The Fairfield Haunting
The Fairfield Haunting: On the Gettysburg Ghost Trail (Gettysburg Ghosts Book 1)
By Richard Estep
The Sexton’s musings (spoilers are likely):
Not sure why I decided to read these out of order but they each stand on their own. They are very similar in their contents though. While there is an investigation at the inn there is a lot of history to be told. Knowing how passionate about the American Civil War Estep is, know that this book like the last is not full of scares. For me knowing the history of a place is key to understanding any otherworldly occurrences that occur there. As we know Gettysburg has no shortage of history, violence, and tragedy. The very ground must be a biohazard due to all the bloodshed.
The first couple of chapters is a bit of history, the travel of the team and their drive and arrival at the inn. Next is the tour of the inn and on overview of the rooms and areas that they plan on conducting sessions. Just a note the inn is the Mansion Inn and the Fairfield Inn all at the same time. There are couple of experiences relayed by previous guests and investigators in these early chapters. The forth chapter is mostly an overview of the battle history. The team take a short drive around the battlefield to get their initial feels for the trip.
What it looks like today (2024)
This trip is a five day investigation. The team, other than the first two nights, had the inn to themselves. November in PA can be a bit on the inhospitable side. Cold and potentially snowy. So we are in the off season for Fairfield/Gettysburg. There first night there they decided to do a session in the 1757 suite which was in the second floor of the original house. (Just a note, in 2020, after this book was written, ownership of the inn changed. The people who took over changed the rooms and names so there will be no pictures as I can’t verify which room was which. I suspect that they combined some of the original rooms. The Patrick Henry Suite may be this suite and the other room in the original house combined but I can’t say for sure. Sorry Ghoulies) I do think the picture of the dining area is correct though. The investigation on the first night actually yielded some interesting and exciting results.
The following two chapters is all history regarding Meade’s Fishhook which stretched from Little Round Top on to Cemetery Ridge and then ending at Culp’s Hill and Spangler’s Spring. A good defensive strategy if a general by the name of Daniel Sickles hadn’t thought that he knew better was a bit butt hurt about the position he was given on Little Round Top that he disobeyed orders and decided he was going to take the Peach Orchard leaving the left Union flank vulnerable to attack. Ah hubris. There is some interesting info about Sickles in this chapter. Not real glowing information either. Estep covers both sides of the conflict too describing the action that was taken. There are so many names and places. I myself, not being super familiar with the specific battles of the Civil War, got a little lost and had to read a few parts over a few times. Following these two chapters the team visits Little Round Hill at dawn and they do a short EVP session. Then they decide to move on to Devils Den, Plum Run, the Slaughter Pen and the Wheatfield. Really making a day exploring the battlefield from the second day of the war.
Meade’s Fishhook - Map courtesy of NPS
Little Round Top: A photo of Little and Big Round Top, facing southeast. Photographer Matthew Brady can be seen leaning against a tree in the left foreground.
Credit: Library of Congress.
Battle-field of Gettysburg. Temporary entrenchments thrown up by the Federal troops on Little Round Top. Big Round Top in the background
O'Sullivan, Timothy H., 1840-1882, photographer - Library of Congress
The Union line extended out to this orchard under the command of General Daniel Sickles, Photograph:
Jason Martz for NPS
Union Artillery on East Cemetery Hill were heavily engaged in close quarters fighting on July 2nd. Photograph:
Jason Martz for NPS
Chapter 11 is not so much the exploration of the battlefield itself but would have been part of the trek the men took, on both sides of the conflict, the Sachs Covered Bridge. Apparently it is also a location that was on our authors exploration bucket list. There is an unverifiable tale attached to the bridge and there have been several individuals who have had experiences here, these are talked about in this chapter. Unfortunately the brief session that the team conducts, much to their disappointment, is not fruitful. Well, you can’t win them all. This concludes the second night of their trip.
Sachs Covered Bridge - Wiki
Inside the Sachs Covered Bridge. Photograph courtesy of the petite wanderer
For the third night they decide to invite, over phone communication, the Klinge brothers, Barry and Brad (who wrote the forward to this book). If you recall, should you have read the “Farnworth Haunting” by Estep, this was something that they did for that investigation as well. This chapter outlines the investigation that they had done for their TV program “Ghost Lab” as well as the current teams investigation. Since the Klinge’s team was successful in their investigation Estep was hoping that including them as a familiar “face” would stir the entities to communicate. The next chapter is a continuation of team Estep’s investigation and a very interesting chapter it is. The session itself was not very fruitful but what happens after they all retire is.
Klinge Brothers Barry and Brad
Fairfield dining room
We are back to the battlefield in the next chapter. The team is exploring the part of the battlefield where Pickett’s Charge took place. 15,000 Confederate soldiers strong running hell bent for the Union center line. Last ditch effort by General Lee I suppose. Unfortunately they were not successful. Estep’s team did get one juicy bit for their efforts though.
Pickett’s Charge
Next Estep and his team talk with a couple of the staff members at the Inn to see what, if any, experiences they have had while working there. Then the next chapter is actually an interview that Estep did with Australian paranormal investigator Bill Tabone. Tabone had done an investigation at the Inn as well with the Kilnge Brothers. They had some interesting experiences that are relayed here.
The seventeenth chapter is not for the faint hearted. This is the discussion of the aftermath. There were seas of dead bodies that stayed where they fell for weeks. If you have ever had the misfortune to pass an unfortunate victim of our roadways baking in the hot summer sun with your windows down then imagine this tenfold. Not pleasant and a smell that stays in your mind nose for a long time after it take up residence. You just can’t seem to evict it. Just know that some of the content may be upsetting for some. For me the most upsetting part are the regular citizens that took the opportunity to disrespect the dead by stealing from them and/or coming to simply stare at the carnage. As The Sexton I feel a great responsibility in upholding the utmost respect for the departed, helping to give them a voice and find these degenerates offensive. But not all those who showed up were bad, dare I say it even taking it upon themselves to make sure that the dead were put to rest in one way or another. In addition to this information the team visits that grave of Jennie Wade at Evergreen Cemetery and then on to the Jennie Wade House which is the location of her tragic death.
Gettysburg aftermath
Photo - historyrevived.blogspot.com
“The Union dead on the field…were covered with only a few inches of soil. Portions of the body protruded as the rain washed away the soil.” Even buried the bodies stank, “when the wind blew from the south and west in the evenings, the stench was so overpowering that for a number of evenings all the windows had to be closed.”
Photo - historyrevived.blogspot.com
Grave of Jennie Wade - Evergreen Cemetery Photo: findagrave.com
The following two chapters consist of the experiences of two other investigative groups. The first investigation was conducted at the Battlefield Bed and Breakfast as well as the Fairfield and the other was a member of one of the Klinge Brother investigations into the Fairfield Inn.
Photo: historicmarkers.com
The last chapter in this book is the acknowledgements (and actually worth reading) but the chapter prior to that wraps up with the history of the Battle of Fairfield. While the Confederate soldiers were for the most part retreating there were still battles being fought in the process. This is one such battle. I always think it’s interesting to learn about the lesser known things that occur.
This map of the opening phase (12:30 PM) of the Battle of Fairfield was created by cartographer Steve Stanley. It shows the intial pursuit of Confederate wagons by the 6th U.S. Cavalry as they move north along Carroll’s Tract Road.
Courtesy of gettysburgdaily.com
Photo courtesy of the Fairfield Historical Society
Closing thoughts:
If you happen to find yourself in the Gettysburg area please be sure to be respectful of the area. The sights of great violence and tragedy leave scars on the earth and on the energy (to some the soul) of man. In this case the violence was perpetrated in the fight for a better world, in the passions of belief and conviction. All those that gave their lives earned respect for their courage.
In some of the reviews on Amazon it is mentioned that they read this book before visiting the sight and experienced nothing thus claiming that they have debunked that there is a haunting. To these people I will simply say that earthbound spirits (and inhuman spirits) are not thespians, they do not perform on cue. A very small percentage of the living are privy to legitimate experiences with those that have moved on (or indeed never been among the living). You can’t go into a location that is known to have activity thinking that you are going to have an experience. While I agree that it is of the utmost importance to discover the cause and that most of the time things can be explained away by the physical world around us, keeping an open mind and heart is the only way to go when exploring the unknown. If you are too much one way or the other your biases can get in the way of discovery. Time for the next snack Ghoulies!
“Never fear your enemies, fear your actions.”
