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Harry Price: Father of modern day ghost hunting
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Borley Rectory, Essex. Photo in Public Domain at Wikimedia Commons
Harry Price rightly deserves the title of father of modern day ghost hunting. He was perhaps the most influential person involved in the ghost hunting phenomena.
A well known psychic and paranormal researcher, Price investigated all sorts of haunted places and eventually founded his own National Laboratory for the scientific examination of psychic phenomena.
A very controversial figure, he was accused of fraud and deception in regard to his investigations.
Price's most famous case involved the haunting at Borley Rectory in Essex.
Witnesses had reported hearing footsteps, seeing strange lights, hearing ghostly whispers, hearing the sound of a coach approaching outside, and seeing a little girl in white. But the one apparition that seems to come to mind when talking about the Borley Rectory is that of a nun who appeared to drift through the garden in sorrow.
His investigation of Borley Rectory led Price to pen a book, a blueprint of sorts intended for his hand-picked investigators, on how to conduct investigations thus setting the standard for modern day ghost hunters. The book included what sort of equipment his investigators would need in order to perform an investigation as well as how to investigate homes.
According to The Haunted Museum, "Price managed to give ghost research a place in the public eye and opened it up to those who don't fit into the categories of professional scientist, hardheaded skeptics, nor fall into the realm of gullible 'true believer'"
Ghost hunters are typically all of these things. Many do not hold a degree in the sciences, and if they are worth there grain in salt they go into an investigation with the intent of debunking a suspected haunting.
Why?
Because in my opinion, it's too easy to go into an investigation gung-ho on finding ghosts, spirits, apparitions, demons, poltergeists, etc. Instead, if ghost hunters go in with the idea that they might prove that no haunting exist they are more likely to take everything more seriously and give more credence to their findings should they prove a haunting.
Many go in to ghost hunting without knowing the history of how it all bagan. It's important to know how it started and why we do things the way we do. Standards have been set forth by Harry Price, and it's up to us to follow those standards, if not go above and beyond them.
