Chile: Humberstone’s Ghosts

Humberstone

The town of Humberstone was established in 1862 to support the saltpeter-- sodium nitrate mining industry. James Thomas Humberstone founded the Peru Nitrate Company in this area initially known as La Palma.

This industry thrived for 50 years in Northern Chile, over 200 mines and plants were developed in the Atacama Desert to mine natural sodium nitrate.

Chile quickly became the world’s leading supplier of this material—known as “White Gold,” which was used in explosives and in fertilizers.

Abandoned train

The town of Humberstone became the epicenter for this industry. By the 1940s 3,700 people * were living in this “company town.” But this industry was already doomed.

Town's theatre

* These workers from Chile, Peru and Bolivia came to work in one of the driest deserts in the world. They were a unique community with their own language and culture.

With the development of synthetic nitrate in the 1930s, the value of natural saltpeter plummeted.

In Humberstone, production fell to 10 percent, and in the 1950s it nosedived to just 3 percent. By 1959 the town’s mines and plants were closed, and the city was abandoned.

Ever since nearby villagers believe the town of Humberstone is haunted. They are so frightened they refuse to even visit the area.

They believe that the deceased in a nearby cemetery in La Noria rise up and walk around the town. Many have seen these apparitions, and several photos taken in Humberstone have captured images of ghosts.

Ghost captured in one photo.

The sounds of children’s screams are heard in various buildings, and the sounds of children playing have also been heard.

In the cemetery at La Noria, many of the graves have been uncovered, and the remaining bones are exposed to the sun. This could be the result of rampant vandalism that has plagued the area.

Disturbed grave

The disturbance of these graves is pointed to as one possible reason the area is haunted.

In 1970 the Chilean government declared Humberstone a National Monument, and in 2005 it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but vandalism and earthquakes have taken a toll so this abandoned town is now on the World Heritage in Danger list.

Ghost Ship: Kaz ll

Kaz ll

A modern ghost ship mystery involves the disappearance of the 3-man crew aboard the Kaz ll. This mystery is often compared to the mystery that surrounds the ghost ship the Mary Celeste, which I write about here.

On April 20 in 2007 the sea was a bit choppy in northern Australia near the Great Barrier Reef but this was not something the 3-man experienced crew aboard the catamaran Kaz ll would have found challenging.

The owner of this sailing vessel Derek Batten had 25 years of nautical experience. Two of his neighbors, brothers—Peter and James Tunstead accompanied him. These two men had been sailing since their teen years and were savvy when it came to boat navigation and safety.

When the police boarded the drifting Kaz ll on the 20^th they felt as if they had walked into an episode of The Twilight Zone. The vessel was unmanned.

The ship’s engines were running, there was food on the table and drying dishes at the sink and a laptop was on.

A videotape camera found onboard was used just 90 minutes before the crew inexplicitly vanished into thin air. It shows two of the men just before sunrise on deck, the sea was calm and the men’s behavior was casual.

When the authorities went onboard there was no sign of an impending disaster or any signs of violence—the only thing found amiss was a torn sail--so the police concluded there was no foul play. So why was the Kaz ll abandoned and where were the crew?

Police boat approaching the adrift
Kaz ll

The answers to these two questions remain unsolved. At the time some speculated that a freak wave might have swept the crew overboard or maybe one man fell in by accident and the other two met the same tragic fate while trying to rescue the first.

Some even speculated that drug runners or pirates forced the 3-man crew to abandon the ship. Others stated it was an insurance scam the 3 men cooked up. But all of this is just speculation and the fates of Batten and the Tunstead brothers remain an intriguing mystery.

Ghost Ship: Carroll A. Deering

Carroll A. Deering

The curious fate of the Carroll A. Deering has put it at the top of the list of maritime mysteries.

The Deering is considered a ghost ship for it was found abandoned by the Coast Guard on the Outer Shoals of Cape Hatteras in North Carolina in 1921.

In August of 1920, the Deering a five-masted commercial schooner, prepared to sail from Norfolk, Virginia to Rio de Janeiro. It carried a cargo of coal.

The original captain was William H. Merritt--he fell ill soon into the journey and was left off in a port in Delaware. Hastily the Deering Company found a replacement. W. B. Wornell was a 66-year old retired sea captain.

A young Captain Wornell

The Deering made it to Rio de Janeiro without further incident. Captain Wornell gave his Danish crew shore leave and spent his time with an old friend--Captain Goodwin. He talked about the crew on the Deering with distain and stated all save the ship’s engineer were untrustworthy.

The Deering left Rio in early December and then stopped for supplies in Barbados. The ship’s first mate, Charles B. McLellan who came aboard the Deering at the same time as Wornell got drunk and complained about having to work with the old captain.

He stated to whomever would listen that Wornell would not let him discipline the crew and that he was an interfering old man. He stated it was left to him to do all the navigation because of Wornell’s poor eyesight.

While in the Continental Café McLellan bragged, “I’ll get the Captain before we get to Norfolk, I will.” Another captain, Hugh Norton overheard this threat and had him arrested.

In an odd twist Wornell forgave McLellan and bailed him out of jail. On January 9^th the Deering set sail for Hampton Roads.

The last time the Deering was spotted with her crew onboard was when she hailed the Cape Lookout Lighthouse in North Carolina. The keeper, a Captain Jacobson reported that a thin man with reddish hair and a foreign accent told him the Deering had lost her anchors--he did not look like any of the known officers aboard.

2nd Cape Lookout Lighthouse in 1913

Jacobson could not report this because his radio was out. He noted the crews’ presence on the ship was odd--for they were “milling around” on the fore deck of the ship, an area onboard where crews were not allowed normally. He then watched as the Deering set a peculiar course.

Soon after this, the Coast Guard spotted the Carroll A. Deering run aground on Cape Hatteras. After a series of storms let up, on February 4^th the cutter Manning reached the Deering and managed to board her.

There was no sign of the crew and their belongings and the lifeboats were missing. The ships log, navigation equipment, papers and most of the valuable items on the ship were also gone.

It looked like the crew had abandoned the ship just as a meal was being laid out.

The U.S. government conducted an extensive search and an investigation--this task was given to then Secretary of Commerce Herbert Hoover-- but the crew was never located. 

The reason for why the ship was abandoned remains a mystery. The government has never offered an official explanation.

The Deering stayed ahead of a storm that hit the area at the time so this was ruled out as a possible cause.

A variety of reasons were put forth at the time. Was it foul play by rumrunners? Or was it a communist pirate ship that was set on capturing an America ship?

Could it be the crew mutinied--did they run the ship aground on purpose taking everything of value with them before they did this?

A more outlandish but persistent theory is that the paranormal forces at work in the Bermuda Triangle robbed the Deering of its crew. But the Deering wasn’t near the Triangle when she ran aground.

By March of 1921 the only thing left of the wreaked and battered Deering was her hull. The ship was towed away and dynamited. In 1922, the investigation was closed.

Kuldara India: Cursed and Haunted Village

In India, if one is in search of ghosts the village of Kuldara is always mentioned. This picturesque village is 9 miles from Jaisalmer and sits on the edge of a desert.

Kuldara

Well-planned temples, streets and large houses remain but they all are empty.

Five hundred years ago Kuldara was a prosperous community with businessmen-farmers called Paliwal Brahmins. Overnight this entire village of 1500 people left.

No one saw them leave or ever discovered where they went. Adding to this mystery was the fact they left behind all their belongings.

Local lore states that when the Paliwal abandoned Kuldara they cursed the village. It is believed that if anyone tries to stay overnight or inhabit the village they will meet a brutal death.

Even today why these villagers left remains a mystery.

One popular legend told is the Paliwal left because of Salim Singh, the minister of the state of Jaisalmer. He fell in love with a beautiful girl in Kuldara while he visited the village.

He demanded to marry her--threatening any who stood in his way.

The girl’s father, the chief of the village, then abandoned Kuldara along with people from 84 adjoining villages.

A more practical reason put forth for the abandonment states when a war erupted this forced the villagers to evacuate.

Besides the curse, Kuldara is also believed to have active ghosts. In 2013, Delhi’s Paranormal Society, led by Gaurav Tiwari sent 30 investigators to determine whether the rumors about Kuldara’s ghosts were true.

This group stayed overnight in this eerie village. They were not disappointed.

They picked up sudden rises and drops of temperature on their Kll meters--at one point within a few steps one meter went from 105 degrees to 87 degrees. They spotted moving shadow figures and picked up disembodied voices on their recorders.

The group used a Ghost Box and several spirits gave their names.

One investigator while alone felt someone touching his shoulder from behind.

When this team went to leave the village they discovered children’s handprints on several of their cars. There were no children with them or in the village.

Arjun Sachdeva, a tour guide believes Kudara is haunted. He states every time he visits the village something unusual happens.

He like the paranormal team above has discovered mysterious small handprints on his vehicles. Another time while visiting the village with a film crew he states a generator caught on fire for no apparent reason.

Cursed and Haunted Alkimos

The Alkimos, a merchant ship built in 1934 had twenty years service at sea before she wrecked off the coast of Perth, Australia. 

Over the years she has gained a reputation for being haunted. One specific ghost has been seen aboard her many times. The Alkimos is also cursed. 

Since her abandonment in 1963 people who have been connected to her or that even just got near her often have become jinxed.

Her History

Amazingly, the Alkimos was built in just ten days. Haste was necessary for it was just before WWll and she was one of many ships approved by Congress. She was originally named, George Shriver. 

On the first day of her construction in the Baltimore shipyard it is said welders were accidently sealed in between her hulls. Their ghosts have haunted the ship ever since. 

After WWll, she was sold two times, the last purchaser was a Greek shipping line who rechristened her Alkimos.

Once she became know as Alkimos more bad things started to happen. A murder, suicide took place aboard and after this the crew began to see an apparition of a man they named “Harry” wearing oilskins--rubber boots and a dark green seaman’s coat.  

In 1963 the Alkimos was traveling from Jakata to Bunbury when she ran aground near Geraldton, Australia. He propeller was badly damaged.

A decision was made to tow her to Fremantle where temporary repairs could be done so she could be taken to a larger port. But while awaiting these repairs she mysteriously caught fire and when it came time to tow her to Hong Kong the line between her and the tugboat snapped. 

The Alkimos then drifted toward the coast. She beached near Yanchep where it was decided to salvage her instead.

Stranded

To the salvage crews that worked on her it became apparent that she was haunted. These crews stayed on board 24/7 while they worked on the Alkimos. 

These men often found their tools had moved had mysteriously moved. Other tools disappeared only to reappear later.

Many of these men would not leave their cabins alone at night. If they did footsteps would follow them. These footsteps were also heard climbing ladders when all the crew was accounted for.

Cooking smells and noises were heard in the galley. When they were investigated the smells and noises ceased. But once the galley door was shut they were heard again. Several men that experienced this became so terrified they quit their jobs. 

Over the following years the Alkimos was sold eight times as it lay stranded. A pattern started. 

Each new owner experienced some grave misfortune once they bought her. Several had to declare bankruptcy others became gravely ill. But once they sold her they were no longer plagued.

One young couple who lived on board as caretakers briefly, had their own misfortune. The wife who was pregnant fell and had to be rushed to the hospital. Her baby was delivered stillborn. 

The ghost of “Harry” started to be seen once more on the ship. Cray fishermen in the area reported seeing a man dressed in oilskins on board the Alkimos. At first, they thought he must be a hermit taking refuse on the ship. But when the ship was searched it was discovered that no one was living on board.

It was said that just passing the Alkimos can bring a person bad luck. 

Herbert Voight, a resident of Perth was a long distance swimmer. He was training in the area near the ship when he disappeared. Later his skull was found in the wreckage of the ship. 

Ted Snider, a member of the US Navy was doing a preliminary assessment to see how much explosives would be needed to blow up the Alkimos’ rudder and propeller. But when he left to inspect another job he was killed in a plane crash.

An author who was writing a book about the Alkimos visited the wreckage site. Shortly after, he became very ill and almost died. 

Countless people who have been near the ship have slipped and fallen or become very ill. Others have drowned. It is stated that horses that are ridden on the beach near the ship become very nervous. They either bolt of refuse to pass the ship.

The area around the Alkimos today is still considered haunted and cursed despite the fact that by the spring of 2007 the ship had disintegrated to the point were it can not be seen from shore above the waterline.