In 1993, when Steve and Elizabeth Clapper purchased the historic McCloud Century House, they had no idea that they would be getting a little something more than they bargained for.

Finally, after what they call “repeated reports of suspicious and mysterious activities,” they decided to call the Redding Paranormal Investigations team, which came to town last week.

Located on the corner of Lawndale Court and Colombero Avenue, the beautiful building built in 1903 was the first hospital in Siskiyou County and served as such until the late ’60s. There are a number of people still living in McCloud who were born or had parents or grandparents born there.

After purchasing the Craftsman Style building, the Clappers began restoring it, turning it into a luxurious Bed and Breakfast Hotel Retreat.

From the beginning the Clappers said they experienced strange things happening... like footsteps in the hallway and stairway, a dark figure standing in the hallway one moment, then gone the next. Guests over the years have also reported strange occurrences.

“One lady in particular, reportedly made up her bed, and left her room,” said Steve. “Upon returning she noticed the wrinkled up place where someone had been sitting.”

Recently Clapper saw a Redding Paranormal Investigations Team ad on Craig's List and contacted them.

Last Wednesday night, Nov. 5, the team arrived, took a tour of the historic facility, then set up their equipment, including cameras, camcorders, video equipment, computers, EMF meters, and various scientific  gauges used in electronic fields of study, such as paranormal investigation. The team lingered  until about 4 a.m. the next morning gathering evidence.

Team members, according to a press release, reported not only seeing shadows, but a dark figure going up a staircase and footsteps in hallways which had nobody in them.

They reported that as one of the team members was leaving a room, someone was heard to say, “I’m alright,” and according to the team member, “nobody else was in there.”

“Strange things started happening from day one," said Steve. “I occasionally heard footsteps in the hallway, but when I looked, no one was there. Sometimes late at night when I was working upstairs, it sounded like an active hospital going on downstairs. You could hear muffled voices of people talking, and things rolling on the floor, and dishes rattling... maybe like a cafeteria would sound. I go downstairs and it’s perfectly quiet.”

Clapper said, “June Bolton, who has lived in McCloud all her life, told me she used to clean rooms here for Dr. Larson. She said Larson told her of a fellow who died here. She asked where, and he said, “in the hospital. When she had completed the cleaning she told Larson she had felt the presence of someone being there in that room. She asked Larson again, where the fellow had died. Being a joker he told her in that room. Bolton wasn’t too happy about that.”

Elizabeth said she has also heard the footsteps in the hallway.

“One day while exiting one of the rooms, I saw a figure standing off to my side; I turned my head, and when I turned back it was gone,” she said.

The Clappers say they have pretty much learned to live with these somewhat, strange happenings and feel that whatever is going on there means no one any harm.

RPI investigators will reveal more of their “evidence” in December, but as far as the Clappers are concerned they don’t have to  wait for the assessment from RPI. 

“We already know it’s haunted,” said Steve.