MITCHELL �?A hunt for ghosts led a documentary film crew to Mitchell in search of a piece of history that appears to be as elusive as the apparitions that brought the ghost hunters to Lawrence County.

A quiet, unassuming house situated in one of Mitchell’s most desirable neighborhoods is rumored to be filled with more residents than only the Bloomington native who owns the turn-of-the-century structure.

Jarret Marshall, who bought the house about three years ago, has come to terms with the ghosts he claims haunt his homestead even though he wasn’t aware of the haunting activity when he found his “gem�?on the market.

“The price was good, really good,�?Marshall said. “When I went to the bank, the inspector came out and said even though it needed some work, it was built like an elephant and would be standing here for another 100 years. ... I bought it before I knew it.�?

Things were quiet for Marshall, who is well versed in renovating historic structures, at first. Then, he started renovations.

Now, the home, according to Keith Age of the Louisville Ghost Hunting Society, is one of the most active houses he’s seen.

“It’s one of the only places I’ve gone or that I’ve done that you can ask a question (to the ghosts) and get an audible answer back,�?Age said.

Age has been at the home twice since May to study the hauntings. On his last trip July 26, he was gathering footage and historic information for a documentary that will appear on the SciFi channel in October called “Children of the Grave.�?The Mitchell home will be featured in the show because it appears Marshall’s home is haunted by the ghost of an 8-year-old girl named Rachel.

However, although several ghost hunters and Marshall claim to have found Rachel’s spirit, the search for her existence in Lawrence County history continuously hits brick walls.

“TV makes (ghost hunting) look pretty glamorous,�?Age said. “A lot of it’s not. A lot of it is sitting around and waiting for something to happen or trying to separate fact from fiction. Being a ghost hunter, the biggest thing you look for is history, but with history, fact turns into fiction real quick.�?

The story goes that the former owners of the historic homestead were Dr. John and Jessie Gibbons of Mitchell. The physician practiced medicine in the home on Warren Street at the turn of the century until a few years before his death in 1944. According to obituaries for the couple, they had one foster daughter.

Rumor has it, however, that the couple took in other children �?one of whom who is believed to have died in the home. Her name was Rachel, and she supposedly died from injuries she suffered in a fire that took place on Christmas in 1912. No proof of that fire, however, could be found at the Lawrence County Museum of History or the Mitchell Community Public Library.

“This started out as a small little ghost hunt,�?Age said, “but we found enough activity that the producers in Hollywood wanted the rest of the story. That’s why we’re here. We want the history to back up the interesting evidence we’ve captured at the house.

“A lot of research goes into something like this. We’ll chase down every lead, trying to find that one little link, and hopefully we won’t continually run into brick walls.�?

But that’s what happened in the search for documents about Rachel. She’s not listed in the birth or death records for that time period, and the Gibbons only list one child in the 1920 census records �?the foster daughter who apparently joined their family between 1910 and 1920.

And newspaper records from Bedford and Mitchell, which would normally record a mention of the fatal fire, are not on record.

Marshall, however, believes Rachel existed and that she still roams the halls.

“I’ve talked to relatives of the Gibbons and studied the blueprints for this house,�?Marshall said. “I read the newspaper article about the fire and got her picture from it, but when I went back to the library to print it all off, it was gone. I think someone is out there who just doesn’t want the story told.�?

Times-Mail Staff Writer Krystal Slaten welcomes comments and suggestions at 277-7264 or by e-mail at [email protected].