A California man received a mysterious handwritten note on his front door earlier this year—and it’s giving people online chills.
Jacob, who lives near Long Beach, said the note appeared on his door on June 18, left by an elderly man who claimed to have once lived in the same house in the 1980s. The message, written on lined notebook paper and said: “Hello, My name is [redacted]. In the early ’80s, I lived here. Something strange happened in the back bedroom. I was wondering if it still happens. I think it was a ghost.”
The unusual letter continued with the man’s contact details, inviting Jacob to call him “if it still comes.”
Jacob said in the post that the note “gave me the spooks for a couple days,” though he explained that nothing out of the ordinary has happened since he moved in.
“I’ve lived here about two years. No strange or paranormal activity—yet, at least,” Jacob told Newsweek.
Viral Reaction
Months later, Jacob decided to share the eerie encounter on Reddit after discovering the r/Weird subreddit. Just in time for Halloween.
“[I] just thought it was strange but didn’t post it online until I found the r/weird subreddit and thought it could be fitting,” he said.
His post quickly went viral, gaining over 26,000 upvotes and thousands of comments from amused, and occasionally sympathetic, Reddit users.
In the comments, people shared their reactions. “Poor dude has been wondering for decades if that place is as haunted as he remembers. I’d call him up and let him know the presence seems to have moved on, just to give him some peace of mind,” user Platitude_Platypus said.
While UrsusRenata joked: “Ooo, I found a new retirement hobby!”
“The letter was pretty decent and he didn’t do anything creepy, so I would call and tell him that nothing is happening, at least to get it out of his mind,” 1saylor1 said.
Despite its eerie premise, Jacob said the response from strangers has been heartwarming rather than frightening.
“The reaction to the post is awesome,” he said. “Several people have reached out to me believing that the man could be a long lost family member.”
This is not the first time a mysterious note has left a homeowner shocked. Earlier this year, a Gen Z woman found a note outside her home from a “secret admirer” that left her scared to leave the house.
While another strange note left in a mailbox in a small town left a family feeling both concerned and a little worried.
