The Black Vault - Legends Speak Of Haunted Long Island

While the infamous "Amityville Horror" house has found its way into the pages of Long Island legend, it is not the only reportedly haunted location in Suffolk County.

According to the Long Island Ghost Hunters, an organization dedicated to the study of paranormal happenings in the area, several sites around Suffolk County have histories or legends of hauntings surrounding them.

The former Kings Park Psychiatric Center is rumored to be one such site. According to the New York State Office of Mental Health, the center opened its doors in 1885 and closed in 1996. According to LIGH cofounder Nikki Turpin, the name was originally the Kings Park Lunatic Asylum.

"Original treatment for patients included rest, relaxation and manual labor," said Turpin. "This changed when the population of patients rose beyond the hospital's capacity. Treatments became more intense and extreme with such therapies as electric shock and lobotomies becoming the norm in many hospitals."

According to Turpin, the legends state that hundreds of souls of the mentally ill who died from torture still linger on the property. The majority of these spirits are said to haunt the lower levels and the underground tunnels.

"One legend is that of Marie, a 17-year-old girl who died while undergoing electric shock. Another is that of a man who was brutally beaten and left in small room in the underground for several days. Both are said to walk the tunnels," Turpin said.

Visitors to the center have claimed to experience dizziness, feelings of unexplained terror, cold spots, the feeling of being watched and banging sounds. "One young man reported to me that he saw a misty form and dim lights moving within the windows of building 136 or the medical center," said Turpin. "There are stories of screaming voices and tearful sobbing said to be associated with building 15, also known as Wisteria House. I was even told one tale about a phantom dog seen at the Grand Stand," Turpin said.

"There are also tales that relate to a mass grave cemetery, said to be located in the northern area of the center. It is in this area where ghosts are said to chase the living away in an attempt to warn them," Turpin said.

Patchogue is home to another ghostly legend, the story of the "Hanging Tree." The tree is located in a patch of woods along Grove Street with a branch hanging over the Swan River. According to Lizzette Geigel, Turpin's partner and cofounder of LIGH, "Legend says that a woman named Mary was accused of being a witch and hanged from the tree after a makeshift trial was held. Another legend tells of a man committing suicide by hanging himself from the tree."

Reports, according to Geigel, state that a spectral noose can be seen hanging from the branch and a "spooky presence" is felt there.

The legends surrounding this location may, however, not be true at all. "Whatever the legend there has been a decided lack of evidence that this legend has any basis in fact," Geigel said. "Research has found no evidence that anything ever happened there."

According to HauntedLongIsland.com, a website that also chronicles local paranormal activity, there have been two witch trials that initiated on Long Island. The first, the Garlick Trial, came from East Hampton in 1657 and the second, the Ralph and Mary Hall Trial, came from Setauket in 1664. Neither trial took place on Long Island and all defendants were found innocent.

"Of course this does not mean that vigilante justice was not practiced or recorded in history," Geigel said.

Another fabled haunted spot is the Wickham Farmhouse in Cutchogue. According to Turpin, the farmhouse is reported to have been established around 1710. "The tale I've heard is that in 1854 James and Frances Wickham were murdered in their bedroom one night," Turpin said. "The weapon used was an axe, which is consistent in the tales. My understanding is as the years went by it happened again, this time with a young servant being the victim."

According to Turpin, the house displays the typical signs of haunting, such as cold spots and odd noises. This house also has had reports of a visible ghost that returns to the bedroom of the murder. The ghost is reported to carry an axe with him, Turpin said.

Bohemia's Normandy Inn is rumored to be the home of a ghost named Maria, although some refer to her as Sarah.

According to Turpin, Maria "was brutally strangled to death in the upstairs back bedroom when the place was a speakeasy. It is said that it is she who has haunted the place ever since her death."

Reports state that Mary has been known to knock on guests' doors at night and disappear, leaving a slight wind and a chill behind. According to Turpin, "Other strange stories of weird phenomena are cold spots, whispering, strange sounds and shadowy figures that would move around the kitchen. Footprints seem to appear in the carpeting, especially in winter, although no one has treaded in those areas."

Although the reports vary as to who actually found them, it is reported, Turpin said, that a pile of unidentified bones was discovered in the basement during renovations. "Whoever it was went for help and upon their return they found the bones had disappeared," Turpin said.

The Long Island Ghost Hunters' website contains stories submitted by readers from around the county about paranormal experiences they have suffered. Stories range from ghostly harbingers of death to a kindly spectral grandfather who would tuck a young girl in at night.

For more information on the Long Island Ghost Hunters or paranormal activity on Long Island, visit www.longislandghosthunters.com or HauntedLongIsland.com.

ŠSuffolk Life Newspapers 2003

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