The Everything Ghost

Hunting Book

is available for pre-order on Amazon.com. Melissa Martin-Ellis' comprehensive look at ghost-hunting and ghost hunters is a guaranteed good read for everyone interested in delving further into the supernatural world and the attempt to document that paranormal entities are trying to communicate with us.

Martin-Ellis resides in Rhode Island and has taken classes in ghost-hunting at The Atlantic Paranormal Society in Warwick (TAPS). She was assisted in her research by members of TRIPRG, the Rhode Island Paranormal Research group, as well as Nathan Schoonover of the Ghostman and Demon Hunter Show.

Melissa was interviewed on the Ghostman and Demon Hunter Show April 5th, 2009. The interview can be heard at:  http://ghostanddemon.podOmatic.com/entry/2009-04-05T21_11_21-07_00

The player controls can be advanced to minute 34:20 for the start of her interview.

 She has collected photographs of unexplained and paranormal phenomenon for decades and is an avid paranormal investigator.

With a July, 2009 release date, the book is now available on Amazon at:http://www.amazon.com/Everything-Ghosthunting-Book-techniques-supernatural/dp/1598699202/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8

Check out My Blogs On the Adams Media Site:

http://www.everything.com/ghost-hunting-21st-century/

Ghost Hunting in the 21st Century

by Mellisa Martin Ellis

The Ghosts of Stirling Castle

by Melissa Martin Ellis

http://www.everything.com/ghosts-of-stirling-castle/

A Haunting in Philadelphia

by Melissa Martin Ellis

http://www.everything.com/haunting-in-philadelphia/

Residual Hauntings

by Melissa Martin Ellis

http://www.everything.com/residual-hauntings/

The Everything Ghost Hunting Book

Publisher Adams Media in Avon, Massachusetts has signed Rhode Island author and photographer Melissa Martin Ellis to write the definitive guide to ghost hunting.

Raised in an Irish household where talk of ghostly visitations was common, Melissa Martin Ellis grew up with an open mind about the supernatural.

A family legend told of a grandmother who passed away in Ireland, but came all the way across the Atlantic to New York to announce her untimely demise.

When she was twelve, Melissa's home was plagued by a mysterious, half-glimpsed entity, which was blamed for various types of mischief. Items went missing, and would reappear days later. The entity also seemed to enjoy playing pranks and even set fires in a rear entryway on two occasions. Not only family members were bothered by the poltergeist, but also visitors. The Martin's housekeeper would catch brief glimpses of a long black skirt sweeping down the hallway.

When Melissa married, she and her husband moved into an older house. Before the birth of her daughter, the house exuded a perturbed atmosphere. Doors opened and closed on their own, and unexplained noises and footsteps would be heard when she was alone.

After her daughter Deirdre was born, Melissa was made so apprehensive by a series of events that occurred repeatedly, that she stopped going into the nursery and removed the baby from the room, where she had witnessed various bizarre phenomena--including mysterious whispers and eerie laughing. The temperature in the room would drop and became quite chilly, although it was July in Florida.

On another occasion, several years later, a mysterious face appeared in a photo taken at a family gathering, floating above a table. The Polaroid Corporation had no explanation for the face, other than to say it was not a double exposure.

Melissa attended the University of South Florida and studied Anthropology. In the course of her studies, she found that virtually every culture on earth had a rich heritage of supernatural and paranormal tales. Although most professors told students that these belief were  by-products of primitive cultures and magical thinking, a few asserted that they had seen things during their fieldwork for which they had no rational explanation.

As part of her Anthropology coursework, Melissa began attending a Spiritualist church and read voraciously on the topic of ghosts and paranormal phenomenon. She maintained a healthy skepticism about the topic and looked for everyday explanations for the events she witnessed at the church.

Then she received a communication from spirits during a Spiritualist service, alleging to be her Irish grandparents. They told her they had a message for her mother-- that they would be waiting for her when she passed away, which she unexpectedly did only weeks later.

In subsequent years, she found herself encountering many other instances of unexplained phenomenon, such as haunted houses and EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenonema).

Melissa amassed a huge library of reference material about paranormal phenomenon and hauntings. Her expertise with photography has dovetailed with her interest in the spirit world, and she has captured mysterious images in various locales around New England--including orbs floating above the murder scene in Lizzie Borden's home.

Melissa is an artist as well as a photographer, and created the cover image for the book Haunted Newport. She has also created other ghostly and atmospheric images, for which she makes no claims of supernatural activity, only supernatural inspiration.

Melissa lives in Rhode Island, which is home to several long established paranormal investigating groups, The Rhode Island Paranormal Research group, TRIPRG and TAPS, the organization featured on the TV series Ghost Hunters. She and her husband, novelist Mark Ellis, plan to plan to pursue their interest in this fascinating subject, wherever it leads.

Two orbs captured at the Lizzie Borden House in April, 2007. Note the larger orb is in the location where the murderer stood to deliver the killing blows. The smaller orb on the sofa arm is where Andrew Borden's head would've rested when the fatal blows were struck.

An angel at Island Cemetery in Newport, RI is truly frightening at night. She seems to glare out at anyone who dares to approach her.

I was pleased to be invited to contribute to this publication, which only grows in sophistication and appeal as the years go by. 

The Newport Navigator is a sister publication to Newport Life, both are published by the Edward A. Sherman Publishing Company, which produces our award-winning local newspaper, The Newport Daily News.

The cover at left featured my story about stained glass artists Tiffany, LaFarge and Armstrong.

The article below appeared in Newport Navigator several years ago. 

  A Stitch in Time

            Trinity Church is a Newport landmark, its bell tower a symbol of the city, visible from the harbor and downtown area.   

             Extraordinary features of the church include the wineglass pulpit, the Tiffany windows, a memorable architectural style, and the needlepoint kneelers. The kneelers are rectangular cushions made for the knees of the prayerful and adorned by the loving hands of the church’s Needlework Guild.

            The original church, built in 1701, was outgrown by 1726 and replaced by the present structure. In 1762, the growing congregation again required an expansion, and to raise the necessary monies to do so, the box pews were “sold” to parishioners. Each family had its designated space, and the various shapes and sizes which resulted reflected their individual needs and tastes. The pews were taxed annually and passed on from generation to generation.

            The walls of the pews helped congregants remain warm in a drafty building which did not acquire central heating until the 1800s.The wooden pews, each with its own little door, benches and kneelers, served a very necessary function during the winter services. The congregants often brought metal footwarmers filled with coals to help provide additional heat.

            The dedicated people of the Trinity Church Needlework Guild have been meeting for over thirty years, the last fifteen under the guidance of artist Eveline Roberge. Her striking designs and the expanded repertoire of stitchwork which she introduced have raised the level of the pieces to an art form; each is a painting in thread. At one time, the guild had as many as twenty-four members who met regularly at the Carr House to stitch the beautiful, mostly Biblically-themed designs. Over the years their numbers have declined. Roberge says new members would be most welcome. No knowledge of the process is required, as she is happy to train anyone interested.

            The kneelers portray such subjects as the Nativity scene, the Lilies of the Field, Suffer the Little Children, and St. John the Evangelist. Ms. Roberge estimates it took the group around two years to refurbish all the kneelers in the main church.

            Ms. Roberge recalls the early days with fondness. “At first, the ladies wanted to do pieces with only the Basket Stitch design. I taught them to do Crosstitch, Stemstitch and Upright Gobelin as well. Afterward they would say, ‘Eveline, do you have any of those complicated ones I can do?’”

            In addition to the Biblical themes, the kneelers reflect the personality of the various congregants’ pews. The variety and creativity are amazing. A thistles motif reflects a Scottish parishioner, and a representation of a griffon that of a Welsh member. Some have the congregant’s initials or family coat-of-arms. The English sloop Katie, which was captured by the Americans and christened Providence, is also represented as a scene from local history.

            The most famous kneeler may be the one featuring an intricately rendered ER II, for Elizabeth Regina, Queen of England. The Queen’s kneeler has an English rose embroidered on the side, as well as a crown and laurel leaves on the top surface, framing the initials ER, with the Roman numeral two stitched between the letters. 

            Small services are held in the Hughes Chapel adjacent to the church on the south side of Queen Anne Square. Examples of the guild’s artistry can be found here, as well. The chapel has wooden seats, each having its own little kneeler tucked neatly beneath it on railings.

            The Hughes Chapel kneelers are smaller than those in the main church, and each of them portrays a vivid Newport scene. The colorfully rendered images of Colony House, the White Horse Tavern, Touro Synagogue, Rose Island Lighthouse, Whitehall, the Stone Mill, the Redwood Library and many more famous local buildings adorn these cushions. The prie-deux are also covered with town scenes.  They portray Trinity Church and Queen Anne Square nestled amidst the downtown buildings. Canon Ballard, now deceased, suggested the Newport theme for the chapel kneelers after seeing a painting of Roberge’s hanging at a mutual friend’s house in New Hampshire.

             Two needlepoint wall hangings, Old Colony House and Trinity Church, both depicted in their respective squares on a snowy winter’s day, adorn the right wall. The group is currently working on another wall hanging, this one depicting the flowers indigenous to Aquidneck Island.

            The public is welcome to stop by for a tour. Friendly guides will be happy to share their extensive knowledge of the building and its history. The church is open to the public, check with the church office for the best dates and times. The suggested donation is $2 per person.

In 2005, I did a series of columns for the weekly newspaper Newport This Week, in which I described life on Aquidneck Island. It was a lot of fun, because I got to deal with a subject very dear to my heart, the history, architecture and art of Aquidneck Island.

The first article printed was The Artist in Us All, wherein I discussed the island's long history of attracting creative people, artists and writers who were thrilled to make this beautiful place their home. In 2006, Balancing the Tides printed an updated version in their premier issue.

The article below is an online capture of the Web version.