August 17, 2007

Civil War Soldier in My Bedroom

Rate this encounter:[an error occurred while processing this directive] 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.