April 4, 2007

Haunted Red Brick Building

Rate this encounter:[an error occurred while processing this directive] Mickie Whisenant, Pflugerville, Texas, July 2002

The following is a recollection of events that occurred in July of 2002 at Capital Memorial Parks Cemetery in Pflugerville, Texas; and although the recollection reads like horror fiction, it was very real to those who witnessed some form of paranormal activity.

The old, two-story red brick office building still stands at the northern end of several acres that compose the Capital Memorial Parks cemetery complex, where business matters, customer services, comfort, and support were sought as far back as sixty years ago. But now, shrouded in mystery as tales of the paranormal surround it, it serves only as a storage area for aged documents and office furniture no longer needed. Not only has progress and the need for expansion played a great role in the fate of this small building, but unexplained phenomena has also contributed to the lack of normal human activity within its walls. Normal human activity ceases upon entry into this shell of a building, where frequent meetings and research have become nonexistent as panic stricken employees lose the ability to reason, forcing them to flee the area in a sudden terrified state of uncontrollable fear brought on by some unknown force that seems to occupy the red brick structure.

Surfacing among these cemetery employees are tales of doors locking mysteriously, hair being pulled, and the image of some spectral entity imprinted on a front window screen where the shutters have long since become dislodged from their original positions.

All this piqued my curiosity, so I decided to investigate.

It was a hot day in July 2002 when Regina and I arrived at the old red brick building on the Capital Memorial Park cemetery complex at approximately 1 PM. The doors to the building remain locked at all times, so in order to get a feel for the place, we walked around the entirety of the two-story structure, observing every window, door, and crevice until we were assured that nothing seemed unusual or out of place. We then decided to leave. Suddenly another car pulled up; a man got out, unlocked the door to the building, and went inside. We waited for him to come outside, anxious to seek permission to enter the red structure. Soon, he emerged from the building, his arms full of folders and papers, so we asked if we could go inside and look around. The man agreed, so the three of us entered the building, a building filled with boxes, file cabinets, old office furniture, and a musty smell. We examined every room on the lower level, searching for signs of anything out of the ordinary, and then we proceeded to the stairs leading to the second level, where Regina sensed an evil presence. So, with Regina and the gentleman standing at the base of the stairs, I slowly ascended the stairs alone, alone in my search for evidence of paranormal activity. Upon my arrival to the second floor, I found a kitchenette and a couple of small offices where papers were scattered in disarray. As I entered one abandoned office, it became quite clear that something was occupying it; for unlike the musty odor of the lower level, this room reeked of an odor so foul that it must be one of decay. I wasted no time descending the stairs and telling the other occupants to get out as quickly as possible; my intuition and fear dictated something amiss in the building.

After the three of us were safely outside with the door securely locked behind us, Regina pointed out the broken shutter and screen at the front of the building; imprinted in the screen was what appeared to be the gaunt, angered face of a ghoul, a ghoul trying to force its way out through the front window screen. Was the odor in the building and the impression on the screen a warning to us to stay out? Were we being chased out of the building by some unseen force? I am not certain what happened, but of one thing I am certain, I will never set foot in that red brick building again.