Copyright Coeur d'Alene Press
WALLACE — Wandering through town the first night of the Wallace Paranormal Festival, a frightfully festive energy hung in the air like an invisible fog where secrets of the past clamored to be found. My best friend and fellow paranormal enthusiast, Holly, and I arrived a bit early and walked around what felt like a true ghost town as people enjoyed the damp Friday night from within the walls of taverns housed in old brick buildings. Colored light from neon signs and traffic lights cast reflections onto the dark, wet streets. Jack-o-lanterns, skeletons and other Halloween decor greeted us in just about every storefront window we passed. At 8:30 p.m. we entered the Stardust Motel at 410 Pine St. The retro motel is apparently home to several specters that have interacted with guests and employees alike. "We really don't have cantankerous ghosts here," Stardust owner KimBerly Keyton said. "They tend to be pretty playful, which fits with the theme of the Stardust." North Idaho psychic medium Jennifer Von Behren led the ghost hunt, beginning in the basement where she picked up on the spirits of a woman and a little girl. It was said that residential homes that stood on the property before the Stardust was built in the late 1950s and early '60s were moved to River Street in the 1970s when the Wallace Historic District was created, so spirits could be lingering from those times. It was disclosed during this session that children's wallpaper was found on a room in the basement, indicating that kids may have inhabited the area that now stores water heaters and other motel items in a previous life of the Stardust. A room in the far back was several degrees colder than the rest of the basement, and a static-charged energy could be felt in the dark if you stretched out your hand. Perhaps something ghostly lurked beyond our vision, watching us as we investigated. Another resident spirit named Jacob, who may have been a young miner who died in the area years ago, spends his time in a second-floor storeroom, adjacent a room where another male entity is said to spend time. A few words came through the ghost hunting equipment when questions were asked of the resident spirits, but nothing too jarring. The excitement kicked up in the final room, when we were introduced to the spirits of Nancy and Sandy. Nancy was allegedly a working girl in the old days of Wallace whose spirit stuck around. Von Behren was unsure about how Sandy came to linger at the Stardust. The electromagnetic field detector, twist-top flashlights and a motion sensor light were arranged on the bed. Tour guests stood all around, but far enough away to not cause interference. The EMF detector lit up at the urging of Von Behren. The lights on the EMF device illuminated with a growing intensity. "Does anybody want to ask a question?" Von Behren asked. Then the motion sensor light — which normally blinks three times before fading out — flashed on, just for two seconds, and immediately turned back off. "Oh my gosh," I caught myself saying with a nervous laugh as people around the room also gasped. To witness a light turn on by itself, accompanied by spine chills and arm hair standing at attention, is the kind of thrill a ghost hunter is after. The history is fascinating, the stories are spooky and even tragic at times, but to experience firsthand what could be paranormal activity is terrifyingly terrific. Aside from ghost hunts that quickly sold out, the festival featured haunted history tours, workshops, lectures, vendors and entertainment. Dallas Jade Graves, an organizer of the Wallace Paranormal Festival, said several hundred or as many as 1,000 people visited for this inaugural event. "The festival was extremely successful," she said. "There were two goals. One: Attendees have a good time and enjoy the programs. Two: Local businesses generate substantial revenue and feel the event was worth it. Both of these goals were met." Businesses reported doubling sales that weekend compared to 2024. Some reported it as one of their most successful days of the year, she said. Attendees were respectful and the vibes were good. The first ghost hunt was created in partnership with Pretty Fn Spooky and the Historic Jameson as a way to fundraise for the hotel and the festival and start to get the ball rolling, Graves said. "Honestly, I wasn't even sure at that point what would happen. I hoped maybe 10 people would come," she said. Little did she know how hungry people were to descend on Wallace for a paranormal adventure. "I think historical spaces hold so much character and mystery in themselves," she said. "Paranormal experiences are an opportunity to uncover the unknown, to tap into the past and to understand who (or what) came before us. "Wallace is an entirely historical town," Graves said. "The history is so rich, and it's living, and it's accessible. It's embedded in every building and business and story and this is a community of people who take immense pride in that." When she and her husband passed out the first round of flyers, they were often asked, "Do you want to hear about our ghost?" "When we look at ghost stories not as a novelty, but as a conduit of heritage and culture, as a legitimate form of oral history, we can see how the Wallace community are actually guardians of preservation," Graves said. "Those tickets sold out in less than 30 seconds, from Seattle to Bozeman. The hype was unfathomable." Although she was busy handling logistics and still touching base with investigators, Graves said she did hear of some noteworthy paranormal activity from the weekend at the Stardust Motel and the Oasis Bordello Museum. The 2026 festival will definitely feature more ghost hunts, she said. So, where are we investigating next year?
