“It was a dark and stormy night” - the famous words of Snoopy certainly fit the weather in Champion, NY on the evening of October 15 when the Shadow Chasers of Remsen, NY came to the historic Hubbard Homestead to conduct a paranormal activities investigation. The four members of the organization had come from the Heritage Room of the Carthage Free Library where they had just given a talk and demonstration to about thirty interested persons.  They had joined with the library staff and members of 4 River Valleys Historical Society to conduct an investigation of a possible haunted site.  The members of Champion Grange #18 had offered hospitality to those in attendance as the Homestead was without heat and the weather was bitter.

Members of the Participation in Government class at Carthage Central High School had provided four stalwart young men who would help guide people over the treacherous ground between the Homestead and the Grange Hall; a morass of mud and water, a ditch and a road separated the two properties and floodlights helped somewhat in the driving rain, but a strong arm was welcomed by many.  In the Grange, chili bubbled on the stove; coffee and tea were available as well as cookies and other nibbles.  Running water, heat and plentiful light were all appreciated as these were limited at the Homestead.

The Shadow Chasers found many people willing to sit in the damp and the dark to see if there were any paranormal manifestations.  Over twenty had signed up for the experience and expressed an interest in spending the night in the limestone structure built in 1820.  Erected by the founder of Champion, Noadiah Hubbard, the home had passed to his eldest son, Hiram around 1834 when the father moved to a more impressive stone home in the center of town.  The Homestead is interesting for the fact that, until it was donated to the 4 River Valleys Historical Society in 2005, it had remained in the Hubbard Family.  Because of this, it was fairly easy to trace the history of all those who had lived there and look for instances of “unusual” events.  In the case of this building, the events included instances of footsteps when there was no one to make them and voices in untenanted rooms.  As with any old building, there had been several deaths there, some natural and some accidental; for example, one gentleman, already considered eccentric by his neighbors, fell down stairs in the mid 1900's and broke his neck.

The evening began with the members of The Shadow Chasers demonstrating various instruments that would be used to monitor motion and temperature – both indicators of paranormal activity. A local historian gave the history of the Homestead and introduced some of the possible “people they might meet” during the evening. Participants were divided into groups, each person armed with some type of device.  Groups also had recorders and one Shadow Chaser to give directions and make interpretations.  As the evening wore on, many people sought refuge in the Grange as the wind whistled through the cellar windows and around the eves of the house.  Around midnight, one group of people declared they had had a wonderful time, but that their beds were calling; the remaining people hunkered down and waited for manifestations and phantoms.

Wild changes in temperature were recorded in the upstairs nursery, a flashlight responded to questions in one of the bedrooms (where there had been reported instances of footsteps), one person even claimed to have seen a long-haired cat weaving around the legs of others.  In an otherwise dark and silent house, the whispers of people upstairs was about the spookiest thing this participant ever experienced – the total darkness and the feeling of being alone even with so many others somewhere in that darkness was truly eerie.

By three a. m., the rest of the people were chilled to the bone and very weary – we trooped to the Grange to warm up and get something to eat.  When we got there, the ladies who had manned the stoves and crockpots informed us that they wouldn't have stayed there alone for anything!  I'm thinking - “but you were warm, you had lights and running water and everything!”, but that didn't shake the feelings that they had had.  Well, the Grange does have an interesting history of its own; on the 4^th of July, 1807, General Champion and Mr. Lemuel Storrs (landholders) gave the town two acres on the summit of the hill that overlooks the village, for the site of a church and a public green [this is the current Champion Village Green Park].  Because of the War of 1812 – which slowed building down a little – the church wasn’t finished until 1816 and was the first church in Jefferson County.  Noadiah Hubbard was in charge of the building.  The bell was donated by General Champion for whom the town was named. Due to the intense cold in winter; the hill was very exposed, the church was of wood with many windows and because it was considered “sissy” to heat a church; it was taken down, removed to the crossroads, rebuilt and rededicated in 1841.  In about 1910 the building was sold to become the property of the Champion Grange Number 18 and was thus one of the first granges north of Syracuse.  It is still the home of an active local Grange. 

After a hearty dish of chili, the Shadow Chasers offered to set up the equipment and conduct an investigation in the meeting room on the second floor of the Grange.  Enthusiastic response met this suggestion and the paranormal professionals went up the well-worn steps and turned left into the beautifully preserved room, complete with stage, that has housed Grange ceremonies for many years.  While setting up the equipment, the investigators explained each device and what it was intended to detect.  The green laser grid was projected over the far wall, heat and motion detectors were placed at various points and, when the lights were extinguished, everyone sat in the eerie silence that descended on the room.  One of the Shadow Chasers paced the room calling to any entities that might be present, another took a camera into the adjoining hall, where the ladder to the bell tower was located, and began taking shots (sometimes “things” appear on developed film that were not visible to the naked eye).  Later interpretation detected energy balls in the hall – but we were not lucky enough (?) to see any other manifestations.

The evening ended with tired but happy investigators  (amateur and professional) thanking the Grange, 4 River Valley Historical Society, the Carthage Free Library and Northern New York Shadow Chasers for an interesting, informative and entertaining night.  There are plans to repeat the adventure in the spring, as there are many people who wanted to be a part of the investigation but didn’t get reservations in on time.