Investigation Date: 07-14-2007
Site: Private Residence
Location: Elmore, MN
Number of Investigations: 1
Evidence: EVP's

Reason for Investigation Request

This case was referred to us by TAPS. The owner’s sister had emailed TAPS regarding some of the activity that had been happening in the house. The owner mostly wanted a group to come investigate to verify some of the activity they had experienced. During our preliminary interview, we found out that the owner has been remodeling the house for the past two years. When asked if an uptake in activity was noticed once they began remodeling, the owner stated there was not much of a difference and that the activity had started well before the renovations took place.

The owner has lived at this residence for the past four years. She began living there with her boyfriend at the time and the boyfriend’s three year old son (we later found out the boyfriend is a relative of the man who originally built the house). The owner stated her most unusual experience in the house happened late one night when she was alone at home. The main door to the house, which had previously been closed, came opened and slammed shut. The owner then heard footsteps coming up the stairs. She turned from where she was standing to look around the corner to the stairs and no one was there. The owner said she checked the house as well and she was still alone.

Other activity in the house includes lights turning on and off, pictures falling off the wall, and the sound of books falling. Footsteps have also been heard in the attic and around the owner’s bed at night although no one was there. Loud banging noises, like that of a window, have been heard even though there was no natural cause for a window to rattle such as the wind outside or a semi going down the road. It was also reported to us that the owner has heard the sound of someone “trapped” in one of the closets upstairs, trying to get out. The owner also stated she has seen orbs or light anomalies in her bedroom at night. Doors have opened and closed on their own as well as furniture moving on its own accord. One of the dogs the owner previously had refused to come inside the house the entire time it lived there.

Research and Background on the Property

Our team was not able to dig up much information about the history of this particular house. The only history we do know of the property is from the owner. The house was built in the 1930’s by Lee Cordell. It is a nice size farm house with five bedrooms and a barn. Cordell told his girlfriend that he built the house for her. Upon seeing the size of the house, the girlfriend told Cordell he was crazy if he thought she was going to fill the house with children and left him. Cordell finished the house, moved in, and never married. He died of natural causes in the basement many years later.

Investigation Details

Weather Conditions
Temperature: 72 °F
Dew Point: 53.9°
Wind: 15 mph
Moon: 1% Full

We had a team of six members for this investigation. The owner and her sister were also present in the house that night. Our group did not have many personal experiences and by the end of the investigation, the consensus was it ended up being a pretty quiet night all around.

It should be noted that while investigating the owner’s bedroom, one team did notice that when a car drove by on the road, the whole room seemed to light up as there were no blinds on the windows. There was also a large standing mirror in the room and it is possible that if the light from a car hit the mirror at a precise angle, it could appear to be orbs going across the room when in fact just a reflection from the mirror. Although the owner stated she did not remember seeing or hearing a car pass by when she had seen the light anomalies in her room, it could perhaps be an explanation for the occurrence.

While investigating the back bedroom upstairs, one team member did feel anxious while standing in the closet where noises were reported by the owner. The investigator said she had the sense of “foreboding” while standing in this closet and felt she had to leave it immediately. The other team member with her went into the closet and he stated he felt disorientated. Causes for this could perhaps be the acoustics in the room or some slight claustrophobia. No noises from the closet were heard at all during the time of our investigation, but we did capture one of our EVP’s while in the area of the closet.

When investigating the living room, one of our members had set her cell phone on a nearby table. The cell phone lit up a few times on its own for no reason. No messages, text, or alarms went off on the cell phone at the time. This same member reported twice hearing a popping sound coming from behind the TV in this area as well. The source for the noise could not be found.

The most activity occurred while investigating the basement. While video taping down there, the light from the camera turned off on its own six times. When our members asked if any spirit was there with them could make the light turn off again, it shut off on three separate occasions after asking the question. We captured an EVP from the basement as well.

Final Analysis

Although we did catch a few EVP’s from this property, we did not have many personal experiences or other evidence to support the house being truly haunted. Our initial conclusion is the activity the owner has experienced could perhaps be the direct result of residual energy. TCPS is more than willing to go back and do another investigation if the owner wishes. We will keep you updated on the case if this occurs.