c) Todd M. Bates of (HauntedVoices.com)
Posted: 2/8/2005

Annapolis, Illinois

Written by: Todd M. Bates (From HauntedVoices.com)

Our initial investigation of the Old Quaker Lane School House in Annapolis began June 3, 2002, and we have conducted ongoing investigations at this location since then. We have had very many encounters here and have several witnesses to back up these encounters as well as physical evidence, such as photos, videos, and EVP's. Before sharing some of our experiences, here's a brief history of the school.

The school was in full operation until the year 1944 when it was sold to a local landowner who permanently closed it. The school had instructed children from grades 1-8 and had been operated by only one teacher. There was no electricity or heat (other than an old wood stove) until the early 1940s. The building is very small in size and is now being used as a storage area for the landowner. The building was set up like a lot of other schools of this time, with its large woodshed, well pump, boys' and girls' outhouses, and a large playing area.

Since our first investigation of the school in the late spring/ early summer of 2002, we have compiled many true stories and different forms of evidence of the paranormal. Below are just a few of our encounters from this area, and there will be more to come in future issues. In 2002, we instantly fell in love with this little school, and we visited it at least four times a week in the late evening hours. On our first few visits, we only stayed on the outside of the school to let the spirits in the area become familiar with us. We set up the video camera in the west window that focused on the center of the school as well as the teacher's podium. At first we didn't speak to the spirits in order to let them "feel us out" and sense that we were not there to harm them. We also took some photos for our records and found them to be quite interesting. After a little wait, we began to speak with them and told them our intentions. For example, we asked if they would mind communicating with us as well as let us photograph them. We stayed on this first investigation about four hours and then left so we could analyze the evidence that we had gathered. Upon viewing the video tape later on, we heard very clear moans that appeared to be coming from a small female child--and then the moans turned into words saying, "Mom." The child spoke as if she had lost her mother and didn't know whom to turn to. We also captured the sounds of children singing, "Joy to the World."

Now we knew that there was activity, and we just had to go back for more. We returned to the school two nights later, bringing our recording equipment with us. We set up the camera once again in the west window to record while we went to the other side of the school to try and capture some EVP. We arrived at the old well pump that used to be used as gravity fed well and set up our equipment. We explained to the spirits once again why were at this location and what we intended to accomplish by communicating with them. We set up the recorder by the old well and just let it record while we went to the other side of the building. We later learned that a man and small child had been killed in this well a very long time ago. The EVP we captured from this area was a very clear, "Help." I know the word "help," when it comes to paranormal activity, is all to common, but this EVP sounds as if it came from inside the well. This really enhanced our interest of this location, and we began to find more history and background of the area. Our second major investigation was lot more personal and really got our attention. We still had not gone inside of the area yet because we were waiting for the land owner to clean a few things out of there, so we continued to film at the west side window. While filming the inside of the building, this very bright and perfectly round orb came out from behind some stacked wood. I immediately focused on this ball of light as it slowly traveled right in front of the camcorder. This was recorded in complete darkness, using night vision, and this ball of light was recorded for over four minutes. I attempted to communicate with the anomaly, but no response was given and the object disappeared into the ceiling after a few minutes. This was a great breakthrough for us because now we had something trying to contact us.

Upon our next visit, we were amazed with the evidence that we captured. This school was a very happy place for many children, and they seem to comeback and forth to this area. We have captured EVP's of children singing, talking, and playing. My wife Kris was video taping one night at our usual spot wall of a sudden she saw two small anomalies inside the building. She assured them that we were not there to and she also tried to communicate with them. Soon after, we saw the two anomalies fly out of the window right next to her. Then you hear a small child say, "Hey." A second later another small child says, "Hey, Daddy." These anomalies and EVP's were both captured on video. Kris could not hear these voices at the time, but she did hear a commotion in the woods next to her. When she looked over there, she saw a little girl running into the woods. We were amazed with the evidence that was captured that night and had to try to figure out just what was going on.

We began investigating the inside on our next hunt. The owner finally cleared it out a bit, and we cleared some more out. The inside was very old and showed its age. The smell of mildew was very heavy, and the ceiling was falling down in certain areas. We covered some of the holes in the floor that were created by age and weather. Most of the windows were broken, but you could still see where the curtains used to hang. The teacher's platform was still in pretty good shape in its position ahead of the classroom, the chalkboard outline still visible on the wall. There was an old coal/wood stove that had been used for heat and it was in pretty good shape as well.

We returned later that evening for our first internal investigation of the little schoolhouse. We entered the darkness of the school, and it peaceful. We stood inside for a few minutes and let the spirits get use to us. Our hair was stood on end; we knew we were not alone. We began with the photo session and captured some great photographs with shots of orbs, strange lights, and portals. We then moved on with the EVP session, and commented aloud, "If anyone would like their picture taken, please stand next to Todd." We later heard the response from a small child, "Picture me." We left the recorder running and went outside to get some fresh air. Later, when the evidence was analyzed, we heard another small child say as we left, "They're gone." It was great to see that sprits were beginning to interact with us. There were many more and stories and updates will be published about this unknown little Quaker School soon. Conclusion, this location turned out to be very active indeed and will only get better with time. The owner of the school, Mr. Scott Holmes, passed away recently, and I would like to dedicate this story to him and his personal school, which he attend as a child. May he rest in peace.


In Loving Memory of
Scott Oakley Holmes