Ursula Bielski
Encyclopedia
Ursula Bielski is a recognized authority on the Chicago, Illinois
region's ghostlore, historian
, author
, and parapsychology
enthusiast Ursula Bielski has been writing and speaking about Chicago's supernatural history, folklore
, and the paranormal
for more than 16 years. Her interests in ghosthunting and local legends began at a young age. She grew up in a haunted house on Chicago's North Side and received an early education in Chicago history from her father, a Chicago police officer. Since that time she has been involved in various investigations of haunted sites in and around Chicago, including such notorious locales as the Country House Restaurant in Clarendon Hills
; Chicago's Red Lion Pub; southwest-suburban Bachelor's Grove Cemetery; and the Oshkosh
, Wisconsin
, Opera House.
Bielski and her books have been featured in several television documentaries, including productions by the A&E Network
, The History Channel
, The Learning Channel, The Travel Channel, and PBS. She appears regularly on Chicago television and radio, and lectures throughout the year at various libraries and to historical and professional societies. She has also authored numerous scholarly articles exploring the links between history and the paranormal, including pieces for the International Journal of Parapsychology. Bielski is a past editor of PA News, the quarterly newsletter of the Parapsychological Association; a past president and board member of the Pi Gamma Chapter of Phi Alpha Theta
, the national history honor society; and a member of the Society of Midland Authors.
Bielski graduated from St. Benedict High School
in Chicago; Benedictine University
in Lisle
, where she received a B.A. in history; and from Northeastern Illinois University
, where she earned an M.A. in American cultural and intellectual history. At Benedictine University (footnote - during Ms. Bielski's tenure, the school was known as Illinois Benedictine College) her academic explorations include the spiritualist movement of the nineteenth century and its transformation into psychical research and parapsychology; and the relationship among belief, experience, science, and religion.
In 2004, she founded Chicago Hauntings, a company that gives bus tours and holds special events devoted to exploring Chicago's haunted history. October 2011
saw Ms. Bielski's Third Ghost Conference, an event that occurs every two years in Chicago. Each conference features vendors of paranormal books and equipment, ghost hunting groups and investigators, individuals who have had paranormal experiences, psychics, and mediums. Speakers are also a big draw and some past guests have included: Lorraine Warren, Christopher Fleming, Jeff Belanger, Jeff Mudgett, and Joshua P. Warren.
Bielski lives in Chicago with her two daughters.
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
region's ghostlore, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, and parapsychology
Parapsychology
The term parapsychology was coined in or around 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir, and originates from para meaning "alongside", and psychology. The term was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research...
enthusiast Ursula Bielski has been writing and speaking about Chicago's supernatural history, folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
, and the paranormal
Paranormal
Paranormal is a general term that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation" or that indicates phenomena understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure...
for more than 16 years. Her interests in ghosthunting and local legends began at a young age. She grew up in a haunted house on Chicago's North Side and received an early education in Chicago history from her father, a Chicago police officer. Since that time she has been involved in various investigations of haunted sites in and around Chicago, including such notorious locales as the Country House Restaurant in Clarendon Hills
Clarendon Hills, Illinois
Clarendon Hills is an affluent village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,610 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Clarendon Hills is located at...
; Chicago's Red Lion Pub; southwest-suburban Bachelor's Grove Cemetery; and the Oshkosh
Oshkosh, Wisconsin
As of the census of 2000, there were 62,916 people, 24,082 households, and 13,654 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,662.2 people per square mile . There were 25,420 housing units at an average density of 1,075.6 per square mile...
, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, Opera House.
Bielski and her books have been featured in several television documentaries, including productions by the A&E Network
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
, The History Channel
The History Channel
History, formerly known as The History Channel, is an American-based international satellite and cable TV channel that broadcasts a variety of reality shows and documentary programs including those of fictional and non-fictional historical content, together with speculation about the future.-...
, The Learning Channel, The Travel Channel, and PBS. She appears regularly on Chicago television and radio, and lectures throughout the year at various libraries and to historical and professional societies. She has also authored numerous scholarly articles exploring the links between history and the paranormal, including pieces for the International Journal of Parapsychology. Bielski is a past editor of PA News, the quarterly newsletter of the Parapsychological Association; a past president and board member of the Pi Gamma Chapter of Phi Alpha Theta
Phi Alpha Theta
Phi Alpha Theta is an American honor society for undergraduate and graduate students and professors of history.The society is a charter member of the Association of College Honor Societies and has over 350,000 members, with about 9,500 new members joining each year through 860 local chapters.-...
, the national history honor society; and a member of the Society of Midland Authors.
Bielski graduated from St. Benedict High School
St. Benedict High School (Chicago, Illinois)
St. Benedict Preparatory High School is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Chicago, Illinois. It is located in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. St...
in Chicago; Benedictine University
Benedictine University
Benedictine University is a private Catholic university located in Lisle, a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. The institution has retained close relations with the Benedictine Order. Originally named St. Procopius College and located in the Pilsen community of Chicago, the school was founded in 1887 by...
in Lisle
Lisle, Illinois
Lisle is a village in DuPage County, Illinois, United States. The population was 22,930 at the 2011 census, and estimated to be 23,135 as of 2008. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Illinois Technology and Research Corridor...
, where she received a B.A. in history; and from Northeastern Illinois University
Northeastern Illinois University
Northeastern Illinois University is a public state university located in Chicago, Illinois. The main campus is located in the community area of North Park with three additional campuses in the metropolitan area. Tracing its founding to 1867, it was first established as a separate branch of a...
, where she earned an M.A. in American cultural and intellectual history. At Benedictine University (footnote - during Ms. Bielski's tenure, the school was known as Illinois Benedictine College) her academic explorations include the spiritualist movement of the nineteenth century and its transformation into psychical research and parapsychology; and the relationship among belief, experience, science, and religion.
In 2004, she founded Chicago Hauntings, a company that gives bus tours and holds special events devoted to exploring Chicago's haunted history. October 2011
October 2011
October 2011 is the tenth month of the current year. It began on a Saturday and ended after 31 days on a Monday.- Portal:Current events :This is an archived version of Wikipedia's Current events Portal from October 2011....
saw Ms. Bielski's Third Ghost Conference, an event that occurs every two years in Chicago. Each conference features vendors of paranormal books and equipment, ghost hunting groups and investigators, individuals who have had paranormal experiences, psychics, and mediums. Speakers are also a big draw and some past guests have included: Lorraine Warren, Christopher Fleming, Jeff Belanger, Jeff Mudgett, and Joshua P. Warren.
Bielski lives in Chicago with her two daughters.