August 17, 2007
Civil War Soldier in My Bedroom
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Austin Thomson, Waukesha, Wisconsin, December 2005
We had just moved into a very large, and also very old Victorian home. We
were expecting to see things and hear things because we were aware of the
fact that our house used to be a resting point for wounded Civil War
soldiers. They were stationed here to get their wounds healed and rest until
they returned to good health, but the ones who didn't make it are the ones
who I believe I saw and heard.
My first encounter was one of the most frightening things I have ever
experienced. It was about 2:00 AM and I was lying in my bed trying to get
some sleep. Everything was normal -- it was the average winter night. At
about 2:10 AM things started getting weird. Desperate to get some sleep, I
was still lying in my bed, and that's when I heard light tapping coming from
the computer room. I really didn't think anything of it until it got louder
and louder. I sat up and as soon as I did, it stopped, so I laid back down.
Within two minutes it started up again, but it was closer -- I was starting
to get scared. It was getting faster and faster, and louder and louder. The
tapping stopped then suddenly I heard a sound like a fingernail scarping
along the hall coming closer and closer to my bedroom. I could tell that
whatever this thing was got onto the hard floor when I heard what sounded
like heavy boots walking down the hall -- still toward my bedroom. It
sounded like he had metal tips on his boots. When the fingernail scraping
stopped, the scary things began.
I heard a huge pound on my door, then another, and another. Terrified, I sat
up and I believe that whatever this thing was had opened my door with the
pounding. The door started slowly but surely opening. I got up and quickly
ran to my walk-in closet, hoping that the shade would protect me. When I got
in the closet, I realized that my door was already open, and sure enough I
looked out into my room and saw a clear figure of a man. I was terrified but
I didn't move. He was pacing around one side of my room. I was still in my
closet when I made the mistake of shifting to the side, and that's when the
dumbbell that was on the shelf above dropped and slammed to the ground. I
could clearly see the figure turn and look in my direction. I kept
absolutely still and covered my mouth to quiet my breathing. He seemed to be
walking toward me then my dog -- a yellow lab -- came into my room
absolutely growling in a way that was so scary, and so intimidating. I had
never heard him like this. The figure ran out of my room and back into the
hall where he came from. I walked into the hall to see were he went, and
that's when I was able to see him clearly for the first time. Sure enough,
he was wearing what seemed to be a Civil War uniform -- one of the unlucky
ones who didn't make it. The figure went downstairs and that's when he
faded, but just before he did I faintly heard a laugh -- the laugh of a
middle-aged man, along with footsteps, and then before I knew it, both were
gone.
Still shaken up, I went to my bed again where within the hour I finally got
to sleep, not knowing that I would still have quite a few more experiences.
When I woke up in the morning I checked and I could see what looked like
boot imprints in my carpet, it gave me the strangest feeling, and it was
absolutely an unforgettable experience.
