Haunting Hallowe'en tales from Whitchurch and Ellesmere

It was said that the line between our world and the afterlife was especially thin around 'All Hallows' Eve' as the word Hallowe'en derives.

North Shropshire has so many ghost stories, indeed each village and town seems to have a few passed down tales of things that go bump in the night.

While proof is thin on the ground, witness testimonies have been collated over the years.

What do you think? Cynical? Are you brave enough to visit any of these haunted hotspots.

With thanks to the paranormaldatabase.com.

The woman of Oteley Park

A woman in a long white robe and hood that obscures her face has been seen walking along the shore line of The Mere during the later months of Summer.

There is also a legend that screams have been heard coming from the lake and it is said that these unholy cries are that of Mrs Ellis, who used to charge villagers to use the well on her land.

Local legend says the vicar prayed for free water, and the level of the Mere rose, drowning Mrs Ellis.

Oteley Park.

Mrs Sandford's undying love for her Prees home

A former resident, Mrs Sandford, loved the hall which shares her name so much that she vowed she would never leave it.

She has been seen in a carriage drawn by four horses along the drive, waving to invisible crowds. She has also been seen in the hall's ground floor too.

The monk of Ash Magna

DURING the 1970s a passing motorcyclist reported seeing a hooded monk floating 30 centimetres above the ground between Ash Magna and Ash Grange.

A decade later similar sightings were reported.

The ghosts of Whitchurch's Old Eagles

After refurbishment work a few years ago, the sound of a girl singing has been heard coming from the area of the cellars.

Meanwhile it is claimed the spirit of a former landlord still walks his old stamping ground.

Last year the landlady reported: "There have been reports of a child in the cellar which I myself have not seen, however we have had some building works which may have disturbed them.

"We have had the gas being played with, things moving, disappearing, but I think we know who it is now, so we say hi when we go to the cellar, there have also been a couple of people who walk to the bar, or past the bar that you catch out of the corner of your eye.

"I did have someone who was saying my name and whistling and it can also get very cold for no reason sometimes."

Old Eagles, Whitchurch. Picture: Geograph.

Ellesmere's haunted crossroads

SADLY the year of the first incident is not known.

A headless phantom woman was blamed for causing horses pulling a cart to panic and eventually kill the driver.

Twelve months later, the dead man's son was said to have been killed in an identical accident caused by the same ghost.

The crossroads was said to be the burial place of an unknown man who had a stake pushed through his body to ensure he did not return.

Whitchurch's phantom pianist

The phantom notes of a piano were heard for several nights at the town's Civic Centre.

While the year is not recorded in the database it was confirmed an investigation failed to find the cause of the noise.

Whitchurch Civic Centre.

Ellesmere's banished murderer

After a series of murders occurred at a house in Hampton Wood, the area became haunted by a man who could apparently choose whether to have a head or not.

On one occasion the ghost manifested on a horse which was being ridden through the area.

A minister banished the ghost after a three day battle, forcing it into a glass bottle which was placed inside three iron chests and buried under a barn, to remain for 99 years.

The Wem poltergeist

IN 1883 the owners of the Woods Farm near Wem were harassed by a poltergeist.

Plates were thrown onto the floor by an unseen presence and even reports of loaves of bread attacking people.

However by far the most disturbing account of this particular case was the baby's cradle catching fire with the infant still inside it.