Is Pub Haunted by Pendle Witches?
Local legends say the Cross Gaits Inn, Blacko, Lancashire was used to imprison some of the famous Pendle witches and that the ghost of a woman with a dog has been seen sitting by the fire.Andrew Duxbury took the reins of the Beverley Road pub in June 2007 and said he has been told by different regulars that some of the witches had been held in the pub's cellar.
The witches were hanged after being suspected of murdering 17 people in and around the Forest of Pendle.
Mr Duxbury closed the pub for a refurbishment and used this as a chance to investigate the pub.
He was hoping to find a trapdoor down to the cellar when the carpets were lifted, but there was no access to any rooms below ground. It appears the cellars may have been filled in with concrete.
But Mr Duxbury is undeterred and is continuing to scour the pub and history books to learn about its ghostly past.
He said: "A few of the locals have told me that there was some kind of holding cell for witches in the pub's cellars.
"They say witches used to be held there before transported to Lancaster Castle."I don't know if any of the Pendle witches were held down there.
"The locals tell me there were shackles and chains down there.
"I am disappointed we can't go into the cellar. It appears to have been filled with concrete."
He added: "I wanted to refurbish the pub because it was dated.
"And I thought it was a good opportunity to see what was down there."
He said the thought of ghosts did not scare him.
Mr Duxbury said: "I have been told there is the ghost of a woman with a dog who sits by the fire.
"I haven't seen her yet, but during winter time when the fire is on, it is said to be cold where she sits.
"I'll have to wait and see."
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Paranormal Investigators Look Into Michigan Murders
chicagotribune - Standing in the pitch-black barn on the old Crouch family farm off Horton Road, Randy Waltz posed a question to the darkness.
"Are you happy you got away with it?" asked Waltz, a forensic paranormal investigator.
He and his partner, Denise Gowen-Krueger, waited as a modified AM/FM radio, known as a "hack box," scanned frequencies. Scattered throughout the barn, four digital voice recorders sat ready to pick up voices, heard and unheard -- their red recording lights sharp in the night.
"Yup," a voice over the radio said.
Waltz and Gowen-Krueger have been investigating the 1883 Crouch murders for two years. They have spent hours inside the barn and at cemeteries communicating with the spirits of those involved. They think they have solved the case.
About midnight Nov. 22, 1883, Jacob Crouch; his daughter Eunice White; her husband, Henry White; and Moses Polley, a Pennsylvania cattle buyer, were shot in their beds. No one was convicted of the murders, and 127 years later, the mystery lingers.
Waltz and Gowen-Krueger said the voice they heard Sunday night was Daniel Holcomb's, Jacob's son-in-law. Holcomb stood trial for the murders and was acquitted in November 1884. Holcomb, they think, with the help of his brother, Henry Holcomb, and their farmboy, James Foy, shot the four.
"He's admitted to us, 'Yeah I did it, but I'm dead, so I don't care,"' Waltz said of past conversations with Daniel Holcomb.
Waltz and Gowen-Krueger detail the evidence against the three in a book due out in January, "The Veil Beyond the Grave."
"There are skeptics, and I don't blame them," Waltz said.
On Sunday night, Waltz and Gowen-Krueger wanted to get the spirits talking again. Gowen-Krueger played several minutes of prerecorded sounds the spirits would have found familiar -- farm animals, trains, a windmill turning, people snoring, rain and thunder.
"It's going to bring the spirits out to you because everything becomes more familiar to them," Waltz said of the sounds. "We're going to see if we can stir up Pandora's box a little bit."
In past trips to the farm, Waltz and Gowen-Krueger said they have talked with Eunice White and Daniel Holcomb. Other times, the two believe they have heard from Jacob Crouch and Polley but cannot be sure. They said they have spoken with Daniel's wife, Susan Holcomb, during days at the Crouch/Reynolds Cemetery, Waltz said. She was buried there after being found dead in her bed Jan. 2, 1884.
Susan has been informative, Waltz said. Eunice White is often frantic and disturbed. She believes she is still alive and nine months pregnant, Waltz said. She is concerned because she cannot find her husband or her father.
Daniel Holcomb does not like the two of them, Waltz said. He called Waltz names and tells Gowen-Krueger she needs to go to therapy, they said.
Holcomb was not talkative in the barn Sunday night. The night before, he had a lot to say, often with foul language, they said. The two asked questions, invited others in the barn to speak, and every once in a while the radio would pick up a response. Waltz said the spirits were speaking in between the radio frequencies. They did not get very far in their first hour of investigation, but Waltz said it was still early. The two planned to stay out until 2 a.m.
"This is what we do," Waltz said after the first investigation session ended. "And we don't always get results."
Now that Waltz and Gowen-Krueger believe they have solved the infamous murders, they are trying to figure out why. Last summer, the two visited the barn on a rainy day. Waltz said he started talking with Holcomb, telling him he had enough evidence to convict him and hang him.
"I know who killed them," he said he told Holcomb. "The only thing I want you to tell me is why you did this, because I don't see a motive behind this."
While Waltz talked to Holcomb, Gowen-Krueger noticed rain falling down the side of the Spring Arbor Township barn in a strange pattern. It was the shape of a noose with a body hung by the neck.
"Pretty good evidence," Waltz said.
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On Thursday, November, 25th, Jamie and Barry conducted a second evidence gathering vigil at the client's home in Surrey, UK. in preparation for a distance clearing by Irene. The clients had indicated that the house has been quiet since the last vigil. The following condensed recordings were the result of the latest SRI probe:
Master Bedroom - this is a condensed recording from a 25 minute session in the front (master bedroom). There are several banging and bumping sounds coming from the attic and throughout the room.
Voice EVP - this EVP was recorded during the session.
Please visit our website at Spirit Rescue International ™
*All photos and recordings are protected by SRI copyrights
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