By: Daniel Johnson, Staff Reporter
With Halloween around the corner it is not hard to find ghostly activities, but in Albuquerque there are places that have paranormal activity year round and have been investigated by professionals.
Peggy Schofield, co-founder of Los Muertos Spirit Seekers, said that she is part of a small team interested in documenting evidence of paranormal activities, helping people find comfort in their homes or businesses during and after a haunting and exploring historical sites to confirm or deny folklore.
“Our primary goal is to help and educate those who live with paranormal activity, and provide a professional and thorough investigation while supplying detailed analysis of our findings,” said Schofield.
The following paranormal activity has been reported in the Albuquerque area. Information is provided by Suite101 website at suite101. com and by the Southwest Ghost Hunters Association’s web site sgha.net.
Church Street Cafe
The former hacienda, built in 1709 for the Ruiz family, was purchased by restaurant owner Marie Coleman, who began renovations on the café and discovered the building had a ghost.
The sprit is believed to be Sara Ruiz, who was not pleased with the renovations. Activity reported is buckets that move on their own, glimpses of Sara’s ghost and sensations of her presence.
SGHA has investigated this location and said they found an odd electromagnetic field that seemed to be moving in a counterclockwise pattern near the east side of the patio.
“Photographs taken of the patio with a camera showed several unusual lights that were consistent with the movement of the EMFs,” Schofield said.
Investigators inside the building seemed to have found the same field on the east side of the front room and again unusual lights showed up in the pictures.
Haunted Hill
The area is in the foothills at the east end of Menaul and people have reported hearing phantom screams, footsteps and the sounds of bodies being dragged. According to legend, the spirit is an old man who lived in the caves at the top of the hills.
He would take prostitutes there and kill them. Sightings of the old man’s ghost and a lantern swinging from invisible hands have also been reported.
SGHA has not conducted any investigations on this location.
Kimo Theatre
Six-year-old Bobby Darnall was killed in 1951 when the boiler in the basement exploded and demolished part of the theater’s lobby. People have reported seeing his ghost playing in the lobby’s stairway.
Bobby is also responsible for childlike pranks, including tripping actors and creating disturbances during performances, according to witnesses.
SGHA has investigated this location and said the theater has powerful EMFs on and around the stage of the theater, but that is not conclusive because of the setting.
“Most findings were explained by natural or mechanical causes,” said Schofield.
Maria Teresa Restaurant
Salvador Armijo built this former hacienda in 1783. At least four ghosts have been sighted roaming through the restaurant. Other phenomena include a piano that plays on its own, employees being touched, ghost reflections in mirrors, phantom voices and tables or flatware moving by themselves.
SGHA has investigated this location and said the majority of phenomena seemed to be confined to the Armijo, Baca and Winepress rooms.
“Several photographs of possible phenomena were captured in these locations. One orb was captured on IR video in the Winepress Room,” said Schofield.
SGHA also witnessed three glasses moving in the Armijo room along with strong EMFs.
Wool Warehouse Theater/Restaurant
This landmark was built in 1929 by Frank Bond. Reports are that during performances a spectral man wearing a cream-colored suit, believed to be Bond, has been seen on the stage. His ghost also watches plays from the side stage area.
Employees have reported the feeling of hands pushing them and grabbing their ankles and hearing noises in the walls on the stairway behind the stage. There are also reports of cold and hot spots, feelings of being watched and objects moving mysteriously.
SGHA has investigated this location and picked up some minor fluctuating EMFs before they even got close to the front door.
“Strong EMFs were found near the stage and on the second floor lobby area. Also, very strong readings were on the EMF around the pink columns that adorned the hallway near the stairs,” Schofield said.
