USS North Carolina Investigation

The USS North Carolina was commissioned on the 9th day of April in the year of 1941. The Captain of the mighty vessel at that time was Olaf M. Hustvedt. This ship was known at the time as the “Showboat” because of the fact that it was loaded with a number of features and advanced technology of the time. This ship had many roles and responsibilities. One of the main ones being that she created to protect various types of aircraft carriers during several wars. This ship has been a participant in all of the major wars that were encountered in the Pacific Ocean. Nearly two thousand men served as the crew of the ship in her early days. The ship was highly decorated, in that it received fifteen different battle stars for her successful endeavors during the many different wars that she served in. Despite all of the wars that this beautiful ship endured, there were only about ten individuals who lost their lives. It is believed that most of these individuals passed over successfully after dying, but that one spirit still remains.

After inactivation, she was decommissioned at New York on 27 June 1947. Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 June 1960, the North Carolina was transferred to the state of North Carolina on 6 September 1961. She was purchased from the U.S. Navy for $330,000 raised by the efforts of North Carolina school children who saved their spare change and lunch money for the "Save Our Ship" campaign. In 1961, a fleet of tugboats was used to maneuver the 728 ft (222 m) ship through an area of the river 500 ft (150 m) wide. During this move the ship struck the restaurant "Fergus' Ark", near Princess Street. "Fergus' Ark" was formerly a U.S. Army troopship. The river-based restaurant was damaged severely and ceased operation. On 29 April 1962, she was dedicated at Wilmington, North Carolina as a memorial to North Carolinians of all services killed in World War II.

This battleship was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1986.

Located at: 1 Battleship Rd. NE, Wilmington, NC. 28401

Telephone: 910-251-5797

Website: www.battleshipnc.com

Hauntings: The spirit that has been seen on the USS North Carolina is a young male who has blonde hair. This wandering soul is often seen in the passageways aboard the massive vessel. There also seems to be another spirit lingering around, but this is not confirmed. The true ghost stories on the USS North Carolina always seem to be related to the blonde spirit that is often seen. This spirit seems to enjoy causing disruptions in electricity, trying to talk to the living, and even following certain individuals who board the ship. There were 10 confirmed dead killed while this battleship was in action.

Other reports of shadow figures and inexplicable banging sounds that are heard throughout the ship have been reported.

Equipment setup: No equipment was set up; only hand-held equipment such as IR camcorders, digital cameras and tape recorders, SB-7 ghost box, Ovilus X, Tri-Field Natural EM Meter, Melmeter 8704-REM, bionic ears, REM Epod and digital trap cameras.

Experiments performed: EVP, Ghost Box and Ovilus sessions were conducted in the Laundry Issue area, Boiler Room, Infirmary, Mess Hall, On Deck and in the Operating Room. I laid down in one of the beds in the Infirmary trying to act as a patient.

Personal Encounters: On several occasions near the Laundry Issue Room and the Mess Hall, I thought I heard footsteps. During these first two EVP sessions, Bob and I were the only two people in the battleship at the time. The rest of the group had not been given access so the sounds weren’t coming from other groups. Bob felt that he was brushed up against in the Mess Hall and was also later touched in another part of the ship.

The Ghost Research Society investigated the USS North Carolina on May 11, 2013. Team members included: Dale Kaczmarek with help from Bob Davies of Champaign Urbana Paranormal.

Evidence collected:

Come here.mpg while conducting an EVP session in the Mess Hall Bob Davies felt like something touch him and he says, “Something just touched me.” Right after that the Ghost Box says, “Come here.”

Dale dale.mpg while conducting an EVP session in the Mess Hall, I start banging on the metal tables and shout out, “I’m hungry, feed me.” The Ghost Box shouts out my name, “Dale” and then a few seconds later repeats it, somewhat quieter, “Dale.”

Roosevelt.mpg while conducting a Ghost Box session on Deck in front of the main guns, a question was asked, “Who is the current president of the United States?’ The Ghost Box responds with, “Roosevelt” at the 22 second mark.

Conclusions: It was an amazing place to investigate and the very first battleship or vessel that the GRS ever investigated however it was somewhat uneventful as far as evidence goes. Besides a few EVPs on the Ghost Box, some personal encounters, a very eventful session in the Operating Room with another group of people where numerous EMF devices went off inexplicably including Melmeters, K-IIs and the Tri-Field Natural EM Meter which was placed directly on the operating table.