It was a strange story, but it was the talk of the town in 1994.
Many who saw it wondered what it was.
Many asked whether it was really a ghost or just an optical illusion, and as Halloween approached, someone called the newspaper to report the strange image.
David Strong was a newspaper man for many years before his death in 2014.
David W. Strong, from The Breathitt County Voice, heard the stories too and was interested. He stopped by the house on Dry Bread Hill Sunday evening to get a look for himself.
Strong talked to the homeowners, waited until the lighting was right, and snapped a picture. There it was, he explained, as plain as a face in the mirror.
A face, perfectly imprinted in the screen, looking back at him through the door.
The next day, he sat down at his computer in the Voice office and wrote about the mystery he had experienced. His article helped spur the debate about what it was and ensured that the story of the “Face in the Door” would be preserved.
The following is David Strong’s story, which was printed on the front page of The Breathitt County Voice on October 5, 1994:
The newspaper included a copy of Strong’s photo of the face in the door.
Ghost or optical illusion??
Crowds flock to see unusual image
Most people have, at one time or another, felt a sensation that someone is watching them.
However, if you visit the home of Willis and Phyllis Neace at Dry Bread, near the junction of 397 and 1110, that sensation is very, very real.
It’s obvious from the Neace’s living room that someone is watching you, and that someone is watching every single night. However, the identity of the watcher varies from one visitor to another.
Homeowner Willas Neace shortly before his death in 2019.
And speaking of visitors, the couple has had plenty of them since the watcher was first sighted on September 15 of this year. The Voice visited the Neaces Sunday night to see this “someone” for itself, and it’s definitely there-clearly visible from anywhere in the couple’s new home.
It’s very obvious to the naked eye and appears on the screen of the front door.
However, the phenomenon changes its appearance depending on what angle you look toward it.
Looking straight on, the image this reporter saw was that of a man with long hair, parted in the middle. He had a clearly outlined mustache and deep, penetrating eyes.
When we looked at the same screen from g left angle, the image took on a more sinister appearance. The man had a menacing smile, and his teeth were clearly outlined. His eyes and nose appeared much wider.
From the farthest point in the living room, looking straight at the screen, the figure appears to be a woman, and a very beautiful one at that.
Neace says she has no idea what causes the image to appear. However, she is quick to add that she does not believe in ghosts or spooks.
However, some of the people who have been going to her home nightly in droves to see the image for themselves say a ghost is exactly what they believe they visualize.
Some of the people who view the appearance are very specific about the type of ghost the image represents. They firmly believe the image is that of an old Indian. That theory is supported by the belief that the Neace’s home may be situated on an Indian burial or hunting ground. Neace says her husband has found Indian artifacts at the bottom of the hill around the new house.
Some who believe the image is the ghost of an Indian say they get “goosebumps and strange feelings” when they view it. Neace noted that some visitors have believed the image is of
Jesus and have reported personal spiritual feelings as they look at it. Some of those who visited on Sunday evening commented that it even looked like Santa Claus.
However, Neace says she has no idea what the image actually depicts. “I only know it’s there every night, all night long,” she said.
She also specified that she bought the screen door (on which the image appears) about a decade ago, but she noted that she had never used it until she and her family moved into the house at Dry Bread. It had been in storage, she added, for about nine years.
Although none who view the image agree on what it actually depicts, one thing is for sure: If the image remains throughout the remainder of this month, the Neaces won’t need to decorate the door for Halloween.
The story ran, and the debate started.
The newspaper never reported the conclusion of the debate over who or what the image depicted. The fate of the door is not known. Is it still there, or did the image leave on its own? Did a good wash of the screen take the mystery man away?
Then the story faded away and was added by many to the files of the unexplained events and strange happenings that make the hills and hollows of Breathitt County and all of eastern Kentucky so mysterious.
