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Ghosts of
Georgetown’s Square
PHOTOS BY ANNE MARSHALL
The ghost of Luther Saint Paul Miller, the building’s former owner, is thought to roam the premises of Mesquite Outfitters in
downtown Georgetown. People have also reported disembodied footsteps.
By Doug Lytton pseudoscience. Despite centuries of in- tours are conducted by Danelle Houck,
vestigation, there is no scientific evidence Education Director of the Williamson Mu-
Each year as Halloween approaches, that any location is inhabited by spirits seum, Bob Brownfield and Linda Turner.
familiar creatures creep out of deep, of the dead.
dark crevices. If you look around, it THE GHOST HUNTERS
won’t be long until you see a pale appari- Regardless of science, people believe
tion trying to put a good scare into you. ghosts are indeed real. Experts claim Last August, Austin Paranormal investi-
ghosts are the most common paranor- gated sightings on the Square. Danelle ex-
Ghosts have been around for a long, long mal belief in the world. Some estimate plained that ghost hunters try to remain
time. From the Bible to Shakespeare’s that as many as one half of Americans objective and in many instances attempt
Macbeth, you’ll find ghosts mentioned in believe in ghosts. Researchers point to to disprove reported ghost sightings. The
thousands of stories. They’re so prevalent the presence of over 2,000 amateur ghost hunters brought 17 cameras, electromag-
that they actually have their own genre— hunting groups in the United States as netic readers (EMFs), temperature gauges
the ever popular “ghost story.” It’s only further proof of the popularity of ghosts in and divining rods, the tools of their trade.
natural to wonder about what happens American culture. Why do so many people They started at 7 p.m. and hunted until 4
when someone dies. Does any part of believe in ghosts? One reason is that many a.m. If an event occurs that is not easily
that person live on? Could the spirit hang people claim to have personal experiences explained objectively, it is described as
around this world and interact with the with ghosts. You don’t have to look far to “unexplained.” There have been several
living? Who wouldn’t want to believe that find people who believe that, at one time unexplained paranormal encounters in
a loved one might remain close? or another, they’ve felt a presence. the buildings on the Square. Some build-
ings have a recurring ghost while others
The overwhelming consensus of main- It shouldn’t surprise anybody to learn that have unusual phenomenon such as doors
stream science is that ghosts do not exist. Georgetown’s Square has several build- locking and unlocking by themselves or
Their existence is impossible to prove, ings that have had paranormal activity for chairs being rearranged when no one was
and ghost hunting has been classified as more than 100 years. Each October, ghost in the building. (See sidebar, next page.)
40 | SUNRAYS OCTOBER 2017 ONLINE: SCTEXAS.ORG
