Ghost Soldiers of Gettysburg

by Patrick Burke

  Again, we had most likely just validated that elements of Wright’s brigade not only seized the cannons on the ridge but also had gone more than 200 yards past the ridge line, almost reaching Taneytown Road.

  As is sometimes the situation, when the ghost soldiers realize that there is someone on hand that they can communicate with them the conversation can turn into a chorus of voices saying various things. This is what happened when I said that many Union accounts state the boys from Wright’s brigade never took the guns on the heights. Shannon laughed and shook her head as Emily cried out, “No, no, no! Third Georgia, we took them. Took two, left two!” Emily said there were a lot of men, even men in blue, that said they took the guns, but the Union soldiers were quick to point out they got them back.

  I then asked how they stopped the Confederates and Emily drew a line in front of her. “The Fifteenth Massachusetts re-formed here, and as they engaged the Confederates, another company of Union soldiers came around from that direction,” and she pointed toward Meade’s headquarters. This information coincided with the image I had received at the fence line before entering the field and with Wright’s own report.

  Shannon asked if we could cross over the soldiers that wanted to move on. I felt that we had successfully gathered credible evidence, both historical and paranormal, that allowed us to verify and validate that Wright’s brigade did, in fact, do what he claimed and seize the guns on Cemetery Ridge, causing the Union defenses to split. I told her it was now time for us to assist the soldiers to their final rest.

  When doing a crossover of a spirit, it is important to understand that in many cases it is easier to assist the spirit by communicating in the terms that they understood when they were alive and use whatever terms for whatever higher being they believe in. This sometimes makes individuals uncomfortable, I understand that. What those individuals also need to understand, whether they believe in the psychic abilities of others or that spirits can be crossed over, is that as a sensitive we do feel the need of the soul to be at peace and in all cases in which the spirit is asking for aid it is imperative that we assist when we can.

  I briefly walked Emily and Shannon through the process as I normally do and asked the spirits if they were ready to go. I heard the Union and Confederate soldiers say, “Not together.” Emily said, “Daniels says let the Confederates go first; they don’t want to go together.” I said it wasn’t a problem and set to work.

  I connected my energy field to Emily and Shannon’s and then opened the portal through the zero-point field. The stream of energy was intense. As the Confederate soldiers approached, Emily asked them to give us a rebel yell as they crossed over. Twenty-six soldiers crossed over and I couldn’t believe the intensity of the rebel yell that washed over us. I had heard the rebel yell before, but not like this. The hair on my arms was standing straight up!

  The Union boys stepped up after the Confederates had passed over. Daniels and his Union comrades wanted to make sure their story would be told and people would know what happened. I assured them that we would share their story and do what we could to locate the graves and have the dead honored. Twelve Union soldiers crossed over with a huzzah washing over us.

  As we left the field, Jack said he felt a quietness that was not there before. We stood near the house on Taneytown Road and looking back into the field we talked about the information that we just gathered in the investigation. I felt that we had successfully gathered credible evidence, both historical and paranormal. This allowed us to verify and validate that Wright’s brigade did, in fact, do what Wright claimed and seize the guns on Cemetery Ridge, causing the Union defenses to split.

  As the information came in, the picture became clearer. The advancement of Wright’s brigade on the second day of the battle went much farther than even I had imagined, almost 200 to 300 yards beyond the crest of Cemetery Ridge. With the aid of the girl’s psi abilities, Jack and I were able to validate the documented historical information and paint a complete picture of the last moments of the Confederacy’s farthest advance. As we looked at each other, we realized we were standing on what was the true High Water Mark of the Confederacy.

  After reviewing the evidence, I told Jack I was going to call my good friends Shawn Taylor and Dan Morgan. They have been leading the way in developing a system for live communication with those who have passed on that they call “The Double-Blind Ghost Box” (The Double-Blind Ghost Box, Shawn Taylor and Dan Morgan, iUniverse, Inc. 2013).

  I had worked with Shawn and Dan on an investigation of the Otto Farm, part of the battle of Sharpsburg/Antietam, and was impressed with their professionalism and attention to detail. The basic concept of a ghost box is to use a random AM radio frequency to enable the ghosts to communicate with you more easily. You ask a question and then listen for an answer. The problem with this method is that everyone present hears the questions, allowing for people perceiving tainted answers based on what they know the question is.

  What Shawn and Dan did was take this process to the next level. They created a system in which there is a Questioner and a Listener. The Listener is connected to the ghost box via high-quality, noise-reduction headphones with the volume on high, making them unable to hear anything except the sounds coming through the ghost box. Additionally, the Listener is turned away to look at the ground or a wall, never looking at the Questioner and avoiding any possibility of reading lips. The Questioner also stands about twenty-five feet away from the Listener to further ensure no words are overheard.

  The experiment begins when the Questioner asks a question out loud. If there is a medium in the room, he or she should be out of the Listener’s sight and give their answer before the Listener does. Next, the Listener gives an answer. If the Listener, alone, gets the correct response, you have accomplished the highly improbable. If the medium has given the same answer first, you may have achieved the statistically impossible. This systematic, organized approach minimizes the uncontrolled variables.

  Jack and I totally agree that this technique and methodology are as valid as can be when dealing with psi experiments. To further support the investigative findings, the Listener has a digital recorder plugged into the ghost box along with the headphones. This allows the sounds form the ghost box to be reviewed and validated by the investigators. The Questioner holds a camcorder and a digital recorder, as well. The entire session is captured by multiple media sources and from multiple perspectives. The investigators mark the recordings and video so they can sync audio and video together after the investigation.

  To experiment with this, I arranged to meet the guys and their team at Gettysburg for three days. They brought three teams: Team 1—Shawn and Dan; Team 2—Amy Buchanan and Shelley Smith; Team 3—David Hendricks and Jim Johnson. I brought my sister, Mary Russell, a talented medium in her own right who has worked with Jack and me on several other investigations. Kenny Coombs acted as team photographer. My goal was to control the information coming through to each group and Mary. I gave them the name of the hotel and told them that everyone would be briefed at the same time. No specific information about the battle was provided.

  I had Chris Carouthers and Karen Mitchell-Carouthers scheduled to meet me at the knoll between the Codori House and the stone wall where the Eighty-Second New York and Fifteenth Massachusetts Infantry had been posted. This slight rise is where Brown’s Battery B Rhode Island Light Artillery was located with six Napoleon guns in support of the Eighty-Second New York and the Fifteenth Massachusetts. These two regiments were ordered to move forward and occupy the ground at the Codori House.

  I decided to focus on Wright’s approach from the point where he claimed to capture several pieces of Brown’s battery at the knoll and then as he re-formed to charge the wall at the base of Cemetery Ridge. From this point, I needed to know what path Wright’s brigade took, so I had Dave and Jim work the area from the wall between the Fifteenth Massachusetts and Eighty-Second New York monumen
ts and up the crest of the ridge to the right of the Copse of Trees (west). To validate the information gathered earlier during the investigation Emily, Shannon, Jack, and I conducted in the open field by the two structures just south of Meade’s and Hunt’s HQ near Taneytown Road, I had Amy and Shelley dress in period dresses. They walked the boulder-strewn field on the backside of Cemetery Ridge and worked their way down toward the area where the thirty-three Confederates were buried. At the knoll, Shawn and Mary were the Listeners, Dan and I were the Questioners and Mary did an area read. I asked Shawn if we could hook up two Listeners to see what would happen if a medium was also attached to the ghost box system. He rigged up another set of headphones and we were ready to go.

  We began the investigation at the Knoll. I started off by asking the ghost soldiers to interact with us. “Hey boys, I’m here with my good friends to try and accurately recount the fighting that took place here on July 2, 1863. You can communicate directly with Mary, me, or Shawn. We just want to capture a bit of your story to make sure that history has been told correctly. If it hasn’t, we will correct it.”

  I felt a heaviness in the area, as if an unseen hand was pressing on the back of my head, a sure sign that a lot of energy was present. As Mary crossed over the stone wall between the Fifteenth Massachusetts and the Eighty-Second New York monuments, I asked where Brown’s guns got stuck. Dan, Shawn, and Mary were walking several yards in front of me, just clearing the wall when Mary pointed to her left and said, “To my left.” She pointed toward the Fifty-Ninth New York monument where historical records indicate that two of Brown’s guns had been stuck while trying to clear the gap in the wall at the same time. This started a string of contact with Dan asking questions and Mary and Shawn calling out what they heard. As I reached the position of the battery, I started to feel anxious. Urgency seemed to be all around me, as if something was terribly wrong. About fifteen feet away from me, Shawn said, “What’s wrong. Help!” Dan asked the ghost soldier what his name was and Mary replied, “Richard.”

  I had the feeling that there was an issue with Brown’s cannons. Suddenly, I heard very clearly, “Wrong direction!” And then I heard Mary say something about “The right direction.” Could Brown have positioned his Battery in the wrong direction? What effect would that have had when he fired as Wright’s brigade approached? After the investigation, I did further research on Brown’s battery and came across a video series by licensed Battlefield Guide George Newton. Newton stated that when Brown set up his battery of six Napoleon guns, he positioned them in what is called a right oblige, meaning he had his cannons facing to the northwest. This means Brown’s battery was facing away from the approach of Wright’s brigade, who was approaching from the Codori House to the west. Wright advanced so fast that Brown could only get several cannons turned in time to have any effect on the approaching Confederates.

  Imagine you were one of the gunners in Brown’s unit, or even Brown himself. What a shock it must have been to suddenly realize that all of your cannons were facing in the wrong direction! The pandemonium that ensued must have been something to observe. For any of Brown’s guns to get off any rounds is a testament to those brave soldiers’ ability to do their job under extreme circumstances. At this knoll, Brown would lose two of his guns, have three men killed, seventeen men wounded and one man captured. Brown himself was struck in the neck by a bullet.

  I proceeded to ask a series of questions about the location of certain regiments on Wright’s brigade during the fighting. “Where is the Second Georgia Battalion?” Mary said “left” and pointed to the area where the Second Georgia secured the right flank of Wright’s brigade. Chris then came over and asked if there was a James or a colonel whose first name started with a J. I asked him to give me a last name and he said “Wasden.” He felt as if he couldn’t breathe and then pointed to the Codori House in the distance saying, “He died there, right?” Col. Joseph Wasden, commander of the Twenty-Second Georgia, was killed and buried on the grounds of the Codori House as shown on the Elliott Map.

  Chris then began to feel extreme anxiety and worry because there was no support for the Confederates advancing. I heard Mary say “Richard” again and Chris say, “He sent a message to Anderson.” Richard H. Anderson was the divisional commander and Wright, in his report, states that he sent three messages to him asking for his support.

  The level of validation of the historical facts was outstanding. Using the double-blind ghost box method ensured that those answering the questions were doing so with no knowledge of the questions being asked, and the answers they gave were spot-on.

  I moved the team about 100 feet before the location of Brown’s battery because I wanted to see if I could locate the Third Georgia’s approach. I got on the ghost box with Shawn and, immediately, we both said “three” and then I said “third.” I then asked, “When they reached this spot did they think they had held the day?” Shawn replied, “Stacked.” Could that have been a reference to the Twenty-Second Georgia crowding the Third Georgia because the Second Georgia became mixed into the Twenty-Second Georgia’s lines? At this point, I slipped in a trick question to see what would happen. “Did the Fourteenth Mississippi go forward with you?” If the answer was yes, then I knew the information might be tainted because the Forty-Eighth Mississippi is the only regiment from Posey’s brigade that went forward with Wright’s men. Shawn quickly said, “Not the right question, Burke!” Obviously the ghost soldier knew that I had asked a misleading question and also knew my name. This systematic, organized approach minimizes the uncontrolled variables. Very cool indeed.

  I moved up to the wall where the Union soldiers of the Eighty-Second New York and the Fifteenth Massachusetts retreated. At that spot, Dave Hendricks was the Listener and Jim Johnson was asking questions. They had been working this area with the intent to gather validation of action that took place here and to see if they could pinpoint Wright’s breakthrough at the wall. They started at the Knoll with Jim asking where Wright’s brigade took the guns. Dave called out, “Hold, brother!” Jim was standing near Brown’s Battery marker. They moved to the wall and, while crossing over near the Fifteenth Massachusetts monument, Dave said he was getting a cramp in his abdomen as if he had been shot. The ghost box recorded the following, “He’s hurt … He died.”

  When asked if the Eighty-Second New York could point out where the Fifteenth Massachusetts was, the response was a surprising, “They left!” According to Joslin’s report of the Fifteenth Massachusetts, the Eighty-Second New York broke first, which caused the Fifteenth to fall back. Then Dave called out, “Fall back!” Jim asked if any shots were fired, to which the reply was, “Yes, sir!” Jim, who wasn’t on the ghost box, heard some reenactors fire their muskets in the distance and asked if they sounded like that, and a ghost soldier said, “We looked better.” Jim called roll call for the Fifteenth Massachusetts. Jack and I regularly do this on a battlefield as a way to prompt any ghost soldiers who are present to respond. We usually select names of soldiers who died at the location or were wounded, throwing in a name or two of soldiers we know weren’t there to see what happens. “Roll call!” said Jim. Dave suddenly called out, “We’re listening”—“1st Sergeant Henry C. Ball”—“Brother.” Could this be a reference to a brother in arms? 1st Sgt. Henry C. Ball died during the second day’s action. At this point, Dave was standing about halfway up Cemetery Ridge with the Copse of Trees off to his right. He said, “I need to know where Wright’s brigade broke the line.” “Back!” came through. Dave started walking back toward the wall as Jim asked where Wright’s brigade broke through. Dave was walking about halfway between the New York and Massachusetts monuments when he stopped and called out the answer to their query, “Was here!”

  Jim asked about the fighting: Any shots or wounded? How bad was the fighting? Any New York regiments? Dave then called out a string of replies: “Wounded”—“Rescued … Bad!”—“Here!’—“Battle.” This session with the ghost
soldiers from the Eighty-Second New York and the Fifteenth Massachusetts reinforced the historical information we already know. Did they fall back from the Codori House to the position at the wall, make a brief stand, and then retire behind the guns on the ridge? Dave and Jim were able to verify that Wright’s men had broken the Union defenses at the wall, and now all I had to do was confirm, through the words of the ghost soldiers themselves, if Wright had seized the guns on the top of Cemetery Ridge.

  I asked Amy Buchanan and Shelley Smith to wear period dresses since they both are active reenactors. I wanted to see how the ghost soldiers would react to women, not only on the battlefield, but also in period dress. Jack and I have made it a common practice to incorporate, when possible, reenactors in period dress and uniform. Our observations suggest that the amount of activity around the reenactors tends to be more. Using the ghost box, Amy was the Questioner and Shelley the Listener. They started just inside the field, which is near the top of the ridge on the south slope of Cemetery Ridge. From this location, you can see the Leister house and the big red barn on the property, in addition to the field where we had done an earlier investigation.

  Amy asked, “General Wright, are you here?” The answer was immediate:

  “I was…time to go!” Amy and Shelley appeared to have brought out the ghost soldiers rather quickly. Amy asked, “How many men are here?” and the reply was “Sixteen—Now—We’re here!” They were able to get a name when Amy asked for one. Shelley said, “Colt.” Amy then asked if that was his last name and the reply was, “Yes.”

  Upon further review of the recording, it was determined that the name given was either Cole or Clarke.

  I later researched the list of dead to see if a Colt or Cole had been present with any of Wright’s brigade on July 2, 1863. I came across a Private J. M. Cole of Company C of the Twenty-Second Georgia. I then went back to Charles H. Andrews’ account of the second day’s action, and Cole was present at the fighting on Cemetery Ridge where Wright claimed to seize the guns and split the Union line. As I stated earlier in this chapter, Andrews described how the fighting developed around the Codori Farm. His account further stated that the Third Georgia stormed the wall and took command of the thirteen cannons on the ridge. He said that during the fighting, he was standing next to a man named Clarke from Company D “who was killed while sitting astride a cannon loading and shooting.” Research shows that Private Rueben W. L. Clarke of Company D was killed on the second day of the battle. Then, surprisingly, we heard, “Touch Amy?” This indicates that this ghost soldier was aware of his surroundings and the people in the area, meaning a direct interaction was taking place. Could this be Private Cole?