Haunted Seneca County

Local Seneca county historian Lisa Swickard founded Haunted Tiffin Ghost Walks in 2015. The tours have expanded to different areas of Seneca county since the founding five years ago. Swickard's tours provide a wealth of widely unknown local history with a paranormal twist thanks to her team of psychics, sensitives, and paranormal investigators. She provides the commentary as well as posing questions to the spirits. The Fort Seneca tour on Sep. 27 featured Swickard, Lindsay Lawson (psychic medium), and Mike Gase (paranormal investigator). Together made for an interesting and spooky event. Upon everyone's arrival, each person was handed a pair of dowsing rods, which are said to work on a person's energy. Spirits can use this energy to manipulate the dowsing rods to answer yes and no questions. Gase discussed other tools used such as a screw top flashlight that spirits can turn on and off to communicate. A thermal camera was also used to detect hot and cold; spirits may give off either, usually to an extreme one way or another. An electromagnetic field detector (EMF) was incorporated as well. This measures the electromagnetic currents in the air which spirits are said to give off. Lastly a spirit box was used which is said to pick up the voices of spirits. Early in the ghost walk, the flashlight turned on and off with nobody near it as it sat on the ground. Psychic Lawson communicated with and saw a few spirits while Swickard discussed the violent history of the property across the street from the old corner store. As Swickard told the history, the dowsing rods were used to confirm the presence of the spirits being discussed. Many of the rods crossed or moved about as if being toyed with by the spirits. The tour moved on to the corner store. Lawson talked about a spirit that she could see, feel and hear that was stuck in the middle of SR 53 in front of the store. Swickard told the story of Alice Brown who passed away following a truck pulling out in front of her and smashing her car. Her spirit was stuck from having experienced a traumatic and sudden death; Lawson explained. Brown's spirit connected with some of the dowsing rods, answering questions posed by Swickard and others. The tour moved to an old Methodist church where Lawson said to have experienced a vision of a funeral. She also felt many spirits in the area, giving her the impression that a cemetery may have been on the church property at some point. Swickard detailed Fort Seneca's history of finally having bridges installed following the capsizing of a canoe full of men going to vote, which resulted in the deaths of two of the men. The tour continued down the alley near homes where a few residents that experienced the crime spree of Daniels and West in the 1940s used to reside. Swickard chronicled the crimes of Daniels and West, a criminal duo who met in Mansfield Reformatory. Their crime spree resulted in the deaths of several people. The spirit of a local man who was murder by the pair appeared with his wife who died later, interacting with many peoples' dowsing rods, the flashlight, and appearing to Lawson happy and dancing together. The tour was an eye-opening experience of the widely unknown history of Fort Seneca. Swickard was very knowledgeable and brought informative entertainment to tour goers. The paranormal aspect was an exciting and interactive cherry on top that connected the history to everyone in a way that will not soon be forgotten. Tiffin Haunted Ghost Walks are as follows: October 3 and 4: Bettsville October 9 and 10: Tiffin October 16 and 17: Winterberry Farm October 23 and 24: Fort Seneca October 30 and 31: Winterberry All events run from 7:30-9:30 p.m. Visit https://www.hauntedtiffin.com/ for more information and to register for a walk.