Andersonville Prison Investigation

Perhaps the most infamous Civil War prison of them all. Located in Georgia it was a horrible place to keep prisoners of war. The sanitary conditions were atrocious with little or no shelter for the prisoners no matter what season it was. There was very little in the way of personal hygiene, food, water or shelter from the elements. Many died here under very inhuman conditions.

Several sicknesses rapidly spread among the prisoners that were held captive at Andersonville Prison. These sicknesses were a direct result of unsanitary conditions, dehydration, malnutrition, physical abuse, insects, and lack of hygiene. It was not at all unusual to discover captives with yellow fever, gastrointestinal complications, smallpox, and even scurvy. As a matter of fact, it was more common to stumble upon sick prisoners than healthy ones. There was little to no shade at the prison.. Many men would dig holes just to experience a small amount of relief from the immense heat. While small tents and small huts were created for shelter, this did very little for protection from the elements. Several men died naturally, others did as a result of abuse and murder…it is believed that several thousand spirits still remain.

A man by the name of “Henry Wirz” was named the Captain of the military prison, and was known as an abusive, cold-hearted individual that the prisoners came to hate. Surrounding the prison grounds, he established what he often referred to as the “Dead Line”. Prisoners were warned to stay away, for if they came too close to this area, their lives would immediately be halted due to gunshot.

Many also refer to this particular patch of land as “Camp Sumter”.  Covering a span of over twenty six acres of land, thousands upon thousands of individuals met tragic deaths while held captive here. It is no wonder that there have been so many documented cases associated with the paranormal!

Address: 760 POW Rd., Andersonville, GA 31711

Phone: 229-924-0343

Website: https://www.nps.gov/ande/learn/historyculture/camp_sumter_history.htm

Hauntings: One of the most interesting stories related to the hauntings of the Andersonville Prison typically occurs in the evening and night hours. Many claim to hear echoes of gun fire and experience feelings of immense fear and devastation. It is not at all unusual for visitors to experience faint whispers, loud cries, and even yelling while exploring the grounds. Many reflect experiencing a smell that is foul and breathtaking. In addition to this, distinct figures have been noted walking in the fog that cascades upon the grounds of the haunted prison site.

The Ghost Research Society investigated Andersonville Prison on September 9, 2025  and the team members included: Paul Adams and Dale Kaczmarek.

Equipment setup: Only hand-held equipment was used; digital recorder, Ovilus V and pictures taken with a Samsung Galaxy S-21 Slim Ultra.

Experiments performed: A single short Ovilus V session was conducted by the Providence Spring where there was a backdrop of running water. Usually something that might enhance the possible collection of EVPs.

Personal experiences: I don’t believe that either of us had any personal paranormal experiences.

Dale Kaczmarek: All I felt was a sense of awe at the vastness of the area and a profound feeling of sorrow at the loss of so many a brave soldier.

 Evidence collected: None!

Words spoken by the Ovilus V in dictionary mode: statement, surprise, cast, reach, smell, printed and watch.

Conclusions: It was a beautiful sunny day with blue skies and a gentle breeze and we arrived very early and were the first on the site. The only others visible were a few park employees doing general maintenance of the property. There were some interesting signs warning visitors not to go into any tall grass as there were venomous snakes.

I took a number of pictures and also visited the gift store for a memento of our visit and watched the American flag being hoisted up the flagpole. This was part of my long-awaited massive trip to the east coast, beginning in Virginia and then traveling through North and South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama.