This 'Paranormal' team has no problem talking to ghosts

By Christy Nadalin
Posted 10/30/24

It’s the middle of an unseasonably warm fall day in Bristol, but there’s some dark business to be done in the historic Bristol County Jail on Court Street. It seems someone — or …

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This 'Paranormal' team has no problem talking to ghosts

Posted

It’s the middle of an unseasonably warm fall day in Bristol, but there’s some dark business to be done in the historic Bristol County Jail on Court Street. It seems someone — or something — has been setting off the alarms in the property, which is home to the Bristol Historical and Preservation Society. BHPS Executive Director Catherine Zipf assumes the errant alarms are due to an electrical issue, but Bob Powers and Pauline Vargas think Frank might be to blame.

Powers and Vargas are the sleuths behind East Bay RI Paranormal Investigations, a partnership that arose about 7 years ago when Powers was talking about his fascination with the paranormal with Vargas’ husband, a Fire Department colleague. Knowing his wife shared the same interest, an introduction was made, and East Bay Paranormal was born.

But Frank? He’s a bit more mysterious. Powers and Vargas know he was a resident of the jail at some point in the early years of the 20th century, thanks to an alleged 1904 assault on a young woman in Warren. Some of the other details they have surmised after repeated contacts on the first floor of the jail. Frank likes the smell of deodorant, abhors liver and onions, and has a fondness for the vintage pinup girls of his era — brunettes in particular.

According to Powers, recording devices left in the jail overnight have picked up the sounds of footsteps, and wastebaskets being kicked. Asked how an entity that can pass through walls could cause such a commotion, Powers explains that it’s the energy in their electromagnetic fields.
That energy, and the temperature changes that come with it, are at the foundation of Powers’ and Vargas’ arsenal of equipment. Paranormal activity is thought to impact both energy and temperature — and to measure that you need something called a REM pod, which uses a miniature, telescopic antenna to radiate its own independent electromagnetic field (EMF) around the instrument. As the energy from a potential paranormal entity influences the field, LED lights are activated. Disturbances in the EMF can also be read with a something called a K2 meter. Moreover, it’s believed that communication attempts require energy output that can be picked up by these ghost hunting tools. “Cat balls” (rigged with motion activated lights) will flash when moved, perhaps revealing the presence of a spirit.

Powers and Vargas also use Necrophonic, a device which picks up and amplifies ambient noice that may then be interpreted as communication, as well as an infrared night vision camera and an “exhaust camera” that shows ghosts as stick figures — Zipf has footage on her phone, supplied by Powers, that shows Frank appearing to dance by the stairs leading to the second floor of the BHPS headquarters. Powers also claims that he and Vargas caught Frank on the camera getting friendly with an unknown female ghost. “Frank, I said….are you serious?” Powers said, laughing.

The area around the main level jail cells proves pretty ripe with action, as sensors beep, lights flash, and audible Necrophonic sounds including vague words and what sounds like exhalations can be heard. While Frank controls the first floor, it’s Kenny and Tom who Powers and Vargas commune with on the second floor, a part of the historical jail that is generally off-limits to visitors. A grim cell with crumbling walls and “drink beer” etched into one, is the epicenter of activity with Kenny and Tom. On this day, these two are a bit more reticent. “They will only communicate on their time,” Powers said. Though they aren’t firing up the lights the way Frank did, there is plenty of Necrophonic noise. “We haven’t been here in a while so they are pretty excited we’re here,” said Powers.

Though the historic jail is one of Powers’ and Vargas’ favorite spots, they say there’s no limit to great ghost hunting in the East Bay, and enjoy spending time at public spots like Juniper Hill Cemetery and Tower Hill Road, as well as private homes and businesses when the owners invite them in to do research — often after having strange paranormal experiences of their own. They can be found on Facebook — East Bay RI Paranormal Investigations — and would welcome enquiries from anyone who is getting that not-so-alone-in-my-house feeling.

“There are so many houses in town that I would like to get into,” said Vargas. “But a lot of people just aren’t so sure about this.”

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Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.