Hey, Dad. It's Cathy.
[narrator] The prodigal daughter returns home.
I didn't wanna be there, but I had to be.
[narrator] To the place that haunted her youth...
[Cathy] I could feel the dread start to come in the room.
I couldn't scream, I couldn't do anything.
[narrator] Only to find the house won't give up its ghosts.
Something dead is definitely up there.
[loud knocking]
I had no control.
[spirit screaming]
- [crow cawing] - [narrator] In this world...
There is real evil.
-[girl speaks eerily] Someone's alone... -[thunder rumbling]
[narrator] It lurks in the darkest shadows...
[spirits whispering]
[narrator] Between what we see,
- and the things we fear. - [spirit screaming]
There are doors.
When they are opened...
Nightmares become reality.
[pleasant music playing]
The town of Bergen in upstate New York was founded in 1812.
A community of farmers and lumber workers
carved their future out of the region's dense woods and fertile soil.
But they were not the first to inhabit this ancient land.
Bergen sits on the edge of a vast primordial swamp.
For over 10,000 years, its black creeks still pulse through the wetlands,
bringing new life to age-old darkness.
You have to pick the right kind of plants to put in this soil.
They all can't survive here.
[narrator] It is here, at the edge of the swamp,
where Cathy Heglund grew up.
My parents moved to Bergen in the late 50's.
And they found this old farmhouse out in the country
that they could afford.
My father thought he would fix it up
and he'd have a little land and a bigger home.
My father was in the back yard,
tilling up a garden space for my mother
to have a vegetable garden.
[mysterious music playing]
What is it, Dad?
And he uncovered part of a woman's body.
There was tufts of hair
that were still curled.
You could tell that this woman had red hair.
There were seven or eight vertebrae, from, like, a spine.
That looks like a piece of a lady's dress.
- Do you think-- - Don't. It's nothing for you to worry about, Cathy.
I want you to go inside now.
Go inside.
- Okay... - Now.
I have no idea if the authorities were ever called.
We didn't really talk about that incident after that.
[eerie music playing]
[narrator] Cathy sensed that there was something unusual about her home,
and the land it sat upon.
[object jangling]
[Cathy] One night, I noticed a shadow in the corner.
[jangling continues]
I could feel the dread start to come in the room.
That creepy feeling that makes you just want to run and hide.
And I remember the room got very, very, very cold.
And I couldn't move, the only thing I could move was my eyes.
It was like I was paralyzed.
I couldn't scream, I couldn't do anything.
Cathy! Cathy!
God, are you okay?
You okay? Shh. What happened?
- I don't know-- - What happened?
- It-- - God, come here.
[exhales]
It took me a few minutes to gather myself, so I could even think
to tell my dad what my side of the story was.
You all right?
Tell me you're okay.
- It's okay... - [young Cathy] Mmm-hmm...
[Cathy's father sighs]
[narrator] Cathy tells her father what she remembers.
[Cathy] He would listen to me, and he would be afraid for me,
but he didn't know what to do.
Cathy, we can't let our fears get the best of us, okay?
Understand?
We have to be careful who we talk to about this stuff.
Because...
Most people don't believe in...
Ghosts.
But, Dad--
Put it out of your mind.
Okay?
[Cathy] My father wasn't as open
to acknowledging some of the things that were going on in the house.
I think because he didn't know how to handle those things.
He didn't know how to protect us from those things.
Nothing here can hurt you, okay?
[Cathy] I think in his mind,
if he ignored it, and he didn't give it any attention,
it would go away.
But it didn't go away.
[narrator] As soon as she could leave Bergen,
Cathy started a new life
in Rochester, New York.
When I was old enough to get married,
and I moved out of the house,
it was a great relief to me.
[narrator] She starts her own family,
builds her own home,
and tries to forget about the nightmare in Bergen.
I actually tried to convince my father
to sell that house more than once.
To get my mother out of there.
Hey, Dad...
He was very firm that he would never sell that house.
Hey, Dad. It's Cathy.
Dad?
What you got here?
Oh, Dad...
[Cathy groans]
Oh...
[Cathy's father sobbing]
[Cathy] Oh...
You're okay...
He actually became sick and had to go into a nursing home.
[eerie sound]
We were gone for eight years.
Eight years, that house stood like that.
Like the day we just shut the door.
[narrator] By 2018, Cathy's children are grown,
and her marriage has ended.
Health problems had forced her into early retirement,
and taken a toll on her finances.
Leaving her only one place to go.
She returns to the Bergen house
with her new boyfriend.
Could be worse.
Could it?
Only one way to find out.
[Cathy] During that time period,
people had been breaking into the house,
because they realized it was empty,
and it's off the road.
Stealing antiques, dropping garbage off.
I don't know where to start.
Come on now, we're in this together.
[Cathy] I just can't believe I had to move back here.
I promised myself I'd never move back.
You'll be okay.
It'll be great, it'll... We'll make the best of it.
- Well, I'm glad you're here with me. - Mmm.
[Cathy] I didn't wanna be there.
I didn't wanna be there, but I had to be there.
The idea was that we would fix up the house,
try to get it cleared, sell it,
move on with our lives.
[eerie music playing]
The very first night, my boyfriend,
he fell asleep rather quickly.
I was very nervous.
- I got that old, familiar feeling. - [spirit panting]
- [door creaking] - [object jangling]
[spirit sobbing]
[jangling continues]
[whispers] Hey. Wake up.
Wake up!
[spirit] Please help me...
[jangling continues]
- [rattling] - [Cathy gasps]
[Cathy's boyfriend groans]
What's wrong? What happened?
Look...
It brought back all of those fears I had as a kid.
[spirit crying]
- [rattling] - [Cathy gasps]
[Cathy's boyfriend groans]
What happened?
Look...
[gasps]
[spirit] Please help me...
[Cathy] It was like it got to the end of the bed
and it would just disappeared, it was just gone.
Sorry, Cath, but I'm not sleeping in this bed.
[Cathy stammering]
Air mattress. Living room.
I'm not sleeping in this house.
What?
Come with me, Cath.
Or don't.
I just can't.
[coat hangers jangling]
[Cathy] I did feel like this might be a mistake,
moving back into this house.
But yet, that was my family home.
When I thought about home as a kid, that was what I thought of.
So, even though I was terrified, that was also my comfort.
Give your mom a hug! Oh!
- Thanks for coming, sweetheart. - Hey, Mom.
You remember Justin?
Justin, so good to see you.
I'd say pardon the mess,
but it is way too far gone for that.
So, what do you think?
Can we salvage this wreck?
[Cathy] Justin is a good, good family friend.
Out of the kindness of his heart,
he volunteered to help us try to clean it up a little bit.
It's gonna take a lot of work, but, yeah.
It's under there somewhere.
Well, let me show you around before you get too optimistic.
[all chuckling]
You okay?
Yeah, I just...
Feel like someone walked across my grave or something.
It was definitely a warm day when I walked in.
And I walked in and felt a chill.
It just kinda sent hairs up my spine a little bit.
Keep an open mind.
It's a strange old house.
What do you mean?
Make yourself useful.
Always doing something here.
[narrator] After a full day of sifting through years of debris,
Justin and Max settle in for the night.
- [exhales] I'm done, man. - Yeah, me too.
- Hey, you crash upstairs, I'll take the couch. - Cool.
[eerie music playing]
[groans]
[narrator] Justin Morrison was told that he's staying at a strange old house.
But nothing could have prepared him for what he encounters upstairs.
[groans]
It just kinda sent hairs up my spine a little bit,
and it was like someone put their hand on me,
and just fully extended their arm.
- Dude, are you okay? - Yeah. I think so.
I felt the initial fall of when my butt hit the stairs,
I remember my head hitting, but I don't... I didn't...
There was no pain. My head didn't hurt.
- Did you see anybody? - No.
[Justin] It was like bouncing your head off of a mattress.
I can't explain it other than whatever it was,
didn't want me to get hurt. They just didn't want me there.
They didn't want me upstairs.
Something dark is definitely up there.
I slept in the living room.
[narrator] In the morning, Justin tells Cathy about his experience in the house.
Hey, boys. Here you go.
- Thanks, Mom. - [Justin] Thank you.
Miss Cathy...
You know how you said to give this house a chance?
- Yeah. - I think I know what you meant.
Something happen?
Yeah.
[Cathy] I let him tell me his story.
I let him know that I believed him.
There I was, like, "So, I'm mad?"
She's like, "No, you're not crazy, no."
Have you ever... seen anything?
Yes.
I mean, as a kid.
I saw a lot, there was crazy stuff that happened.
Dad told me not to talk about it ever, so...
Yes. A lot.
I asked, "Who are they?" She goes, "I'm not really sure who they are."
Do you know what they want?
No.
I have never really thought about what they want.
[narrator] Cathy decides it is time to seek definite answers
about who or what is haunting her house.
[Cathy] We had a neighbor. He suggested, you know, you meet this woman,
she can enlighten you on some of the other things that are going on there.
'Cause Janet is a psychic medium.
The original house was built in 1858,
but most of the rooms were added
in the 1880s and 1930s.
What is it, Dad?
[Cathy] I didn't tell her anything about the garden,
and she just stopped.
She stopped in the exact spot my father dug up that body.
Something happened here.
I had a feeling of... death.
I had felt there was a woman back there
that had been killed on the property, and had been buried.
[creaking]
And she goes, "There's people buried on this property."
And I said, "Yes, I think so."
Can we go in there?
[nervously] Of course.
When I entered the barn, I got a feeling,
overwhelming feeling of fear and dread, and sadness.
[eerie music playing]
Being a mother, I could feel that feeling of being pregnant.
[crashing]
And that's when I saw the woman hanging from the rafters in the barn.
[creaking]
I know what happened here.
A woman took her own life.
[crickets chirping]
[narrator] Janet decides to conduct an investigation
to see if she can calm the restless spirit lurking in Cathy's barn.
She has her friend D.J., a paranormal investigator, join her.
Is there someone here who wishes to communicate?
[Cathy] We were actually out there one night,
and we were actually going to try to cross over
the spirit of the woman that hung herself.
I'm reaching out to the woman who died here.
I know what happened to you.
Can you help me understand why?
[Cathy] I glanced over at her,
and I instantly knew something was wrong with her.
[suspenseful music playing]
[narrator] In the barn behind Cathy Heglund's house,
psychic medium, Janet Toal, makes contact
with a restless spirit.
[suspenseful music playing]
[Cathy] I saw someone behind her.
It was like their face was coming through her face.
It was almost like they were pushing through her from the back.
Janet, are you okay? Can you hear me?
[camera shutter clicks]
Janet... Janet... Janet!
Janet.
I called to her, and she wasn't responding.
Can you hear me now?
I was, like, "Janet," you know, a little bit louder.
Yeah. What was that?
I just remember, kind of, feeling dazed.
Like, uh, sort of, out of it.
I got something here.
Look at this.
Come to find out, after reviewing the video and the pictures,
uh, there was a spirit that had stepped inside of my body.
[Cathy] You could actually see another face over the top of hers.
It's a very creepy photo, because in the photo
the face that's turned to look at you,
the eyes are completely black.
The woman who died here, she needs our help.
[whispers] Okay.
[narrator] Cathy reaches out to a local historian,
in hopes of identifying the woman who died in her barn.
[Cathy] The town historian is the one that told us
about the woman who hung herself in the barn, Katherine.
I'm with child.
With your child.
Come to find out that this young girl actually had an affair
with one of the married justices of the peace at the time.
And when he found out she was pregnant,
he broke off the relationship.
- You want my counsel? - Hmm.
End it.
Be rid of it.
[Cathy] To be an unmarried young woman, pregnant...
No, her whole life was over with.
[gasping]
[stool crashes]
[creaking]
Her family wouldn't help or anything.
They would turn their back on you, back in those days, you know.
So, she became very despondent, and took her life.
[creaking]
[narrator] Because of the aggressive nature of the hauntings,
Cathy invites investigator and psychic, Tim Shaw,
to help get answers to the questions that have plagued her since childhood.
Oh, come in.
- You must be Cathy. - Mr. Shaw.
Janet knew Reverend Tim Shaw, and she mentioned the house to him.
And he wanted to come see it for himself and experience it for himself.
Let me see. What can I tell you?
If you don't mind, I'd like to take a walk around the house first, myself.
Whenever I go to a "haunted house,"
I'll do a cold walk, which means I wanna go
and I wanna read the energy in the house.
I wanna get impressions.
I wanna go in every single room.
I want the house to tell me what's going on.
- Of course. Let me know if you need anything. - Thank you.
I'm standing in the home of Cathy Heglund.
I'm kinda looking around, and I got, like, a sick feeling in my solar plexus.
And the first thing that you learn about,
if you work with exorcists or demonologists,
if you get a little butterfly in your solar plexus,
that usually means there's something that's not real happy that you're there.
[eerie sound]
I was walking up the stairs, and I got about halfway,
and I got a gentle push,
felt it, like, right in my chest, centralized,
like somebody had just put their hand out, said "Stop."
There is definitely something here.
It's stronger on the second floor.
Ow!
[groans]
And I was, like, "What the hell did I hit?
What did I... Was there something here?"
[breathing heavily]
[suspenseful music playing]
I'm in the upstairs bedroom.
Whatever attacked me on the stairs,
seems to have backed off.
I went to the back window,
and I looked out, and I'm looking into the swamp.
[eerie music playing]
[narrator] Paranormal investigator, Tim Shaw,
has encountered the dark entity
haunting Cathy Heglund's home.
I'm not afraid of you.
And you can't hide from me.
[narrator] Tim Shaw's experience gives him an idea
about the cause of the haunting.
We know that water plays an important part
in amplifying psychic phenomena.
That primordial swamp predates European occupation of the area.
That tells you that, that swamp has a lot of energy to it.
So I believe that that is what's powering whatever's in the house.
I immediately thought to myself,
"This would be a great location to attempt a seance."
If it was done correctly, done safely,
that we could go and we could contact something.
Get some kind of two-way communication going.
Uh, because it just felt that the house was alive.
[narrator] Cathy recruits a team of paranormal investigators,
including researcher and psychic medium, Rob Thompson,
and his assistant, Renata, to help with the seance.
[Rob] From the moment we arrived, I felt that we were being observed.
And immediately, I felt that there were multiple spirits there
who needed our help.
Let's get started.
Right.
[suspenseful music playing]
Everybody ready?
Yes.
[Renata whispers] Okay.
There's several ways of doing a seance.
But every seance is almost the same.
You start off with a prayer.
We ask for your protection,
for all those within this circle tonight.
Help us to raise our energy to communicate with the spirits here.
You can really raise the vibration enough to give them enough energy
to be able to move things, do things.
It can get pretty intense during a seance.
Is there someone out there who'd like to communicate with us?
Damn it.
[Rob] Our equipment was starting to drain.
Brand new batteries that'd just been fully charged, even the disposable ones.
Boom. It's a sign that spirit is willing to come forward,
and is using energy.
Okay. Good to go.
We are here to help you. Make your presence known to us.
The energy is building.
All of a sudden, the table-- You could feel the vibrations coming up through the table.
Right through the table, as such, you could just feel...
[Cathy gasps]
I can't believe I'm seeing this.
It was the first seance I had ever experienced first hand.
The table was actually off the ground.
[Janet] The table levitated off the floor
and was shaking back and forth.
And it was just incredible.
It went up and stayed there for, I don't know, three, four, five seconds.
- [table rattling] - [Cathy gasps]
I felt something behind me.
It was... nasty.
And then, you could feel, just the energy, just drop.
- [thud] - [Cathy gasps]
And it was over. It was done.
Damn it. Again?
I think I need some air. [breathing heavily]
Okay. Let's give it a few minutes.
And we'll try again.
[Renata sighs]
[narrator] When the investigators regroup,
Janet Toal leads the seance.
I am reaching out to the young woman who died on this property.
Katherine, can you hear me?
[crying]
[Janet] As the seance was going on,
one of the participants started crying uncontrollably.
She just-- was wailing and we couldn't get her to stop.
- Are you there? - [Renata continues crying]
For me, a seance is giving spirit, like, a giant antenna.
Sometimes things can go awry.
Sometimes people can break the circle, out of fear.
Everyone, keep holding hands.
I looked over and I saw in my mind's eye,
that Katherine, the woman who had hung herself in the barn,
had stepped in too close to her and was making her cry.
Katherine, listen to my voice.
[Renata continues crying]
I need you to step away from the circle.
[Janet] I had to ask her if she could please step back from her.
You know, that she wasn't allowed to be that close.
That you could communicate with us,
but she wasn't allowed to be that close to the woman.
And as soon as she stepped back,
the woman just completely stopped crying.
That was it. She was done.
And she didn't know what was happening.
[Cathy] I was sitting in the front room,
and I felt the dark presence come into the room.
I could feel the anger.
There is something in here with us.
[suspenseful music playing]
What is it?
It's him.
We could feel this rush of negative energy come in.
[Renata gasping]
[screeching]
[growling]
[breathing heavily]
[narrator] During the seance at the Bergen house,
investigator, Rob Thompson, becomes a vessel with the dark entity.
[gurgling]
[screeching]
[growling]
Again!
At some point, I blacked out.
I have no connection with what is going on.
I had no control.
[growling]
It was very aggressive energy from that spirit.
And he definitely was trying to intimidate.
Who are you?
Tell me your name.
[screeching]
[spirit growling] Who are you?
[Janet] I'm not afraid of you at all.
I never will be, either.
[spirit laughing maniacally]
Now I know who you are.
[screeching]
That was me, showing the confidence
that I can't be intimidated by him.
[screeching]
[Rob breathing heavily]
Rob?
- Are you back with us? - [breathes heavily]
You could tell that this man who was in the seance with us, he just came out of it.
Is he gone?
Yes... for now.
His whole purpose was to make us afraid.
And when somebody stood up to him,
he lost that power and he left.
[Rob breathing heavily]
The seance is over.
Thank you.
[Rob breathing heavily]
[narrator] With the seance concluded,
the investigators give Cathy what she has long awaited...
Answers.
Tim... thank you.
You have a very active house.
Hopefully, it'll quiet down, but with the swamp, I doubt it.
I believe there's a young woman here from another time.
Demure, quiet.
Seems like she was in an abusive relationship.
I hope she has found peace.
Me, too.
[Katherine] You told me that you loved me.
I see now that you are incapable of loving anyone.
You are a monster.
And I hope that you are damned in hell.
[crows cawing]
And you have a male spirit,
who feels dark, punitive, cruel.
The darker guy, the darker spirit personality,
[grunts]
I believe that he is someone who has lived in the house.
He feels as if, he's part of that house.
And I believe that he was somebody that was just unbelievably stern.
He ruled by having an iron fist.
Uh, women had no rights.
I don't like you sharing a space with him.
Be careful, Cathy.
Cathy, uh...
[chuckles] Good luck with this place.
[chuckles] I'm afraid you might need it.
I feel we did good work while we were there.
I feel that the energy changed, it shifted.
But, honestly...
I wouldn't go back there for all the tea in China.
[crickets chirping]
[Cathy] I started to talk to my father a little bit,
about the spirit activity in that house.
And about why he would never let us tell anybody
about things when we were kids.
And I told him I wanna know why this place is so haunted.
And why we had to grow up... the way we grew up.
Experiencing those things. [sniffles]
And he agreed with me. [sniffles]
That we needed to find out why.
[crickets chirping]
I've kinda told myself that the spirits in the house, they're people.
They're part of my family, whether I like it or not.
I talk out loud to my ghosts sometimes, and I said,
"You know, like me or not, we're in this together."
And we can either get along or we don't have to get along.