Iowa’s own version of the Ghostbusters are in the process of surveying Davenport’s Putnam Museum, which has long been rumored to be haunted. Lori Arguello, the museum’s marketing director, says paranormal investigators associated with the Sci-Fi Channel’s "Ghost Hunters" program were particularly interested in the museum’s two ancient Egyptian mummies.
Arguello says they have an unwrapped female mummy and a still-wrapped male, both of which have undergone C-T scans. The investigation teams are part of a group called Des Moines Iowa Extreme Paranormal Advanced Research Team, or DIEPART, which has regional teams across the state. Arguello says the investigators were also interested in some chains which were reportedly cut off the arms of a slave girl after she died.
Arguello says an exhibit called "Bloodlines: Our Ties to the Civil War," which is all about the Quad Cities’ connections to the war between the states. One part of the exhibit features slave shackles which the paranormal investigators tested with a host of scientific instruments — measuring temperature changes, magnetic pulses and recording sound.
Arguello says there have long been rumors about the Putnam being haunted, so they simply called the team about checking the place out. Crews from Des Moines, Davenport and Burlington all took part in the preliminary investigation.
Arguello says she’s never seen a ghost in the museum but admits there are many places where she refuses to go at night, especially if the lights have been switched off. She says random alarms and motion detectors randomly go off throughout the building for no reason at all. For more about the museum, visit www.putnam.org .