Interest about the paranormal world is becoming increasingly popular, as evidenced by rising sales and ratings of books, magazines, television shows and movies on the subject.

The rise of a myriad of groups using investigative methods ranging from scientific inquiry to spiritual mediums and psychics testify to the strength of the phenomena.

Count several local fans among them.

Recently, a team of five Times and Democrat employees -- Carla Hall, Ida Givens, Ramona Midkiff, Phil Sarata and Brian Troutman -- was given permission to investigate the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center. Reports of possible activity at the center range from unexplained footsteps on the upper floor to the elevator operating on its own.

During a four-hour period, our team employed techniques used by The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) featured on Syfy's "Ghost Hunters" television series. Along with technology that included digital thermometers, recorders and infrared cameras, the group asked questions of any possible entities, trying to determine the nature of the activity.

My personal experience wasn't as detailed as those of my fellow spirit seekers. I credit that to my questionable hearing and poor night vision. I did catch an unexplained white wisp in one photo taken with my digital camera. The image appeared nowhere in the room where it was snapped. To see the photo, visit TheTandD.com.

The following are first-person accounts from our team. Read on and decide for yourself.

'I will never think of that old building the same way'

"When I arrived at the Fine Arts Center, I was all set to discover what spirits lurked in the old building. It was a spooky, rainy evening, and the atmosphere was heavy with anticipation of the coming events.

"We broke into groups and 'listened' with recording equipment, our flashlights and cameras in hand. There were times when we all heard ethereal organ music and bumps in the night that made my heart race. When I thought we heard a clock stop and some knocking around in the upstairs ball room, I began to believe we were not alone. I went there wanting to be 'scared' into proving there were ghosts or spirits. I was never afraid, but I definitely left with a feeling that there was more inside the Arts Center than I ever imagined.

"The experience was great for a novice ghost hunter. I also know that I will never think of that old building the same way. I will always think there is something looking back from the dark upstairs windows that electrify that building with a type of power that is beyond what DPU offers!" -- Ida Givens

'I suppose there could be a logical explanation'

"I've never been one to believe in ghosts, but I have to say that my experience at the Orangeburg Fine Arts Center left me feeling a little creepy! I realized walking in that I had on my Carolina shoe laces and commented to my fellow ghost hunters that I hoped the ghost wasn't a Clemson fan!

"Our first attempt to communicate with the ghost was sitting in a dark room, asking the spirit to give us a sign of its presence. It seemed kind of funny at first, but I will admit that if the clock had stopped or I had heard tapping on the table, that would have been the end of my ghost-hunting adventure!

"When I first heard 'the music,' I thought it was just my imagination. It was very faint and sounded like organs playing. But when the other two people in the room said they heard it and we all described it the same way, it freaked me out a little.

"Upstairs in the ballroom, the creepiness continued. Brian put a recorder in the elevator, and when the doors closed, you could see the light under the elevator door and the shadow of the recorder. We were sitting directly in front of the elevator, on the other side of the room. After a few minutes, I noticed that the light under the door had disappeared -- it was totally dark! That was a little creepier than the music because I was looking right at it.

"Other than those couple of things and the fact that numbers appeared on the calculator tape in the office and Brian's camera cut off twice (with a full battery), things were pretty normal!

"I suppose there could be a logical explanation for what we saw and heard. I still won't say that I believe in all of this ghost stuff. I would say that if there is a spirit living at the Arts Center, I think it's a nice one and it must be happy there! And as long as it stays there, that's fine with me." -- Carla Hall

'It was really weird that we all heard the same sound'

"The Arts Center was my first official ghost hunt. I was so excited about going but was somewhat afraid of what we would see or hear.

"The first room that we sat in was in the back corner of the Arts Center. In this room was a very loud clock on the wall. Ida asked if there were any spirits in the room and if so to knock two times, stop the clock, tap on my shoulder or pull Carla's hair. As we sat there, I felt a ringing in my ears and pressure in my head, but we never heard anything at this time. I was somewhat relieved, but I don't know what I would have done if something had touched my shoulder.

"As we were leaving the room, I said, 'Wait, listen.' It seemed that the clock had stopped for a few seconds. We all agreed that it seemed to have stopped. We don't know if that was the case or if our imagination was playing tricks on us.

"In the second room that we sat in, we all heard music. The music we heard was not from a radio but sounded more like an organ playing. It was really weird that we all heard the same sound.

"The last room that we sat in was upstairs. The only weird thing that happened there was the light in the elevator seemed to go out even though Brian said that it was on the entire time he was sitting in there.

"I was hoping to see or hear more than we did, but there again, maybe I am glad that we didn't." -- Ramona Midkiff

'I could hear the static and the classic record player "pops"'

"I was the only person at the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center. I had arrived early to unload the equipment we would be using on the hunt. It was cold and wet outside, and the combination of the miserable weather and the energy lost running electrical cords and setting up cameras created an overwhelming desire to just sit and wait for others to arrive and help.

"As I made the final adjustments to a camera I had set up to monitor the elevator, my plan to relax was thwarted as I heard strange music at the opposite end of the hall.

"I quickly tried to find the source, as the last thing I wanted was a radio interfering with audio recordings on the hunt. However, a thorough search of each room revealed no source of the sound. Seemingly getting louder the more I searched, it became more and more obvious that the music would not be coming from any modern radio. It sounded as if it were being played on an old record player. I could hear the static and the classic record player 'pops.'

"As suddenly as the sound presented itself to me, it was gone. I shared my experience with the other members of the team once they had arrived and hoped, for the sake of my sanity, that someone would hear something similar later in the evening." -- Brian Troutman

For still photos, audio and video of the investigation, visit TheTandD.com/halloween.

T&D Staff Writer Phil Sarata can be reached by e-mail at psarata@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5540. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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