Today’s post isn’t about a haunted place but rather about haunted items. I’ve traveled to many haunted locations all over the nation; I enjoy the exploration through history that goes along with walking these locations. As a history buff, I enjoy collecting many items from antique stores. My husband can’t stand all of the “junk” I bring home but that doesn’t seem to stop me. My favorite collection is my Civil War collection. I have witness wood from battles, fired bullets from Gettysburg, buttons from the soldier’s uniforms, cords from their hats, a shoe from an infantry man, a sword from an officer as well as a bayonet. All of these items were used in battle (though maybe not the sword, it seems more of a ceremonial sword). With the exception of the sword and hat cord, each were dug from areas near or on the battlefields (legally, and long before my time).
My bayonet is an interesting piece. I bought it in November, not long after my visit to Gettysburg. It was dug on a battlefield in Maryland where the Battle of Boonsboro took place. This battle took place between cavalry units during their retreat from Gettysburg where they had just engaged in vicious battle. I’m not sure what happened to the owner of the bayonet (though I can certainly guess considering it was dug out of the ground of a battlefield) nor do I know if he was Union or Confederate, all I know is that this was dug there and in perfect condition, though a bit weathered.
The first night that I had the bayonet, I was fast asleep until I was suddenly jolted away by my cat hissing. This is a cat that hardly ever makes a noise, so I was a bit surprised. I looked up to see a shadow standing over my bed looking down. I couldn’t make out a face, but I could definitely tell by the tilt of its head that it was looking down. A few seconds later, it completely vanished, and I immediately started to rationalize the experience as a dream. I looked at the clock to see it was a little after one but there was no way I was going back to sleep, so I grabbed my Kindle and prepared for a long night.
The next morning my husband, who was sleeping in our youngest son’s room (we had been taking turns sleeping in there trying to get him used to his new room), told me he had the strangest dream. He explained that he dreamt of a soldier with a bayonet rushing through battle and ultimately was killed. He then said that the dream flashed to the soldier standing over me while I was asleep before abruptly ending. I told him about what I thought was a dream and our cat’s reaction to it. We were not convinced it was a haunting yet, maybe just overactive imaginations?
Over the next few days little things would happen in my room. Things would not be where I left them, but in an entirely different location. It wasn’t much so I didn’t think too much of it. Then one night, about a week after getting the bayonet, I was laying in bed watching tv, my husband was on midnight's and my kids were asleep, when the tv shut off. I used the remote to try and turn it back on, but it wouldn’t. I got up to examine it only to see that the plug had come out of the outlet. I plugged it back in and laid back down. Not even twenty seconds later it was off again. I plugged it in again, this time making sure it was secure and not somehow a faulty outlet, and then laid back down. Off it went again. I was tired and annoyed but not scared, so I just looked over to the steamer trunk I keep the bayonet in and snapped “knock it off!” After that, the tv stayed on. About 30 minutes later, I was still awake and still watching the tv when the tv started changing channels rapidly. I couldn’t get it to stop. Finally, it stopped on a blank channel and then turned off completely. I shot up out of the bed so quick I practically flew to that trunk to grab the bayonet. I pulled it out and took it downstairs to examine it.
As I got down the stairs, my three dogs of course greeted me, but upon seeing the bayonet ran out of the room like someone was chasing them. They were terrified of it. I went back upstairs to grab the sword to see if they were scared of that too, but they only sniffed it and laid down at complete ease. Once I picked up the bayonet again, they went wild and ran off again. It’s not like I was chasing them with it or holding it in a threatening manner, just simply holding it and it scared them completely. I didn’t know what else to do so I just started talking to it. I felt like a complete idiot but what else could I do? I essentially said that we need to come to an agreement where he (?) left me alone or he was spending the rest of his paranormal days haunting a garbage dump.
Since then, I haven’t really had any experiences. Sometimes it sounds like someone is walking up and down the stairs or around my room. Sometimes my cat runs off and hides for no apparent reason. But mostly, everything is back to normal.
Moral of the story make sure you know what you are buying or you may end up with a little bit of a bonus gift and possibly a rise in blood pressure.