From the archives Are ghosts real

the end that's where so many ghost stories begin isn't it they thrill us with thoughts of life after death and Restless Spirits wandering the Earth even if we know they're only make believe or are they is it haunted yeah it's haunted if ever there was real haunted house get excited coming to places like this it would be this one I'm ready and if anyone should know it would be this guy Jeff Banger author of the world's most haunted places well there's nursery rhyme that's pretty popular around here goes Lizzie bordon Took an Axe and gave her mother 40 wax and when she saw what she had done gave her father 41 Lizzy lived here with her dad and stepmom that's that's right and they're made Bridget this house in Fall River Massachusetts this is where Andrew bordon was murdered is where Lizzie bordon was accused of brutally hacking her parents to death in 1892 you know if nothing else you know we are standing exactly where man lost his life you know right here former journalist Banger is 100% convinced he's both heard and seen ghost mean it's it's rush it's incredible it's it's big question you know is there life after death when you go looking for ghosts when you have that experience it's answered something happens after we die this is where you had an experience and it was right here in Lizzy Borden's basement four of us standing right here and right above us where we just walked we hear this you know coming by and we were right up those stairs as fast as we could go there's nothing there and Banger's not alone new CBS poll shows that fully 40% of Americans believe in ghosts or spirits and of those Believers 51% say they've actually seen or been in the presence of ghost which means roughly 60 million Americans believe they have had paranormal encounter am thy father Spirit ghosts and ghost stories have long been part of our culture want to tell you my secret now and are Hollywood staple see dead people but lately it's reality TV dude there is some noise going on out here that's breathing New Life Into the Dead what the hell is flying around in here shows like Ghost Hunters is there anybody here Ghost Adventures this is bunny Paranormal State and most haunted just to name few get me out please the world it seems is crawling with ghosts and everyone with video camera or an iPhone is out looking for them but here's the catch despite all the attention they're getting there's not one shred of scientific evidence that ghosts really do exist so over the years how many haunted places have you visited scores upon scores it must be in the low hundreds these were spirit pictures that supposedly materialized former private eye turned Paranormal Investigator Joe nickel works for the center for inquiry in Buffalo New York even if tell them that this is fake some people probably wouldn't believe it he's been tracking ghosts for 40 years and how many has he found approximately zero just in round figures the idea of ghost energy leaving your body at death being able to walk and talk have brain is is scientific nonsense it's romantic idea but it's scientific nonsense typical of the male get I've been haunted by spirit for the past eight years at least nickel believes the vast majority of ghost sightings can be attributed to common phenomenon called hypnogogia transitional State between wakefulness and sleeping thousands of stories of people waking up and seeing ghost near their bedside or gliding by or their dead father standing beside the sofa where they dozed off you're experiencing waking dream hello but the current crowd of Ghost Hunters spooking up reality TV you see that are wide awake when they see ghosts you believe in ghosts yes and their hair raising tals have inspired wave of converts do you believe in ghosts believe that there's middle some people haven't crossed over yet so yeah these folks are hoping to have their own ghost stories to tell after recent visit to another of the world's most haunted places the Waverly Hills sanatorium in Louisville Kentucky let's have look at one of these sanatoria or tuberculosis hospitals as they are called today in the 192 20s and 30s Waverly Hills was one of the largest tuberculosis hospitals in the country thousands of patients never made it out alive do you believe this place is haunted know this place is haunted Tina madingley and her husband bought the abandoned building in 2001 with the original intention of restoring it at one point people didn't want other people our people to know that it was haunted being haunted wasn't good thing wasn't good thing now everybody wants to be haunted okay guys follow me please ghosts are big business be careful use your light and Waverly Hills offers regular ghost tours with solid bookings through next year we're going to go into the body shoot one of the highlights the body shoot 500t tunnel used to transport bodies of deceased patients out of the building have people seen ghosts in here sure sure sure like what full bodies they've get them photos they get them on video and do you see it now do there's guy sitting there he's sitting Tina has amassed quite collection of video and photos taken by people touring the five floors of the hospital and that's spirit this is long shot from inside what we call the chapel and then if you blow it up it almost looks like two figures there's two figures there you can't deny that there is something there and there was no live person there it's fascinating stuff all these Tales from the Dark Side not one ghost photo has ever been authenticated by science not one but for Paranormal Investigator Joe nickel who's seen it all it's all just make believe the Paranormal promises these huge things If ghosts are real then we don't really die but there is no scientific evidence not cintilla so next time you hear something go bump in the night or see strange glow in your local Cemetery try to get it on film you may end up convincing some people that Spirits do exist with others you won't stand ghost of chance