Pop Goes The Protection Stone

Hangman Tours • August 3, 2022

The evening after the Full Moon - Sunday, September 11th:


One of our tour guides, Ciji, usually keeps a protection crystal in her brassiere. Ciji is extremely spiritually sensitive, so she keeps the stone on her person at all times. Especially when working her shifts at Shakers, she never forgets it. It even helps her clarity remain when the energy in the cellar basement or other floors turns heavy.


The day after the full moon felt a bit "off" to everyone, as mentioned in our last blog post. The weather had experienced a drastic shift that day, and many staff members reported it feeling especially heavy at 422 S. 2nd Street.


Two of our employees felt particularly uneasy, and suspected that there was an energy that was attacking the both of them.


"It was so weird. Ciji had told me that she was having a weird experience one day and had a bad headache. I was fine when I came in, but after a few hours my stomach started to hurt and I had to sit down. It got worse, and then I started to feel light-headed. My ears rang really loud, and I almost passed out. I sat in the alley for a few minutes and felt better. I came back in and within minutes, I was sick again - ears ringing, light-headedness, nausea. I got really pale. I was shivering and sweating at the same time. I had to lay down in the alley until I felt better. After the 2nd bigger episode, I was fine the rest of the night. I had some bouts of not feeling well, but nothing like what had happened earlier. It was just that day, nothing more after."


- Tanya (server)


Ciji was reached out to for comment, but reported that she was still shaken up from what transpired that day, and was not ready to talk about it.


After the fiasco was over, Ciji noticed that her protection stone had broken; Split in two. Oftentimes when protection amulets break, it means that they've absorbed so much energy that they can no longer contain it, and will no longer work to serve you. It seems as though whatever had attacked them last night was so powerful that it had expired Ciji's crystal.

Explore More Horror

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By Shakers December 1, 2023
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By Michaela Mueller, Bar Manager October 1, 2023
I first got my start here as a model on the third floor during our busy season – Halloween season. I was impersonating Molly Brennan, our most famous brothel worker to ever work here. Her story has been heard by many, and it's quite memorable, but I didn't even know her story until I was up there acting as her. I didn't jump out or scare anyone in an inauthentic way, but I would saunter past them like they simply didn't exist. I was dressed in 1920s-style lingerie and a robe. I had my hair all tied up in a little bob. I was looking the part of the era, and I definitely spooked some people. Some thought I was the actual ghost of Molly! During my time doing this, I ended up hearing a lot of stories. I listened to every tour guide's narrative of the story, what they had seen, what they felt, stuff like that. I also sat in on many sessions with divining rods on the 2.0s and found that Molly is a very sweet spirit. She was killed rather young, but she still lives here and is often seen looking out the window because she likes to watch the world go by. She never really got a chance to experience it, if you think about it. She's probably the one who people feel sitting on the bed when they stay overnight. It was her residence, after all. Her lover, Patrick Harvey, who led to her misfortune and death, is often present upstairs as well. He's usually sitting in this specific chair. I didn't know he sat in this particular armchair until I was once sitting in it on Halloween. My whole body went cold. This was minutes before the tour guide went on to describe that he's almost always sitting there. I was just walking about in my costume, doing as I was supposed to be doing – but once I sat down in that chair, I was frozen. My hair stood up on end. I felt so uncomfortable. Once I felt this intense feeling, I slowly got up, trying to remain in character. It felt like it took all of my power and energy just to get up from that chair. - Michaela Mueller, Bar Manager
By Marley Decker, Marketing & Media Manager September 2, 2023
While it is true that many things can come home with you from Shakers, there are spirits that can follow you to Shakers as well… Those who have died, like our loved ones, do tend to stay with us, watch over us, or guide us from the ethereal realm. Because Shakers is as active as it is, spirits frequently find it easier to manifest and better make themselves known at this paranormal “hot spot.” We have many tour guests on our 2.0 Tour communicate with their departed loved ones using our divination rods, but my favorite story comes from one of Shaker’s séances. The first séance I ever attended was in October of 2018 at Shakers Halloween Séance Series. Over two nights, we had two different psychic mediums holding the séances, each bringing something different to the literal table and offering a unique experience. On night one of the Séance Series, several connections were made during the gathering. Personal ties to the departed were reaffirmed, as known relatives and friends of the participants came through the medium. The medium was impressive in her ability to grasp the messages being sent to her. One of the participants then spoke up, “My father recently passed away. Do you think you can contact him? Is he here?” The medium paused momentarily, closed her eyes, and took several heavy inhales. Her brow furrowed and she grimaced slightly, as if she was straining herself to tap into something, or perhaps grappling with unexpected revelations. “I’m sorry,” the medium finally told her. “I’m not getting anything. If he is here, he doesn’t feel like talking. He’s not coming through for me.” The girl was disappointed, but tried to shrug it off. “Sounds like dad,” she remarked with bittersweet humor. That moment, the song playing on the bar speakers downstairs changed, and the volume seemed to increase dramatically. It was suddenly loud enough that we could hear it clearly from the second floor. If I remember right, it was some Steely Dan song. Before the medium had moved on, the inquiring girl gasped, “Oh my god!” She began laughing and weeping at the same time. The rest of us exchanged looks with each other, eager to know the reason for her sudden outburst. “This was my dad’s favorite song,” she said. As it turned out, her father had chosen a different way to convey his presence. He may not have wanted to say much, but he certainly made himself heard. Sometimes, actions indeed speak louder than words. - Marley Decker, Marketing & Media Manager Have your own Shakers seance experience this Halloween Season at our upcoming Full Moon Seance Series with Isabelle Rizo. Friday, October 27th & Saturday, October 28th 8:00 & 10:00 PM in our haunted second floor brothel, The Redlight Room Seance. Midnight in our notoriously active cellar basement, Cellar Depths Seance Click here to view our tours and book your spot.

Hangman Tours

Address: 422 South 2nd Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53204

Email: info@hangmantours.com

Phone: 1 (414) 272-4222