A dirt road lined with 'No Trespassing' signs leads to a Connecticut ghost town that actor Dan Aykroyd once called 'the most haunted place on Earth.' Writer John Kachuba says he ventured into the abandoned village, known as Dudleytown, and came back with more than photographs.
Kachuba told the Daily Mail he captured what appeared to be a human face lurking in the woods before showing the image to paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, who he said confirmed it was a spirit. The photograph has since been lost, but Kachuba said the encounter transformed him from a history enthusiast into someone convinced the village's terrifying reputation may be real.
A historian's visit turns paranormal
"I lived in Connecticut, where Dudleytown is located, and was exploring the site from an historical perspective. I took many photos at the location," Kachuba said. "My initial interest was purely historical, as I am interested in history and write historical fiction and nonfiction. My visit to Dudleytown, also known as 'Dark Entry,' piqued my paranormal interest in the site."
Dudleytown has long been shrouded in tales of a centuries-old curse, unexplained deaths, madness and shadowy figures said to stalk the surrounding Dark Entry Forest. Despite being private property closed to outsiders, thrill-seekers continue to risk arrest searching for proof that something sinister lurks there. Dark Entry Forest, Inc, which owns the property, categorically rejected claims that Dudleytown is haunted, cursed or affected by supernatural forces, describing those characterizations as "patently untrue" and damaging.
The Warrens examine the photograph
While documenting the remains of the village, Kachuba said he later noticed something unusual in one of his photographs. "I found an anomaly in one, something that looked like a face," he said.
Unsure what he had captured, Kachuba turned to the Warrens, whose paranormal investigations later inspired the Conjuring films. "I contacted the Warrens, whom I refer to as 'America's Godfather and Godmother' of ghost hunting, to get their opinion about my photo," he said. "They invited me to their home, we lived in the same town, checked my photo and confirmed that I had captured a spirit in the photo. They then proceeded to show me scores of photos they had taken over the years at Dudleytown that revealed various anomalies."
How the settlement became a ghost town
The remote settlement was never large, reportedly reaching a peak of only 26 families. Residents relied on nearby Cornwall for stores and church services while trying to farm the rocky, unforgiving land. Dudleytown emptied gradually during the late 1800s and early 1900s as agriculture became increasingly difficult, the region's iron industry declined and families moved west in search of better opportunities. The name Dark Entry is believed to come from the settlement's geography, with the surrounding hills casting deep shadows across the isolated valley.
"I think people are fascinated with Dudleytown for the same reason they are fascinated with ghosts in English castles, and ghosts everywhere for that matter: to explore what comes next, the possibility that we somehow 'survive' death," Kachuba said.
The Dudley family curse legend
Many believers trace Dudleytown's alleged curse to the Dudley family, claiming its misfortune began in England centuries before the Connecticut settlement existed. Edmund Dudley was executed for treason in 1510 after falling out of favor following the death of King Henry VII. His son, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, was beheaded in 1553 after attempting to place Lady Jane Grey on the English throne. Legend claims the family's misfortune followed later generations across the Atlantic and eventually reached the Connecticut wilderness.
Local historians, however, say they have found no genealogical connection between Dudleytown's settlers and the executed English nobles, casting serious doubt on the supposed origins of the curse. Believers nevertheless point to a succession of illnesses, deaths and disappearances among people associated with the settlement, including residents killed during conflicts surrounding the French and Indian War and disease said to have devastated members of the Carter family.
Lightning, disappearances and a doctor's wife
Revolutionary War veteran General Herman Swift's wife, Sarah, was killed by lightning in 1804 while standing on the porch of their home, and legend claims the tragedy drove Swift insane. Historical researchers acknowledge Sarah died in the lightning strike but dispute claims that supernatural forces were involved, noting such deaths were not unusual before homes were routinely fitted with lightning rods.
After John Brophy's wife reportedly died of tuberculosis, legend claims his children vanished and his home burned to the ground before Brophy himself disappeared from the area. Another tale surrounds Dr William C. Clarke, who acquired property in Dudleytown in the early twentieth century. According to the legend, Clarke returned from a medical emergency to find his wife cowering in a corner after a breakdown, with some versions claiming an unseen force in the forest had attacked her. Local historians have challenged that account, saying twentieth-century residents and vacationers reported no supernatural disturbances while living, skiing and camping in the area.
"Dudleytown, in particular, has several strange deaths, some authenticated, some not, associated with it that make it a celebrated location for paranormal enthusiasts," Kachuba said. "It is this collection of deaths over a relatively short period of time and the demise of the village itself that is the focus of my paranormal novel, Dark Entry."
What remains of Dudleytown today
In 1924, Clarke and other landowners established Dark Entry Forest, Inc, purchasing and reforesting large sections of the former settlement. The organization planted thousands of trees and dedicated the land to forestry and wildlife conservation. Today, little remains of Dudleytown beyond crumbling stone walls, cellar holes and paths swallowed by the forest. Reports of vandalism, littering, fires and trespassing eventually led the owners to intensify efforts to keep outsiders away. Visitors who claim to have entered the forest have described shadowy figures moving among the trees, unexplained noises and an overwhelming sensation of being watched.
Kachuba has not returned to Dudleytown in recent years but continues researching paranormal history. A paperback edition of his nonfiction book, Shapeshifters: A History, is set to be published by London's Reaktion Books in September after the hardcover became a Bram Stoker Award finalist for nonfiction.
