HAUNTED MICHIGAN: Murder at the Carroll Creek Drain, Midland

Just a tad northwest of Midland, below the Averill Preserve and south of the Tittabawassee River, is the Riverview Natural Area. Within this thick forest region is E. Wheeler Road. Just before you hit the Carroll Creek Drain is 5 Mile Rd. Head north a few hundred feet and you'll be in the vicinity of another of Michigan's Haunted Legends.THE RUMOR:

In the 1980's, a man went nuts and wiped out his family. He did in his wife with five whacks of a hammer (and left her in the attic), chained his teenage son in the basement until he starved to death, and sealed his other two children in the bathroom walls after he murdered them.This morbid tale is said to be false, but the house it (supposedly) took place in has been the hub of paranormal occurrences.Thrill-seekers who have visited this house claim to have seen a baby's skull in the bathroom wall, chains in the basement, and other factors that match the ugly tale.Approaching the area on E. Wheeler Road near Meyer (or Meijer) Hill, some have seen headlights approaching and suddenly vanishing. No cars were seen having gone off the road. This incident happened four times in one night to two different investigators.If you drive 1 mile down E. Wheeler and pass by 5 Mile Road, you'll come to a dead end. Park your vehicle and there's a footbridge going across the Carroll Creek Drain. This can be creepy at night. However, if you take a right down 5 Mile Road, you'll be in the area where this rumored 'haunted house' lies in wait, between the road and the Carroll Creek Drain.