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Edinburgh Manor

Location Information

Date: 29 August 2021     Type: Historic Building

Location Title: Edinburgh Manor

City/State: Scotch Grove, Iowa

Investigation Times: 06:00 PM - 2:00 AM

Status: Analysis

 

Weather Information

Sunrise: 06:37 AM   Sunset: 07:42 PM

High Temperature: 82 °F   Low Temperature: 57 °F

Sky Condition: Clear  Wind: W at 5 mph

Humidity: 94%   Precipitation: 0 in

Lunar Phase: Waning Gibbous   % disk visible: 53%

Solar X-Rays: Normal   Geomagnetic Field: Quiet

Pressure: 30.00 mmHg  

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Investigators Present

Becky Ray
Jennifer Sprague

Lindsey Kadri

 

Investigators Notes

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Jennifer Sprague, Lead Investigator: 

We began with a tour of Edinburgh Manor with Cindy, who was very welcoming and kind. During the “Red Room tour,”  Lindsey reported feeling anxious and nauseous in this room and stated it felt difficult to breathe. Also, during this tour, Lindsey reported feeling very sad in the “Blue Room.”
The "Blue Room" is at the end of the hallway on the men's wing, and the "Red Room" is at the end of the hallway on the women's wing. 
After the tour ended, we participated in Becky's “Fear Experiment,” which involves watching a video to heighten our senses of fear. The hypothesis is that the feeling of anxiety may affect what one experiences during investigations. 
After watching the video, Lindsey and I set up cameras on the second floor in the “Blue Room” and “Red Room,” while Becky watched the monitor for her wireless quad cameras and gave us directions on where to move them for the best angles. We also set up cameras on objects in the two rooms to see if they would move independently. On the first floor, I set up my motion-activated camera in Room 106 to focus on toys in the room that have been reported to move. I also placed another motion-activated camera in the first-floor hallway. 
Lindsey and I then set up cameras in the dining room in the basement and in the hallway that connects the dining room to the kitchen.

"As they were setting up the cameras, I was alone in the office where we had set up our base. I heard a noise in the hallway and turned, expecting to see one of them returning for something, but what I saw appeared to be a young girl running down the hallway. It happened so quickly that I cannot be sure what I saw. I know what it looked like.
"Less than an hour later, while in the same area, I opened a bottle of soda which made the usual 'pshh' sound. I then heard a voice from the hallway imitate the sound of the bottle opening, but no one was there." - Becky. 

At this time, I did a solo investigation while Becky and Lindsey observed on the monitor. 
While on the first floor, I heard something being dragged near me in Room 105, but my recorder did not pick up any sounds.
Then I went to the second floor. In the “Blue Room,” I had a sense of someone standing directly behind me. I did not get any EVPs while in that room. However, I did get something on audio while in a different room on the second floor.
During my time in Room 200, the radio on my phone randomly turned on, which was strange.
Next, I went to the basement, where I concentrated on the dining room and the hallway that leads to the kitchen area. I also spent some time in the padded room and boiler room. 

Following this, I met up with Becky and Lindsey to review the night so far.

"While Jennifer was doing her solo investigation Lindsey and I were watching the monitors, and Camera One, which was set up in the 'Red Room,' kept glitching and losing the connection, but it always came back up. Before Jennifer headed into the basement where Camera Four was set up, it suddenly lost its connection and did not come back up. AfterJennifer finished investigating in the basement, she went back down and plugged Camera Four into a different power outlet which seemed to resolve the issue. However, as she left the basement, Lindsey and I saw several anomalies on the monitors for Camera Three and Camera Four behind her." - Becky. 

Becky and Lindsey, who had been watching some strangeness on the monitors, preferred to investigate together rather than alone. They started on the second floor. While in the “Red Room,” they felt a heaviness as if someone was in the room who didn't want them there. Becky stated, "If you want us to leave, knock on the wall." We will upload the recorded response to the site soon.
While in the "Blue Room," Becky reported seeing what looked like a large shadow rising behind the chairs, but when she would shine her flashlight on the area, nothing was there. After moving closer to where Lindsey was standing, Becky no longer saw this shadow, but both Becky and Lindsey saw a movement in the corner of the room. However, it was decided by both of them that this movement was an optical illusion caused by the room's curtains.


TIMES OF INTEREST: 
9:05 PM: During set up, Becky reported seeing a white form of a child in the first-floor hallway.
9:23 PM: Becky reported hearing someone imitate the sound her soda bottle made when she opened it. ” after she opened a bottle of soda.
10:51 PM: Jennifer heard something being drug down the hallway of the first floor.
11:03 PM: Lindsey reported feeling something tug on her pant leg and that it felt like something was drawing on her leg.
11:21 PM: Jennifer’s radio turned on randomly while on the second floor.
11:30 -11:38 PM Becky and Lindsey both reported hearing noises in the hallway.
12:00 AM Both Becky and Lindsey heard what sounded like something being thrown at them in response to Becky’s statement. During this time, both Becky and Lindsey reported not feeling wanted in the room at all.
12:06 AM Jennifer saw a black mass shadow in the dining room before Lindsey entered.
12:11 AM: Becky started to walk down the hallway in the basement and heard what sounded like someone shaking a set of keys aggressively in front of her. 
1:12 AM Lindsey reported her leg being touched again.

Once we were all together again, we attempted a live EVP session while Becky listened live through Air Pods, and Lindsey and I asked questions. I did not hear anything on my audio that correlated with what Becky was hearing. Becky reported hearing a radio being played near the right-wing of the first floor and a humming sound like an airplane, but we did not find anything flying overhead at that time.

Interestingly, during the investigation, cameras randomly shut off, and two of the wireless cameras fluctuated at random times, and sometimes some would fluctuate together. Becky and Lindsey both reported seeing a black mass on the camera in the basement that disturbed them and other things. I also saw a black mass while viewing the two in the basement, but we could not find a logical explanation for this.

When Becky reviewed the quad-camera footage recorded during the night, she discovered that while she had the appropriate amount of time recorded, the only thing on the video was colored static. 
Some other footage and audio are still under review. 
Overall, an interesting investigation! We look forward to going back!

Many thanks to Cindy for allowing us to come out.

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LOCATION HISTORY

The town of Edinburgh was originally the county seat of Jones County. In June 1840, the land located at section 36 in Wayne Township was originally deeded for courthouse purposes with the grant being signed by President Buchanan. Shortly after this grant, the county seat was changed from Edinburgh and the commissioners kept the grant for the establishment of the County Poor Farm. Described as a "comfortable retreat for the lazy, able-bodied and willingly dependent applicants," the Poor Farm housed the poor, incurably insane, and disabled. Tenants were given shelter and food for their labor. They would farm agriculture and livestock. The poor farm was in operation from 1850 to 1910 and during that time there were over 150+ documented deaths on the property.

In 1910, the poor farm closed down and was demolished. Edinburgh Manor was then constructed from 1910 to 1911 to house the incurably insane, the poor, and the elderly. Edinburgh Manor, also referred to as The Manor, was in operation until November 2010.

Medical documents and personal belongings can still be found in The Manor. When the last patients and employees left the building in 2010, they never returned.

From https://edinburghmanor.wixsite.com/

EVPS Under Review
PHOTOS
VIDEOS
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