The Night Owl: True Ghost Stories

When host Stephen Belyeu was around the age of 11, he had an experience in his childhood bedroom that would haunt him for the rest of his life - a disturbing encounter with the spirit of a little girl who he discovered watching him in his sleep. Stephen had felt her presence before and continued to feel her in his room throughout his childhood. But as most tend to do with traumatizing experiences, Stephen pushed the memory of this girl away. As he grew up and moved out of the house, the thoughts of her only resurfaced when he returned to his parents house and had to face the old bedroom on occasion. Today, Stephen's parents still own the house where this happened. But to keep these dark memories at a safe distance, Stephen adopted the habit of not sleeping in this room ever since the incident. Even today, as an adult, he drags the mattress down the stairs and sleeps where he always slept growing up following the incident...on the living room floor. Stephen admits now that avoidance probably wasn’t the healthiest way to deal with what happened, but it was safe and a lot more comforting than the alternative - actually facing it. But in a field that’s led Stephen on a quest poking and prodding in the realm of paranormal, he should have known at some point in all his meddling, he might actually stir something up from his own haunted past. That this little girl who visited him in his room when he was eleven, might notice his meddlings, and once again come back to haunt him. But one thing Stephen never expected was a phone call he'd receive from clairvoyant friend Sara. A call where she informed Stephen of seeing the spirit of a small girl, matching the description of what he saw in his room as a kid, who she believes is still connected to Stephen somehow, and is desperately wanting to communicate with him. The two things that rattled Stephen after this call were one, he hadn't told Sara about his childhood experience and her description of the child spirit was spot on, and two, this girl he thought he'd put behind him could possibly have been with him his entire life, looking for an opening to connect with once again. After opening up about this pivotal paranormal experience, and the shocking call from his friend Sara, Stephen will now embark on his very first personal quest to validate the terrifying experience he had years ago. In this special extended episode, Stephen digs through old audio files recorded nearly two years ago, goes on a new investigation of his old childhood home with Sara and Alexis, tracks down and interviews friends old and new, and dives into the dark corners of his own memory in hope of finding some shred of validation of the spirit who visited him and made him terrified of his own room - the spirit he calls the girl from his room.

Haunted objects, a spirit of a serial killer, and a hotel so haunted it's guest book has been deemed "The Book of the Dead" - these are the tales of tonight's campfire. Warning: Tonight’s Campfire episode is a cautionary tale. Stories from people who continually search for answers that might shed light on the eternal question - are ghosts real? Come join the Night Owl by the fire and let’s get transported to three haunted sites, each with its own haunted history. One such place is Zach Bagans' Haunted Museum in Las Vegas, a place filled with supposed haunted objects and a sign posted to warn people of the dangers of entering such a haunted space. Another site is the Historic Jefferson Hotel in Jefferson, Texas, where guest encounters are so common they’ve created a guest log full of personal experiences the staff refer to as “The Book of the Dead". And lastly, the Magnolia Hotel in Seguin TX is place with so much history and haunts the current owner has stated she loves it when people say, "If only these walls could talk, here at the Magnolia…they do.” Cozy up, grab a cup of coffee or a glass of whiskey, and join us by the fire. VACANCYA couple years ago Holly and two of her friends decided to celebrate her birthday by traveling from Austin to Shreveport to hit up a casino for the first time. But on the way there, they discovered there was a hotel in Jefferson, Texas that was reputedly haunted. So Holly and her friends decided, let’s get a room. And There were plenty available at this historic hotel nestled on a small side street of this Texas ghost town. Holly didn’t know it, but she was about to get the scariest birthday present of her life.THE WARNINGAlyssa Onyx is a gothic fashionista and gothic home decor/designer currently living in Austin Texas. She has been connected to, and interested in, the paranormal since the age of 2. But one late July night in a 170 year old hotel, Alyssa found that what started out fun, quickly turned horrific when she encountered the spirit of a notorious Texas serial killer within the walls of the Magnolia Hotel in Seguin, Texas. STOWAWAYSFrom cemetery tours under the light of a full moon to visiting multiple haunted locations by limo hearse, Jennifer's interest in the paranormal has taken her to numerous haunted locations.  But when she and friend planned a trip to Vegas, and decided to visit Zak Bagans' Haunted Museum, she could never have predicted what would result from entering a building with so many haunted objects. She's spent her life pursuing the paranormal, but it never crossed her mind in her quest,  one day, something might pursue her.

Host Stephen and fellow paranormal investigator Alexis met while attending A&M University in Corpus Christi. They were both studying film and quickly realized they had similar tastes in cinema - horror. They soon became friends and began watching scary movies and discussing cinema together. But it didn’t take long for them to discover they had another common interest - ghosts. Their nights of watching horror movies shifted to nightly road trips to desolate south Texas towns with haunted graveyards and hanging trees. Their ameteur days of paranoral investigating started out so innocently, yet was so illegal. They trespassed onto private property so many times they're surprised someone didn’t wind up shot or dead. But as you can tell now, they've both come a long way. And although their individual paths have veered slightly down this road, their paths remained within the same realm, the realm of the supernatural. So now at the beginning of this new season, Stephen and Alexis have been reflecting on their past and came to appreciate their early beginnings. Those private, personal experiences they had as kids, long before they knew one another, and were surprised at how much of their lives has been guided down similar tacks. In this episode, they are both excited to share some of the more intimate encounters they had growing up, encounters that quite honestly are the defining moments for them and their pursuit of the paranormal. These stories are truly the origin of The Night Owl Podcast.

In this final installment of the Murder House series, Stephen and the Night Owl team continue their journey trying to help Martin and his family make sense of the unsettling phenomena they are experiencing in their home - which was the site of a recent, unsolved double homicide prior to their arrival. After a strange turn of events, uncovering that the activity Martin has been experiencing may have nothing to do with the murders, but instead an older male presence tied to the property, the team left with the hope that they'd helped this family start moving in the right direction for dealing with what’s been affecting them so negatively in the home. But shortly after the first visit with Sara, Stephen began getting texts and calls from Martin and could sense fear, anger, and nervousness in his voice. The activity hadn't stopped. It had gotten worse. Inevitably, the team is put through their most grueling investigation to date, traveling out of town for four more visits, as they try to get a handle what’s really going on in this home, why the male presence is fixated on Martin, and what, if any role, the murders might play in this unsettling case.

In this episode, the Night Owl team pack their bags once more, this time with clairvoyant friend Sara in tow, as they travel back to the Murder House, the home from their previous episode that was the recent site of an unsolved double homicide. The victims: a male and female discovered murdered in cold blood in the male victims home. Now, a few years following the tragedy, the current tenants, Martin, his girlfriend Veronica, and their children, believe that one or more spirits may be haunting the residence. Objects get misplaced, they have feelings of being watched, and they all seem to be losing lots of sleep. But out of everyone in the home, one person seems to be the most targeted....Martin. He’s lost the most sleep, feels disoriented most of the time, has seen shadows and smokey figures out of the corner of his eye, and more recently was physically pulled and shoved by the unseen force. Martin is also the only member of the household to have witnessed the full bodied apparition of a man standing in the entryway between the living room and kitchen who he later deciphered, through online research, was the male victim of the homicide. To Martin, he clearly felt a difference between the male victims apparition he saw and the other presence seemingly threatening him in his new home. The team knew this case was going to be a challenging one, but they had no idea what was about to unfold on this first night bringing Sara to this house.

Are you ready for a slightly darker journey into the paranormal than usual? In this episode, the Night Owl team is packing their bags, hitting the road, and traveling to a home that was recently the site of an unsolved double homicide. Martin and his girlfriend Veronica recently have decided to rent this home, fully aware of the tragedy that occurred within its walls, but with the intention of putting it out of their minds and enjoying the lovely new space for themselves and their family. However, Martin soon finds himself having strange feelings, insomnia, ghostly sightings, and eventually physical attacks by an unseen presence in the home. Desperate for help, Martin reaches out to see if the Night Owl team can provide any answers to his experiences and determine if this activity has anything to do with the horrible act that was committed in their home.

Metz Elementary is one of Austin ISD’s oldest schools, established in 1916 on Willow Street in East Austin. At that time, this area was considered to be on the outskirts of East Austin. The School Board that year decided that Spanish-speaking students in that area should attend a separate school where their needs could be better met. In an unprecedented move, many of the Mexican-American parents protested this decision and appealed to the school board to change their decision. The other school was several miles away making transportation extremely difficult and the parents felt that if segregated, their children would not have the same opportunities as the English-speaking students. The School Board quietly dropped the issue and Spanish- speaking students were allowed to attend Metz Elementary School.Metz Elementary continued to serve students in the community for the next 7 and a half decades. Just imagine, this school was educating our youth during the First World War, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. This school was witness to 14 different Presidents during that span of time.In 1989 the school was deemed to be too small and too dilapidated to fit he needs of the community. The old school was demolished in September 1990 and a new school was built in its place and opened in 1992.Today, Metz is rumored to be the most haunted school in Austin. So much so that when you search Metz Elementary on the internet, some of the first things you’ll see pop up are the articles detailing it’s long-standing haunted history. Tonight we’ll hear from former teachers, students and even those who once stepped foot in the old building, and the countless unexplained experiences they had in this historic school.Photo Info: Metz Elementary School, photograph, Date Unknown; https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth125274/University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Austin History Center, Austin Public Library.

In this episode, the Night Owl team will conclude their investigation of Pioneer Farms, the living history museum nestled on a historic site on the banks of Walnut Creek in Austin, Texas. Being the largest site they've ever tackled, the team will have to revisit the farm several additional days with Sara and allow her time to focus on spirits she’s drawn to and further investigate strange phenomena she’s witnessed on the property.  Stephen also begins an extensive search through history records pertaining to the farm, the land, and the various buildings that were relocated to the farm. Just when the case feels to have hit a dead end,  Stephen makes a discovery that propels this story in an entirely new direction. One that involves bringing Sara back to the farm one last time, to explore its grounds with someone who might possess a gift similar to her, but who has a slight advantage over everyone, because she grew up on the farm and has talked to these spirits for most of her life. For photos of our investigation at Pioneer Farms, visit www.thenightowlpodcast.com and check out blog!Be sure to visit Pioneer Farms and experience this magical site for yourself. Visit https://www.pioneerfarms.org/ for more info. Note we are taking a break in July 2019 so there will be no new episodes next month. Our schedule picks back up in August 2019. Photo Credit: @thaophotography

THE GOLDEN GHOULSI know you all hunger horrifying stories, thirst for true tales of terror, so in tonight's campfire, we're not only sharing more ghost stories with you, these stories will be told by a delightful trio of like minded ladies who are just as fascinated with the paranormal we are. Alyssa, Emily and Kyley are the hosts of The Golden Ghouls Podcast, a paranormal podcast covering all things unexplained. The ghouls inject a healthy dose of comedy into every episode, and it’s quite refreshing, because sometimes, it’s nice to explore the darker side of this strange world we live in, with a sense of humor. These ghouls do it perfectly and we've really been enjoying their show. But tonight, for this campfire, we're turning the mic on these three ladies and asking them each to share their most memorable personal experience that sparked their interest in the paranormal. Emily shares her experience when she was 16 and visited the infamous Stanley Motel on a family vacation. Kyley recounts an experience in her teens when she and a daring group of friends dared visiting the abandoned Danvers State Hospital in Danvers, Massachusetts which was host a dark and morbid history treating the insane. And lastly, Alyssa tells a much more personal story that involves her family, a tragic loss, and the haunting that came after. The Golden Ghouls is a paranormal comedy podcast created by ladies who love ghosts and all things spooky. Hosted by Alyssa Minnis, Emily Alston, and Kyley Smiley, they cover unexplained happenings, with a dash of humor for good measure. Check out their podcast at www.thegoldenghouls.comBRUISES & NIGHTMARESIn this live recording from a Night Owl Podcast event on October 11th, 2018, Austin comic Melody Shifflet recounts a horrific experience she had living in a home in East Austin home live on stage. Struggling to find a place to call home, keep her day job at a local cafe, and buckle down and finish high school, Melody's new home and strange roommates led to haunted nightmares, mysterious bruises and ultimately, possession.You can follow Melody and keep tabs on her comedy shows and events in and around Austin on Instagram @melodyshifflet or on Twitter @smelodysnifflet

In this episode, Stephen and the team pick up where they left off on their first visit to Pioneer Farms. Following a tour around the expansive property rich with history and haunts, clairvoyant friend Sara arrives and will now join the Night Owl team for a second walk around the farm. This time, however, instead of the farms' volunteers guiding them, the team will rely on Sara to guide them where she is pulled to go. On this dark and quiet night, surrounded by several historic buildings and sites, Sara must put her abilities to the ultimate test, trying navigate such a spiritually rich location with an overwhelming number of messages bombarding her from the other side. Meanwhile, Stephen wrestles with figuring out how to manage a case such as large as this one.