From long-empty jail cells to a restored 1940s theater, Indiana’s ghost stories came alive with the second annual NWI Paracon in Cedar Lake.

“I think it’s terrific to see the momentum continue this year,” said Paracon speaker Mike McDowell, who is founder of Northwest Indiana Ghost Trackers, and Chaos Historical and Haunted Tours. “It’s a great event that brings a lot of people from the paranormal community together, and I think it’ll continue on.”

Saturday’s turnout showed people want to carry on the tradition of a paranormal convention in Northwest Indiana, organizers said. The convention’s founder, Earl Gundelach, of St. John, started the event in 2024 as a way to gather like-minded individuals in a localized event — one that spanned from a line-up of Chicagoland and Region-sourced speakers to artisan vendors.

“This year is about giving gratitude back to the paranormal community,” Gundelach said. “They are a big part of keeping these locations open to the public. Our speakers have all been a part of that in one way or another. One speaker, Dwight, represents the Fowler Theater. The paranormal community is a big part of what saved that historic theater in his town. And then you have Sandy, who works at the Old Sheriff’s House and Jail, which is ranked as the top sixth place for paranormal research in the country — and that’s right here, in Crown Point.”Dwight Snethen, a member of the Prairie Preservation Guild, is one of the key people who keep the Fowler Theater, at 111 East Fifth Street in Fowler, Indiana, afloat, but there’s still choppy waters ahead. The 1930s art deco theater has hefty bills, including an estimated $49,000 in roof repairs and $46,000 for a digital projector. The theater is said to be haunted by multiple entities, drawing paranormal investigators from around the country; however, it also still serves as a one-room theater that shows current movies, live music and hosts events.

“I took my kids there when they were little, and I hope that when they come back, and one day come back with their kids, they still have a piece of that history they can visit and share with their families,” Snethen said. “That’s why I speak at events like this, to spread awareness about how important these places are.”

Snethen referenced the coming destruction of another haunted Fowler, Indiana, location — the Old Benton County Jail. Benton County commissioners decided in January 2025 to tear the structure down, though Snethen said many people fought to preserve the building. According to the Journal and Courier, the jail was built from limestone in 1876, and when it was replaced in 1997, it was the oldest fully functioning jail in Indiana. It is now set to be demolished and will serve as space for a new storage shed for the nearby courthouse, Snethen said.

“What I took away from that was that I felt good about the efforts made to save it,” Snethen said. “We got 920 people to sign the petition, and that tells me that these places mean something to people. You don’t know if you don’t try, and if you don’t try, you fail.”

Pete Ghrist, founder of Northwest Indiana Paranormal, has a growing group of 99 members at Griffith High School who are part of a student paranormal club he runs. Ghrist, a longtime Griffith police officer, also serves as a student resource officer at the school. He said the growing interest in the paranormal has ignited students’ passion for history and research.

“We are a nonprofit,” Ghrist said. “All we care about is the continued preservation efforts of these historical places. We regularly volunteer and fundraise, and this year we are getting involved in headstone restoration.”

As for newcomers to the paranormal community, Ghrist held a presentation on rules of safety for “green” ghost hunters. The first rule is never to go somewhere you do not have permission to be; the second rule is to use caution when meeting up with people you don’t know.

“If you agree to meet a stranger in a cemetery, you might end up buried in the cemetery,” Ghrist half-joked. “Really, the best way to start is to go to a group tour or a public meeting of one of these organizations, and then go from there.”

One place he did not recommend for first-timers: Monroe House in Hartford City, Indiana. Human remains of a teen male were found in the basement and the location is known for aggressive, negative activity, Ghrist said.

“It is probably the closest something can be to poltergeist activity, with things moving, being knocked over, and all of that,” Ghirst said. “We had a baby monitor knocked off the table and heard a voice say, ‘Let me out’ on the baby monitor.”

When it comes to active locations, Sandy Boyd, Old Sheriff’s House Foundation president, said Crown Point’s historic jail is at the top of the list. She and others have volunteered for years to renovate and run the property, which sits at 226 S. Main Street. She and others believe there are spirits of notorious killers and gangsters who were far more dangerous than John Dillinger.

“We have George Robert Brown, nicknamed the Duneslayer, who murdered two people and buried them alive in the Lake Michigan dunes,” Boyd said. “He buried a 16-year-old girl alive in the dunes. He is very vocal. We’ve actually caught him on EVPs (audio recordings).”

Hoping to capture evidence for themselves, paranormal groups book late-night tours and investigations in the Old Sheriff’s House and Jail in Crown Point through the summer and fall, which help fund operations.

In 2024, an issue with the Indiana State Fire Marshal caused a temporary shutdown to the public, canceling a number of tours and events.

“Last year we were told we had to have a change of occupancy by the State Fire Marshal, and we had to fight for the jail,” Boyd said. “But they ruled that we can only have 50 at a time. We used to do big events and art shows, now that’s gone. But we will make it work. We will prevail.”

At the end of his presentation, Ghrist underlined the importance of protecting places and artifacts from the past for the sake of the future.

“We have to care about what’s come before us, to be able to pass that on to those who come after us, or else, it’s going to be forgotten,” Ghrist said.

Anna Ortiz is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.