‘World’s Largest Ghost Hunt’ set for this weekend

4 locations in the city, plus Poasttown Elementary School and the Conjuring House.

The 6th annual World’s Largest Ghost Hunt, usually based in Hamilton, this year will have its command center in the Conjuring House in Rhode Island, which inspired the film The Conjuring.

But there still will be five Butler County locations where people can participate, four in Hamilton and one in Middletown, when the event happens Saturday.

The event, which can be viewed online, or in person at some locations, will stream parts of paranormal investigations live from most of the 125 locations across 13 countries on six continents.

Among other “very elite properties” this year will be the Great Pyramids in Cairo; the Bran Castle in Romania, which marketers link to the Dracula folk tale, said organizer Maria Pons-Schmidt, whose efforts are completely volunteered. Proceeds of events go toward historic preservation.

Because Hamilton is her hometown, she wanted to make sure Hamilton “gets notice for doing this,” she said. “We may not be a castle, we may not be the pyramids, but we have four sites.”

Those four are the Butler County Historical Society; The Carriage House in the German Village neighborhood; the Drink Tavern; and the Alternative Path Coexist metaphysical shop.

The Middletown location will be Poasttown Elementary School, which Schmidt said is famed for its hauntedness.

It’s free to watch online, except for some of the more exclusive locations, such as the pyramids and Bran Castle, which are all for $29.

Customized pages are located on www.NationalGhostHuntingDay.com’s website, showcasing over 100 historical locations.

People wanting to join the event at one of the local locations, where there may be a charge, can email info@nationalghosthuntingday.com.

“There are some places that don’t have Wi-Fi in a remote place,” said Bob Schmidt, Maria’s husband. “But that will be a big part of it, too. People can live, if they want to, or they can go back and view different ghost hunts around the world, after the fact.”

Events at The Carriage House, will be live-streamed at 9 p.m.

At the Drink Tavern, Hamiltucky Ghost Hunters will be present, showing its worldwide live stream at 11 p.m.

The event at the metaphysical shop will be at 7 p.m.

The event “is a celebration of historic preservation,” Maria Schmidt said. “These are all historic locations that are struggling to survive.”

Local author Shi O’Neill, who recently had her book “Haunted Hamilton, Ohio” published, will be signing the book at three Hamilton locations: The Carriage House, the Drink Tavern and the Butler County Historical Society.

“I didn’t used to be a believer, but I’ve experienced things and seen things, that I’m not a skeptic anymore,” O’Neill said. “So I’m kind of excited to see something really happen, which is what I would expect from one of these investigations.”

O’Neill also is looking forward to an explanation of the equipment used in ghost hunting.

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