The Rosenheim Poltergeist

In 1967, a law office in Rosenheim, Bavaria, became the site of one of the most thoroughly investigated poltergeist cases in history. The phenomena, witnessed by dozens and studied by physicists, centered on a teenage secretary named Annemarie Schaberl.

The Disturbances

The trouble began with electrical anomalies. Light bulbs exploded, fluorescent tubes unscrewed themselves, fuses blew without cause, and telephone bills showed calls that were never made. The office telephone system registered thousands of calls to the speaking clock service despite no one making them.

Investigation

Power company engineers, telephone technicians, and eventually physicists from the Max Planck Institute investigated. They installed monitoring equipment and recording devices throughout the office. The equipment documented power surges and telephone irregularities that could not be explained by any known cause.

The Human Element

Investigators noticed that the phenomena only occurred when Annemarie Schaberl, a nineteen-year-old secretary, was present. When she took vacation, the disturbances stopped. When she returned, they resumed. Cameras captured light fixtures swinging when Annemarie walked beneath them.

Resolution

When Annemarie left the law firm for another job, the phenomena at the office ceased but reportedly followed her briefly to her new workplace. She later married and the disturbances faded entirely.

Assessment

The Rosenheim case is considered a landmark in poltergeist research due to the quality of investigation and documentation. The involvement of physicists and engineers lends it credibility, though the mechanism behind the phenomena remains unexplained.