The question is no longer whether Shreveport's legendary Municipal Auditorium is haunted, but how many spirits live there.
Todd Weaver, case manager for ghost-hunting group Louisiana Spirits, said Monday the results of a June 5 investigation show "there's definitely activity" at the auditorium.
The site was most famously home to the Louisiana Hayride, which hosted musicians including Elvis Presley, in the 1950s. But it's also been an American Legion Post, a nuclear fallout shelter and the city morgue.
Following the four-hour investigation with digital cameras, video cameras and other equipment, Weaver said the auditorium appeared rife with spirits. His team recorded 10 Electronic Voice Phenomenons compared to the one or two they usually collect in six-hour investigations. They also said they heard claps.
"We don't have any explanation for those voices," said Weaver, who's conducted paranormal investigations for more than three years. "I believe it's just a few spirits left behind."
The sounds were similar to whispers as Weaver played them Monday for a few officials from Friends of the Municipal Auditorium. Some sounded eerily clear, while others were much more faint. Most were recorded in the projection room.
Weaver offered his suggestions for what the spirits were saying: "You don't want to tick him off" or "Get out of here" or something less threatening, like "I love Johnny Cash." Once, he warned listeners that he thought a moan could be one of the seven people participating in the investigation sleeping.
Louisiana Spirits usually investigates places several times, so the group will likely be back, Weaver said. He added that the spirits did not seem dangerous.
Johnny Wessler, executive director of Friend of the Municipal Auditorium, agreed to the investigation. He said Monday it's been great publicity for the auditorium that hosts events like Friday's Kevin Costner concert.
"If they find Elvis, we'll be on easy street," Wessler joked.
As Louisiana Spirits left, another group of ghost hunters, ORION Paranormal and filmmaker Thomas Durant, both of whom have conducted investigations across the nation, launched their own.
Footage from the Municipal Auditorium and Mansfield Battlefield will be included in an upcoming independent documentary, Durant said.
Jim Correia, one of the investigators with ORION, which has been featured on the SCI FI Channel's show "Ghost Hunters," said he knew very little about the building's history prior to the investigation. That way, he said, he wouldn't be looking for anything in particular.
Paula Hayes, a former Shreveporter with the group, said they had planned to investigate at Mansfield Battlefield when they heard about the history of the Municipal Auditorium from someone in the Shreveport mayor's office.
Source: http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/pbc ... 30328/1002
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