By Mary Spicer
CONNEAUT LAKE — Does the ghost of a young bride named Elizabeth indeed haunt Hotel Conneaut, the historic lakeside structure that is one of Conneaut Lake Park’s most famous landmarks?
The answer to that and other ghostly questions may be revealed in an upcoming episode of “Paranormal State 3,” a series on A&E; Television entering its third season. Crews have been in the Conneaut Lake area for several days and are expected to finish filming for the local show today. A date has not been determined for its showing on A&E;, which is on Armstrong’s channel 66.
A film crew spent Monday interviewing area residents, including retired Meadville Tribune reporter Jane Smith, a former president of Conneaut Lake Historical Society who continues to serve on the organization’s board.
“It was a little different being on the receiving end of questions,” she said Monday afternoon after her interview, which focused on general information about the hotel’s historical background. “The fact that we grew up a block from the hotel also had something to do with my selection,” she added with a chuckle.
Smith is convinced that many spirits inhabit the structure she fondly calls “our hotel.” A soldier in a tree, a couple dancing in the ballroom, Elizabeth the bride in a long gown, laughing children riding a bicycle, and a meat cutter have all been sighted over the years. “People who have worked there have told me these tales,” Smith said. “We just can’t document who these people may be.”
Starring Paranormal Research Society founder Ryan Buell and his team of investigators, Paranormal State is a reality show that attempts to get to the bottom of a wide range of paranormal activity ranging from ghost sightings to demonic possession.
The society was founded in 2001 as a student club on the main campus of Penn State University. After graduating with his second Penn State degree in 2008, Buell, a Corry native, split from the university to form an independent national organization. The original club, which remained with the university, is now a branch of the national organization.
For Smith, the hotel’s paranormal bottom line is simple. To the best of her knowledge, no tragic deaths have occurred inside the hotel. As a result, “I’m a firm believer that they come back because it’s a happy memory for them,” she said. “They’re not frightening at all.”
Mary Spicer can be reached at 724-6370 or by e-mail at mspicer@meadvilletribune.com.
