The Rosenheim Poltergeist
Unlike a lot of popular poltergeist hauntings you may be aware of, the Rosenheim Poltergeist activity didn’t occur in a private home. Instead, it lurked in the offices of German lawyer, Sigmund Adam.
It first began in the fall of 1967. When Sigmund Adam’s law office, in Rosenheim southern Bavaria, began receiving strange phone calls. Whenever someone picked up, there’d be no answer from the caller. Oftentimes, all four of the office’s phones would ring and the phone lines were often busy or overcrowded. Frustrated, Sigmund reached out to the local telephone company for repairs. Surprisingly, the telephone company could find no reason behind the calls.
Then, things began to escalate when Sigmund’s office was charged for local calls made to ‘The Talking Clock.’ The Talking Clock was a service that locals could call to get the exact time (the number was 0119). The telephone company charged Sigmund for six calls PER MINUTE to The Talking Clock, which would be physically impossible given the time needed to dial the number and then the other end to pick up (which is what initiates the charge). The telephone company had no reasoning for this impossibility, either.
Then, in October the lights in the office began to act up. They would rotate in their sockets, fixtures would swing, and, of course, the lights would turn on and off seemingly at random. Similarly to how he handled the phone situation, Sigmund called the electricity company to come out to the office to investigate. The electrician said there was no known cause, but decided to install voltage meters to see if there were any power surges in the office. Shockingly (pun intended) surges were recorded that were rated powerful enough to blow the fuses...yet the fuses were never blown.
Theeeeen (yes, another then), their photocopier began to leak! Frustrated beyond belief and still blaming the electric company, Sigmund decided to hire out a private generator in hopes of stopping the office. However, the phenomena continued.
After many calls, the strangeness of Sigmund’s law office began to travel through the electric company and two physicists became interested. They offered to come out to the office for a personal investigation. When completed...they were stumped and came to the conclusion that it was beyond their experience.
Finally, the notoriety of Sigmund’s office reached paranormal circles and Hans Bender of Freiburg’s Institute of Parapsychological Research offered Sigmund some help, if he was interested. Sigmund agreed and invited Hans over to investigate.
After several interviews with employees, Hans realized that the phenomenon only began and ended at certain times of the day. These times seemed to be on the same schedule as Anne-Marie Scaberl, one of the youngest office employees at just nineteen. Based on this Hans connected the activity to Anne-Marie and suggested that, due to repressed anger and dislike of her work and employer, she was in emotional turmoil.
In the winter of 1967-8, the phenomenon continued to grow. Items would move at wil, drawers would open, and huge pieces of furniture would move...without damaging the linoleum flooring on which they rested.
Hans noted that, in his research, poltergeist activity usually emanated from young people. Usually unknowingly, young people, especially teenagers were capable of create disruptive psychic energy that affected the world around them.
Unclear if she was offended by Hans’ inquiries, tired of the pneumonia, or if she really did hate her job...Anne-Marie quit. When she quit, the phenomenon ceased. However, some rumors do suggest she was placed on paid leave and, when the activity ceased, she was fired.
There are rumors that the electrical activity continued throughout Anne-Marie’s experience, even when she had left her employer. One rumor suggests that a boyfriend broke up with her at a bowling alley after a freak electrical accident. However, in 1969 she was married and the activity surrounding her allegedly ceased.
Of course, many believed the entire thing was a construction to either gain attention and business. Although, it is unclear how many people would actually want to hire a lawyer with a haunted office. Or, perhaps it was a rouse by Hans for him and the institution he represented to be more credible. Either way, it is astonishing if it is real or it is astonishing that so many people - the office, the people behind the movements, the electric company, the telephone company, and more...could all keep a secret.
The above image is in the public domain. It depicts the alleged poltergeist victim Annemarie Schaberl taken at Rosenheim, Germany in 1967. No copyright notice information published.
