Haunted Wigan E-Book

Sarah Carberry

• Herausgeber: The History Press
• Kategorie: Ratgeber
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 153

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2012

Beschreibung

The vibrant industrial town of Wigan has a long and distinguished history. However, the area also harbours some disturbing secrets. Discover the darker side of the Wigan with this terrifying collection of true-life tales from across the region. From the old cotton mills to the public houses there seems to be a ghost lurking around every corner. Featuring ghouls, poltergeists and phantom creatures this book is guaranteed to make your blood run cold. Drawing on historical and contemporary sources and containing many tales which have never before been published, Haunted Wigan will delight everyone interested in the paranormal.

Leseprobe

We would like to dedicate this book to the memory of Paul Reid, who was an inspiration to us and to everyone in the paranormal world: ‘Teams can work together and even support each other and we are proving that.’

Paul Reid 05.04.68 - 11.05.12

Rest in Peace, you will always be with us.

x

Acknowledgements

WE would like to thank our friends and family, near and far. Also to Wigan Paranormal, a non-profit paranormal events and research team who provide support to Derian House Children’s Hospice, and who have supported us every step of the way. We would like to thank the following people for their input into the publication: Stephen Speakman, Alex Parkinson, Cath O’Sullivan, Andrew Anson, Chris Patfield, Paul Cunliffe, Les Gaskill, Chris Bracek, Mrs M. Andrews, Estelle Hall and Dayna Hodgson. Also, a thank you to Gary Clee, who has provided the wonderful photographs for the book and the cover.

We would also like to thank our families for putting up with our unkempt homes and the lack of tea on the table; the members of public who stopped to speak to us and listen to our unusual requests; NatWest bank; Goldsmiths, and all of the other local shops which helped with our quest for information. Thanks to the pub landlords who allowed us to bend their ears over the bar. A thank you to Starbucks who provided us with all our caffeine and cake needs which, at times, was our core motivation.

Contents

Title

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Introduction

one

Types of Hauntings

two

Public Houses

three

Stately Homes

four

Battle of Wigan Lane

five

Crank Caves and the Ghost of Edmund Arrowsmith

six

Dead Man’s Hand

seven

The Last Highwayman to be Hanged

eight

Pit Explosion in Abram

nine

Local Ghost Stories

ten

Town Centre Ghosts

Copyright

Introduction

‘An idea, like a ghost, must be spoken to a little before it will explain itself’

Charles Dickens

When you think of Wigan, what springs to mind? Maybe rugby or football? Maybe the famous Wigan Pier or Uncle Joe’s Mint balls? Whatever it is, I am sure it won’t be the ghosts that haunt the town, but as you read the real-life stories in this book you will discover there are plenty of memorable spooky tales and scary stories that will ensure you never look at Wigan in the same way again: from the bustling town centres where the spirits walk among the unsuspecting shoppers, to the towering abandoned mills with their dark corners, where ghostly children play hide and seek.

Wigan came into its own during the Industrial Revolution and was known as a major cotton mill and coal mining area. Coal mining started in 1450 and no fewer than 1,000 pit shafts were created around the town centre. In the 1800s, the cotton mills sprung into life employing men, women and children as young as nine. Sadly, working and living conditions left a lot to be desired and George Orwell wrote a book entitled The Road to Wigan Pier, in the hope of raising awareness of the dire situation. Many of the buildings from past years remain here to this day, re-fronted as a new property, but you only have to undertake some research to see that each building has its own tale and behind that, its own ghosts.

It is hard to imagine now, with the plush office suites and state-of-the-art shopping centres, that Wigan had such a bleak and dangerous past. Child mortality rates were high and a serious number of lives were lost in the mills and coal mines. If you were to take time out from the daily grind of Wigan life and wander around the mills, you would start to get a feeling of how vast industry was in the region. Child labour was a key part to the Industrial Revolution and Wigan didn’t escape this. Many died at the hands of the large machines, and as a result of poor health and safety regulations. It was a way of life though, a far cry from the Wigan that we know and love in this modern day.

This book will look at the types of ghosts Wigan holds and also the different types of hauntings that take place under our very noses. Eyewitness accounts, old news stories and local legend make up the core ghost stories of Wigan. It seems that as soon as you mention the word ‘ghost’ in this area, everyone has a story and they are not afraid to share it. Ghosts seem to be a common way of life in Wigan and on a number of occasions have been happy to make themselves known. From local people living in fear from ghosts in their homes, to ghosts of highwaymen – there seem to be many stories and many sightings. Then there are the downright terrifying stories of cannibals and satanic worship, testing your palate for fear. Maybe you know someone who has told you these stories before and maybe you doubted them, but after listening to so many accounts, it is clearly obvious that Wigan ghosts are very much real. You can make your own mind up though; is it possible for so many people to see and hear the same things?

People often ask if George Formby has left a ghost behind, or maybe Fred Dibnah, but it seems their lives may have been all too happy to have felt the need to haunt the local area. Our Wigan ghosts seem a little more upset that they have passed away and are not afraid to show it.

So, take your seats on the number 666 bus as we take a tour around our historical town; remain seated because you never know where or when the next ghost might crop up. Let’s visit the battlefields and the scenes of industrial tragedy, and pop into one of the many pubs for a spirit or two along the way. Keep your fingers inside though; some of our ghosts have been known to bite!

Sarah Carberry & Nicola Johnson, 2012

one

Types of Hauntings

Elementals

These are believed to be types of spirits or beings which inhabit nature, and are thought to possess supernatural powers. The belief of their existence was universal in the ancient era of religions and today many people still believe that all things possess life, especially occultists and neo-pagan witches.

Elementals are believed to exist as the life force in all living things; even the elements of earth, air, fire and water, the stars, zodiacs and the planets, are ruled by higher spirits called divas or archangels, and are generally thought to be benevolent creatures that maintain a natural harmony.

Some people describe them as evil or just mischievous, others say they are between angel and man and are able to materialize in animal or human form. They lack souls and seek sex with humans in order to acquire one, and are also capable of bearing children.

Some are said to be deceitful and hateful, causing tragic accidents and creating grief. They are associated with ritual magic and when sent on psychic attacks they attach themselves to human auras. If they are not dispelled when their mission is done, they can drain the energy from their victims and become confused and troublesome.

Poltergeists

There is slight controversy with regards to what a poltergeist actually is. ‘Poltergeist’ is a German word which means noisy spirit. What can you class as a noisy spirit? One that makes tapping noises, calls out a name, or one that throws objects? Some spirits can do one or all of these things, depending on how strong that energy is. Some believe that a poltergeist isn’t a spirit at all, but psychokinetic energy which is caused by the subconscious mind of an individual. This person is often under physical, emotional or psychological stress and is often associated with young adults going through puberty. It is reported that poltergeists can turn lights on and off and effect other electrical appliances and make objects move; the manifestation of physical phenomena.

Intelligent Haunting

This is what most would call a classic haunting, where the spiritual entity is fully aware of the living world and if strong enough and willing to, will interact and respond to the living. In most cases this is because the spirit wishes to get the attention of the person, as it may be a relative or family friend. They will do this by moving objects, opening and closing doors, making parts of a room cold, giving you goosebumps, making sounds – like calling out your name – and even turning on lights, taps, TVs and radios. Sometimes they may be a bit more mischievous by throwing things or pushing people, this may be the result of the spirit not wanting you to be there, as you may be in what was once their home.

Normally, the prime time a spirit will show itself is between the hours of 11 p.m. and 3 a.m. This is because it takes a lot of energy for them appear (think of a flashlight shining during the day, you will hardly notice it, but turn the lights out…) although, very strong spirits have been known to be seen in daylight.

Some spirits are just lost souls that don’t know what to do or are too scared to pass over; some don’t even know they have died and carry on their day-to-day business.

There are many spirits who come back to their loved ones, to look over them and guide them through troubled times. There have been many times on investigations when we have encountered our own families with us, who are curious to know where we are going and wish to communicate with us.

Residual Haunting

These are the most commonly reported type of phenomena and also widely discounted by non-believers and scientists. The idea that actions are imprinted into an object or the environment can be very hard to comprehend and it can sometimes be difficult to understand, let alone explain, however, we will give it our utmost effort. I can, without doubt, confirm that it does exist; how and why is another matter as at times it does seem to defy the laws of energy and physics, but that is the beauty of the paranormal – it does not need to have any real scientific basis to support it.

Residual hauntings are not what we call an actual haunting, as there is no inhuman or human interaction at all, but it does display past events. These types of hauntings are like a reel of film playing in a loop over and over again. As to why it happens and what is it, no official explanation exists, but with research and many years of study the paranormal world has a pretty accurate conclusion.

These audible or visual ‘films’ are past events which are imprinted into the environment by a certain type of energy, this is called the Stone Tape Theory; a paranormal hypothesis that was brought about in the 1970s as a possible explanation for ghosts. These events usually occur in the same spot, whether the past event was a suicide, accidental death, murder or torture, and sometimes in happy times, you may hear music from another era. Certain materials, such as crystals, water, limestone and sandstone have excellent qualities for absorbing energy from living beings and you may find a lot of supernatural activity around where they are.

two

Public Houses

MOST people you speak to in Wigan about hauntings will point you in the direction of a public house. These historic watering holes have been used for many, many years, not only as a place of rest for the living but at times as a morgue or a hideout. Tunnels make their way underneath the streets of Wigan, spilling out into public houses and bringing, sometimes, a little more then a draught.

The Mount

Probably the most famous haunted pub in Wigan is The Mount. Many people have spent a cold, dark night in this beautiful building and its cellars in the hope of catching a glimpse of just one of its ghosts. The Mount has an interesting history and can be traced back to the Domesday Book. This once magnificent home of Abraham Guest and his family is now a well-established restaurant, which is busy both day and night.

As you enter through the front door, you are met by a grand staircase with a wide balcony. Standing at the balcony edge, the apparition of a young girl has been seen watching and smiling. She is thought to have fallen over the edge to her death. Many customers and staff have seen the little girl. One member of staff reported her own daughter playing with a little girl at the top of the stairs and when her mother was taken to greet the mystery girl, it became apparent the girl was, in fact, a ghost. Another story associated with the girl on the stairs is that she was actually killed outside, in front of the building, when it was once a family home. She is thought to play on the stairs and run around the rooms as if she was still alive. An eyewitness describes what he saw:

In the early 1970s, my wife and I worked as assistant managers at The Mount, which was, at the time, a Chef & Brewer restaurant. One morning we both arrived at work and up the stairs walked a girl in a summer dress. She passed us and went into what was then the ladies’ toilet on the ground floor. It was a February morning and it was raining heavily. Only the cleaning staff were in and I checked if any had brought a child to work. None had and it became quite a talking point. My wife was convinced we’d seen a ghost. A few weeks later, two nuns came in and asked to speak to us about what we had seen. They told us a little girl had lived in the house and was knocked down by a tram in front of the house – the ladies’ toilet the little girl had walked into had once been the child’s playroom.

Venturing up a winding staircase onto the third floor, a feeling of hopelessness and fear surrounds you. At the top of this staircase there is the reported sad ghost of a man who hung himself and who now walks the stairs full of regret.

Many women have said they have felt heavily pregnant and heard sobbing whilst being in one room in particular. The spirit of a young pregnant woman is said to haunt this room after being beaten and left for dead.

The cellars are a warren of tunnels, each as eerie as the next. One of the rooms was used to store bodies of the local people prior to burial, and the ghost of what can only be described as an undertaker lurks in the shadows. It is said that the room could sometimes be full of bodies and the small bearded man showed no respect as he climbed over them, breaking bones where he lay his feet. The cracking of bones can still be heard to this day echoing around the cellar. He is seen wheeling a cart through the cellars, moving the bodies to their resting places.

As you walk down the dark, cold tunnel you come across another room which is closed off by a door. Opening the door you see a staircase that leads to a locked door and it is clear that the passage behind it is no longer in use. This used to be the servant’s entrance and in this small space a dark and chilling secret is held. The ghost of a young woman has been seen at the bottom of the staircase and she can be heard sobbing. The woman was found murdered at the bottom of the steps and still haunts the area to this day.

Back through the tunnels, a nun, Sister Magdalene, wanders, looking for the children hiding down there, afraid of their punishment. One visitor claimed that she spoke to a girl crouched in the corner, who said she had been abused. As she put her hand out to touch the girl she disappeared, and her quiet sobs a second or two after.

It is also believed that the spirit of the architect haunts one room in particular, the Rivington Room. Plans of the building are still to this day displayed on the wall and it is possible that he visits the site of his work as a form of pride, or to keep an eye on it.

A few years ago, a member of staff had some money go missing from his pocket. It was taken as a serious matter and eventually the police were involved, but the matter was never resolved. One night, a medium went into the pub; he knew nothing of this event or even the history behind the building, but he was asked to pass on a message to the pub manager. The ghost of a young man wanted to say he was sorry and that he didn’t mean to cause so much trouble. When the medium asked what he had done, the spirit replied he had taken some paper from a pocket and it has the number twenty on each sheet. He only did it as a joke and it ended with everyone being so angry. So, the mystery was resolved but it was never confirmed who the ghost of the young man was. However, although the ghost has moved items and played tricks on people since then, he has never touched money again.

The Mount Hotel, where spirits lurk beyond the bar.

In 2008, The Mount and its ghost stories was in the news and an article was published about the ongoing sightings. The story went on to talk about Agnes and Joe Fox from Glasgow, who, visiting friends in Wigan, found themselves in The Mount’s hotel – the Orrell Premier Inn. Agnes was woken from her sleep late at night by a man standing over her bed. As Agnes screamed with fear the ghostly figure disappeared. After researching the hotel on the internet she realised that what she had witnessed was not an unusual occurrence, although she had never mentioned it whilst there, for fear of being ridiculed. Agnes stated: