The Six Haunted Places of “Stranded”

One of the haunted places featured on “Stranded” – Image from the “Stranded” site on Syfy.

I wrote about Stranded back in November as one of the new crop of paranormal “reality” shows debuting on Syfy this year. Well, its time has come. Stranded will debut on Syfy on February 27 at 9/8 Central.

It looks like it could be good. As I stated before, it reminds me of Scariest Places on Earth. I liked that show.

Josh Gates is among the masterminds behind Stranded. Along with Brad Kuhlman and Casey Brumels of Ping Pong Productions, and Jason Blum for Blumhouse (which produces the Paranormal Activity franchise and Insidious and Sinister). They’re arming groups of three with cameras to self-record a stay in one of six different haunted places.

So where are the “(haunted?) locations” that the “normal people in PARAnormal situations” are going to be stranded in? Stranded‘s site has them neatly laid out under their Haunted Locations page.

Each haunted place includes an “Isolation” description to explain why someone might get the sense of feeling isolated, or stranded, there. The descriptions also include the original use of the property, the size, and reports of the paranormal activity experienced there.

Here are the haunted places Stranded will take us to in its premier season:

1. Star Island – Isle of Shoals, New Hampshire

This is a big property (a 50 acre island) that boasts 32 buildings, among which is a 50,000 square foot hotel with 200 rooms.

I checked out Star Island’s website to get a better sense of what it’s all about. It’s listed in the National Register of Historic Places and has been owned and operated by the nonprofit Star Island Corporation since 1916. Every summer it is the hosting spot for a multitude of conferences.

It can also be enjoyed just for the day. You take a boat from Rye Harbor, Portsmouth or Newburyport to Gosport Harbor where, according to the website, “the Isles of Shoals offer a glimpse of life as it was in the nineteenth century.”

As far as the paranormal activity reported there, the Stranded website lists the following:

• Native Americans warned the colonists to avoid the island, fearing it was home to an evil that was “not of this earth”.

• During the Revolution War, a family here lost their young boy when he slipped on the rocks and died.

• Visitors have heard singing in the island chapel and the echoes of a priest’s angry sermon.

• Phantom light resembling a ship ablaze are often seen in the waters around Star Island.

That first one is pretty intriguing. Where did they think the evil was from? Outerspace? Another dimension? And what happened to cause them to think the place was evil to begin with?

2. “Seaview Terrace” Carey Mansion – Newport, Rhode Island

When we jaunted to Newport a couple of years back, we stopped in the visitor’s center. There was a big electronic board displaying all the various tours and things to do in Newport. Ghost tours were on there. One for Old Town Ghost Tours and for the haunted Belcourt Castle tour. I do not remember hearing about Seaview Terrace, but I’m excited to learn more about it from Stranded.

Like so many of the millionaire cottages on Newport, the Carey Mansion started off as a private summer retreat. It later became a boarding school. The property sits on 20 acres and has its own chapel. A nun was said to have hung herself in the chapel and her spirit is thought to still hang around.  (Bad nun pun intended.)

Several girls also went missing when the property was used as a boarding school. Perhaps some of the activity can be attributed to them? Or are their disappearances just an intriguing part of the mansion’s history? It is, however, thought the spirit of the late Mrs. Bradley, a former owner, still lingers there.

3. West Virginia Penitentiary – Moundsville, West Virginia

 

I consider this among the “Big Boys” of haunted places. (Other such haunted places include the Whaley House, the Stanley Hotel, Waverly Hills Sanatorium, Eastern State Penitentiary, the Myrtles, etc.) Lots of people have claimed to experience activity here. Stranded’s site does such a nice job of listing some of these  reports, I copy and pasted them below rather than trying to recreate the wheel:

• During operation, there were 998 documented deaths within these walls, including 94 hangings and electrocutions.
• Many died during experimental treatments in the psych ward, or at the hands of guards.
• Prisoner Red Snyder was stabbed 37 times in his cell and his spirit is said to violently haunt the North cellblock.
• Inmate R.D. Wall was stabbed and sliced up in the basement. To this day, this apparition can be seen roaming the pitch-black tunnels beneath the compound.
• The chapel in the rec yard is said to be home to a violent phantom priest, and an infamous “shadow man” has been photographed lurking the halls.

I’m thinking whichever team was lucky enough to get put here for an investigation is going to treat the audience to an entertainingly scary time. At least I hope so.

4. Burn Brae Manor – Glen Spey, New York

Of all six Haunted Locations featured on Stranded’s site, this one has the second most accounts under its “Reports” section. For such a charming looking place from the outside, it apparently harbors a lot of activity.

One of the suspected ghosts is Margaret MacKenzie. She was the daughter of the original owner and lost her baby during childbirth. She was apparently so distraught about it, she hung herself from one of the property’s trees. Some have claimed to see her looking in the windows or seeing her body hanging in the tree.

The report that disturbs me most is the dolls that are on the property. Some have said to see them blink their eyes on their own and move their heads all by themselves. Eeeek!

I visited Burn Brae Manor’s site and was immediately delighted to find a couple of cool things:

1. They are very open about their paranormal activity. They have a Paranormal Research link on their site with info about when Ghost Hunters investigated there.
2. Their main page is artwork by an artist whose work I adore: Lew Lehrman. For Christmas one year I even got one of his haunted prints as a present.

5. Three Valley Chateau – Revelstoke, British Columbia

Okay, I just have to start out by saying I LOVE the name Revelstoke. I have never heard of this town or hotel before, but I would love, love, love to go there some day. For one because it’s an excuse to head back to Canada. I’m obsessed with our neighbors to the north. For another, OMG! It looks gorgeous there and it’s haunted. Come on. That’s a win-win if I ever heard of one.

Here’s a description of this haunted place from the Three Valley website:

Nestled between the clear waters of Three Valley Lake and sheer cliffs of the Monashee Mountains, Three Valley Lake Chateau is an extraordinary Revelstoke resort destination.

Right beside the hotel is a Heritage Ghost Town. It’s made up of over 20 buildings that were moved from locations from around Canada. Some believe any ghosts that inhabited these buildings came with them when they were moved.

For as beautiful as it sounds, it also sounds terrifying. The Stranded site lists several things under the “Reports” section for this haunted location, but here’s the three in particular that caught my eye:

• At night a strange fog rolls over the river and seems to embrace the hotel. Guests looking out into the mist have seen terrifying apparitions including faces that press against the glass.

• The sound of fingers clawing at the windows is also reported.

• Several guests have passed away inside the hotel, and a number of rooms are considered haunted.

Ghosts don’t really scare me. At least, none have yet. Startled, yes, but never terrified. However, I think I’d be deeply disturbed if I saw fog ghost faces pressing against the glass. Yowser! (Still, that only makes this place more appealing. Must visit!)

6. Yorktown Memorial Hospital – Yorktown, Texas

This place sounds creepy. Like a season of American Horror Story could be set here. It seems a real horror story played out here. Over 2,000 people lost their lives here.

Now, to be fair, is that a high number of people for a hospital? People do die in hospitals after all.

But it must’ve been the scene of an inordinately high numbers of deaths, not to mention unfortunate ones. Such as a junkie who is now thought to haunt the place by tapping on windows and ringing a bell. There was also a murder in the basement. A female counselor and a patient were beaten to death by a man. Some claim to still hear the attack happening.

It’s also the site of violent ghosts. No wonder it appealed as a destination for the Ghost Adventures crew. There are reports of people being punched and kicked. I know how Zak in particular has a penchant for rough ghosts.

Are you looking forward to Stranded? Which of the haunted location(s) intrigue you the most?