Tag Archives: Becket MA

Dec 28 2019

Becket Quarry, MA Who’s Still There?

Becket Quarry, formerly Chester-Hudson Quarry, now defunct, is noted for being one of the most intact historic granite quarry sites in Massachusetts and, also for its paranormal activity.  It is an interesting place to visit, as it seems almost frozen in time. There is a feeling that those who once worked there will be returning to finish their shifts at any moment. 

As you get a short distance into the quarry you will see where granite, succumbing to father time, is slowly be eaten away by the elements. Rusted out shells of machinery and rigging give off a feeling as though they are waiting patiently for their operators to continue.

The original quarry filled with water after the business was abandoned and is now a deep pool of calm reflection. Looking across the hillside you can see the granite jutting out from the mountain going far into the distance.  As I understand the stone is of such high quality it had been used to build some structures in our nation’s capital.

I had visited the quarry a few times and had some interesting results while searching for paranormal activity, so decided to return and see what I could find further. When I first entered the quarry I felt the presence of spirits belonging to who I felt were workers from the past. Did they have an attachment to the place where they spent a large portion of their adult life working or are the rumors of men dying during the construction of the quarry true? I plan on investigating any records pertaining to the quarry’s operation that are available in the near future.

I stood there waiting to see what more I could glean from these spirits for several minutes, but sensed nothing else and decided it was time to venture further into the preserve. As I walked up the narrow dirt path passing the rusted remains of an old work truck I started to hear what I believed to be the sound of old cables coming from the excavation area to the top. I hurried to the remains of the old building at the top not far from where the cables start, but the sound had stopped. I had been using a recorder at the time, but it had not recorded anything other than my footsteps. I left it on for the remainder of my visit, but did not find anything unusual in the recording.

I checked out the remains of a building that looked as though it was getting ready to collapse. There was only one room and its sole contents were an old wood stove. I had the feeling of someone who was not very friendly, maybe a bit angry, watching me from afar.

I continued up the path and as I got closer to the excavation site I started getting increasingly uneasy. I could feel the presence of evil, more than one entity too. As strange as it sounds they were very gleeful. It didn’t seem to have anything to do with me, but I felt I couldn’t remain there even for a second longer. I moved quickly down the path until I was far beyond feeling anything of whatever they were.

As a child I had heard adults talking about a story of organized crime using it to dump a body inside a car. Is the old story true?

As soon as I got back to my car, which was a ways down the road, I performed a cleansing on myself. When I got home I did another cleansing on myself, car, and home. This time with everything I needed to do it properly. Even then I couldn’t sleep that night.

Bran

May 22 2018

A Haunted Historical Site – Keystone Arches

One of the things I love about the area I live in is that there are more than a few haunted locations in the Chester, Middlefield, and Becket areas of MA. One of the places that come to mind most people have probably never heard about – even though it has an important place in American history.

The story begins in the mid-19th century. Boston could no longer compete with New York in the transportation industry because of the Erie Canal, which had opened in 1825. New York offered traders and manufacturers access to the expanding Western frontier by way of the Great Lakes. To remain relevant, Boston had to overcome the main obstacle between itself and the young nation’s interior, the Berkshires. The mountains blocked any reasonable chance for a rival canal.

Railroad technology was still young, but the promise was evident. So for dreamers, planners, and engineers, the challenge boiled down to one question: through the mountains or over them?  Investors conceived another route that would utilize the natural gorge cut by the Westfield River on the eastern slope of the Berkshires and the path of the Housatonic River on the west. Investors decided to go over them and build a railroad access.  A series of 10 bridges had to be erected in the rough terrain to create a suitably straight route along the Westfield River. The project was agreed on and started in 1839. It was completed in 1841.

What happens next is what, I believe, leads to the activity some people experience now if they visit the Arches. To accomplish this massive project, the railroad had to employ large numbers, (up to 3000), of laborers.  These men were mostly Irish immigrants who were sought as they were very poor and willing to do the hardest, most dangerous labor, for very little pay. Research tells me those brave men were paid approximately $10 to $15 a month for work no one else wanted or dared do.

Living conditions for these workers were bad as they lived in quickly erected shanty towns also known as squatter areas. Their shelters were constructed of any scrap materials they could gather. Often times during construction workers died either accidentally or due to illness. These deaths were never reported.

Many times while hiking to view these lost stone arches, I have personally experienced what sounded like hammering, and shoveling, and I’ve heard voices mumbling.  Could these men still be working and living in those terrible conditions hoping to leave soon?

–  Bran.

 

Apr 16 2017

October Mountain Mystery

This is an experience I had years ago while living in a different town.

About 5 miles from where I was living, in Western Massachusetts, there is a state forest that covers roughly 16,500 acres[1]. I had been told by numerous people it was a bizarre place, so a friend and I decided to go for a hike around an old Boy Scout camp that used to be there[2] next to Felton Lake. Being curious we hiked around for a while and found it. The camp no longer existed because someone had burned it down at one time or another. We had decided to hang out by the lake and look around for a while. When it became late afternoon we realized it was time to leave if we were to get out of the woods before dark.

After a while, as we were hiking back, we started hearing these grunting sounds. They seemed to be coming from quite a ways away from us. The first thing we thought was that it was a bear and so we picked up our pace. The noise seemed to pick up pace with us,although it still sounded to be a distance away.

As the sun went down and it got closer to dark the grunts seemed to get closer to us and started to come from different spots. It was as if something was communicating, as strange as that sounds.

When we got out of the forest and back onto the road I looked back and saw these eyes looking out at us. I swear they seemed to be 6 or 7 feet off the ground!

We were freaked out to say the least and got the hell away from there as fast as we possibly could. I haven’t been back there since for obvious reasons. Now, many years later I want to go back with our paranormal group and maybe get some answers to what I saw, as well as the things that have been reported by other people. Over the years spirits have been reported near a long abandoned cemetery and along the path that leads to it. UFOs have also been seen in the area.

Felton Lake is in October Mountain State Forest. It consists of several parcels of land located in Becket, Lee, Washington, and Lenox, MA. It is the largest State Forest in Massachusetts. (www.mass.gov)

Reported sightings include anthropoid creatures, like Bigfoot, mysterious lights, and a ghost girl in the abandoned 1800’s cemetery.

[1]    October Mountain State Forest

[2]    Camp Eagle

–  Bran