McConnell's Mill

McConnells Mill

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Tom and Bryan check for
Electromagnetic fields

Infrared trap-cam we set up inside the
bridge

Inside the mill

Inside the covered bridge

There was an abundance of
information on Moses at the mill

Do the spirits of former workers still
loom here?

McConnell's Mill at McConnell's Mill
State Park

Bryan and Denise during our EVP
session in the lowest level of the mill

The covered bridge

Hanging out in the old farmers waiting
room

In Lawrence County, Pennsylvania you will find McConnells
Mill State Park. Encompassing over 2,500 acres the park is
well know for its scenic gorge, high rock formations, an old
restored gristmill, and an old covered bridge that still allows
vehicles to pass over Slippery Rock Creek.

The first gristmill was opened by Daniel Kennedy in 1852. In
1867 the mill was destroyed by a fire. However, it was rebuilt
by 1869. In 1875 the mill's ownership was transferred from
Mehard, Oliver and Graham to Thomas McConnell (McConnell,
Wilson and Co.) - who would later become the park's
namesake. McConnell would be the one responsible for
replacing the waterwheel with more efficient water turbines
and to replace the grindstones with newer rolling mills. Once
these changes were implemented it made his mill one of the
first rolling mills in the country. The mill was used for the
processing of corn, oats, buckwheat and wheat brought in by
the local farmers.

The mill remained in use until it was finally closed in 1928. At
that time the land was now owned by Thomas Hartman, and in
1946 it would be transferred to the Western Pennsylvania
Conservancy. The conservancy maintained ownership until
1957, when it was transferred to the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania. On October 5, 1957 the land, including the mill
and covered bridge, was formally dedicated as McConnells
Mill State Park.

The McConnells Mill Covered Bridge was built back in 1874,
and is still in use today. It is just one of only a few still
functioning covered bridges in south western Pa and is on the
National Register of Historic Places.

And have we mentioned yet that it's supposed to be haunted?
This area is said to be haunted by several spirits, actually.
Apparently back when the mill was still in use there was a man
who worked there and he always walked the same path
everyday to the mill for work. He would usually carry his lunch
box and lantern. As the story goes the man died because of
some malfunction with the equipment, or accident, while
working in the mill. It is said that if you park your car on the
road above the mill you can see the man walking down the hill
towards the mill. He will go into the mill and you can see a light
and hear screams coming from inside.

Another spirit said to inhabit this area is that of Moses
Wharton, a former caretaker that lived on the property near the
mill. A freed slave from North Carolina, Moses came to work at
the mill in 1880, when he was twenty years old. He was a
general handyman taking care of the mill, as well as deliver the
processed oats and grain to local stores in the Butler and
Newcastle areas. In his later years he remained as caretaker of
the mill, until he finally had to move into a nursing home in the
1950's where he eventually passed away in 1954. Moses was a
kind man, and a friend to everyone who visited the park. He
would make some extra money on the side by attending to the
horses of visitors, and later, by parking their automobiles. The
park has extensive information available right in the mill about
him. We were lucky enough to obtain two old, rare photos of
Moses though some old family friends.

We actually believe that the spirit seen walking with a lantern
down the hill to mill could actually be Moses. The small home
where he lived was just up the hill from the mill, and he
probably would carry a lantern when walking down the path at
night. However, that doesn't match the stories of the screams
coming from within the mill. If those reports are actually to be
believed, of course. It is also said that his spirit can be seen
chasing people away from the place that he so loved and cared
for. While it is true that he did love and care for this place, it
would seem very out of character, even in death, for him to
chase people away.

The last entry on this list of purported paranormal activity here
is the legend of a girl who died in an auto accident on the
covered bridge. There are little or no facts on this, however.
The story says that she can be summoned by parking your car
on the covered bridge, turning off the engine and lights, and
then honking the car horn 3 times. She is allegedly supposed
to appear in your car's rear view mirror, but when you turn
around to look she's gone.

First and foremost, we do not recommend stopping your car on
the bridge with your lights and engine turned off - as we
mentioned before this bridge is still in use! This story about
the bridge haunting just reeks urban legend. Any story that
involves stopping your car at a specific location (and often at a
specific time), turning the lights and/or engine off, and doing
anything in repetition of 3 can pretty much be summarized as
just urban legend. These tales have been handed down over
the decades by teenagers out for a late night thrill. Eventually
these stories become known to be "true".

Now it is true that over the years many people have lost their
lives in Slippery Rock creek. But, not necessarily right at the
spot by mill and covered bridge. Drownings due to rafting
accidents, or people falling off of the rocks do occur.

This was a place that we just had to investigate. Tom, Bryan
and Denise arrived at the mill shortly before sunset in May
2009. We met with our contacts from the park and began to get
settled in for our investigation. Our main focus would be
McConnells Mill and area outside of it, our secondary focus the
covered bridge.

With all of our infrared cameras set up inside the mill, and a
motion activated infrared camera on the bridge, we got
underway with our investigation. We decided to begin with the
mill working our way up from the lowest level. Using our
standard arsenal of equipment we attempted to document
whether we could pick up on any paranormal activity.

After a few hours we took a break from the mill and spent some
time outside. Up on the hillside across from the mill, where the
restrooms are, is the spot where Thomas McConnell's home
once stood. During the night all three of us, in turn, did spend
time on the covered bridge doing some investigating.
However, again we strongly urge anyone who attempts this to
use extreme caution - and please don't park your car on the
bridge. We were there with permission.

Another infrared photo of the rocks

Daytime infrared photo of some of the
rock formations near the mill

Denise and Tom checking out the
former site of McConnell's house

During the course of our investigation we did not have any personal experiences or encounter
any paranormal phenomena. With some hopes that we may have recorded something on either
audio or video, we wrapped up our investigation of McConnells Mill and the surrounding area.

Upon reviewing our collected data, we did not get any evidence of the paranormal. There was
nothing on video, no possible photographic evidence, or audio recordings. Could the stories
of the spirits of McConnells Mill be true? Possibly.

We are planning on going back to investigate further.