Final Report & Analysis

Black Diamond Paranormal Society©

"We are the light that cuts the darkness. Therefore, when you see... truth must be
honored."

 

Final Report and Analysis

Case 025

Mahood Hall (Bluefield State College)

August 28, 2010

Bluefield, West Virginia

 

Investigators

Rodney Shortridge, Aaron Shortridge, Mike Brown, Jerry Conner, Matt O'Quin, Heather Lamantia,

Nathan Rasnick,
Micki Nelson & Dave Horn

Special Guest

Kelly Warf,
Cathy Williams, James Williams, Lee Rappolt, Deidre Burgess & Lynn Burgess

 

On August 28, 2010 the BDPS team investigated Mahood Hall located at Bluefield State College Bluefield, West
Virginia. I would like to take this moment to thank Bluefield State College and
BDPS's
Advisor and Honorary Member and employee of Bluefield State College, Jerry
Conner, for granting BDPS this opportunity and for giving
us permission and the honor to investigate such a historical site. We decided
because of the amount of team members and special guest that were on this
investigation we divided into seven teams. One team would watch the camera
monitors at our base within the building on the basement level while the other
teams would investigate each floor. We would switch duties every hour due to
the limited time we could investigate the building. We started our
investigation around 8:00 p.m. with a walking tour of the building that was given
by Jerry Conner to update the BDPS team of the
hotspots, updated information along with some history of Mahood Hall and any
unexplained experiences given by any witnesses. We started our set up around 7:00 p.m. We then proceeded to our investigation soon after dividing into teams.
Team 1 consisted of me and Dave Horn. Team 2 consisted of Mike Brown and Lynn
Burgess. Team 3 consisted of Aaron Shortridge and Kelly Warf. Team 4 consisted
of Jerry Conner and Lee Rappolt. Team 5 consisted of Matt O'Quin and Deidre
Burgess. Team 6 consisted of Heather Lamantia and Cathy Williams. Team 7
consisted of Nathan Rasnick and James Williams. Each team worked on a rotation
changing their location about every 1 hour. We finished our investigation around
1:00 a.m. the following morning. This was a great experience and very helpful
in our constant training.

 

EQUIPMENT
USED AT THIS INVESTIGATION:

(4)
DVR's (Digital Voice Recorders)
(3)
Microcassette Recorders
(3)
Zero Lux low lever IR (infra-red) cameras
(1)
Panasonic Handheld Camcorder
(2)
Kodak digital cameras
(1)
Nikon camera
(1)
Fuji digital camera
(1)
Canon digital camera
(3)
Samsung digital cameras
(0)
Motion diction IR (infra-red) Field video/camera
(2)
K2 Meters
(1)
EMF (Electro Magnetic Field) Meter
(1)
Laser Thermometer

 

We placed (1) DVR (Digital Voice Recorder)
on each of the floors of the building. (2) IR cameras were placed back to back
of each other to cover the entire hall way in the basement, (1) was placed in on
the 1st floor hallway. (1) Panasonic Handheld Camcorder was placed on
the 1st floor in an area that has reports of a female apparition reportedly
seen many times. (3) Microcassette Recorder was carried by me and two other
teams during the investigation. Also, each team carried along with them during
their investigations one of the following: K2 Meter, EMF (Electro Magnetic
Field) Meter or Laser Thermometer.

 

Reports & Claims:

Apparitions
reported on the 1st floor and basement along with unexplained
voices.

 

History
of Bluefield State & Mahood Hall by C. Stuart McGehee

BLUEFIELD STATE HISTORY

by C. Stuart McGehee

This history of the college was originally
published in the College's General Catalog 1995-96 "Centennial
Edition."

In February, 1895, Senator William M.
Mahood sponsored a bill calling for the creation of what is now Bluefield
State College. One year later, the educational institution created by that
act of the legislature welcomed its first students.

For one hundred years, Bluefield State College has been
focused upon providing quality education in southern West Virginia. Our
"Centennial Celebration" has furnished a highly-visible platform to
look back at the accomplishments of our first century, and then look to the
opportunities and challenges that are ahead. Our centennial theme,
"Strong Past, Dynamic Future," captures this very appropriate
message.

The history of Bluefield State College is the heroic
story of remarkable achievement in the face of seemingly insurmountable
obstacles. The legacy of Bluefield State provides an inspiration and a
challenge to those who follow.

The creation of Bluefield State College was the product
of hard work by citizens of southern West Virginia who envisioned better
educational services for African-Americans in the region. The dire need for
coal miners created a huge population of black Americans who migrated into
America's last frontier wilderness.

To serve the racially segregated public schools in the
coal camps, progressive citizens of both races worked together to establish
Bluefield Colored Institute, a "high graded school for Negroes," in
1895. The new school, assisted by the federal Morrill Act, was to be located
on four acres on the north side of the Norfolk and Western Railway's massive
Pocahontas Division rail yards in Bluefield, a central location within 100
miles of 70% of West Virginia's black citizens.

Bluefield Colored Institute began modestly with 40
pupils under the supervision of Hamilton Hatter, Bluefield State's first
president, although he was denied the prestigious title, instead serving as
"principal." Hatter oversaw the construction of Mahood Hall, the
administrative building, as well as Lewis Hall and West Hall dormitories.
Hatter was an energetic leader who built the foundation of the College. He
faced enormous challenges, running the institution with no legislative
appropriations whatsoever for two years.

In 1906, Hatter handed the reins of leadership at BCI
to Robert P. Sims, a graduate of Hillsdale College, who would lead Bluefield
State for three crucial decades. Sims showed dedication, commitment, and
prudent management in his lengthy tenure at Bluefield State. By adopting
formal teacher training--"normal education"--in 1909, Sims created
the great role that Bluefield State would play, educating educators to carry
traditions of excellence throughout the bustling coalfields, fulfilling the
mission of its enabling legislation.

Enrollment climbed to 235 by 1920, with annual summer
sessions for teacher certification attracting hundreds more. With efficient
professional management and careful supervision, the College prospered,
expanding to 23 acres, adding Payne Hall and colonnaded Conley Hall, faculty
residences, and the stately President's House. Enrollment soon exceeded six
hundred, many of whom lived on the close-knit campus, termed the
"terraced hills" for its verdant landscaping. Grateful graduates
created the Alumni Association to rekindle collegiate memories and support
programs of the institution. BSC students achieved notable distinction in a
wide variety of fields.

Sims and his successor, Academic Dean and BCI alumnus
Henry Dickason, president from 1936-1952, managed this growth with patience
and resourcefulness. Bluefield State Teachers College, as the institution was
renamed in 1931, was at the center of the rich cultural world of
African-American society. Although the rough and tumble bituminous coalfields
were far from the urban and sophisticated east coast, Sims and Dickason
managed to involve their college heavily in the explosion of black American
culture known as the "Harlem Renaissance," bringing Langston Hughes
to read poetry, John Hope Franklin to teach Negro History, and even
heavyweight champion Joe Louis to box exhibitions in Arter Gymnasium. Fats
Waller, Duke Ellington, Dizzie Gillespie, and Count Basie entertained the
active Greek-letter fraternities and sororities. Bluefield State's "Big
Blue" football team twice won national Negro College Athletic
Association championships in the late 1920s.

A 1929 survey of the 702 alumni of Bluefield State
demonstrated the college's wide-ranging influence. There were no fewer than
326 school teachers, among dozens of administrators, physicians, pharmacists,
ministers, businessmen and homemakers. The name "Bluefield State
College" was adopted in 1943. After a half-century of inadequate
salaries, extreme sacrifice, and passionate dedication, Bluefield State was
finally awarded full academic accreditation in 1947, rewarding the
institution's measured progress.

Change again visited Bluefield State College. The 1954
Brown v. Topeka (Kansas) Board of Education U.S. Supreme Court decision
declared racially segregated public education unconstitutional. Soon, white
students seeking high quality, low cost, fully accredited higher education
opportunities began to attend classes at Bluefield State. By 1921, 40% of the
643 undergraduates were European-Americans. By 1965, a majority of the 1,116
undergraduates were white. Certainly, change was again occurring.

Many factors affected the college's transition, most
importantly the loss of mining jobs as the coal industry rapidly mechanized.
This shift in the racial demography of southern West Virginia subtly altered
the role of Bluefield State. Soon, curricular change and personnel policies
demonstrated the creation of new academic needs such as engineering
technology and business administration.

However, tensions mounted in the wake of the school's
desegregation. The closing of dormitories and the cancellation of the
football program created alumni concern. Campus unrest involved meetings,
protests, and finally the 1968 bombing of campus buildings.

The early 1970s at Bluefield State saw five presidents
in five years, as well as the temporary "coordinate relationship"
with Concord College. Stability returned with the 10-year presidency of
Jerold Dugger, when the college embarked upon the largest growth in its
history. Under the subsequent presidencies of Gregory Adkins and Robert
Moore, enrollment has grown to a peak of nearly 3,0000 and a record 637
graduates matriculated from the college in 1993.

Programming curricula broadened as well, adding
advanced technology, instructional media capabilities, satellite conference
facilities, continuing education courses, and increased involvement in the
regional business community. Today, the college continues to meet the
educational needs of the region with state-of-the-art curricula and innovative
programming like the Center of International Understanding, computer science
and a leadership role in developing a four-county Tech Prep initiative. For
the past eight years, funding through the federal Title III/BRACE program has
permitted very significant growth and an augmentation of service rendered by
Bluefield State College. The Bluefield State College Foundation has raised
record sums from the area's industrial base. Cultural awareness seminars help
to revive the school's storied past, and Bluefield State has established a
College Archives to collect and preserve the traditions of the institution.

Now, during its 1995 Centennial Celebration, Bluefield
State College stands proud of its past, but ever willing to adapt to meet the
changing needs of the region it serves. Some 13,000 graduates have taken
their experiences at Bluefield State into the world, showing the wide-ranging
influence of the college. The history of Bluefield State College is an
inspiring and heroic story, a motivating and challenging epic of victory over
great odds.

http://www.bluefieldstate.edu/Archives/Archives/History.html

 

Personal
Experiences:

No Personal Experience on this investigation.

 

Evidence

Photo evidence: There are photos with unexplained
orbs.

Video evidence: An unexplained
figure or apparition moving out from the 1st floor doorway.

Note: BDPS does not support the idea of orbs as
evidence of the paranormal because most orbs can be explained away as dust,
bugs, rain, mist, fog, etc. There are cases that the orbs we photograph seem to
move with some type of intelligent intent. We post these photos because we feel
that there needs to be more investigation into the Orb Phenomenon and we
shouldn't be so quick to dismiss this phenomenon without further investigation
and explanation. So we show these photos in an attempt to add another piece to
the puzzle and leave this decision up to you to accept or dismiss orbs as
evidence. It is also my opinion to show all evidence so we all can learn from
what might be an area of the paranormal that may be getting over looked by
researchers.

 

EVP's
(Electronic Voice Phenomenon)

We heard the following EVP's (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) and unexplained noises on our DVR's (Digital Voice Recorders) & Microcassette Recorder:

Basement:

Unexplained Male
Voice Whisper (Battle)?
Unexplained
Humming
Unexplained
Breath
Unexplained Huh
Unexplained
Knock
Unexplained Male
Yelling Inaudible

First Floor:

Unexplained
Knock
Unexplained
Music Note & Unexplained Whisper
Unexplained
Noise or Voice
Unexplained
Whisper
Unexplained
Breath

Second Floor:

Unexplained Male
Voice' Its A Flash' along with a Unexplained Female or Child Sound

 

CONCLUSION

We have come to the conclusion that Mahood Hall has very low paranormal activity in
the forms of EVP's, interesting photographic orbs, and unexplained video
anomalies that helped us to determine our conclusion. During the investigation
everyone got high EMF readings throughout the building during the investigation
on every floor due to very high voltage electrical wiring throughout the
building. A person being exposed to the EMF fields for a long period of time
could explain most of the experiences from most reports because being exposed
to high EMF fields for a long period of time can cause nausea, dizziness,
feelings of being watched and confusion.

I look forward to our next investigation. If anyone would like for us to do a paranormal investigation of
their home, business, church, property or a family cemetery please contact us. If
you would just like to speak with us about any paranormal activity you may be having we would love to hear
from you. No problem is too small. We would be honored to help and we do not
charge for our services. Contact BDPS to set up a time
and place for us to discuss your paranormal questions and or problems.

I feel honored to be working with such
a great team. Without the team's hard work and professionalism BDPS would not be what it has become today.

 

*Check out our Website:

www.blackdiamondps.org

 

I would like to thank all of the BDPS members for all their hard work. To all of our
clients, a special 'thank you' for giving us the opportunity to be able to come
in and help to the best of our abilities. I know with the team that I have
formed we will have exciting investigations in the future. I would like to let
everyone know that our members have become more to me than just investigators,
they have become my family. Without them BDPS would not be
possible. Just like a family we sometimes agree and sometimes we don't agree
but each and every member of BDPS is very special to me. Thanks guys, you all are the
best!!!

I hope everyone enjoys the photos and the analysis sheet along with the new video
we are providing. Also we will have our EVP's, photos and any video evidence on
the website for everyone to view and listen to. You can judge for yourself. If anyone has any questions or
comments we would love to hear from you. Let us know what you think.

Thank you,

Rodney Shortridge

Founder/Lead Investigator

Black
Diamond Paranormal Society

276-988-6690

Heather Lamantia

Case Manager

276-385-2443