The Inn at Herr Ridge-Gettysburg, PA

The Herr Tavern and Publick House was built in 1815 by Thomas Sweeney. Sweeney built his tavern here to capitalize on the route that led west. He would only own the building for twelve years. In 1827 he was forced into bankruptcy and had to sell his tavern. In 1828, Frederick Herr purchased the tavern that still bears his name. He turned the tavern into a fixture of the area; in fact, by all accounts the ridge it sits on is called Herr's Ridge. According to stories and legends, he allowed a friend to use the basement of the Herr Tavern for counterfeiting operation. Frederick would then launder this money through the tavern, passing it off to people heading west. There is also a story that he used the upstairs as a brothel. It seems as if Mr. Herr had a very diversified portfolio. Even though it appears that Frederick Herr used his tavern for some illegal activities, he also put it to good use. In the years before the Civil War, he allowed his tavern to be used by the Underground Railroad. No one knows how many people were helped to freedom by Mr. Herr. The Civil War removed the need for the Underground Railroad, and it also blasted its way through Herr Tavern. The summer of 1863 would forever change the history of Herr Tavern. On the night of June 30th, and advanced guard of Union General John Buford's Cavalry camped on Herrs Ridge. On the beginning of the next morning, July 1st, a few musket shots were heard. These few shots soon became a torrent of fire. The Confederates of General Henry Heth pushed Buford's troops back to the outskirts of Gettysburg. What started as a minor skirmish was quickly developing into the most costly battle of the war. Herr Tavern was overrun by the Confederates, and remained behind Confederate lines for the length of the battle. It was during this time that the Herr Tavern had its saddest and most traumatic use. The Tavern was the nearest building to the fighting, so it was a natural choice to be the first Confederate hospital. Several of the rooms were turned into operating theaters. It was said that amputated limbs were thrown out a window into a waiting wagon for burial. A Civil War hospital was the closest thing to Hell that you could ever experience. Wounded men were everywhere. There were little or no painkillers available. The concept of sterilizing instruments was not yet known. Surgeons would wipe off their bare hands to locate the ball or piece of iron that had torn into the unfortunate patient. The smell of blood, death and decay permeated the building. With all that energy being expended, it is no wonder that some of it remains. . Frederick Herr owned the tavern until his death in 1868. After his death, the tavern was sold to the Reading family. The building was subsequently bought and sold over the years, eventually seeing use as a dairy farm in the early 1900's. The current owner, Steven Wolf purchased the in 1977, and has spent the last quarter century turning it into the marvel it is today. The Tavern shows the care and effort that Steve has put into the restoration. The tavern is a testament to Steve's dedication.....................QUEST IS CURRENTLY IN THE EVIDENCE REVIEW PROCESS. PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR ANY FINDINGS FROM THIS TRULY EXCEPTIONAL INVESTIGATION!

Reveal of Private Residence

Quest conducted a full-scale investigation of this private residence in Reading, PA. Our findings proved that this house has paranormal activity. We had several personal experiences along with our documented findings. While Elaine and Jamie were sitting at Central Command, they both felt something unseen touch them. Jamie’s hair was touched and Elaine felt something scratch her arm. When Elaine was monitoring the cameras in the attic, the motion sensor on the camera tripped and she immediately called to Kenny, Bob, and Kevin to get up to the attic. When they got up there, they saw an energy orb moving around the attic in an intelligent pattern. This anomaly was captured on video and still pictures. The anomaly was so strong that when it flew by the camera it caused the view to black out. Elaine heard a voice of a child with her own ears that we also captured on our voice recorder. As Bob and Kevin were at Central Command, they heard footsteps walking down the stairs. Bob began to snap pictures and captured the same type of energy orb as they saw in the attic. Bob asked if there was anyone down there with them and had a direct response picked up by our recorder that said “no”. After that, Kevin was monitoring the voice recorder in real time and heard a voice say “Henry”. This house sits right next power lines. This caused very high EMF throughout the entire home. We would normally say that the high EMF may be affecting the family and what they are experiencing but in this case, we believe that the high EMF is making the entities in the home stronger. We captured many unexplained phenomena at this location. Please check our EVP, Photo, and Video pages for our evidence.

Private Residence

Quest was called in because the homeowners claimed that their 6 year old girl was awaken by spirits in the home. This is a very special case for us because there is an innocent child involved. The house was built in 1830. We are currently in the historical research and evidence review process. Please check back for the findings from this investigation.

Private Residence

Quest was called in to investigate the claims of the homeowner. We were told that there is something in the house that is scaring her 4-year-old son. He stays awake at night and refuses to sleep in his own bed. The homeowner saw an apparition move through the kitchen and disappear through the wall. She also felt what seemed to her like something sitting on top of her. She was not able to move. There are also claims of whistles and noises in the home. Quest has completed a 3-hour preliminary investigation of this residence. We are currently in the evidence review process. Please check back for our findings.

Private Residence

Quest was called in because there were claims from the residents of shadows, noises in the attic and feeling of being watched. There was also a rocking chair that would be heard in the attic rocking on it's own......... After the evidence review, Quest was unable to validate any claims of paranormal activity. The house has been sold and the homeowners did say that the activity had calmed down in the last couple of years.

Private Residence

Quest was called in because the homeowners saw what appeared to be a shadow person moving in the hallway and down the stairs. They moved in only 1 1/2 months ago and feel very uneasy about going into one of the bedrooms. They even moved their child out of it. They contacted Quest to get answers. After the investigation, Quest was unable to validate any of their claims of paranormal. We did find natural causes for all of the things experienced by the homeowners.

Back to the Private Farm

Quest had to return to the Private Farm in Berks County because of all the activity we experienced the last time we were there! This time around Quest did not get much evidence. It was quiet and calm that night. There was inclement weather that night which caused false positives on our equipment.

Bube's Brewery Reveal

Quest Paranormal Society revealed the evidence to Jean Ellis and Sam Allen from Bube's Brewery. Quest has posted EVP's and Video evidence of this amazing investigation. This was a hot spot for Quest! Check out the 6 Video Clips and 12 EVPs from this haunted establishment. The team had many personal experiences. At one point, in the Catacombs during an EVP Session, they had a fork thrown down the steps at them by an unknown force. Upon further investigation, only one salad fork was missing from the table's place settings. Nancy, who monitors our cameras, felt several cold bursts of air and it was 95 degrees in the room. Kenny and TJ experienced bangs, voices, and unknown noises throughout, especially in the Alois Bube Bar. The pair also felt static electricity up and down their arms. Elaine and Kim had EMF spikes on the K2 Meter. Jamie and Bob heard various noises and strange sounds coming from the depths of the Catacombs. Quest has captured many EVP's and some video from this highly active location. You can view all of it on our evidence pages. Our evidence review led us to the conclusion that Bube's Brewery has paranormal activity and certainly is haunted. If you are in the area, make sure you catch Jean's Ghost Tour! Bube's is alive with activity!

Bube's Brewery

Quest Paranormal Society has completed a preliminary investigation of Bube’s Brewery. We had the privilege of working with Jean Ellis who is the great granddaughter of Alois and Pauline Bube. Her grandmother, also named Pauline, was the third child born to Alois and Pauline. This 2nd Pauline then had a son named Jimmy, who is Jean’s father. Alois Bube was originally from Miltenberg, Germany and dodged the draft of the Franco-Prussian war and came to Lancaster. In Lancaster he originally worked at the Knapp Brewery and met and married another German immigrant, Pauline Kirn. The local malt baron, Philip H. Frank, invited and financially supported Bube to brew in Mount Joy. He developed quite a reputation as a brew master, and continued to grow the brewing and hotel business from 1876 until he died in 1908 while eating lunch in the hotel’s family dining room. The demise of the business after his death was that Alois kept his taste testing secret to himself. He was very possessive of his beer recipe and personal lagering process. He allowed only himself to taste test the beer at its various stages and he knew when each stage was perfect. Although his workers knew how to combine ingredients and maintain the equipment, no one but Alois knew when to move the beer from one stage to another, and this timing was his secret to the successful brewery. After the widow Bube’s death in 1916, daughter Josephine and son-in-law Henry Engle took complete ownership of the entire brewery and Central Hotel, excluding all other family members from having a say in the business. In the 40 years between 1920 and 1960, this once successful business declined to the point of ruin. During this time there are stories of speakeasies and bootleg whiskey, lavish fraternal organizations, dubious and sinister hotel residents, and bizarre behavior in the Engle family that resulted in violent confrontations which frightened the neighbors. As the property deteriorated so did the patronage, except for the bar room, until all that was left was an empty shell of what once was a booming and successful business. All of that changed over 20 years ago, when the current owner Sam Allen bought and restored Bube’s Brewery back to life, saving the original buildings and equipment and adding the site on the National Historic Register. There are many ghostly tales here and you can visit the Bube's Brewery Website for more information. Bube's Brewery will be included in the documentary currently in production by Quest Paranormal Society and TLJ Studios, Inc.

Yellow House Hotel

The Yellow House Hotel, built in 1801 at the intersection of Routes 662 and 562 in the scenic Oley Valley, originally served as a stagecoach stop and country store for travelers between Reading and Philadelphia. Since then, the Yellow House Hotel has evolved into a restaurant and hotel with a fine reputation for its delectable bill of fare and pleasing, comfortable atmosphere. The influence of the Yellow House Hotel on the surrounding area is evidenced by the local hamlet which bears the name of Yellow House. The hotel has played an integral part in the local history, housing a general store, the village switchboard and a post office. While the ownership of the Yellow House Hotel has changed hands over the years more than 25 times, the hotel has remained a charming focal point of the Oley Valley, both inside and out. Quest has completed a preliminary investigation of the Yellow House Hotel. It is said that there was a woman, Adrianne, who hung herself on the third floor of the building and she often walks the halls. We also have an account from an employee who has seen an apparition of an old man sitting on the bench as you enter the restaurant. There has also been a sighting of an older couple sitting at a table in the original dining room built in 1801. There are claims are of employees being touched and objects being misplaced. There are also several employees that have not experienced any paranormal activity here at the Yellow House Hotel. Quest Paranormal Society is in the evidence review process and will report back if there are any credible findings at the Yellow House Hotel. We did start filming on location here for our upcoming documentary...........................After evidence review Quest did not find any proof of paranormal activity and were able to debunk most claims.

The White Palm Tavern

Quest Paranormal Society has completed a preliminary investigation of The White Palm Tavern in Topton, PA. This was formerly the Topton House/Hotel established in 1859. The new owners, Mr. and Mrs. Gruber have renovated the building and turned it into a charming, beautiful restaurant/tavern with great food at reasonable prices, and friendly service. There has been many ghostly tales of the old Topton House. It was featured on episode 8, season 1 of the Ghost Hunters show on Sci-Fi. The group did not find anything paranormal and tried to debunk a lot of the claims of the owners and patrons. Although they couldn’t prove anything, there are still years and years of sightings of ghostly apparitions, smells of roses, voices, and odd occurrences going on here. The Topton House was built in 1859 and has a rich history. Quest has found that there were numerous owners and that it changed hands often. Were those said ghosts chasing them out? It was even a speakeasy at one point during the prohibition and a hidden staircase still exists where the patrons would sneak downstairs to enjoy a cocktail. The most popular haunt at this establishment is the supposed ghost of a little girl named Emily or Emma. Quest did some research and found out that her story ranges from her getting hit by a train and carried dead into the building to her living there and dying of the flu. Here are some of the claims that we found on an internet site about what is said to be going on at The White Palm Tavern: .....TOPTON HOUSE PUB (Topton, Berks County) Built in 1866, the Topton House was once a hotel and a speakeasy during Prohibition. Now it's a roadhouse with a past that comes back to haunt it. Voices and a smell of sulfur are noted in the cellar. Shadow figures flit through the pub. Another of the manifestations is the odor of roses floating through the building. It's attributed to an older gent that's often spotted in the garden - and no wonder, since he was the gardener in real life. Guests report invisible spooks sitting on their beds and being touched by unseen hands. There's supposed to be a phantom priest that tears down Christmas decorations. The figure of a man in a blue flannel shirt, solid looking except for a fuzzy face, has been reported on the stairway. The most famous spook is a little girl, Emma that loves to trip people in the dining room..... The following is an account of Quest's investigation at The White Palm Tavern: The team had many personal experiences during the night. While the team was setting up, the motion detectors planted in the bar area were tripped while no one was in the vicinity of the bar area. Kim was in the bathroom and while she was at the sink, the toilet lid slammed back as if someone sat on it. While T.J. was in the basement with Kenny he told him that he felt something brushing against his arm. He then showed Kenny the hair on his arm was standing straight up. Once Kenny saw this,he also felt the hair on his right arm stand up. It gave him a feeling of static electricity on his arm. While they were down in the basement they had a high EMF (Electro Magnetic Field) spike from 0.0 mg to 1.6 mg. Mg stand for Milligauss and is what EMF is measured in. When an entity or energy is disrupting the magnetic field, the meter will spike. Very shortly after the meter spiked, they captured an EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) on the voice recorder. Jason also felt something brush up against his arm in the basement. Jennifer heard a voice next to her as she was monitoring the cameras in the dining room and she was alone. The only explanation that we can come up with for the book falling off the shelf is that it was not put back properly and fell off due to gravity. The shelf is not affected by the vibration of the train. Quest has captured many EVPs, a video of a possible apparition, video of a K2 session where the meter was responding to questions that were asked, and a picture of a dark shadow. Due to the unexplainable evidence that we have captured in a short period of time, and our personal experiences, we feel that there is paranormal activity at The White Palm Tavern. Quest’s recommendation is that this establishment does require a full scale overnight investigation at the convenience of the owners... YOU CAN CHECK OUR EVP, VIDEO, AND PHOTO PAGES FOR EVIDENCE FROM THIS INVESTIGATION.

Private Residence

Quest was called in because of claims from the residents of two possible apparations in the home. One of them was frightening their young daughter. There were also claims of bangs and voices throughout the home. After the investigation was completed Quest Paranormal was unable to validate any claims of paranormal activity in the home.

Private Farm

Quest was called in to validate the occurrences that were going on at this private farm. When the owner first moved in, he saw a little Indian girl and a male Indian standing among the bushes looking at him. He has never seen them since. Strange lights appear on the ground in the yard which was witnessed by a female resident. Quest is currently looking into the history of the land. Many believe that this is the site of not only an Indian Village, but the site of an Indian Burial Ground as well. We will try to prove or disprove these claims... Check back for our findings and our evidence from this interesting investigation..... Elaine's reseach into property: History of Private Farm....... Quest Paranormal Society has traced back the former land owner to 1740 where the entire land around the property was owned by the Scarlet family. Elizabeth Scarlet was a part of the Underground Railroad and so were other land owners surrounding the property. This was also the site of Johanna Furnace which produced Iron. The land here is built atop Iron. The land was purchased by William Penn from the Indian Tribe Lenni Lanape.’ These tribes consisted of the Minsi (Wolf Tribe), Unamis (Turtle Tribe), and the Unalachtigo (Turkey Tribe). It seems that the Minsi Tribe was closest to this piece of property. The white man called these Indians, The Delaware Indians. These Lenni Lenape’ Indians first settled here before 1680. The Indians came as far south as Johanna Heights. These Lenni Lenape’ Indians were thought to have come from the West. Chief Managy the Minsi Chief also known as Mananda was born on Fritz’ Island and was once friends with James Scarlet. After the white people bought their land, He moved his tribe to the Blue Mountains near Round Head Mountain. He died in 1761 and was buried on an Indian Burial Plot now know as Steinbach Farm. The Lenni Lanape’ called the Schuylkill River “Ganshowehanne” meaning “the roaring or tumbling stream”. They also called it “Manaiunk” meaning “mother of streams” Their belief was in “Great Spirit”. Casualties of the French and Indian War are buried at the Robeson Cemetery. PLEASE VISIT OUR PHOTO, EVP, AND VIDEO PAGES FOR EVIDENCE FROM THIS INVESTIGATION.

Private Residence

Quest was called in when the residents were experiencing dark shadow figures, the door opening and closing on its own, and objects being knocked off the shelf. Check the EVP page for evidence from this investigation!!

The Overlook Mansion Bed and Breakfast

The Overlook Mansion was built in 1873. The mansion sits in the historical district of Reading, PA which contains Victorian Era and early 20th Century architecture. The home was built by James Hervey Sternbergh and he made his fortune in the Nut and Bolt Industry. The home is 7000 square feet boasting a 40 foot spiral walnut staircase with twelve and a half foot ceilings, 10 foot doorways, and hand carved doors and woodwork throughout. The Overlook Mansion is currently a Bed and Breakfast owned and operated by Daphne Miller and Paul Strause who have restored it to the home’s original splendor. In 1886 the home was sold to the Hoff family. Ferguson Hoff and his siblings lived in the house unmarried until they passed away. The mansion was turned into apartments. In the 1980’s it was sold and turned back into a single family residence and Photography Studio. In 2000 it was purchased by the current owners, Daphne Miller and Paul Strause, who restored it to the original style. Daphne Miller and Paul Strause open their home to guests and you can be assured that you will feel right at home! Their warm hospitality and wonderful service will allow you to enjoy a relaxing stay. You are served a delicious breakfast that is delivered to your room. You can always find complimentary sweets and beverages for you to enjoy throughout the day. If you are lucky, you can meet up with the unseen inhabitants of the mansion. This home is full of energy! There are only warm, loving spirits that reside at the Overlook Mansion so there is nothing to fear. If you are seasoned paranormal investigator or just interested in haunted locations, you must spend the night here! The owners will allow their guests to explore the mansion for a ghostly encounter. Make sure you take your camera! You may be able to capture a picture of one of them. This home has been featured in a number of articles about haunted “hot spots”. Many guests have reported paranormal experiences here. Quest Paranormal Society had the privilege of being the first professional paranormal group to investigate the Overlook Mansion. We have captured amazing evidence of paranormal activity. You can visit our evidence pages and review what we have captured.