MANSFIELD — Working at the Ohio State Reformatory almost promises a paranormal experience, said OSR paranormal program manager Kathy Feketik.
“The paranormal isn’t just seeing dark figures or apparitions, it can also be smells or feelings,” she said. “I think sometimes the spirits appear to our staff and volunteers more often because they know us. Sometimes I feel they watch over us in a way.”
Feketik and her husband, Greg Feketik, founded Tri-C Ghost Hunters in 2013 and have been a paranormal investigative team since 2004.
Those who want to hear about paranormal experiences and stay alert for their own encounters are invited on two-hour guided ghost walks through the Ohio State Reformatory, which are hosted each year on some Friday nights between March and November.
Up to 50 people can sign up for the ghost walks each night. The visitors are split up into three groups, each with at least one tour guide and a “pusher” or two at the back of the group to ensure everyone stays together.
All of the tour guides talk about their personal paranormal experiences or those of other people in the building, which Kathy Feketik said is an easy way to “dip your toe into the paranormal” without going on a ghost hunt.
Some visitors go on ghost walks before hunting to learn about the building’s history and the commonly-sighted spirits.
“It’s not making up stories, it’s what we’ve really experienced,” she said. “And just a few months ago on our April 21 walk, those ghost walk visitors heard noises and conversations from former inmates.”
April 21 was the anniversary of a 1930 fire at the Ohio Penitentiary based in Columbus. Inmates who survived the fire needed a new prison to stay in, so they were taken to the Mansfield Reformatory.
“So it had to have been really chaotic in here,” Feketik said. “And we heard doors slamming in the west cell block and people running but there wasn’t anybody down there.”
While many of the spirits are former inmates, lead paranormal investigator Greg Feketik said staff and visitors have spotted guards, former employees and possibly even heard from their own relatives.
“There’s a fridge in my break room and on May 25, I saw and heard the door open multiple times, like a banging sound,” he said. “And I realized that was the date of my parents’ wedding anniversary.
“They’re both deceased now, so were they trying to contact me? I guess I’ll have to wait until next year.”
Greg Feketik noted that paranormal hotspots can change, particularly during construction and renovations. Administration quarters and guest rooms used to be very active, but now the visiting rooms are being renovated into escape rooms.
“They like to move when their space is being disturbed, I think,” he said. “Things never used to happen in the kitchen or break room, but I think that’s one of the more active areas now.”
Ghost walk visitors walk through multiple areas of the prison, including solitary confinement, the administration quarters, library, the chapel and attic.
Greg Feketik usually ends his tours in a dark room to recreate an experience his friend had of hearing items being thrown around the room and crashing. People on the tour have the option of going in the dark room or staying outside in “the creepy hallway.”
“Some people hear voices, or see ghost tumbleweeds and apparitions,” he said. “Multiple people have said they feel like they’re walking through a cobweb, or felt like they’re being pushed.”
Other OSR paranormal programs, like public and private ghost hunts, are only open to adult participants, but ghost walks and ghost hunt classes are open to teenagers. Anyone ages 13 to 17 is asked to bring a school ID or something that can verify their age and all adults are asked to bring a valid photo ID.
“Most of the teens who visit are well-behaved, respectful and curious,” Kathy Feketik said. “Sometimes kids get a bad rap, but I’ve always been happy with how respectful teenagers have been when they go on the tour.”
Respect for each other and for the spirits you may encounter is a pillar of the ghost walks.
“These spirits were all once people, so that’s how we treat them,” Kathy Feketik said. “And I think people’s energy can attract different spirits, so you can keep coming back to our tours and see and hear different things.”
OSR has hosted nine ghost walks this year with the first on March 10. Ghost walks will continue on July 21 and 28, August 11 and 18 and November 24. Coats and hats are recommended for colder months and everyone should wear comfortable clothes and shoes.
Tours can be booked online for $45 per person. Visitors are asked to arrive between 7 and 7:45 p.m. to complete registration and waivers so the tours can depart by 8 p.m. The evening wraps up by 10 p.m.
