By Thomas Clapper
FPS Staff Writer
Tales of the supernatural and the unexplained have long fascinated readers worldwide, and local author Janice VanHorne-Lane brings ghostly tales to our doorstep with Haunted Carroll County, Ohio, part of The History Press’ Haunted America series.
“I have always wanted to do a Haunted America book after they published the first book in the series,” said VanHorne-Lane. “This was 20 years in the making because when I wrote my previous three books and studied the area, I collected a lot of stories over the years.”
VanHorne-Lane has also had different encounters with the unknown herself, including one supernatural experience with a night janitor at the now-demolished Bell-Herron Middle School. That encounter set her on the course of collecting local ghost stories and studying haunted locations.
“The night janitor was my first real experience,” said VanHorne-Lane. “This set me on the course of collecting stories and other people’s experiences.”
The story took place in May 2015 when VanHorne-Lane was helping set up for a school play. A janitor she had never seen before spoke to her and helped her open a cooler. After the play, VanHorne-Lane spoke to the man once again, only to later discover he had vanished. He did not exist, and there was only one janitor named Tom on duty that night, whom she was familiar with, and he corroborated that he was the only janitor there.
There is much more detail in the book. Along with Bell-Herron Middle School, other local locations include the Virginia Restaurant and Lounge, Bluebird Farm Park, Atwood Nursing Center, Malvern’s Hardesty Mansion, Aller Farm, and other sites in Carroll County.
“I took the approach to let readers make up their own minds because it is hard to say for certain,” said VanHorne-Lane. “I just want to present: this is what happened, this is who died, these are experiences that have happened, and for the reader to decide for themselves. We don’t really know.”
VanHorne-Lane has often thought about the afterlife and the existence of spirits.
“My theory has been: the Bible has talked about the Holy Spirit or the Holy Ghost. How can that exist but not other spirits?” said VanHorne-Lane. “These are just things that can’t be explained. I don’t want to tell readers that ghosts exist or that they don’t exist. I want them to make up their own minds.”
Having worked with the publisher before, VanHorne-Lane said they approached her to produce a book for the Haunted America series.
“I think many folks go into this with a historian standpoint and not a writer standpoint,” said VanHorne-Lane. “For me, this book is a bigger term paper with a word count.”
VanHorne-Lane explained that the book publisher, The History Press, has a rigorous process to get a book published, but photos were the hardest part of this project. The publisher requires that photos cannot be photocopied and must be original prints that are cleanly scanned and clear.
“The hardest part of this Haunted Carroll County, Ohio book was getting the pictures published because sometimes paranormal things are not entirely clear in photos,” said VanHorne-Lane. “A lot of photos had to be scanned and could not be a copy or recreation of a book, which is fine, but sometimes blurry photos are what paranormal authors are trying to show the reader.”
VanHorne-Lane said this is why the mysterious night janitor was so profound to her—he appeared as a solid, real person she was talking to, while most paranormal photos are unclear or difficult to interpret. She said it later dawned on her that the night janitor only explained how to open the cooler rather than doing it himself. If he were indeed a spirit, he would not have been able to do so physically.
“So many people came forward to give information and help with the book, and I am thankful for them,” said VanHorne-Lane. “People have a lot of corroborating evidence as well, and many of the same encounters happened to different people.”
On a somber note, VanHorne-Lane said there were many sad stories about the people who died. From the time she announced she was doing Haunted America, she was able to put the book together in five months. Many of the stories had already been set aside, but some required further digging.
VanHorne-Lane was born and raised in Carrollton. Her great-great-great-grandparents owned a farm where the dump is now located on Chase Road.
Her previous books include Carroll County: A Place to Call Home, Carrollton: Then and Now, and Safe Houses and the Underground Railroad in East Central Ohio.
“For this book, I went with what I could find the most information on and had good photos to use,” said VanHorne-Lane. “I have so much content that didn’t make it—there is enough for a potential sequel if I am being honest. But right now, there is nothing in the works.”
Copies of Haunted Carroll County, Ohio can be found locally in Carrollton at Kase-N-Lane and Carroll County Coffee Company, both on Canton Road in Carrollton. She said Carroll County Coffee Company carries this book along with some of her others for sale.
It can also be ordered online from ArcadiaPublishing.com or Amazon.com.