A decision by county officials to pull the plug on a possible television episode about paranormal activity in Salem County has prompted frustration from a local ghost expert, who saw the airtime as a chance for some national exposure for county tourism efforts.
Doug Hogate Jr., founder of the local Jersey Unique Minds Paranormal Society (JUMPS), said he was recently contacted by producers from the Biography Channel, a channel under A&E Network.
The filming was to be done in Johnson Hall, an historic 19th century brick mansion built by prominent Salem citizen Col. Robert Gibbon Johnson. The mansion on Market Street in downtown Salem, owned by SAlem County, has been used over the years for county offices. It now is home to the Salem County Chamber of Commerce.
Hogate said producers of the show “My Ghost Stories” took an interest in some of the work compiled by JUMPS over the last few years, and they asked him if there were any locations in the county that would be interesting for the show.
“One place I’ve investigated a few times is Johnson Hall, so I forwarded some of that information to the producers,” said Hogate.