A Ghosthunter's Paradise: Haunted America Conference Comes to Alton
Unexpected faces in mirrors ... Shadow People who flit through rooms and are seen from the corner of the eye ... Ghost hunts ... Ghost tours ... A ghostly dinner ...
From the strange to the downright goosebump creepy, the 22nd Anniversary of the Haunted America Conference slated for Alton, IL, is sure to offer a little bit of something for anyone interested in the paranormal or just plain weird.
The elite of the paranormal world will converge in Alton, IL Friday and Saturday, June 22 & 23 for Troy Taylor's annual Haunted America Conference.
The Best Western Premier - St. Louis Regional Airport Hotel will host the event for the fourth year in a row.
"We've had the event in other places, from Decatur, IL to Cape Cod and San Diego, California. But it really seems to be at home in Alton and we've really felt like the event is welcome here," Taylor a renowned author and paranormal expert said. "We didn't create the conference in Alton, but it's the town where it became really popular."
Alton, dubbed, "one of the most haunted small towns in America" is no stranger to ghostly phenomena. According to Taylor, the city has seen "more than its share of death, disease, disaster, violence, murder and even the scars of the Civil War." That makes it the perfect location for the Haunted America Conference, he noted.
Taylor has pulled out all the stops for the conference bringing in a dozen U.S. experts in the paranormal and unexplained mysteries that abound in the world.
Line-up of Events
MORE: Learn more about haunted Alton
Author and paranormal investigator, Rosemary Ellen Guiley will host a workshop showing participants how to open the gates to the spirit world by gazing into a black mirror. This year’s conference will also feature researcher, author and artist, April Slaughter who presents an in-depth look at the history of caring for and memorializing the dead.
Journey through downtown Alton in search of the lingering spirits of the city's most haunted locations with paranormal investigator, researcher and author, Luke Naliborski.
Sarah Soderlund also known as “Paranormal Sarah” will be hosting a workshop that gives you a hands-on experience in ghost photography.
The hosts of “Strange Stuff” Luke Nalibroski and Len Adams will be teaming up with Cody Beck and supernatural historian, crime buff and author, Troy Taylor for a live recording of the American Hauntings Podcast.
There will be a Haunted American Speaker Panel with Ghostly Talk Radio.
Ghost Hunting tours will be held at McPike Mansion and the Mineral Springs Hotel.
Researcher, author, and the owner of the Haunted Heartland Tours, Sherri Brake will be exploring locations with a unique look at headstones, gravestone symbolism and haunted cemeteries.
Paranormal fanatic Jennifer Jones will be Exploring Dead History through the role of historical fact in paranormal investigation, urban legend, and “lost” history.
Host, Troy Taylor will be taking a dark look at music and the supernatural.
Author of Ghostland, Colin Dickey will be telling tales about the Resurrection of Men, Night Doctors, a Cavern of Bones, and a Haunted Medical School.
Executive director of the home of the Death Positive movement, Sarah Chavez will be teaching about food in death rituals, ancestor worship, and festivals.
Robert Damon Schneck who is widely known as the "Historian of the Strange" for specializing in writing about anomalous phenomena and historical oddities will be at the conference.
There will also be A Ghosts of the River Road Dinner Tour, Alton Hauntings Walking Tour, Dumb Supper with Rosemary Ellen Guiley, Dowsing and Pendulum workshop with Sherri Brake, and a Ghost Hunt at the First Unitarian Church.
The Haunted America Conference was designed in 1997 by Taylor to provide a gathering place for ghost enthusiasts, speakers, authors and anyone interested in the strange and supernatural. There was nothing else like it at the time. Troy Taylor
MORE: Blogger's experience on a haunted tour
Over the years, as interest in paranormal activities and ghost hunting has become more popular, Taylor has seen a surge in attendance and interest in the conference.
"In 2015, which marked our first return to Alton in almost a decade, we had our largest and most successful conference in its history," he said. "We've really pulled out the stops this year with more speakers, more special events, more tours and more ghost hunts. We are really looking forward to this year's event."
For tickets and more information visit: www.ghostconference.net.