious lights over Oldtown Valley Road reignited 1960s flying saucer stories. The national obsession with “flying saucers” had quieted down somewhat by 1964. The frenzy of sightings and speculation that began in the late 1940s was replaced with Cold War concerns and cultural shifts. But in the quiet hills north of Port Washington, Ohio, theContinue reading “Lights Over Oldtown Valley: The 1964 UFO Sightings”
Mystery in the Woods: The “UFO” Incident of 1966
In the spring of 1966, as UFO sightings gripped Ohio with intrigue and fear, a strange light near a Tuscarawas County farm sparked an investigation. For several weeks in early 1966 there had been numerous reports in the local newspapers of unidentified flying objects (UFO), including one case in April 1966 where two sheriff deputiesContinue reading “Mystery in the Woods: The “UFO” Incident of 1966″
“Glowing with a White Light”: The Navarre UFO of 1954
While on leave from the United States Navy’s Air Forces in the summer of 1954 a Navarre, Ohio native saw something in the night sky even his knowledge of modern aircraft could not explain. William Sago (1870-?) and his wife Emma (1875-?) immigrated to Pennsylvania from Poland in 1900 and settled in Western Pennsylvania. TheContinue reading ““Glowing with a White Light”: The Navarre UFO of 1954”
The “One Dollar Ghost”
I stumbled across a letter written in 1819 from a Tuscarawas County resident in a Canton, Ohio newspaper that told a fantastical ghost story that I simply had to investigate further. A letter from New Philadelphia, Ohio appeared on the front page of a July 1819 edition of the Canton Ohio Repository newspaper describing aContinue reading “The “One Dollar Ghost””
“To Avoid Ridicule From Others”: 1961 Gnadenhutten UFO
Having gone through a number of the Project Blue Book files available online, I decided instead to look at local UFO sightings that have been reported to groups dedicated to documenting such occurrences. The following account of an encounter from 1961 was reported to one of these organizations by an anonymous individual I will callContinue reading ““To Avoid Ridicule From Others”: 1961 Gnadenhutten UFO”
“Evaluated as Unknown”: A UFO Sighting in Carrollton
I thought I would pay another visit to the Project Blue Book files to see if any other local UFO sightings were investigated by the United States Air Force. The following is one such sighting from neighboring Carroll County in July 1956. The young doctor and his wife were entertaining their two young nieces atContinue reading ““Evaluated as Unknown”: A UFO Sighting in Carrollton”
“Witches at their Old Tricks”: The Stone Creek Witch of 1870
When strange happenings occur within a community, the public’s perception of the validity of those happenings often hinge on the credibility of the witnesses. The family in this case was a well known and respected family and their unusual experience in the spring of 1870 was documented in the local newspaper. Henry Fisher (1795-1882) andContinue reading ““Witches at their Old Tricks”: The Stone Creek Witch of 1870″
The Goshen Road Ghost
Ghost stories capture the imagination of the reader perhaps more than most, and local ones even more so. A ghost story is more fun to read when you are familiar with an area, its history, its lore, and landmarks. During the spring of 1904, the south side of New Philadelphia made the papers when twoContinue reading “The Goshen Road Ghost”
