Whispers Estate

PARANORMAL INVESTIGATION - WHISPERS ESTATE

FURTHER INVESTIGATION - WHISPERS ESTATE B&B

Five graves reportedly fill the backyard while eerie voices and mysterious happenings greet visitors.

It's all a part of the charm of Whispering Estates, a bed and breakfast located in the heart of one of Mitchell's most desirable neighborhoods. And it's part of what has ghost hunters and others coming back, time and time again.

For Jarret Marshall, who moved to Mitchell three years ago from Bloomington after purchasing the century-old home, the voices, ghosts and haunted happenings just add to the charm of the eloquently decorated place near some of Mitchell's most historic homes on Warren Street.

"People who don't believe in anything, rethink everything after staying here," Marshall said.

The haunted activity started after Marshall, who is trained in historic home renovations, started breathing new life into the home once occupied by Dr. John and Jessie Gibbons, who lived there until their deaths in 1944 and 1934, respectively. The physician used two rooms as his office for at least three decades.

He didn't know the home was haunted when he bought it to restore.

It was something he learned firsthand.

"I could tell the wall that separated the parlor from the front hallway was not original," Marshall said. "I found pillars in the basement that fit that space perfectly, so I tore down the false wall and opened up the parlor. That's when I found the original pocket doors hidden behind molding."

That's when soot and damage from a previous fire landed in his lap. And it's the first time he experienced something he couldn't explain.

"The door started shaking like someone wanted in, so I went to answer it thinking it was someone in my family. But when I opened the door, no one was there," Marshall said. "It just continued from that point. I never really believed in this stuff before, and I didn't tell anyone about it for the longest time. Now, it's normal. The more I am here, the more it happens and the more I get used to it. It's like having a family here - you almost begin to feel the connection."

Several apparitions have been felt in the home by different people, but the strongest is the little girl whom Marshall believes is named Rachel.

"It's one of the only places I've gone or that I've done that you can ask a question (to the ghosts) and get an audible answer back," said Keith Age, who is using the house for a documentary he is filming for the SciFi channel titled "Children from the Grave."

"It takes a lot for me to believe that there's some activity somewhere, but when you get an audible answer back in different tones... it's not hard to believe."

Age, representing the Louisville Ghost Hunters Society, and several other ghost hunters from different organizations have descended upon the home frequently to get a peek at the eerie activities that include voices, knocking, moving objects and shadow people.

"I've had to question myself on more than one occasion," Marshall said. "We're out in the middle of nowhere in this little town. Why would this house be active and not the next? It's kind of interesting to me because I think the house is doing it. I think this house feels that it was here to help people.

"I think that what started off as this great life for this couple ended up being quite traumatic with a baby dying and the children dying. I think Rachel was a very strong little girl, and that's why she is a very strong apparition here now."

Do the haunted happenings ever scare Marshall?

"I've been freaked out a couple of times, and that's only when I am caught off-guard," he said. "The mind's a powerful thing, it really is. But when I walked in here, it felt like I was home. It felt like the house was sad, like it needed me. It's almost as if the house is waking up again. It's recreating itself."

HISTORY, LEGENDS AND LORE - WHISPERS ESTATE

Rachael died in a fire in Whispers Estate. Although no formal paperwork exists (considering the date/era, this is hardly suspicious), rumors persist that Dr John and Jessie Ruth Gibbons adopted Rachael and her twin brother, Enis.

The original owners of the house, Dr John and Jessie Gibbons reportedly adopted abandoned/orphaned children. One of these children, a 10-year old girl named Rachael, started a fire in the front parlor, being badly burned, and died 2 days later in one of the upstairs bedrooms. But, you can still hear, and sometimes see, her running around the house today.

A 10-month infant, Elizabeth, died in the master bedroom of unknown causes, but there's still the scent of baby power, and you can sometimes still hear her cries.

Jessie died in that same bedroom after a 2 week bout with pneumonia. Guests sleeping in that room often awake to labored breathing and coughing. Some even report feeling as if someone is sitting on their chest. The most common paranormal activity in this room is the closet doorknob will frequently jiggle for a few moments, stop suddenly, and the closet door will pop open. The maximum reported count for repeatable occurrences is 5 within a couple minutes. this of course required persons in the room to close the door each time.

Dr Gibbons was a prominent doctor in town, having his office in the 1st floor rooms in the house. Given the time period and medical field, it is likely many patients died there during his practice of ~20 years.

Stories of subsequent owners/occupants suggest others have encountered their own demise, such as a gentlemen in the 50s/60s that died in the upstairs bathroom, a young boy that died from falling down the front staircase(recently spoke with the relatives of this little boy; got name and keywords), and more.

In 2006, The previous owner bought the house after being vacant for a few years. During its restoration, strange activity started to occur. Activity in the house continued, and even increased, subsequently earning the name 'Whispers Estate' after guests repeatedly reported hearing disembodied voices whispering in their ears.

Since 2006, the house has been investigated by numerous paranormal groups as well as visited by psychics ">Doctor's Unethical Practices: Legend/Lore

We don't know if this is fact or not, but multiple psychics that have cold-visited the house (not knowing any details of the location they are entering), have stated the doctor had performed a number of unethical practices including, but limited to; taking personal liberties with female patients, abortions (remember, this was ~100 years ago), unneeded amputations, etc...

The doctor was also reportedly a voyeur, peeking in on female patients, having upto 10 mistresses at a time - while married to Jessie, adopting children which his mistresses bore.

There is even one allegation that Doctor John Asa Gibbons was intimate with a slave/servant. Subsequently, this line of questioning during an EVP session resulted in a response the questioner was not expecting; he was attacked by what we presume to be the Doctor, leaving multiple scratch marks on his neck.

Big Black: Legend/Lore

Multiple psychics have stated he's a large humanoid entity 'not of this world'.

From this, a lot of people would conclude he's a demon. I do not agree with this, though. He/It could simply be another race from another planet (look, if you're going to believe in the existence of ghosts, or the paranormal in general, then alien races have to be included, right?)

Sources:

www.michigansotherside.com
www.tmnews.com
www.hauntedindiana.com
www.whispersestate.com

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