Imagine waking in the night to the sound of strange knocks and bangs. The stagnant stench pond water heavy in the air and the feeling of being watched from somewhere in the vast darkness of your room. This is a truly unsettling true story of opening doors you do not know how to close. In 2016 two friends went hiking together in the Catskills Mountains in New York State near Sundown Forrest. This area is known not only for it's beauty but it’s ties to the world of the paranormal and all things that go bump in the night. In a cave off the beaten path the pair stumbled across a strange artifact. It was a hand carved wooden figure of a woman with a stained rope tied in a noose around its neck and three rusted nails hammered into each of
its eyes. One of the hikers made the ill fated decision to take the statue, even though his friend advised against it. He brought it home and sat it on his desk. Every day that week he found it in a different spot then where he had left it. At first he wrote it off and thought that it must have been his dog who had moved it. Until he observed that his dog wouldn’t even go anywhere near the figure. He also noticed that his dog had began acting strangely and having accidents in the home. Once a skeptic, the strange occurrences in his home began to change his outlook. Waking to the sounds of knocks, bangs, strange smells reminiscent of a swamp or pond and the overwhelming feeling of dread and being watched were merely the beginning. Things would continue to escalate. One night he was awoken to the sound of someone knocking on his front door. It was 3am. Upon answering the door he found that no one was there. He noticed that his motion detector light had not been triggered. He had a strong feeling that he shouldn’t have answered the door that night. He called his friend and told him that he regretted bringing the statue home and that he wanted to burn it. Unable to sleep he stayed up for the remainder of that night.
The following day he left the house and upon his return he found the home now had a new sense of calm to it. He went to bed as he normally would have only to be awoken around 10:30 that night to the sound of his dog barking crazily. The musty smell of pond water heavily permeated the air. The statue had once again been moved from its spot on his desk. Wet muddy footprints filled the hallway and he found the statue sitting in the living room. When the man went to approach the crone he could hear loud raspy breathing. It was at that point that he grabbed his dog and fled to his friends house where he arrived trembling in fear, refusing to return to his home. It was at this point that the two friends made a post to social media pleading for help and advice on what they should do. This is where The Traveling Paranormal and Occult Museum step into the picture. The husband and wife team, Dana and Greg Newkirk, travel around doing pop up exhibits with hundreds of haunted, historical, and supernaturally-significant artifacts. They seen the post and offered some advice.
The Newkirks suggested that they return the object to the cave where it was found and apologize for removing it. They heavily warned against burning the artifact as it could make things become worse. As a secondary suggestion they offered to take the object and store and study it safely if the pair were to scared to return it to the cave. The two men gathered the courage to return to the house to take the statue back to where they had found it. When they entered the house it smelt heavily of a wet dog who had rolled in dirt. The muddy footprints were scattered on the floor just as the one friend had said. The dog refused to re enter the home and waited outside for them. The statue was not where it had been when the man had fled the previous night. It was found in the hallway along with a large crack in the wall, as if it had been thrown there. They began explaining to the statue that they were sorry and that they wanted to take it back to the cave. They asked it what they should do. Both men had a strong feeling that they should not return to that cave. They decided it would be best to send it to the Traveling Paranormal and Occult Museum instead. As they stood there in the hall the dog began to bark crazily as it had done the previous night. They began walking towards the door to go see what was going on and in the dark corner of the living room both men swear they could see the figure of a woman standing there. She was a very old woman who stood naked and hunched over, she was dripping with water. Her eyes glowed in the darkness. An image which will haunt both men for the rest of their lives. The men were filled with such fear that they both ran outside into the daylight. When they finally returned to retrieve the statue it had moved once again. They located it and grabbed it apologizing profusely, wrapped it in a pillowcase and threw it in the trunk of one of their vehicles. They then sent it off to the museum headquarters which much like the Warrens museum is located in the couples home.
The Newkirks began to notice strange happenings of their own immediately after it arrived. Upon examining the statue they noticed that the carving was weathered and aged and the nails were old and rusted. The rope that was wrapped as a noose around its neck was new, and by their guess was no more then a year old. The carving must have been placed in the cave recently. Mediums who have worked with the couple have claimed that they sensed the object was used to call upon this entity. It’s not human. It’s not a woman. They also said that this artifact had likely been used many times over a period of many years for different rituals, ceremonies and potentially even used for curses as well. The object was placed in their office after they made their initial observation. They went about their day and and in the evening they heard a commotion in their office which they assumed to be their cats. Upon inspection the cats were found cowering in a bedroom. When they entered the office everything seemed to be in order until they stepped into the room only to find a figure of Jesus on the floor. The figure was usually hung on its cross on the wall which was directly above where the crone had been placed. He was missing an arm which was found still attached to the cross on the wall. The nails from his hands and feet were never found.
The couple have experienced wet footprints, the smell of pond water and other various unexplainable activity. One day the couple sat down with the figure in their living room as they do with all objects who cause havoc in their home. They asked that it should be respectful of them and their home or it would be placed in a special box for spirits who misbehave. When they said these words Dana began to hear running water so the couple sprang up to investigate thinking it could be a burst pipe. Once they reached the hallway the noise stopped all together and they heard a thud from the living room.
The crone was no longer on the table where they had left it. They found her under their television stand. When Greg bent down to retrieve the statue his wife Dana had to stop the television from falling on her husbands head. They heard three loud knocks that were so loud rattled the walls and made the lights flicker. They decided to place the crone back into the pillowcase and lock her in the box where she now lives.
They don’t bring the crone with them to every exhibit and she doesn’t always come out of the box as those who look upon her have claimed to feel intense fear and anxiety. Some even complain of feeling a burning sensation in their eyes. Some think that this artifact is a victim doll or a containing vessel. Everyone has a different idea of what the crone truly is, but one thing is for certain, this is an item shrouded in evil.
Kathryn