Ghosts, spirits, haunted houses--all have their believers and their skeptics. No matter which you are, those things that "go bump in the night" cannot always be explained. Ghosts make themselves known in various ways. Sometimes the presence is felt, though there is nothing to see. Some move things or make noises such as knocking, scraping, footsteps, or voices. There are those who have been seen as orbs, filmy mists, or sometimes in whole form. They don't need to be scary; sometimes their presence is comforting, amusing or occasionally terrifying. The hauntings that we will be talking about on this virtual tour will encompass all of these things. We try to join historical facts with both rumors and eye witness accounts to tell the story of Elmore's spirits--both past and present. After reading these tales of Haunted Elmore, YOU will be the judge of what is to be believed and what is not. Please check back often as we find more spiritual and historical evidence!
Click the NUMBER below to learn more about the hauntings at that location.
Harris-Elmore Public Library
328 Toledo St.
449 Toledo St.
Elmore Community Center
410 Clinton St.
317 Toledo St.
336 Augusta St.
344 E. 4th St.
347 E. 4th St.
Christy's Corner Cafe
368 Rice St.
Portage Auto Works
333 Rice St.
231 Maple St.
Elmore Train Depot & Historical Barn
335 Ottawa St.
318 Rice St.
344 Lincoln St.
360 Huron St.
621 Rice St.
Commodore Perry Credit Union
365 Rice St.
Destazio's Pizza
351 Rice St.
310 Rice St.
243 Rice St.
Woodmore School Admin. Offices
349 Rice St.
244 Rice St.
Harrington Cemetery
Rice St.
St. John's United Church of Christ
448 Rice St.
420 Ames St.
Elmore Town Hall & Downtown
344 Rice St.
Schedel Arboretum & Gardens
19255 W. Portage River South
Elmore General Store
346 Rice St.
Harris-Elmore Union Cemetery
332 Rice St.
Headless Motorcylist
Portage Slemmer Rd. Bridge
Harris-Elmore Public Library
328 Toledo St.
This location was the home of Cora Coe Dixey from her birth in 1860. When she was 14, she eloped with a married man, Thomas Dixey. He was the Marshall of Elmore and had left his wife and children in the hotel in which they were boarding. Cora moved back in with her mother a few years later after Dixey died. Cora was in and out of the Toledo State Hospital for the Insane from 1908-1930 as a result of schizophrenia, depression, and violent outbursts. It was rumored that she would beat her mother, locking her up in the house, and then shut herself away for weeks. After Cora’s death in 1932, firemen burned down the home as it was falling into disrepair. Many onlookers as well as firemen could see a woman pacing in front of the upstairs window as the house was burning.
M.J. Coe (left) with her daughter Cora Coe (right) in 1869.
Before the 2001 library remodel, various staff members would report hearing sounds of books being shelved or sometimes books suddenly flying off of the shelves. When staff went to investigate these sounds, they would find no one there. Sometimes they would find a few shocked patrons who had witnessed the ordeal themselves. There have also been sounds of a baby wailing or children laughing when no one was in the library except for staff members. Doors to the furnace room are also often opening and closing.
Below is a video explaining the paranormal staff experiences since the 2019 renovation and also four additional videos explaining the findings from the paranormal investigator group "Brave Ohio Spook Seekers" in September 2020 and 2023:
Update: During the 2023 investigations, there were two spirits in the Local History room talking and jumping behind the file cabinets. One presumably was Grace Luebke, former Library Director and Local Historian. The group that was in there was a bit rowdy and she had to ask them to leave the room. One investigator went into the furnace room and a man was there telling her to "get out now!" he was then walking the hallways near the bathrooms and went back into the storage room. In the teen room was a small girl that was interacting with onlookers. One of the guests had the spirit of his younger brother attached to him and he was playing with the girl for awhile as they were jumping in and out of the Elmore Car in the exhibit room.
Elmore Community Center
410 Clinton St.
The former United Brethren Church building was built in 1895. The church discontinued its services around 1921. In 1923, the building was purchased by the Elmore Free & Accepted Masons for their Temple. The Masons of Portage Lodge #351 moved into the site in 1925 and began plans for renovations. For privacy purposes, lodge rooms were typically located on the upper floors. The Masons decided to raise the roof of the former one story church and covered up the brick with stucco--placing a number of Free Mason symbols throughout.
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Portage Lodge #351 c. 1930s
The United Brethren Church in Elmore c.1900
Meetings of the Masons and their sister organization, the Order of the Eastern stars met in the building immediately after renovations finished. Both organizations stopped meeting in the building in 1996, but it doesn't seem that everyone has left. Sometimes you can catch a glimpse of long dead members enjoying a cigar in the great room or shooting disapproving looks for interfering in their boys club activities--especially if the onlooker is a woman.
The building was taken over by the village of Elmore and currently houses the Elmore Community Center and is used as a party rental facility. Woodmore Boy Scout Troop #314 also holds their meetings there.
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Photos of the interior of the Portage Lodge during the 1920s-1930s. The Card Room, Club Room, and Masonic Lodge Room are depicted. Photos taken by O.B. Durfee (Elmore, OH)
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John Kirk Luckey was installed as a member of the Masons Portage Lodge #351 in 1921 when their headquarters were still in the Elmore Opera House on Rice St. He is one of the Masonic members who's description fits some sightings of spirit activity in the building.
In 2023, paranormal investigators spent some time on the first and second floors. They had a lot of activity in both locations that included screams of "I want to go home", footsteps and moving objects. Upstairs, the investigators did a roll call of several names of former Masons that met there. Several of them replied "HERE" when their name was called. One of them also sat in the seats there as the theater chair moved to a downward position from an upright position. They also spoke with a young girl named "Hannah" that was very interested in sitting near an observer and setting off various pieces of equipment. Below are videos from that night.
Community Center Video
317 Toledo St.
The home of the late Elmore Mayor, Lowell Krumnow (mayor from 1992-2013) was built in 1875. When he bought the home in 1982, he had heard rumors of the house being haunted--but everyone was hesitant to speak about it to him. However, he would soon find out the truth for himself...
He was kneeling in front of the living room fireplace one afternoon when all of a sudden he felt a sharp kick in his rear. He wheeled about to confront the culprit, only to discover that he was alone in the room. Other odd things started happening quickly after. The lights would flicker, radios would go on and off, the waterbed would start shaking, and shadows would appear on the wall with no objects associated with them. One time the blinds shot up in the living room when he was alone with a woman and he joked that his ghost must've been jealous.
Another time, he was leaving the house with a friend and he happened to glance at the upstairs octagon window. There was an old woman standing there looking at them. There have been many sightings of this old woman in the window from other Elmore residents.
The old woman is suspected to be Jane Harmon, a 79 year old widow that was a respected pioneer in the county. She was born in 1840 and she bought the house in 1903. She died from a paralytic stroke in 1919.
The photograph to the left is Jane Harmon in the 1880s.
Lowell's daughter has also experienced the cries of a young woman giving birth and could see glimpses of her red, sweaty face as she stared at her hopelessly.
A psychic named Elizabeth Wharrey visited Elmore on Lowell's request and found the spirit of a young maid that had died in childbirth, screaming near the kitchen area, thus corroborating the story Lowell's daughter had given.
336 Augusta St.
This house was built in 1861 by A.W. Luckey and later belonged to Civil War veteran Henry William Bothe in the 1880s. Bothe was a German immigrant and fought in the 37th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He was a prisoner in Andersonville for a portion of the Civil War. His family also lived in this home for over 100 years.
Murlyn Schneider (Henry's great granddaughter), grew up in the house and would often hear strange noises or would notice items frequently being moved from their original places. After her father, Henry James Bothe passed away in the 1960s, his "Old Spice" aftershave would linger in rooms, dissipate, and reappear hours later. After her husband Charles Schneider passed away, she and her daughter Jane would that the house would be locked up after they had previously left it unlocked. They would have to break the locks to get inside, only to find that the locks were mysteriously repaired hours later. They would also hear the back door opening and closing often when no one was in the backyard.
Charles Schneider c.1942 as a Naval Ensign in WWII.
Henry William Bothe in Masonic installation photograph in 1876.
344 Lincoln St.
Grant Cummings reported a sighting from his former residence on Lincoln St. that gave him the chills. He was coming back from the front room and walking toward the bathroom in the back. When he got to the staircase, something caught his eye. He turned around to look and saw a woman dressed in white. He couldn't make out anything concrete about her apparel, only that it was a long white dress with white veils. She just floated up the steps quickly and disappeared. That was his only encounter with her
They had moved into the house in 1997 and heard some strange noises around the house once in awhile, but had never seen anything until then.
At the time, his three year old daughter also claims to have seen the woman in white. She says that a lady comes into her bedroom at night and tells her that everything will be alright and to not be afraid.
Historical records show that the house was built in 1877 by John Weis and his wife Mary (Urech) Weis. They owned a harness shop across the street from their home. In researching the people that have lived inthat house, only Mary had died there. She was only 42 years old when she died in 1886. Could she be the woman in white?
The Weis Family in front of their Lincoln St. home in the 1880s.
John Weis and his son in front of their harness shop.
John & Mary Weis' tombstone located in the Harris-Elmore Union Cemetery.
360 Huron St.
Sierra Ream was sitting alone in the kitchen of her former Huron St. home when she happened to glance at the doorframe. She saw a man that looked much like a butcher in his white apron spattered with blood stains. She didn't process the sight right away because when she looked up again, the man had disappeared. When she told her mother about it later that night, she was surprised because a butcher had once lived in the house years ago.
The mysterious butcher is quite possibly Otto Tank, who lived in the house between 1933-1939. His family was the owner of Tanks Meats, the local butcher shop. He died in his Fremont St. home in 1962, but his spirit may remain on Huron St.
Employees of Tanks Meats in 1907 (left) and also c. 1950s-1960s (right).
621 Rice St.
This house was built in 1861 and had many inhabitants before Mike & Maria Giles arrived. When they moved in, they decided to do a complete remodel. Upon redecorating rooms in the house, they painted walls one color and would return hours later to find it painted in a completely different color. This happened in several rooms. They chalked it up to their ghost "Margaret" not liking the way that it looked.
A girlfriend of one of the Giles' nephews came to visit and saw "Margaret" wandering the halls with her head covered in a veil. The apprition informed her that they needed to stop calling her Margaret, as her name was Marjorie. Marjorie said that the neighbor fellow disliked her and called her Margaret to make her angry. It was this neighbor that had told the Giles of the ghost in the first place.. The neighbor did confirm that he teasingly called her Margaret when she was living there. Occasionally Marjorie will sit in the sunroom with an older man (possibly her husband Bliss?) and another woman. She continues to foil many a decorating scheme in the house.
This spirit has been identified as Marjorie Damschroder. She came to Elmore in 1947 and lived in this house with her husband Bliss. She owned and operated the Janway Kennel in Ottawa County, which specilaized in breeding Collies. In her later years, she became reclusive and was quite demanding about the way that she wanted things--especially the house. She died in 1995 of natural causes.
Marjorie Damschroder's Obituary.
Harrington (Old Elmore) Cemetery on Rice St.
The Old Elmore Cemetery was established in 1837 on a plot of land that was donated by Israel Harrington for this purpose. The cemetery was later named in his honor as he was the circuit judge minister, and one of the first trustees of Elmore. The last burials to this cemetery were made in the early 1920s, though it was used less often after the platting of the Guss (now Union) Cemetery in 1871. A number of early citizens, Revolutionary War veterans, and influential first families are buried at this spot. To learn who is buried there, click HERE.
Former Elmore Mayor, Lowell Krumnow once left a tape recorder on at the Old Cemetery at night. He came back to play his findings and could clearly hear whispers and the sounds of horse hooves clicking on pavement.
A photograph of the Old Elmore Cemetery from the 1910s.
Union Cemetery (Guss Cemetery) on Elmore Eastern Rd.
Elmore needed another cemetery due to the cramped space being filled by the others. Alexander Guss donated land in 1870 and the "Guss Cemetery" was incorporated in 1872. In 1896, there was an ordinance passed to rename it Union Cemetery. This is the current burial ground for Elmore residents.
There have been reports of unusual activity there for many years. One such being in the Hortop Mausoleum for their young daughter Ella Mae. There have been reports of faces in the windows and the rapid rocking of the chair that rests inside.
Paranormal Investigators observed Union Cemetery (not far from Harrington) in 2023 and found a woman in white walking the paths. There was also an older couple walking down the sidewalk and as they reached a lamp post, the stretched very tall and morphed into a younger couple and vanished. The video below explains more.
Cemetery Video
St. John's United Church of Christ
448 Rice St.
The Lutheran Reformed & Evangelical congregation formed St. John's in Elmore in 1860, locating themselves on Piety Hill (Harris St.). Finding that their membership was steadily growing, they built the present church at this Rice St. location in 1921 under the parsonage of Rev. E.J. Soell. The land was previously owned by August Siefeldt.
From 1927-1937, the church boasted an "Orchestra" of about twenty members under the leadership of Harry Trautman. They met on Sunday mornings in the sanctuary before Sunday School. The orchestra would accompany the hymnal singing and would often be contracted out for community events.
During the 1930s, a few members of the orchestra went inside the church to retrieve some of the instruments that they kept up in the belfry tower. When they entered, they could hear a piano playing and soft singing. They looked around and saw no one at the piano or organ. They went up to the belfry to see if someone was playing their instruments, but found no one there. As they stepped into the tower, the music halted.
In more recent years, parishioners have heard the phantom music playing and some have experienced windows shaking or have have felt generally uneasy when visiting the building at night.
Photographs from the church cornerstone laying ceremony in 1921.
A view of St. John's during the 1940s.
The interior of St. John's c. 1970s that shows the entrances to the belfry tower.
420 Ames St.
In November of 1976, Jim Krumnow was awoken in the dead of night by the sound of something crashing to the floor in the utility room. No one else was awake yet, so he grabbed a flashlight and headed to the kitchen to investigate. He turned on the kitchen light, but it immediately flickered off. He switched on his flashlight, but it too turned off. He thought this was strange, but he continued on to the utility room.
By the time he reached the door of the utility room, a man was standing in front of the door. He was handsome and well dressed in a suit, but his eyes were glowing red. Jim looked at the man and the man looked back at him, but seemed to stare right through him. The hair stood up on the back of Jim's neck. He instantly knew that the man was the devil so he turned around to sit at the kitchen table. He grabbed his Bible and started reciting the the 23rd Psalm. The next thing that he remembers is sitting on the edge of the bed. He never forgot that night and the man never returned.
344 E. 4th St.
Mary Deno answered a telephone call from a neighbor inquiring why the light in her garage was still on. She thought that perhaps the garage door malfunctioned, as no one had been in the garage for days. Mary and her sister walked over to turn off the light, but it had suddenly turned off right before they approached the door. Moments later, the hospital called saying that their father had fallen out of bed and kept babbling about how he needed to get home and get something out of the garage. The hospital thought they he was delirious, but the sisters thought that it was perhaps he who was in the garage. He died shortly after the phone call from the hospital.
Mary Deno's father, Raymond "Tex" Deno was part of the "Smoke Creek Country Band" in the late 1930s and was a member of the Elmore Fire Department. He died on September 20, 1986.
In 1989 when Mary's mother passed away, Mary's sister had an apartment in the basement. She had left to run some errands and when she returned, she heard footsteps on the stairs. She saw her mother and father walking down the stairs holding hands. They asked her if everyone was alright. She said that they were fine and her parents said they were also good. The next thing that she remembers is the cat hissing and growling toward the stairs, but her parents had disappeared. She was not afraid, but admitted that it was a strange occurrence.
347 E. 4th St.
There have been reports of the spirits of an entire family still living in this house. A young boy can be seen playing with children's toys (and moving around existing toys) or playing basketball in the driveway. There is also a woman that lingers in the upstairs portion of the house. One of the inhabitants claims that she had cuddled with him one night and it scared him half to death. She comes out of a closet , which used to be an entrance to a duplex. There is also a gentleman wearing a top hat that walks up and down the hallways. Cabinets and doors will also often open and close of their own accord.
449 Toledo St.
There are many rumors that violent ghosts occupy this property. As a result, this house usually has a difficult time being rented out. Renters rarely stay there long and refuse to talk about anything that has happened there.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Ernst Freemark (Freimark) owned the home. He was a substitute teacher at the Elmore High School and also taught English and other foreign languages privately at his home. He was also an amateur archaeologist with a PhD from the University of Chicago. He traveled the world during the turn of the 20th century and brought back ancient artifacts from Europe, Africa, and Asia. He also brought back the ashes of his wife that died while he was a headmaster in Burma.
There have been a number of studies of the paranormal that suggest that objects can haunted from within or they sometime hold spirits for transport. Could the restless ghosts on this property be ancient spirits from across the globe?
Ernst Freimark in 1961 displaying some of his ancient treasures inside of his Toledo St. home.
Commodore Perry Credit Union
365 Rice St.
John H. Magee started the first bank in Elmore. It was privately owned and although there is no proof when the bank first opened, it may have been as early as 1868. The Bank of Elmore was incorporated into a state bank in 1907 with the current building being erected in 1926. Commodore Perry Credit Union went into the building after Huntington's closure in 2017.
John Magee (right) in 1907 just before the Bank of Elmore was incorporated.
The former Bank of Elmore c.1910s before the current structure was built. The site was formerly a Drug Store and Billiard Hall.
In 2018, the Commodore Perry Credit Union Branch Manager, Courtney Hammer and a male teller were cleaning up some items in the basement when wood trim fell across the room in the direction of the teller. A number of boxes began to fall shortly after, also in his direction. Weeks later, when she and the teller were locking up, she went upstairs to double check everything. It had been dead quiet for hours. As she approached the top of the stairs, she heard murmuring and soft talking. The voices were tinny and far away. It instantly gave her goosebumps and tears sprang to her eyes. The teller was locking up on the other side of the glass and he reported hearing continuous loud knocking. Courtney asked him to come upstairs with her to check on the voices, but no one was there.
One of the other tellers had an EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) app on her phone and one day she turned it on while she went into the basement. When she played it for her co-workers later, the voices that were recorded clearly repeated "Get Her...Get Her..." Courtney often heard squeaking noises at her desk that originate from the basement. There is an old bank vault down there and when the door opens, it sounds like the same squeaking. However, there is never anyone in the basement while the squeaking occurs.
Christy's Corner Cafe
368 & 366 Rice St.
Built in 1873, these two buildings housed various grocery stores (Schaenfelds & Bothe) and tailor/millinery shops. The I.O.O.F (International Order of Odd Fellows Club also had their meetings on the second floor for a number of years.
Various staff members of the Former Red, White & Brew (now Christy's Corner) coffee shop have claimed to to have seen the apparition of a woman, whom they fondly referred to as "Gertie". Shw was always wearing a long skirt. However her appearances are always fleeting as she walks the halls in the kitchen area. She often plays with the light switches and opens and shuts locked doors. Occasionally she appears in the adjoining building (now Creatively Altered).
There are many women from the past that we suspect could be "Gertie", but the favorite seems to be Josephine Gossman. She lived with her father George Gossman in the adjoining building when it was still Gossman's Tailor Shop. This shop operated from the 1870s until the 1940s and Josephine was a seamstress there. She died in 1940 at age 80, having had a debilitating stroke a month before her death.
Shaenfeld Grocery (left) and Gossman Tailors (right) c. 1880s
George Gossman, owner of the tailor shop and father of Josephine.
Obituary of Josephine Gossman
Woodmore Admin. Offices
349 Rice St.
This site was the home of the Elmore Opera House. This particular building was rebuilt in 1895 by Louis Jeremy after a devastating fire wiped out half the block the year prior. The Opera House hosted traveling theater, minstrel shows, medicine men, basketball games, school plays, and graduation ceremonies. The second floor also held the Elmore Portage Lodge Freemasons from 1909 until their move to the United Brethren Church location in 1925. It now houses the Administrative offices of the Woodmore School System.
The aftermath of the of the 1894 fire that destroyed the Opera House and Jaeger Hardware. It was caused by a fallen kerosene lamp in the butcher shop next door. Fire spread quickly as the temperature outside was below freezing and water froze before it could reach the fire to put it out.
A view of the interior of the Opera House on January 26, 1909 at the installation dinner for Portage Lodge Freemason members.
The resident ghost, "Opera House Mary", as she is fondly called by those who have seen her, is a lively spirit that often graces the right window of the upper floor. She wears a corset, antique garb, and a robe that she likes to open to flash people passing by. This is very risqué behavior from someone that is suspected to be from the early 20th century. Once inside the Opera House, visitors can occasionally hear faint music or the excited murmurings of people.
DeStazio's Pizza
351 Rice St.
COMING SOON!
Elmore Town Hall/Downtown
344 Rice St.
The A.W. Luckey Engine Company became Elmore's first Fire Department in 1868. An astounding number of fires swept through Elmore in the 1890s, claiming the lives of several citizens and firefighters. The old fire station (next to town hall) has ghosts of firemen from decades past. If you listen carefully, you can hear men talking to each other when no one else is around.
Medium, Elizabeth Wharrey, passed through the downtown district of Elmore in the 1990s and stated that she felt the presence of the spirit of an African American man that had overstayed his welcome in town. She had visions of him being horsewhipped in the street at this location. Other times she could she him walking up and down the road. It is believed that this man could be Finley Fountain, who was well known in Elmore. He burglarized the Damschroder Store and several downtown Toledo stores in the 1880s.
The A.W Luckey Fire Department in 1870, showcasing their new water pumper on the left.
In 2022, paranormal investigators went to the second floor of the town hall where all of the older village records are kept. Below are some videos with some of their findings.
stairway rem pod gong off 30 secs
security camera evp after holly talks
ah...yes evp 20 seconds
image in stairway 5 second inti video
Elmore General Store
346 Rice St.
This building was once the Damschroder Dry Goods Store, which opened at this location in 1883. Christopher W. Damschroder
When it was the Elmore Five & Dime in the 1990s, customers would often see three gentlemen clerks in period suits cheerfully waiting on them. Employees have said that that on days when they would leave messes in the store to clean up in the morning, they would find everything tidied when they came in the next day--despite having locked the door and no keys in circulation. It has also been reported that many have felt cold spots throughout the building, which is often said to be the presence of the spirit.
The owner of the Five and Dime, Rick Claar lived upstairs in the shop until his death in 2021. He recalled noticing things being moved around in the store and his apartment on a regular basis. He once came upstairs and saw an entire family at his dining room table holding hands with heads bowed down in a prayer-like state. They were wearing old fashioned attire as well. They slowly dissipated after about 15 seconds, leaving no trace that they were ever there. Claar suspected that they were members of the Damschroder Family. It appeared that they were mourning a loss of some kind--reliving that important moment.
The current store operator often hears footsteps on the second floor and coming down the stairs into her store area, though there are no tenants or other employees in the building.
The Christopher W. Damschroder Family c.1900
Could they be the ones that appeared in the upstairs dining room?
332 Rice St.
A portion of this building was once a part of the Elmore House Hotel, which ran from 1855 until 1915. The main portion of the hotel now houses the Post Office. The hotel was situated next to Vultee's Saloon and was a popular place for visitors getting off the train across the street. It was a three story brick building with 35 rooms. It was managed by D.M. Day and later his daughter Alice Blivens. There was at least one murder and a suicide by a clerk named Thurlow Cooper within the hotel in 1869 and 1870.
In 1869, S.P. Cummings had gotten very drunk at the hotel and misplaced his wallet in his room. The next morning he could not find it and blamed Thurlow Cooper of stealing it. He beat Cooper until he could no longer let it slide and he hit Cummings with a fire poker, killing him. The next year, Cooper was so despondent over his unrequited love over the hotel proprietor's daughter, Alice that he shot himself in his room at the hotel with a note to Alice.
The building was razed in 1952. In the latter 1950s, the current buildings were constructed with various types of stores inhabiting them. Employees say they often hear footsteps down the halls and flickering lights in various places. There are shadow figures in the basement area that can be heard discussing bar items or the need to help guests.
Portage Auto Works
333 Rice St.
From the Elmore Garage to Neeb's Motor Sales, this building has been some sort of car repair garage or auto dealership since 1917.
There had been reports of hearing what sounds like running in the back of the basement, only to find no one around. One employee kept having a feeling that someone may have hung themselves in the rafters.
Paranormal investigators came in 2023 found some things as seen in the video and audio clip below. They also had SOS evidence of a spirit (in stick figure form) in a residual sighting walking along the rafters and suddenly dropping. This action happens over and over again.
Thermal imaging was used to capture the spirits pictured in these two captures
231 Maple St.
The homestead when it was known as Riverview.
This home is the oldest standing building in Elmore, built in the early 1850s. It originally belonged to Ezekiel Rice, who was one of the original founders of Elmore. This house was used as a tavern for weary travelers stepping off the train for several decades. In the 1890s, the house went into the hands of Rice's daughter Jennie and her husband Colonel D.R. Hunt. At this time, the house and surrounding lots (which also included the gas station across the street) was known as "Riverview". This property with its magnificent gardens, stables, elaborate decor and view of the Portage River was used for weddings and grand parties.
Today it is owned by the Faunce Family. One of the residents, Jerry Bush, along with his daughter Missy Faunce have experienced many unusual happenings. Their ghosts, Padget and Barron, have spoken to Bush's grandson in the night, whispering and breathing in his ear. Bush claims that hears deep garbled voices, glasses clinking, laughter, and men disappearing into the walls. He has had instances where he has been scratched and received electric jolts from unseen assailants. They have even seen old fashioned cryones being thrown in their fans and being chopped to pieces.
Ezekiel Rice
Col. D.H. Hunt
Elmore Train Depot & Historical Barn
335 Ottawa St.
In December 1869, the Elmore Train Depot was completed and freight was shipped here from all over the country, adding to the town's prosperity. In the 1870s, this Depot often saw trains crowded with passengers emigrating to the West. Passenger service was discontinued on December 16, 1949, but a special excursion train stopped in Elmore as part of the town's Centennial Celebration on August 24, 1951. More than 750 people boarded the train in front of this Depot and traveled to Toledo and back. Freight trains continued to travel through Elmore until the early 1970s.
Some people have experienced hearing people talking and moving around in the Train Depot where there was no one present. A few have bumped into "invisible" luggage in the waiting area and have experienced a number of cold spots on warm summer days. When going along the Northcoast Inland bike Trail, which was formerly the LakeShore & Michigan Southern and later New York Central Railroad tracks. Some have heard train horns and the dinging of the rail gate when coming near the former tracks. A whoosh of air goes by them, but no train appears.
During a paranormal investigation in 2023, a spirit consistently interacted with the rem pod at the telegraph office/ticket desk. It then went into the office and said very loudly his name was Harold. There are also photos on the thermal camera showing spirits sitting in the seating area waiting for their train.
The Elmore Historical Barn is situated on the original spot of the Train Depot, near the former Elemore Elevators (now Quonset Building). It was built in 1994 to hold activities and catering/rentals for the Elmore Historical Society, then led by Mayor Lowell Krumnow. It is also an extension of the Depot Museum, holding various historical artifacts from Elmore's long history. This could be another situation of hauntings associated with objects, rather than locations.
During a 2023 investigation, a woman crying in the restrooms and asking for help could be heard. There were also several spirits at that location, one named Ryan asking about a BINGO party and another named Helen that kept saying she could not breathe and wanted them to play music for her. Below is a photograph from the investigation showing one of the team conversing with several spirits together.
318 Rice St.
Steve Hehl used to live in one of the upstairs apartments in Gary Rhiel's old brick house on 318 Rice St. He recounts a chilling story about an evening when he was asleep. He was awoken to the feeling that someone was being pushed down with such force, but there was no one in the room with him. He looked to the doorway and saw a shadowy figure with its arm outstretched like it was holding him down from that very doorway.
A scream died in his throat as he realized his situation. Moments later, the pressure and the shadow figure disappeared. No one believed his story as he was a young man at the time, but he found confirmation twenty years later. He had remarried and he and his wife Donna had rented out the bottom floor to this house. Steve had never told his wife or other new occupants to the house as to his ghostly experience. One night when he was not home, his wife told him that she was lying in bed and all of a sudden she could not get up—she was being pushed down by something unseen. Her young daughter Audrey was crying from the other room and she could not get up to go to her. Donna saw a dark shadow in the doorway holding her down for a moment before releasing her again. They soon moved out after this incident. They had told this story to a few friends years later that had also lived in that house at some point in time. Their friends had a similar experience when they lived there.
Melody Garay also lived at this house for several years beginning in 2008. After she first moved into the house, the door that leads into the kitchen was constantly being knocked upon. At the same time, the metal doorknob from a door on the other side of the house would rattle like someone was trying to get in. This would happen in the middle of the night and she would look out to see that no one was there. The doors were on separate ends of the house and there was no time for someone to knock and rattle the knob in the time span in which it was happening. They had just moved to Elmore from Texas, so they didn't know anyone yet. There was no reason for anyone to have been visiting with them at that hour of the night. She has also taken photographs inside the house, only to find that they are obscured by large orbs and smoky fogs, which she believes are the spirits.
Her upstairs neighbors say that they always hear footsteps walking above them and that they had a sense that they were being watched. They have moved out since.
310 Rice St.
Many buildings have come and gone over the years and have passed through the hands of many prominent citizens of Elmore’s past. This particular lot highlights many of these people. John H. Magee who opened the first bank in Elmore. Joseph Mudnow, a French Canadian who worked on the Walland Canal connecting Lake Erie with Lake Ontario. John H. Foster who originally in 1851 plotted land tracts which became Elmore.
The current house was built in 1925, but according to earlier maps another house/structure was on the property. It is unknown if that structure was torn or burned down leading to the current home. According to the residents, a young boy appears in the dining room of the house. He wears a white shirt and short pants and doesn’t speak. However the boy will follow you around and vanishes on many occasions.
243 Rice St.
The one time resident of this house, Cindy Kime, claims that there are several spirits here. There have been a number of encounters by everyone in the family. Common ghost occurrences such as items coming up missing when they were near you, footsteps on the stairwell, and the opening and closing of doors or kitchen cupboards were constantly happening. At one point, her husband was sitting in the living room when he looked over at the staircase and saw a man in dated clothing walking down the stairs and turning and vanishing into the wall. The man was tall and thin, wearing what looked like work pants and a shirt with sleeves folded up part of the way. He appeared in black and white, like an old movie picture. The dog noticed the man as well and his hairs were standing straight up.
They would often smell bacon, cookies or something baking when there was nothing in the kitchen. There was also the smell of cigarettes in their bedroom in the middle of the night, but Cindy kept telling their ghosts “NO SMOKING” and that has pretty much stopped. Sometimes when they are lying in bed they can hear someone walking and then feel them sit on or shake the bed. They also occasionally have short conversations with their spirits as they will answer direct questions in a very quiet manner.
The Kimes use EVP (electronic voice phenomena) to communicate with the ghosts. They once had a message on the answering machine that was a bit hard to hear. It sounded like a voice that they get frequently as an EVP, so they recorded it with a voice recorder and listened to it on the computer with headphones. It sounded like either "ghosts see" or "go see.” There are several men that they hear and that will appear in their windows. One of the child ghosts that they see is a little girl clutching a doll. Her face often appears in the windows as well. Through the use of EVP, they have determined that her name is Emma.
A paranormal investigation team came in March 24, 2012 to look at the house. They had lots of experiences and said that this was the most activity that they had experienced in one place in one night.
The house was built in 1853 by William Moore. He had his wagon factory and harness shop on this site in the 1850s through the 1870s. Christopher H. Damschroder and his family lived here from the 1880s until the 1920s. He opened the Damschroder Dry Goods Store in Elmore in 1883. The Kimes suspect that some members of the Damschroder Family are the culprits in this house haunting.
Emma can be seen holding her doll in the upstairs window. An older man's face can be seen above her and there is another figure to her right.
A boys face can be seen pushing against the glass window in the laundry room.
244 Rice St.
This was the location of Elmore’s first schoolhouse in 1855. In 1872, St. Patrick’s Catholic Church purchased the school buildings and remodeled them to use as their church. They burned down in 1888, but rebuilt the next year. The church disbanded in the early 1900s, the congregation moving to Genoa. John Magee bought the church and converted it into this dwelling. He also had the house turned so that it faced Rice Street. It was rumored that one of the priests was fooling around with a girl in town and that he felt guilty about the deed and hung himself in the church. Local lore suggests that Magee moved the house to face a different direction to rid of the spirits inside and to cleanse the house of the incident.
When Beth Swartz first moved in in the early 2000s, her kids informed her that they weren't sleeping there because their friends at school all said that the house was haunted. Even the babysitters wouldn't stay.
The Swartz’s had their wedding pictures sitting out on the table and when they came home from work one day, they found them missing. No one had been home to steal them and they are still lost to this day. The ghost also takes jewelry and other items in the house, but he always puts them back.
Beth was sitting on the front once and the door suddenly opened up. There was no wind. So she laughed and shouted out "Come on you chicken!" People outside were looking, but she egged the ghost on. It opened and closed the door a few more times for everyone to witness. This ghost is a source of amusement for her now.
Schedel Gardens & Arboretum
19255 W. Portage River South Rd.
Schedel’s Gardens & Arboretum has its own ghost in Joseph Schedel. Mr. Schedel came to the United States from Germany in the 1920s. He opened the arboretum in 1944, making it one of the largest of its kind in the country.
He died in 1981 and since the 1990s, over a dozen of the garden employees have witnessed a shadowy figure believed to be Joseph Schedel by the Japanese Cherry Trees. He is always dressed in a dark suit and dark hat. The apparition vanishes after a few moments of longingly looking out at the gardens.
The Japanese Garden area where Mr. Schedel usually appears
Joe Schedel with his wife Marie just months before his death.
The Headless Motorcyclist
Portage Slemmer Rd. Bridge
This ghost story has been featured in numerous publications and media nationwide over the last couple of years, as it still intrigues and terrifies those who seek it. Legend goes that a man had supposedly gone off to fight in the First World War, leaving his fiancée behind. He made it through the war and thought he would make a surprise visit to his girl, who lived on Portage Slemmer Road near Elmore, Ohio. He arrived at her home, only to find her with another man. He left the house in a fit of rage and was not paying attention to the road when he rode away on his motorcycle. He ended up crashing into the abutment near the “bridge” on that road and somehow severing his head in the process. They never found his head, only his body and mangled motorcycle with a missing headlight. It is said that on the anniversary of the Motorcyclists’ death (March 21), if you go to the bridge over the creek on Portage-Slemmer Road (Ghost Light Road), honk the horn three times, and blink your headlights three times that a singular ghost light will appear. The light will follow the headless motorcyclists’ tragic path from the house drive, down the road and disappearing along the bridge.
In 1968, ghost investigator, Richard Gill, then a folklorist student at Bowling Green State University decided to debunk the story of the headless motorcyclist that had been circulating for decades. Many had claimed to see this light after performing the ritual on the designated date, but Gill set out to prove them wrong. Gill took a friend with him on March 21, along with a movie camera, still camera set for infrared photography, and a tape recorder. They blinked. They honked. A light appeared at the then empty farmhouse, moved down the road, across the bridge, and then disappeared. Tying a piece of string across the far end of the bridge, they tried again. The light came toward them again without disturbing the string. Gill’s friend decided to test the ghost by standing in the middle of the road. Gill performed the ritual and again the light appeared. When Gill looked back to the bridge, his friend had disappeared. He found him in a ditch by the side of the road, badly beaten, and having no recollection of what happened. The movie film showed nothing and the still camera photographed a white shape, suggesting the movement of some heat source. The tape recorder picked up a high pitched humming sound. Gill had never experienced another encounter such as this in his ghost hunting career.