| WELCOME TO THE NEW ISSUE OF THE NEWSLETTER!
28 SEPTEMBER 2011
This is it -- it's finally here, the weekend that kicks off the Fall Halloween season. We know that you have hundreds of different ghostly and spooky things to choose from in the weeks ahead but hope that you'll take a chance and take part in one of our tours, ghost hunts or events. We believe that you'll find the quality is definitely still there after 18 years in the "business" and that we are still the best at what we do. We do have a limited number of spots left in a few of our cities so we hope that you'll check them out at the Illinois Hauntings website! There are some great things coming up and we'll try and get to as many of them as we can in this issue of the newsletter! Before we kick things off, we wanted to share with you a few things from the last issue of Men's Health magazine; a list that was especially suited for us! * 2 out of 3 men believe that have souls that will outlive their bodies
* 1 out of 3 believe some of those free-floating souls come back to haunt us
* 41% of men believe that its possible to communicate with the dead
* 7% say they have tried it by dialing up a Ouija Board
* 25% seek out spooky thrills, like ghost tours, while on vacation
* 2 out of 3 believe that places can be haunted
* 1 out of 3 say they know this from first-hand experience We hope you enjoy the Halloween season this year and hope to see you somewhere in October! 
FALL FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND!
Join us this Saturday at the Visitor's Center in Lebanon, Illinois as we hold our annual kick-off to the Halloween season during this FREE 12:00 -4:00 event! Organized by local ghost host and American Ghost Society VP Len Adams, the Fall Festival takes place every October and welcomes a new season of Halloween haunts! Our event coincides with the town of Lebanon's own Fall Festival, so come early and stay late so you can enjoy crafts, vendors, food and drink -- and don't miss our line-up of speakers on ghosts, hauntings and the unexplained!
Speakers will include Troy Taylor (making a rare guest appearance); host Len Adams; Tim Harte and making a last-minute addition, Kelly Davis, one of the authors of the 2011 book, Illinois Hauntings. It's going to be a great event that you don't want to miss and you can get more details about it on the Fall Festival Website! 
2012 HAUNTED AMERICA CONFERENCE WEBSITE IS UP & RUNNING!
The brand new website for the 2012 Haunted America Conference is now online! Due to popular demand, we'll be returning to the haunted Lincoln Theater in Decatur, Illinois over the weekend of June 22 & 23, 2012 with a line-up of new and returning speakers, plus some brand new conference additions and new after-hours events. This is America's "Original Ghost Conference" and the biggest and best event that you'll attend next year. Check out some of the details on the Haunted America Conference website and get a sneak preview below: * Speakers and presenters for 2012 include Troy Taylor & Rene Kruse; April Slaughter; Deonna Kelli Sayed; Beth Meyer; Curt Strutz; Rosemary Ellen Guiley; Eric Altman; Stan Courtney; Len Adams; Tiffany Smith Johnson; Dale Kaczmarek; and Ken Melvoin-Berg * New Conference additions like the new American Monster Panel -- because America isn;t just haunted by ghosts! * New After-Hours events... in addition to returning favorites like workshops, group readings, the Haunted Decatur Tour and ghost hunts at the Lincoln Theater, we've also introduced a ghost hunt at the Avon Theater and the new "Wicked Decatur" crime tour, personally hosted by Troy Taylor! Tickets will go on sale early for newsletter subscribers, starting on January 9, so keep an eye on future newsletters for updates! | | 
NEW BOOK FROM OLYVE HALLMARK ABBOTT & WHITECHAPEL PRESS!
Whitechapel Press is proud to present our first Texas book and the first book from long-time Texas author Olyve Hallmark Abbott, who has written several previous books about ghosts in the Lone Star State. The new book will be officially released on October 3, but our newletter subscribers are being offered advance sales on this new title! Click Here to Order your copy of the new book and help spread the word about this great new title! LONE STAR GHOSTS
TALES OF TEXAS HISTORY & HAUNTINGS
Ghost stories have long been an essential part of the history of Texas, a place where unique history, blood and violence all go hand-in-hand. First-hand accounts of encounters with the spirit world have been a part of the lore of the Lone Star State since the first settlers arrived and made the land their own. Few authors have managed to capture the haunted side of Texas in the way that Olyve Hallmark Abbott has done with her previous books about the paranormal side of the state. In this rowdy and rollicking book, she gives the readers the chance to take a haunted road trip around the state, from the cities to the small towns and the open plains. With dozens of new stories, she presents a spooky chronicle of the ghosts from haunted universities, prisons, jails, courthouses, libraries, railroad depots, museums and more! Lone Star Ghosts is no re-hash of classic ghost stories but a personal account of Texas haunts as only one of the state’s great ghost story collectors can present it! Featuring the true history behind familiar and little-known locations, you’ll soon discover that there isn’t a corner of the state where spirits of the past don’t linger! $15.00 | | 
FREE HORROR MOVIES AT THE AVON THEATER THIS HALLOWEEN!
Want to be scared this Halloween season? Join us on Friday and Saturday nights at the Avon Theater in Decatur, Illinois as Troy Taylor hosts the 2011 FREE Halloween movie collection! Visit the Haunted Decatur page under "events" to see a detailed list of films for this year! AMERICAN HAUNTINGS EVENTS JUST ADDED!
In the last edition of the newsletter, we told you about two brand new events that had been added to the schedule for 2012 -- the Haunted Weekend at the Elms in May and the Night at the Lemp Mansion, which will be February 19. Now, we have a new location that has just been added to the roster for October 23 --- in just a few weeks -- in Springfield, Illinois at the Virgil Hickox House, which is also Norb Andy's, one of the most infamous haunted houses in the city! Click here for details about the Night at Norb Andy's and don't wait too long to register, it's already filling up!  SPOOKAPALOOZA 2011!
We hope you're making your plans for Spookapalooza 2011 at the haunted Lincoln Theater in Decatur! It's going to be the biggest Halloween party anywhere around -- and proceeds go to benefit St. Jude Children's Research, so why not have a great time and benefit a worthwhile charity while you're doing it! Hope to see you there! 
OCTOBER 2011 October 1: Annual American Ghost Society Fall Festival -- Lebanon, Illinois Join us at the Lebanon Visitor's Center for a FREE event to kick off the Halloween season. Meet other ghost hunters, enjoy the town and hear speakers including Len Adams, Kelly Davis, Tim Harte and Troy Taylor.
October 1: Night at the Original Springs Hotel -- Okawville, Illinois Spend the night at this haunted hotel and mineral springs, includes ghost tour, hotel room and dinner for two! SOLD OUT!
October 7-29: Avon Theater Spookshows! Free Horror films on Friday & Saturday Nights in October including 13 Ghosts, Dog Soldiers, Night of the Living Dead, Dawn of the Dead, Jeepers Creepers and Trick r Treat! See the Haunted Decatur Schedule for Dates!
October 7: Night at the Lincoln Theater -- Decatur, Illinois! Join us for a haunted overnight at this ghost-infested former vaudeville house! Reservations!
October 8: Night at the Avon Theater -- Decatur, Illinois Join us for a late-night ghost hunt at our haunted 1916 movie theater! Reservations!
October 8: Night at Squirrel Cage Jail -- Council Bluffs, Iowa Return with us to one of America's most unusual -- and haunted -- jails! SOLD OUT!
October 8: Night at the Eldred House -- Eldred, Illinois Join us for another dark night at one of Illinois' spookiest haunted houses, the legendary James Eldred House in the woods of rural Illinois! Reservations!
October 14: Night at the Haunted Opry -- Winchester, Illinois Join us for what may be our final ghost hunt at the spirited Great River Opry and mark the occasion of this last event with the spirits! SOLD OUT!
October 15: Night at the Hockenhull Building -- Jacksonville, Illinois Come along for a ghost hunt at the scene of a fatal fire that killed a number of people in the 1960s -- and discover the haunting that still lingers today! SOLD OUT!
October 22: Night at Haunted Rectory -- Jacksonville, Illinois Return to one of our most haunted and unusual locations, the Our Savior Rectory, where spirits from the past still linger today! Reservations! October 23: Night at the Virgil Hickox House -- Springfield, Illinois Join us at the home of Norb Andy's and experience one of the most infamous haunted houses in Springfield's history! Reservations!
October 29: Night at the Old Funeral Home -- Jacksonville, Illinois Join us for a ghost hunt at this former funeral home and boarding house! SOLD OUT! NOVEMBER 2011 November 5: Night at the Haunted Mansion -- Carrollton, Illinois Join us for another nighttime ghost hunt at the Lee-Baker-Hodges house, a spooky mansion with hauntings from the past! Reservations! November 12: Haunted Weekend in San Antonio, Texas -- Join American Hauntings in the Lone Star State for a full weekend of ghost tours and hunts! SOLD OUT! November 12: Night at Morrison Lodge -- Elizabethtown, Kentucky Join American Hauntings at this haunted Masonic Lodge, steeped in the history of the Civil War and infested with ghosts! Reservations! This electronic message is intended for newsletter subscribers. Please note that any form of distribution, copying or use of this communication, or the information it contains, is strictly prohibited without the express permission of the sender. Any use of this communication without permission is unlawful and a violation of federal copyright standards. If you have received this communication in error, please return it to the sender. © Copyright 2011 by Troy Taylor. All Rights Reserved | |
