Paranormal investigators descended on Slippery Rock University over the weekend to hunt for the ghost of Emma, a woman some students and faculty say has been roaming the campus for years.

Instead, investigators say they might have encountered the lingering spirit of a child.

“Michael Peters, the medium who was with us for the investigation, did some channeling and reported having some personal experiences with the spirit of a little girl,” said John Lewis, owner of Baelfire Paranormal Investigation in Titusville. “That really didn’t surprise us because we’ve had reports of people hearing voices and conversations involving a little girl.”

Between 10 p.m. Saturday and 4 a.m. Sunday, Lewis’ team of 10 paranormal investigators used infrared cameras, digital and analog audio recorders, digital and 35-mm still cameras and other equipment such as electromagnetic field meters and computers to try to capture evidence of disembodied spirits in the buildings.

Because the equipment can pick up things that can’t be seen by the human eye such as orbs, facial images or “primordial mist,” Lewis said he will wait until the material has been analyzed before saying whether any hard-core evidence was gathered to indicate the buildings are haunted.

Lewis said he likely would take two weeks to review the findings before reporting the results to the university and on his Web site, www.baelfireparanormal.org.

Lewis said spirits sometimes linger because they do not realize they are dead or have “unfinished business.” The team is trained to help spirits “move on” if that is their desire, he said.

Students and staff believe the specter they have encountered is Miller because of her close relationship to the theater department.

Miller was born in Guffey Station, Westmoreland County, on July 6, 1874. She was a six-time delegate to the Democratic National Convention from Pennsylvania. She died after suffering a heart attack on Feb. 23, 1970.

She was a longtime member and past president of the Slippery Rock Council of Trustees and was instrumental in securing state assistance for the construction of eight buildings from 1928-39.

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