Frankford: Ghosts in a Civil War Museum

Hugh Boyle describing the museum’s extensive research library of over 4,000 archives.

“This building does have ghosts,” said Hugh Boyle, executive director at the Grand Army of the Republic Museum and Library in Frankford.

Built in 1976 by its original owner, Dr. John Ruan, this civil war museum is loaded with historical artifacts, books and the spirits that often accompany them.

“Several times a year, we bring in the South Jersey Ghost Researchers, along with other people who pay to spend the night here,” said Boyle, who has consistently opted out of participating in the event. “On one occasion, quite a few of our members helped to prepare the evening and they were skeptics. Well, the next day they weren’t skeptics anymore.”

One of the most telling ghost incidents, according to Boyle, happened on a Sunday afternoon a few years ago in January.

“We got here at 11:30am for the open house and all of the pictures in this room were on the floor,” said Boyle, glancing around the room. “Not broken but taken down and put on the floor. We put them all back up and haven’t had a similar instance since then.”

The room where Boyle claims that all of the pictures ended up on the floor. This is also the room where Boyle and others saw a moving shadow.
The room where Boyle claims all of the pictures were on the floor when he and other members arrived one Sunday. This is also the room where Boyle and others saw a moving shadow.

Among the array of Civil War artifacts in the museum is a piece of the pillowcase that Abraham Lincoln died on.

“We have his blood on there,” said Boyle.

One day, while talking about the pillowcase with historians from The History Channel, Boyle noticed a shadow moving past the doorway.

After quietly mentioning the shadow to the museum’s president, Eric Schmincke, Civil War expert George Wunderlich leaned over towards me and said, “I saw it too.”

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