A Ghostly Gaze into Haunted Ashland

500 South Center Street,Ashland VA 23005

12 June, 2021

Description

Join Transcend Paranormal for A Ghostly Gaze into Haunted Ashland On June 12th, 2021, join Transcend Paranormal for an evening unlike any other. We're peeling back the curtain on over 200 years of history to see what haunts the buildings and streets of Ashland, Virginia. The Slashes of Hanover sat as wet, swampy ground for countless years until the 1830s, when a small company named the Richmond Fredericksburg & Potomac Railway Company purchased the land. By 1836, RF&P had built tracks on the grounds, and a town sprung up around it. By the 1840s, a mineral sprints resort and racetrack called the newly named town of Ashland home. Just a short 20 years later, Ashland found itself transformed from a vacation destination, to Camp Ashland - a training grounds for the Confederate Cavalry. “The pretty village of Ashland, that we had passed, was—oh how changed! Tents, tents, tents, soldiers and horses. Nothing more to be seen. The latter were ranged along the sides of the roads under the trees, with heaps of fodder lying around, saddles and other accoutrements hung upon the branches, and all those pretty summer dwellings, and the long dining-hall, converted into bar­racks. It looked more like one great stable-yard than any­thing else.” From Life in the South from the commence­ment of the war by a blockaded British Subject Soon after the Cavalry left for war in late 1861, Ashland became a place of refuge from the war-torn areas in the north. Civilians brought entire families to Ashland, renting rooms in hotels and private houses to stay safe. The war was brought daily to their doorsteps, as they listened to cannon-fire and Yankee yells from outside their very own front doors. On June 1st, 1864, the town of Ashland became a war-zone. As the Union army advanced towards Ashland from the north, they took up positions on the north, east, and south sides of the tracks, and were placed in and around the homes along the railroad tracks. The Confederate army knew that the Union was trapped, and moved in. The Confederate Cavalry that trained here in Ashland just 3 years prior charged back into town, dismounted, and attacked. Hand-to-hand combat broke out in the streets, as Union forces attempted to flee. “During the late Spring of 1864, Gen’l Fitzhugh Lee’s brigade halted on the ‘Telegraph Road’ in the rear of the ball room and the command was given, ‘Prepare to fight on foot; Dismount.’ The brigade dismounted, marched through the woods, perhaps three hundred yards and charged that ballroom which was filled with ‘Yankee’ soldiers. The ‘Yankees’ bounded out of the front windows and doors as we bounded in the rear windows and doors. A sharp fight took place in the lawn. The enemy retreated rapidly from the lawn into the street where we followed them. A body of enemy’s cavalry, which had been cut off from their main force, charged us while we were on foot in the street. We poured a volley into them and repulsed them. I saw a northern soldier shot off his horse just at the corner of Uncle Saint’s yard. My boyhood playground had become a field of battle.” - St. George Tucker Brooke As soldiers were wounded in Ashland and the nearby Hanover county battles, they were whisked away to the hospitals established in Ashland - private homes, part of a hotel, and the old Ashland Baptist Church. Those soldiers who arrived and never left Ashland are buried right in town - over 400 fallen soldiers; their final resting place, the Woodland Cemetery. Your evening begins at the Hanover Arts & Activities Center - formerly known as Ashland Baptist Church, the field hospital where numerous soldiers gasped their last breath. To begin our evening, you will be led by the Ashland Haunted History Tours on a haunting tour of downtown Ashland, learning the darker side of history that resides in Ashland. After the tour, we will be investigating claims of the paranormal at not one - but two locations in downtown Ashland. You'll have the opportunity to investigate: The Hanover Arts & Activities CenterRed Vein Escape RoomBoth of these locations are home to a slew of haunting tales and paranormal experiences, ranging from EVPs, audible talking, footsteps, and even seeing shadow figures walking through the halls. The question is...do you dare? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄: You are welcome to bring your own equipment to investigate.We will break into small groups at each site to investigate. Each group will be led by an investigator with equipment to assist on the investigation.We will be outside for a portion of the investigation, so please dress accordingly.Light Snacks and Refreshments will be provided.We will begin the evening at the Hanover Arts & Activities Center. The Ashland Haunted History Tour is on foot and lasts approximately 1 hour. We will be outside for the entire duration of this tour. We will travel from the Hanover Arts & Activities Center to the Red Vein Escape Room on foot.Please do not put on fragrances before the investigation. Smells are often reported at both locations and it will be difficult to identify if we are wearing fragrances.Please do not wear loose jewelry, baggy clothing, etc. These often make extra sounds and noises that will make listening to and identifying EVPs difficult!There will be identified spots if you need to smoke a cigarette. Please make sure you dispose of your cigarette butts accordingly.Please do not plan to investigate under the influence of drugs or alcohol. We will ask you to leave the premises if so.Weapons of any kind are strictly forbidden.Bring your equipment! We'll have some that you can use within your groups, but you are welcome to bring any equipment you have for investigating that you can carry with you. A flashlight is highly encouraged. Additionally, if you do not have an audio recorder, bring your phone! We'll ask you to put it in airplane mode, but you can still record audio onto your cellphone - a large number of people on our investigations have recorded EVPs on their phones!Most importantly, have fun! This investigation is for you, so bring your ideas and thoughts for investigating! You never know what, or who, you will run into, and we value your unique ideas and suggestions for investigating these locations! We urge you to be ready to be involved in the investigation! Think of some questions you'd like to ask in advance, if you have any theories that we can test out, and more!------------------------------------------------------ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐠𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐟 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲. With this in mind, we will be doing our due diligence to ensure we meet the regulated guidelines at the time of the event. We ask that anyone who has been exposed to someone who has, or may have, COVID-19 within 14 days leading up to the event, to please stay home. Refunds will be issued if either situation occurs. ------------------------------------------------------ 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐮𝐬.