Tonight: Join The Brooklyn Paranormal Society For An "Investigation" Of Fort Greene Park

Image courtesy of the Brooklyn Paranormal Society.

Considering Fort Greene Park’s history as the resting place for 11,500 Revolutionary War soldiers — beneath the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument and crypt — it’s a wonder no one has reported ghost sightings before. Perhaps it’s negated by all the joyful life-affirming activities that take place in the park every day, or those who are interred there really do rest in peace. But whatever the case, the recently founded Brooklyn Paranormal Society (BPS) seeks to see for themselves if anything otherworldly is going on in our neighborhood park.

Just in time for pre-Halloween festivities, the group, founded on September 1 by a group of friends in Park Slope and Bay Ridge, will be embarking on an “investigation” of Fort Greene Park TONIGHT from 8-11:30pm, after a few drinks at Dick and Jane’s bar (266 Adelphi Street).

However, a disclaimer from the organizers: BPS’ members are primarily “inexperienced investigators” who share a common goal of “finding ghosts while inebriated.”

“With the recent glamorization of ghost hunting by the media, many paranormal investigation groups have formed, simply for the thrill of the hunt,” they explain in their “About Us” description on their website and MeetUp page. “We are one of these groups, except we like to drink too.”

Explained co-founding member Anthony Long, “the core group has very little paranormal experience, however, we do own many gadgets and we have members who are well-experienced paranormal investigators.

“We’re all mostly techie, and have spent the past few weeks watching paranormal TV shows, and reading up on how devices such as EMF detectors are used, and even how to process EVP’s,” he said.

Standing in the park that Walt built, Prison Ship Martyrs Monument memorializes the American prisoners who died in British vessels in the East River during the Revolutionary War. (Photo by Francisco Daum)

Tonight’s foray into Fort Greene Park is the first big investigation for the group and the location was chosen for its historical purpose. The night will begin with drinks, a talk about the park’s history “and related spooky topics,” and will then move on to the actual trek. Audio-visual and ghost-hunting equipment will be provided, but BPS reminds participants that on-site imbibing will require you to bring your own flask.

Asked what to expect, Long said “a good time, first and foremost. The focus is on having a couple of drinks with good people, and doing something exciting.”

If you can’t make it tonight, BPS will next investigate Prospect Park on Tuesday, October 6 (RSVP here). “There’s a ton of haunted history [there] and even a Quaker cemetery inside in the park,” explained Long.

Events will continue as long as weather permits, after which the group hopes to “convince homeowners with ghost problems to let us get drunk and film our investigations in their homes.”

If beer, new friends, and “weird stuff” sound like fun to you, join the MeetUp group and let them know because “you never know what we’ll find.”