Paranormal probe follows finding of rusty rail spike in dining area

By BY Clif Knight, Hartselle Enquirer
The unexplained recent appearance of a rusty rail spike on the dining room floor at Freight House Restaurant was followed Sunday night by a full-scale investigation involving a group of professional “ghost hunters.”
Madison County Paranormal Research Society conducted the three-hour probe, using state- of-the-art wireless audio and video equipment. Participants were Kevin Thompson, the organization’s co-founder and lead investigator, Cassie Phillips, a Hartselle resident, Shontel Potts and Leslie Gray.
The set-up for the investigation took place between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It involved measuring temperatures , calibrating wireless audio and video equipment and placing it at strategic locations throughout the building. Finally, a network was established so all of the measuring devices could be monitored on a laptop computer. What followed was two hours of recording and infrared photography under a shroud of darkness.
He said Freight House Restaurant was referred to his organization by Robert Reeves, a Huntsville television personality,
The finding the suspicious rail spike was confirmed by Freight House co-owner Sandra Sowder.
Thompson, a training officer for the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, said the paranormal group has been conducting investigations since the summer of 2007. One of those is the Pattillo -Spain House on east Main Street.