Ep 16. McPike Mansion

The episode titled "McPike Mansion" of the popular paranormal reality show Ghost Adventures follows the investigative team of Zak Bagans, Aaron Goodwin, Billy Tolley, and Jay Wasley as they explore the iconic McPike Mansion, located in the heart of Alton, Illinois. This 7500 square foot victorian mansion, originally built in 1869 on a hill overlooking the Mississippi River, has been the site of numerous ghostly sightings and rumored to be one of the most haunted places in the United States, making it a prime location for the Ghost Adventures team to investigate.

The team begins their investigation by meeting with the current owner, Sharon, who has experienced several unexplained paranormal occurrences since purchasing the mansion nearly twenty years ago. Sharon provides the team with a tour of the home, pointing out various hotspots where she has witnessed or heard paranormal activity. This includes the dining room, where she once heard the sound of a man's voice coming from the area near the fireplace, and the sitting room, where she heard a woman's voice and witnessed a chandelier shaking. Additionally, the team takes note of the various architectural details and unique features of the mansion, such as the large stained glass windows and the creepy, wallpapered ballroom.

The team then sets up their equipment and begins their investigation, starting with a spirit box session in the main hall. A spirit box is a device that quickly scans through radio frequencies, allowing spirits to potentially communicate through the white noise. During the session, the team believes they make contact with a male spirit named "William" and a female spirit named "Elizabeth," who may be connected to the mansion's history. In another room, they experience a sudden cold spot, despite no windows or doors being open, and capture possible EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) indicating a child's laughter and a male voice saying, "Get out!"

As the investigation continues, the team experiences more unexplained activity, such as the sudden movement of chairs in the ballroom and a strange, unidentifiable noise in the basement. They also use various equipment, such as thermal imaging cameras and EMF (electromagnetic field) detectors, to try and capture any evidence of paranormal activity. One of the most intriguing pieces of evidence they capture is a sudden spike on the EMF detector, which correlates with Sharon's experience of feeling a sudden gust of wind and hearing the ghostly voice of a man saying, "Hey."

Throughout the episode, the team delves into the history of McPike Mansion, in hopes of discovering more information about the possible spirits haunting the home. They learn that the mansion was originally owned by Henry Guest McPike, who made his fortune in the local brick manufacturing industry. McPike died in 1910 and the mansion was passed down to various family members before falling into disrepair and being abandoned in the 1950s. In the 1970s, the mansion was purchased by the Shary family who began renovations and ultimately sold it to Sharon in 1994.

As the investigation comes to a close, the team presents their findings to Sharon and speculate on the possible identities and motivations of the spirits they encountered. They leave behind equipment for Sharon to use in future investigations and provide her with advice on how to coexist with these possible ghostly residents. The team ultimately concludes that McPike Mansion is indeed one of the most haunted places in the United States, and that it's possible some spirits will always call the mansion their home.