By REESE AMOROSI
Although American Horror Story: My Roanoke Nightmare recently aired its finale, fans of haunted houses don't have to travel far for a scare. Just 150 miles north of Roanoke, North Carolina, lies Williamsburg, Virginia, and within it, Historic Colonial Williamsburg, an area so reportedly rife with paranormal activity that there are guided ghost tours. While working as a tour guide, author and photographer Tim Scullion was inspired to document sightings, and this led to his latest book, Haunted Historic Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia: with Breakthrough Ghost Photography.
Colonial Williamsburg is a 301-acre living history museum "with more eighteenth-century buildings and homes than any other place in America." By day, reenactors wear period costumes and portray colonial life; by night, visitors gather hoping to witness the afterlife. In Haunted Historic Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, Scullion takes readers on a photographic tour of his multi-year ghost hunt that resulted in thousands of "paranormal images," with 230 of those shots shared in the book. As he visits each of the 43 "creepy locations," Scullion offers a brief history of each property, and then insights about the resident wraiths including Native Americans, slaves, Revolutionary and Civil War soldiers, pirates, spurned lovers, influenza victims, and even horses.
Scullion puts forth that with the right camera, settings and techniques, he can photograph ghosts "in great detail and color." Readers expecting to only see the indistinct orbs and mists that are typical of ghost photography may be surprised to see Scullion's more detailed apparitions: "Geo-lights" (colorful geometric shapes), "Classic Whites" (visible eyes and sometimes nose and mouth), and "Visages" (clearly identifiable faces and features).
Most of the ghosts seem peaceful, but some are mischievous like the poltergeist at Orrell House who unravels toilet paper in the bathroom, or malevolent like the ghosts at the Peyton Randolph House (said to be the most haunted of the Williamsburg properties) who push people down stairs.
Surely skeptics could present convincing arguments against Scullion's spirits, but for true believers, or folks who simply enjoy ghost lore, Scullion is a talented storyteller and Haunted Historic Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia is a spooky, worthwhile read.
Title: Haunted Historic Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia: with Breakthrough Ghost Photography
Author: Tim Scullion
Genre: Religion & Spirituality, Occult & Paranormal, Ghosts & Hauntings
Publisher: Schiffer
Release Date: September 28, 2016
Format: Paperback: 208 pages; 230 color photos
Language: English
ISBN13: 9780764350603
Posted on Tuesday, December 6, 2016
