While most feedback upon the Dudleytown page–and hence my research–have been favorable, there have been those who have been opposed to it. Below are a sampling of these emails that I have received, and my answers to them. I have, of course, removed their names, although in most cases it was not needed, as they were anonymous. I have also NOT edited them. You see them AS they were sent me.
Here is a recent letter from an 18 year old woman.
Her first question:
Hello: Alright it is 1:38 a.m. and I am at my friends house fooling
around on the comp. looking at things from our state. Yes our state. We are from
Ct. and have gone to Dudly town and many other haunted places that we are
lucky to have. Now sir, you are not from here as you have pointed out numerous
amounts of time in your web page, but I am. I have seen and heard plenty
about that town. Whats funny is I have never ever heard any owls, or any kind of
wild life for that matter. Now call me crazy but no one I have ever talked
to has.
____________________________
My answer:
I have, and plenty of times.
You do realize, I hope, that wildlife tends to stay away from we humans? Any way,
Dudleytown was almost called Owlsbury, as many of the RESIDENTS of Cornwall have told me, and it is also cited in many books.
_____________________________
Her Second observation:
And as for the locals..you are wrong! We have been warned everytime by
them and cops to bring Holy Water. You see we are locals and WE locals from
CT know. Now maybe because you say you are a Dudly and you dont want a
bad name for your family you are in denial.... I have a few questions.....
_____________________________
My answer:
That is not what the locals tell me. Most HATE the constant intrusions into their little corner of the world. I have spoken to a descendant ot Dr.
Clark (whose wife went mad), and he also says that their is nothing amiss out there. As for Holy Water, the locals are mostly Protestant---who
do not belive in Holy Water. As a "resident," you should know that. The Cornwall PD also says they spend to much time chasing away
Teenagers and New Agers from the Dudleytown area to do much else. Again, I am sure you know that
______________________________
Her third question:
1. Have you ever heard of some one placing a curse on anything, and
then running down to the Town Hall to make a note of it????
_____________________________
My Answer:
When the town was founded, yes, that is exactly what they would do. You need a course in history. Cornwall, at that time, had only two
churches...........both Congregationalist. That is Puritan to us! Remember Salem. Yes, that is what they would do. There are no records in the
Churches for it, either.
____________________________
Another question:
2. please explain all the stories and pictures of kids that have
basically been "hurt" by hoofed man like creatures
_____________________________
My reply to it:
There are none. Simple, right? Well, in my many contacts with the Cornwall Historical Society (you do know they have one, right---simple to find,
too.) who archive all the history of the Cornwall area.......AND WITH MY CONVERSATIONS WITH THE CORNWALL P.D.---there have NEVER
been any reports of such. In addition, no pictures of "hoofed" creatures appear in any book, or on ANY "Ghost" page on the internet. The
Warrens are the only ones.........sorry.
______________________________
A further question:
3. why dought the Warrens so much when they are local, and have proved
how gifted they are...do we sence jealousy?????
_______________________________
And my answer:
Not at all. If they were so "gifted", how come they did not get the histroy correct......in fact, the history is so bad that some of my students spotted
it! You are a resident, right? You graduated from high school, right? Check the Warrens dates about the FOUNDING of Dudleytown, and the
dates for the French/Indian War....go prove it for yourself! In addition, their research into Amityville has been disproven also.........please--check
it yourself!
_______________________________
Her last question:
4. At the times we are shown is it at all possible for any mistakes?
________________________
And my answer:
I completely agree. I will readily admit my errors. But when have the Warrens, who are supposed to be "experts", I expect more out of their
research.
_______________________
Another observation:
Now I can see how this being "family" could upset you.. I
would be freaked, but I dont think you are so rigth.
_________________________
And my reply:
Please re-read the article. I WANTED Dudleytown to be haunted...and I do believe in the Paranormal
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One Last observation:
Sir, I have felt things, seen
things, and my closest friends who have no reason to lie have told me things. One
for instance will never ever return there. Now that is interesting... The
weird thing is my grandpa has told me stories that date before the 50's.
Hmmmmm he wasnt a teenager with a car either.Now I am an 18 year old girl who
would rather eat a um anything gross, then to go make out with my man up
there. Are you kidding me, that place is wacked. There is no wild life ever
heard (did your owls freak out and leave?) and its all together creepy. You get a
feeling . I cant explain...... have you yourself ever been there??? Yea it is
really preety, but scary and very bad vibes flow from there. As we locals are
well aware!!!!!
Thank you for your time..as I thank you for
you waisting yours writing that.
_______________________
And my final comment:
I am very sorry for your anger. All I did was state the facts. If you really believe I am wrong......do this:
Print my article out. Go to the local Library, and the Cornwall Historical Society, and PROVE ME WRONG.
That should be very simple, if you are right.
2ndly, you need to calm down. As a 18 year old young woman, you should know the value of good research...if not, you will when you get to
college. To attack someone with a different view from yours does not foster understanding or learning. I have not attacked you.......nor the
Warrens. I simply EXAMINE their stated facts via historical facts. Anyone can do that...........so can you.
I welcome further communication should you wish. The only thing I ask is that you do as I suggest, SEE IF I AM WRONG. Do NOT, at your age,
go through life believing everything people tell you---prove it to YOURSELF.
Then calm down, then you may write me again.
But lets take one fact at a time. Thats a better way to study. I have answered your questions. The ball is in your court.
Rev Gary
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NOTE: the young girl was obviously NOT a resident of Cornwall. Too many of her "facts" did not fit.
Here is a letter from a PRESIDENT of a "Psychic Research Society" responding to a message I posted on their message board in an attempt to
begin a conversation about Dudleytown (and, yes, to draw some visitors to my page!) A little background: their page had numerous articles and
pictures about D-town, and I posted a message that said that if they wanted the history of Dudleytown, visit my site. Apparently, the President of
the Society did not like it. (PS, I have not returned to their site)
Rev Dudley,
I have read your many posts at my website. The TRUTH is "Rev",
that D-Town is indeed haunted. I do not post anything on my
website (gives URL) that has been manufactured,
manipulated or in anyway unauthenticated; this includes photos of
spirit energy -&- case investigations that I have personally
conducted. I am curious to see your Photos referred to (again on
my website) that you claim came from the same said excursion to
D-Town with (names society). Are these YOUR personal photos? It
was my understanding that you have NEVER even been to Dudleytown,
and unless you were under an alias, you were NEVER there with or
as part of our group. Until you do so, I would appreciate you
keep your unfounded opinions, and links to your website off of my
discussion page; you've exploited it long enough.
(signed name)
______________________________________
My reply to her posted message was:
To ????????? and all:
As we can now all see, some people just do NOT read what they are
referring to.
Ms ?????, if you had JUST entered the site, or even clicked on
the "Haunted Dudleytown" Link on the Entry Page, you would have
seen all you refer to. No, I have NEVER been there, as anyone who
has ever asked has found out. The photos on my site ARE
referenced, with the name of the photographer--and even (I give the name of a person that belongs to their society) is
pictured in one--with his permission.
"Unfounded"??? All the proof YOU and anyone else needs is in the
text on the site...and I have all the town records that I have
even SHARED with (another name of a person in their society) to prove all that I need. WHERE IS
YOUR PROOF???? Blurry pictures with light flair is NOT scientific.
Are you upset, ????, with the Newspaper article we were BOTH
quoted in? That, kind lady, is NOT my fault. You lead a group of
people to D-town on Halloween and nothing happened. The reporter
documented it. So why are you mad at me?
The messages I posted ON YOUR SITE are supposed to be open. As
this site is. I did NOT remove yours--it is here for all to see
wether or not I agree with it. I CAN STAND THE INVESTIGATION--
can you?
Yes, ?????, I AM a real "Rev" with a Master of Arts Degree from
Oxford--I DO know how to do research. Let us NOT get petty. I do
NOT question your education.
Let us try to civil about this. I welcome ANY discussion about D-
town...I hope you do to.
Rev. Gary P. Dudley, B.S., the University of Maryland
M.A., St. George's Seminary, Wolsey Hall, Oxford
_______________
Which brought an EMAIL to me:
Gary Dudley,
I haven't been uncivil..just finally found the time to read your posts
on my website with the many links to yours and the comments which were
obviously in dispute of my so-called (by you, not Kodak, the Brooks
Institute or other professional photographers/agencies) lens-flares
etc..I just am annoyed that you would exploit my website, use it for
your own web trafficking and insult my group at the same time. Not too
Christian if you ask me. As for the newspaper article, I thought it was
great, have no qualms about it one way or the other..did the reporter
find you through me website ? Just curious. (gives two names) do speak
highly of you, and that's fine with me. I don't have anything personally
against you, so to speak, just feel your "work" on my discussion page
was rude. As was your reply to my one and only post at your website.
In investigating D-Town and other places, I have experienced things,
seen things and I cannot and will not ignore them as factual. D-Town
has all kinds of things there. Brought in, left behind you name it.
Can I stand up to the investigation? What is that supposed to mean? At
least I have actually gone to the place before making any assumptions.
I don't care to argue with you Gary Dudley, as you posts at mt website
in the past ahve clearly hinted at..I just felt it was time to ask you
not to post there, linking your site in conjunction with rude comments.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I have allowed many people
to utilize the site for those, promotion and more. Nor have I removed
your posts, the last one finally broke the camel's back so to speak and
I felt it time to say something about it. Having done so, I hope we
both understand each other better.
Regards~
__________________________
My final reply to her:
For the Paranormal Sciences to be taken as ligitimate, they MUST be
open to criticism. All science MUST be questioned, and if found wanting,
then it must be told. You just cannot show a picture and say "See--it is
true."
In the case of D-town, ALL attempts at investigation--with the
exception of the Paranormal Societies--has turned up NO proof of anything.
Historically, the claim that it is cursed only began in 1938, and then
did not gain momentum until the late 50's. That is a fact. A simple
look at ANY of the town records with show that NO ONE during the life of the
town ever believed it to be haunted. This is NOT status quo for other
haunted places---even San Antonio, with 3 very haunted places. They
were believed to be so from the start--and still are.
All the strange "happenings" at D-town have been explained. An open
minded look at them will show anyone.
If D-town IS a hotbed of paranormal happenings today, it is so because
of what was brought in--NOT because of what was originally there.
And yes, I do believe in ghosts and UFO's. Just not in Dudleytown.
Please, kind lady, let's be civil about this. I would hope you are an
intelligent person. Let us deal with the subject on those terms.
Blessings!
Rev Gary Dudley
COMMENTS I went back to her site and posted an apology....it was removed the next day. My posts on their discussion board were like
this: "For the FACTS about Dudleytown, try.......(and my previous URL)." Others were like that. Now, I had postings on my other message board--and expect some here--that promote the other view. I have no problem with that, and I encourage it! I also expect a few links to the "haunted" sites to pop up occasionally. I have no problem with that either! I even have a LINK page of my own--and I want it to be the largest about D-town on the web! (so bring them on if you have some!) However, it seems to be my experiance that if someone disagrees with your point of view, and they are of a so-called "liberal" mindset, they do NOT allow criticism. Notice above, by the PRESIDENT of that society---she actually POSTED a message critical OF MY DUDLEYTOWN PAGE AND DID NOT EVEN READ OR VIEW THE PAGE!!!!! That's usually what you get folks!
Here is the the rudest letter I have ever gotten. What prompted it was the "Yahoo" Message board concerning the BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (BWP). I had heard about the movie while on vacation visiting D-town, and was so excited about it I put a link on the front page and stated it was true (this because of the Mythology made up by the screenwriters--it was so good I actually got sucked into it). HE had posted a message and mentioned Mary Cheney (Horace's wife) and stated she went insane and hung herself. My post stated she did not, and gave the URL to this site and said if anyone wanted facts on any of the deaths, come here. I later found the Mythology was false, and before I was able to correct it--in came the following. By the way, the "tape" he refers to is my video of Dudleytown that I took on vaction. Apparently he thought I was going to sell it at a profit--which most of you know is NOT true. Not bothering to email and question anything, (as most of you do) he sent this. It is given as I responded to him--his statement, then my reply..............
> HOW CAN YOU STATE THAT THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT IS TRUE?
> This is a blatant LIE and you know it! You totally tried to
> discredit a statement I made on the Yahoo Blair Witch Board concerning a LEGEND
> of Dudleytown. For your information your web site contains basically
> what is the SAME LEGEND! I dont think you know if you are coming or
going.
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You are totally correct. After returning from my vaction, I learned the the BWP was a mythology made up by the screen writers to promote the film. As I work weekends (see below) I intend to change the page on Monday.
You are also correct in the similarities between the BWP and Dudleytown. I intend on doing a page on that shortly.
However, you really need to calm down. You NEVER, in the statement on Yahoo that I responded to, mention that you were refering to any legend. Most people can not tell the difference between the legend and facts. To my knowledge, my site is the first to present the facts on Dudleytown gpd
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> One minute you are critizing the LEGEND and the next minute you are
> saying that it is TRUE. Well, which is it???
> Do you even know the difference between a LEGEND and the TRUTH? I
> know both sides of the story very well and I think that maybe you are
> just out for monetary gain. Maybe you just want to sell some badly shot
> video tape of Dudleytown to some poor soul who is interested in the
> paranormal. If that is the case then i will consider you nothing
> more than LEECH.
____________________________
IF you had read my ENTIRE site, you would know what I am doing. I make NO money off this site, and never will. I have freely shared any and all documentation I have recieved, and at no charge. However, common sense tells you that I am not going to GIVE away any video tape. I intend to charge $2.00 for the tape, $2.00 for the postage. That's $4.00. Gee, I can retire from the profits, correct?
You, sir, really need to talk to folks before you attack them. From the tone of your letter, and from the level of education you present, I would guess you are between 15-24, male, unmarried, with only a High School Education. Folks in that group do not understand that mistakes can be made. Your Reference to Mary Cheney is one. You did see the obituary on my site, correct? See, you made a mistake. So did I.
You do not know me. I responded to YOUR post with a fact, and an URL to find more. You have keyed in on 2 things on my site---one being a mistake---and blow your mind. Calm down. The 4,000 + visitors to my site understand me and what I am doing--------even those who disagree. (and there are lots who do) No one is getting ripped off. I wouldn't do that----actually, I can't. gpd
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>
> I DARE YOU TO POST THIS ON YOUR WEB PAGE!
> ~NIGHT~
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On monday it will be----------with my response. It will be on the "Critical Emal" Page. Prehaps if you calm down a little, we can discuss the issue. Feel free to respond.
You run the web site "seekers", don't you?
Blessings.
I have left his "handle" due to the dare--so here it is.... In re reading his letter, I have a feeling that he NEVER got beyond the "Legend" page within the site, and never saw the explaination and facts offered. Oh, well, you cannot please everyone!
Additionally, "Seekers" quickly emailed me. They deny completely anything that this person said, and are willing to link their site to this. While they do believe that D-town is haunted, they respect the research of this site. (I will the return the favor of a link as soon as their D-town material comes on-line). My apologies to them for assuming.
One last thing--yes, I am well aware that males 18-24 CAN understand mistakes. And here is another one by me. I should have said "many folks in that group.......". My apologies to those of you offended.
I will post more of these as I get them, along with my response. I will continue to remove the names, however, to keep their privacy.
