Moundsville ghost hunt

From an email from Jared Stroech (published with his kind permission):

Finally, last weekend I had the opportunity to go on an investigation at the Moundsville State Penitentiary.  The usual ghost tours there include at least 50 people, most of whom have very minimal ghost hunting skills and are there for the thrill and a good scare.  I was with Alicia, Joann, and Carol, three very talented investigators.  After a brief tour from the guide, we were off by ourselves.  We attempted to set up a night vision video camera in the corridor of the North Hall, where the "Shadow Man" has been seen. The camera would not work properly...most likely human error, but the malfunction of equipment is not uncommon at sites like this.  Alicia brought her fancy new IR Thermometer with laser precision...a great piece of ghost hunting equipment. While in the basement, where a maintenance man was brutally murdered and in the spot where the only CONFIRMED ghost of the penitentiary resides, we took some temp. readings, snapped some photos, and did a 10-minute dark.  After getting nothing, we proceeded to an area of the prison where many men were killed. This was the room that lead to the yard.  I tried my baiting and luring techniques to try and get a reaction from whatever was there...we got nothing.  As soon as we left that room and continued to the elevator shaft, we heard a cell door slam shut behind us, not 10 feet from the room where my luring techniques had failed, minutes earlier.  After another hour or so of investigating, very few good photos, no temp. variances, and a bit of fatigue, we went to the basement again to retrieve my recorder, which I left in the room where the maintenance man was killed.  As soon as we walked in, the cold hit us like an arctic chill.  Alicia took a temp. reading and it read 65. The temp. only an hour or so before, was 74-77.  We decided to hang around for a little while and try to get a reaction from him once again. Nothing. Although we got only a few valid pieces of evidence, the night was very exciting and I plan on going back. Jared

Here's a link for more information on the Moundsville prison ghost tours.