preston castle Dont be Afraid
High atop a hill lies the former Preston School of Industry - a reform school - known locally as
Preston Castle.
A monstrosity of sandstone Romanesque Revival, built in the late 1890's, is where once thousands of homeless, incorrigible and violent state "wards" learned trades like farming, carpentry and auto repair until the 1960's. Merle Haggard and 50's cowboy star Rory Calhoun once lived here.
Driving up the hill to the Castle I began to experience a sense of the uneasy.
Nothing was visibly amiss. The bright blue skies with puffy clouds under which the lush green hills of Amador County made for the kind of a perfect bucolic photo visitors bureaus place on brochure covers.
Stepping out of the car my eyes scanned across dark elongated windows some boarded others caged above and below towers and turrets. Despite the temperature being in the 90's a chill, and not the refreshing kind, ran across my shoulders.
Under a massive arch my guide, Marie Nutting, smiled and took my initial outburst of "wow, this place is really creepy" in stride. As board president of the Preston Castle Foundation, a band of intrepid volunteers committed to saving the structure, my comment was not new to her.
Entering the facility nothing supernatural hit me. No flying plasma or disembodied voices. The two front rooms were rather bland in fact except for a large steel safe, topped with a man' head and a unique drinking fountain.
Then a second set of doors slowly opened, and the chill returned. Not with icy fingers dancing lightly but handfuls of thrusting fear. Peeling paint, deep shadows and unseen light sources immediately gave me the sense that others, besides Marie and myself, were present.
I like to consider myself a rational person, however just then silently my brain cried out. "Its okay. I am friendly".
In the soft gloom Marie began the tour. In desperate need of repair the building has stairs that creak and caved in roofs and missing floors, along with dust bunnies the size of a truck.
Looking beyond the obvious decay, and pushing aside my trepidation, I could imagine the school's staff enjoying lunch in the dining room, people riding the water driven elevator and reading books where once 7,000 of them stood in the library.
Then in the old infirmary that certain feeling once again returned. It was hard to describe, as it was nothing violent, but rather a feeling of unseen vitality. I brushed it aside saying old forlorn metal bed frames in the corner were activating my imagination.
Downstairs by the pool my camera refused to capture a clear shot. I fiddled with shutter speeds, repositioned myself through several attempts - but to no avail. It was always unfocused.
Turning into the nearby kitchen, I casually mentioned my camera dilemma to Marie who told me we were entering the spot where the murdered body of Anna Corbin had been found.
With a quick spin I rapidly departed the kitchen.
The rest of the tour was calm especially when back outside under the shade of trees and looking over a small yet charming flower garden.
Marie reminded me that the Castle is open for public tours every first and third Saturday of the month and also offers monthly paranormal sleepover weekends.
Upon my safe return home I spoke to Gloria Young, President and Founder of
Ghost Trackers.Her excitement over the haunting at the Castle was intoxicating. She described events where rocks have rocketed down empty hallways and people suddenly found cold pockets spotted within the building's interior.
She asked if I had experienced anything out of the norm.
When I told of my odd feeling in the infirmary she advised how disembodied humming are frequently heard there.
Her words' effect had chill quickly prickling my spine.
"Anything else?" she inquired with genuine curiosity
I told her about my camera's malfunction, and in a low voice she mentioned how the pool area was often filled with high energy due to its close proximity to where poor bludgeoned Anna Corbin was discovered back in the ‘50’s.
In 2008, during her organization's first outing to the castle, orbs of light made a sweeping clockwise motion across the heads of researchers.
Was it Anna? Was it someone connected to the supposed controversy surrounding her killer? That much has not been made clear so far, but Young waits patiently for the day when all will be spiritually revealed.
Should you wish to explore for the answers Ghost Trackers' overnight camping trips are currently scheduled from June through November.
Just don’t expect to see me there.
I’ll be at my meeting for Scaredy Cats Anonymous.
