OCTOBER 12, 2012 2:41PM
L is for ... (31 Days of Halloween, Oct. 12)
Local Lore!
I did a quick bit of amateur ghost hunting last night. Salt Lake City has more spectacular local ghost stories, but the one I will cover for today is close to where I live, and it afforded me the chance to walk my lovely dog Lola, as well as the chance to see if smartphone photography is any good at capturing ghosts.
And at the risk of arousing Open Salon's conspiracy theory psychos (of which there are plenty), it was Salt Lake's Masonic Temple on 650 East South temple which was the subject of my ghost hunt (and yes, this being SLC, I'm well aware of Joseph Smith's connections to the Freemasons - a subject that has conspiracists and fundamentalists wringing their hands).
A view from the side
Here, from Forgotten USA, is the background on the Masonic Temple:
Built in 1926-27 it has been haunted for many years. Quite a few years ago while cleaning out some old storage rooms an urn was found with the ashes of a Charles Valentine. Some inquiries were made and it was found that Charles was a Mason. No one knows why the ashes were not buried at the time of his death but they were eventually returned to be buried correctly. Since that time strange things happen in this lovely old building. Doors open when they are closed and locked. Lights turn on when they are off and visa versa. You can hear doors slam when no one else is in the building. These stories have come from many of the caretakers that have worked there. One even reported seeing a young girl floating down a hallway and some little child's footprints in ashtray sand.
It took Lola and I all of 10 minutes to
get to the temple on our walk. The building was closed, so I snapped
some pics around and through the windows in hopes of something turning
up. As far as I can tell, nothing did. But because of the window
reflections, you could see something there if you really wanted to.
I tried to find more background on
Charles Valentine, but I'm pressed for time and unable to come up with
anything concrete, including the date of his death (my thanks and a
shout out who can help me track down more info on Charles Valentine).
Despite that, it seems Mr. Valentine was able to keep up with the times,
at least until about the 1970's or so. If he did indeed reach out to
me through my iPod, he seems to enjoy great American R&B and soul
music.
When the temple came into sight, the great voice of Darlene Love and the Crystals popped in:
Then, none other than the legendary soul icons Earth Wind and Fire, with "Serpentine Fire".
Ah!
Hold on a minute. IF you believe in these things, you do have to
wonder about the connection between this temple's Masonic ancient Egypt
iconography:
And the awesome, Afrocentric sci-fi Egyptian mysticism of Earth, Wind and Fire's album covers!
Was
Mr. Valentine a dedicated Mason, even beyond the grave? Did he give me
some coded, cryptic warning about the building? Does he simply enjoys a
good groove and some wall of sound (he's reputed to be a friendly
trickster ghost)? Am I just insane and need more to do? YOU decide.
By the time I was done taking photos, Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" came next. Meh. Also a warning? Time to move on. Finally, here is my little Scooby Dee, Lola. She can't talk, but she can yelp, and I'm pretty sure all she could do to Old Man Winters in his monster mask is leap up on him and give him slobbery dog-kisses.
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Comments
Cool! I am completely intrigued. Sounds like Mr. Valentine liked to get down. And "L" is for Lola!
GRR! Pics aren't showing. Need to fix. Thanks Muse!
Neat! Loved the shots and, cute doggie! I would not have thought my IPod would connect to the spirit world. Good to know.
Neat! Loved the shots and, cute doggie! I would not have thought my IPod would connect to the spirit world. Good to know.
So, Mr. Valentine
picked Ms. "Love," threw in an Egyptology reference, and then confirmed
his eternal existence via his (and yours) great musical selections. It
would have been truly unsettling if Thelma Houston's "Don't Leave Me
This Way" had come on upon your exiting. Very cool piece (and as an
animal lover, more pics of Lola, please!).
Way cool!
~R~
~R~
Excellent and interesting work, thank you for sharing!!
Nilesite - thanks, and cool Open Call idea!
VA - I was dissapointed in his choice of "I Will Survive" - corporate office party standard - but - Mr. Valentine has his ways, doesn't he?
MCS and Stathi - thank you so much for stopping by!
By popular demand, there will be more Lola in the future!
VA - I was dissapointed in his choice of "I Will Survive" - corporate office party standard - but - Mr. Valentine has his ways, doesn't he?
MCS and Stathi - thank you so much for stopping by!
By popular demand, there will be more Lola in the future!
I don't kmow about that
ghost story, but you and I are kindered spirits. We both like EW&F,
a good story, '70s Soul, and noir. R
Loved all the photos,
especially Lola in the all too familiar dog pose. The story was not too
creepy and not too benign, it was Goldilock's perfect for me. I also
love Earth Wind & Fire.
Interestingly, my Egyptian mother (who was married to my Egyptian father for almost 60 years) who doesn't like dancing or much music, would only dance to one song. Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." And she'd really get down and boogie while mouthing the words. As always, the lyrics have different meanings to different people.
Interestingly, my Egyptian mother (who was married to my Egyptian father for almost 60 years) who doesn't like dancing or much music, would only dance to one song. Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive." And she'd really get down and boogie while mouthing the words. As always, the lyrics have different meanings to different people.
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