Lee, Charlene and Phil explore different areas within Whitby. The first ITC session at St Marys Church situated next to Whitby Abbey. They encounter some very interesting responses relating to some of the history assiocated with area. 

They then conduct a Live at the Ragdale Hall, reputed to have many hauntings. What they encounter is quite amazing during this and even leaves the sceptic thinking what could have been the cause. 

To watch the Talking to The Dead Episode click the below link

Below ive listed some of the History and Hauntings of Whitby and there will be follow on articles of further research of the area. 

A GHOST called Hob 

IT is alleged that a GHOST called Hob haunts the area of Whitby, witnesses have spotted his apparition appearing in front of cars, forcing them to skid and tyres mysteriously been let down. It’s also believed that he turns sign posts around causing confusion and frustration to whose who are new to the sea side town. 

Devils Punchbowl Goathland

The hole of Horcum is a large natural amphitheatre which is by the A169 between Pickering and Goathland on the North Yorkshire Moors. Locally known to many as ‘The Devils Punchbowl’ Local legend is that the amphitheatre was made by a giant, who scooped up a large ball of earth and tossed it aside to create a nearby hill.

ARUNDEL House 

ARUNDEL House was built in the 1880s, this hotel has had plenty of ghostly activity in nearly every one of its rooms. Visitors have witnessed seeing a lady and hearing footsteps as well as strange bangs and disembodied voices.
Bagdale Hall

Bagdale Hall is one of the oldest historical buildings within Whitby. Bagdale Hall was built in 1516 and is a tutor house. Another building attached to the tutor house is No. 4 Bagdale, which is a lovely Georgian townhouse built around 1770.
THE former owner of the hotel Browne Bushell, was executed with charges relating to piracy. It’s believe me he returned to the hall after his death and many have witnessed seeing him walking up and down the staircases at the hall. Guests to the hall have heard clatter of footsteps up and down the stairs and on looking nobody was around.

DURING OUR LIVE WE EXPERIENCED THE GLASS OF THE CHANDELER MOVE, ON INSPECTION WE COULD NOT RECREATE IT. FOOTAGE CAN BE VIEWED ON THE TALKING TO THE DEAD EPIDOSE AND ON OUR GHOST OF BRITAIN GROUP ON FACEBOOK.

Other strange goings on at the Hall over the years include poltergesit activity, a strange shape gliding up and down the stairs and lights being turned on in an empty room.

Prospect Hall

It is said that the GHOST of a headless man is seen here wondering the corridors with his head secured firmly under his arm.
Whitby Abbey

Whitby Abbey is perched on top of a cliff top, it is well known for providing inspiration for Bram Stoker’s gothic Novel, Dracula 1931 and the filming of count Dracula in 1977.
The Abbey was founded in 657AD by Oswiu of Northumbria who appointed Lady Hilda as the founding Abbess. Known as Hilda of Whitby, she is said to haunt the Abbey. In life, a number of miraculous feats where attributed to Saint Hilda, for example, ridding the town of a plague of snakes with a magic whip. Her apparition has been seen at the highest window of the Abbey North side. In 867 the Abbey was attacked and destroyed during the Viking raid, itnwws then rebuilt after the Norman conquest by Reinfrid. It was later disestablsihed during the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII.

After this the bells were sold off and loaded onto a ship for London. The Ship was caught in a storm and sunk. It is said that where the ship lays the sounds of bells can be heard from the ocean depths on All Hallows Eve.

It’s also said that on Christmas mornings a choir can be heard singing from the Abbey while nobody is there. 

ST MARY’S CHURCH 

Before reaching the Abbey you have to climb the Church stairs, made up of 199 steps.

The steps have seats built in for people to rest but originally they were put here so coffins could be places here for the bearers to rest.

ST Mary’s Church was built 900 years ago and over the years has been altered many times.

Being so close to the Abbey, the sighting between the two areas are the mostly the same but a young couple did report to the daily star that they was having a romantic stroll one night when they spotted what appeared to be a apparition of a dog beneath the frame of the Church door.

THE WESTERN LIGHTHOUSE

A apparition of a male has been seen laid out in front of the light house entrance.
IT is believed to that of a light house keeper, who on a stormy night noticed the light wasn’t on in the light house. He knew this could be potentially dangerous and set out to do his job. Due to the wet conditions, it made the steps slippery and dangerous and on his way down slipped and fell down the steps to his death.

 GRAPE LANE 

Firmly known as ‘Grope Lane due to it being the red light district of Whitby. It is alleged to be haunted by a young girl who died after running a errand for her father. MOST days she would go to their bakery and heat up her father’s dinner. The girl was a set alight after her hair went in the ovens flames. Her father tried his best to save her but it was too late. 

Her spirit is said to appear to people on Grape Lane with flames surrounding her and the smell of burnt hair can be smelt when she appears.

WATCH TALKING TO THE DEAD WHITBY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS2yfU9kFtE

By Charlene Kemp

History

Wardsend Cemetery was opened on 21st June 1857 as the burial ground for St. Philip’s Churh on Infirmary Road which is now demolished. The Rev. John Livesey, the vicar, had, at his own expense, bought five acres of land at wardsend when the churchyard was closed for burials. He paid towards building a small chapel and a sexton’s house. 

The Cemetery has a distinct military influence due to its close proximity to Hillsborough Barracks. The obelisk monument commemorates the soldiers of 6th, 19th, 24th, 33rd, 51st, 55th Regiments of Foot, Victorian Army, who died whilst at Hillsborough Barracks during the period 1866 – 1869.

There are also memorials to several soldiers who gave their lives during both World Wars. Some of the 240 victims of the Great Sheffield Flood of the night of 11th/12 March 1864, when the Dale Dyke reservoir at Bradfield collapsed, were laid to rest within the cemetery.

Other epitaphs of interest are dedications to a number of Bible readers, one a member of the Philadelphian Wesleyan church; the Secretary of Sheffield Angling Association, widows referred to as relicts, and a reference to a 15 year old boy trgically killed at work in a colliery accident.

By the turn of the century, some 20,000 burials had taken place and in 1901, a further two acres of land on the other side of the railway were added. Its the only cemetery in England with a railway running through it.

The final burial took place in 1977, when the re-interment of remains from a building site close to Sheffield Cathedral took place and the cemetery was officially closed in 1988.

Wardsend cemetery has been neglected over the last thirty or so years and following the demolition of the chapel and sexton’s house, was more or less abandoned by the parish and church authorities up until recent times as it appears a group named ‘Friends of Wardsend cemetery’ have given the site abit of TLC.

Nefarious deeds came to light in 1862, when a labourer named Robert Dixon accused the sexton, Isaac Howard of disinterring newly buried bodies and selling them for dissection.

Robert had moved into the sexton’s house in the cemetery and said in his words, “I observed a curious smell in the room above the stable. I thrust some knots out of the deal boards, and looked down into the stable. We had then been there two or three weeks. I saw about 20 coffins – some of persons about 15 and 16 and 10 years old – others were those of stillborn children. None of them appeared to be the coffins of grown-up persons. I had seen Howard lock and unlock this door, and knew he had the key. The coffins were not covered over with anything, and were lying on the ground, piled in heaps on the top of each other. I saw some broken-up coffins piled in a corner by themselves – the wood appeared to be new. Those pieces are there now. The day I flitted (last Monday) I and several other men saw in the stone shelf near the house four or five sides and lids of coffins.”

The suspicion was that Isaac Howard was supplying the Sheffield Medical School with corpses for dissection. Also that money supplied by the medical school for the ‘decent burial’ of remains legally obtained from the workhouse, was being kept by Howard and the bodies disposed of.

On the evening of June 3rd, the news broke, what became known as the Sheffield Cemetery Riots of 1862 took place when a crowd gathered at the cemetery to find a large hole containing coffins, with and without bodies, one of which had clearly been dissected. Underneath the coffins was said to be several feet of human remains. Many of the crowd began to disinter the coffins of their relatives and a number of graves were found to be empty.

The crowd forced their way into the sexton’s house demolishing the windows and doors, before marching to Howard’s home half a mile away in Burrowlee. Howard learned that he was wanted and fled and went into hiding, eventually being found in Bakewell, Derbyshire. The crowd set fire to his house and destroyed it.

It came to light that the law had been breached by both the medical school and the town’s workhouse. The workhouse had sent bodies to the school in sacks and the school, after dissecting them, had allowed Howard to convey them to Wardsend in plain wooden boxes. The law required that coffins should be used.

It appears that the medical school, nervous of its reputation as a school for bodysnatchers, were trying to cover up what had happened.

The suspicion began to then focus on the Rev. John Livesey. It was revealed that he had made a false entry in the burial register, having failed to check that the body of a boy named James Greatorex had been interred.

On June 11th, a public meeting of parishioners at the Peacock Inn, Hoyle Street, severely criticised Livesey. The next night a crowd of 3,000 Sheffielders gathered in the Temperance Hall, Townhead Street, and demanded Livesey should be suspended until he had either been cleared or condemned.

On June 23rd, Livesey was committed to York Assizes, charged with making a false entry in the burial register. Isaac Howard made a statement blaming Livesey. He said that he had removed bodies from their graves, but only on the instructions of the Vicar. Howard was committed to York Assizes, charged with unlawfully disinterring the bodies of two children, William Henry Johnson and Charley Hinchliffe.

Although there was little evidence against Livesey, the jury found him guilty. The judge showed what he thought of the verdict and sentenced the clergyman to one week imprisonment. Howard, also found guilty, was also treated leniently and was given a three month sentence. Livesey was later pardoned, after Howard came clean about his crimes.

Information found at https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/andyhemingway.wordpress.com/2014/09/25/the-lost-world-of-wardsend-cemetery/amp/

Ghost sightings

Said to have witchcraft assoicated with the graveyard since being abandoned some of the graves appeared to have markings upon them leading people to believe some of the graves are cursed.

One of the sightings is that of Issac Howard and John Livesey.

Another one is that of a football fan, a young lad that died on the railway track after his ball fell on the track and he went to collect it and was hit by a train.

Other sightings are of children at the top end near the railway bridge and strange like creatures believed to have been created by rituals that have suppose to have taken place in this area.

To watch the Lastest Talking to The Dead…Wardsend Cemetery click the below link

https://youtu.be/fE2VZqLHxE0

​Philip Williams

 The moon a land mass made of rock is thought to have formed about 4.51 billion years ago, not long after Earth. There are several theories for its origin; the most accepted explanation is that the Moon formed from the debris left over after a giant impact between Earth and a planet called Theia. In Greek mythology Theia the mother of Selene (goddess of the moon) collided and made early earth around 4.51 billion years ago. The area that amazes me about the moon is its gravitational influence that  produces the oceantides and  body tides. I don’t want this article to get too confusing with science about how the ocean tides differ when the earth spins and one side of the moon changes the oceans high tides and low tides.The effects on your body on other hand is also theory based. from a woman’s menstruation to blood loss ,stress on full moon and  increase of birth control. Now let’s delve into its magic and practices.

 The Dark Moon

 Magical workings conducive to the dark moon include destroying or banishing very powerful things, such as unwanted entities, addictions or serious diseases. I would not use this time lightly– it’s got a little too much umph behind it to just get rid of a whiny ex who still calls you once in a while, to break your habit of having a second cup of coffee in the morning, or if you have the sniffles. But if you were dealing with, say, a stalker, a drug addiction, cancer, etc. something that poses a serious threat — then this is the best timing for it. The Dark Moon is also a good time to go within for soul-searching and to perform divination.

 The Waxing Moon

 When the moon is “waxing” it appears to be growing, the period from the dark to full moon phases. Its magnetic energy assists with bringing things to out. This entire waxing period is the best time to work with constructive magic.

 The waxing crescent is the best time for magic on yourself , like new beginnings, such as starting a new project or making plans for the future. If you’re looking to conjure energies into your life such as a more positive attitude, more patience, more understanding in your relationship, this is the perfect timing for such goals. When you want to cast spells for self improvement, such as if you want to improve your psychic abilities, to absorb the information in a new class, or bring out your inner beauty, this is the time to do it. Artists or anyone creative will find this the best time to cast spells or perform meditations that will bring inspiration and passion into your work.

 First Quarter Moon Magic

 The First Quarter, or Waxing Half Moon, is the time when energies are most conducive to attraction. Use this time for spells and meditations meant to attract things you want in your life, such as money, protection or success. It’s also an ideal time for attracting people into your life. If you are  looking also for lost objects, or house hunting, etc., this is a good time to perform spells for success in that area to help you bring that which you most desire. 

Waxing Gibbous Moon Magic

 The Waxing Gibbous is still a time for constructive magic, best used towards ;reeling in that which you been working for already. This phase is a great energy for renewing your strength, will and determination to see your efforts through. If you are giving in to temptation on your diet, working hard toward something and feeling burnt out or are at the point where you are getting lazy and distracted from completing your tasks, give yourself a power boost during the Waxing Gibbous.

Waning Crescent Moon Magic

If you need to clear your life and home of negativity and stress. The Waning Crescent, as it approaches the Dark Moon phase, it suitable for stronger banishing than any other time of the waning moon phases. Get rid of whatever has been plaguing you– anything you find to be seriously annoying, frustrating or concerning (save things that are serious threats for that Dark Moon).

 There is ways to use this magic and you don’t have to wait 3 weeks for a certain phase. For example, if you want to lose weight, look at the moon phases. If it’s the Waxing Crescent, cast a spell to improve your energy or will power. If it’s the Waxing Gibbous, cast it to triumph over cravings and urges to eat the wrong foods. If it’s the Waning Half-Moon, cast the spell to destroy the tempting effects that bad foods hold over you. No matter what the moon phase, you can use it toward your goal.

Charlene Kemp

The Nine ladies Stone Circle located on Stanton Moor, Derbyshire, is owned by the English Heritage. It is a Bronze age circle that consists of 9 upright stones made of local milstone grit and is less then a metre high. Just to the south is a small standing stone named ‘The Kings Stone’ .

Upon looking up history of this site, The english hertiage website states that ‘It was traditionlly believed to depict nine ladies turned to stone as a penalty for dancing on a sunday’  Could this have been witches? whose to say, but it is assumed it was used at the time od Druids and is still used by pagans to this day for many different ceremonies.

As Lee, Phil and John explore this area they do come across someone doing some kind if ritual while there and when asking the ITC who she is replies ‘The Village Witch’. Looking around there is ribbons, dreamcatchers and many other spiritual items placed on trees around the circle as a offering. It truly does hold a magical feel to it and I feel a visit during the evening may also be needed to explore the area.

Here is the lastest video of Talking to the Dead

https://m.youtube.com/watch?a&v=G6oqmV3gqic&feature=youtu.be

 

Previously Charlene had visited this location and conducted a Echovox session which replies to her question ‘We Danced’

Video Below

https://youtu.be/4cXAfZSCsbI

Also surrounding this location there are a few other stone circles located all within a short distance to one another and is still used by pagans today, evidence of this is on forums that can be found on the internet and evidence of celebrations around the stone such as fire pits and signs being hung up on the surrounding trees nearby. I think we will be exploring all these areas in the future. Below is a map of Stanton Moor, where these are all located.

 Stanton Moor is a area of gritstone that stands at a height of 280-320 metres above sea level in Derbyshire between the villages of Stanton in Peak to the north and Birchover in the South.

This area has been occupied since the bronze age and contains the remains of two definite stone circles, these being Nine ladies and Doll Tor, there is a possible 3 other circles or ring cairns ( North, Central and South). There is also a estimated 120 other cairns as well as several natural standing stones and rock outcrops. Quarrying within the area jas believed to have robbed us of many other circles and cairns that may have been here.

The moor has long been thought of as a sacred place for the ancient celtic priests, the Druids and also many of the ‘menhirs’ or monoliths are believed to have sacres significance and to be associated with Druid worship.

These rocks all have names like the ‘Heart Stone’, ‘Cat Stone’, ‘Cork Stone’, ‘Andle Stone’ (also known as the Twopenny Loaf) and the magical ‘Gorse Stone’.

There are eight feast days or fire festivals celebrated at Stanton Moor:

Imbolc – Celebrates candlemass on February 1st

Vernal Equinox – March 21st

Beltane – 1st May

Midsummer Day – 21st June – 2/3 thousand come from all over the UK to the nine ladies.

Lugnasad and Fire Feast at Lammastide – August 1st

Autum Equinox – September 21st

Samain – Hallows eve

Solar Feast – November 1st

Midwinters Day – December 21st

Central Circle

This sites is either thought to be a ruined embanked stone circle or a ring cairn, looking at it, it is difficult to say. It is amongst thick heather but from looking from the centre its a clear form and walking around it reveals a bank of earth and cobbles. There are entrances to the north and south and what appears to look like a few extra ones located on the eastern side. On the south there is an inscribed stone that bears the Heathcote’s T56 identification.

It is easy enough to find if you walk north along the main path that leads to the Nine Ladies stone circle and is located about 230 metrea south of it. If you look left (west direction for a raised oval outline of heather it is about 20 metre from this area.

North Circle

This site is bearly unrecognisable as a stone circle has it is heavy undergrowth and is covered by birch trees and it can be hard to find. Two entrances are recorded one to the north-north-east and the other south-south-west. There are several scattered small boulders (one which may have been used as a standing stone). What is interesting about this site is the position it is in, at this point of the moor the lands starts ti drop away and the site would have enjoyed many fine views of the area around and beyond.

South Circle

This is quite a difficult site to find and again it isnt known whether it is a embanked stone circle or a cairn even though English Hertiage list it as a formwr cairn. Even when you do find it, it can be a little difficult to figure out the shape and size of the bank.  There is a few stones dotted around the rim and there is a gap for a entrance to the south but along with all the others in this area has a fine view of the surrounding area.

The Cork Stone

Stanton Moor is home to many of these blocks. This is Cork Stone and pictured below is Andle Stone. Both appear very alike. Cork Stone is 15 feet high ans has iron foot reats driven into it. It is also covered in graffiti thata has been accumulated over the years.

Doll Tor

Doll Tor is a wonderful stone circle ans cairn that is hidden well in the depths of a small wood. It is a short distance from the natural rock outcrop of the Andle Stone and the circles and cairns of Stanton Moor Beyond.

The circle consists of 6 small stones and is surrounded by a central leveled platform, which for this area is unusual as it has no bank even though the stones were once connexted with a low drystone wall.

The circle was first found by Thomas Bateman in 1852, he also found bucket urns and small cups. Between 1931 – 1934 the site was excavates again which revealed five cremations and more urns.

Furthur discoveries was made in the low cairn that is built on to the eastern side of the circle incorporating one of the circles stones. A rectangular stone pit which contained a female cremation along with a segmentedfaience bead, four other cremations had also been placed round the inner edge of the stone bank before it was filled in to form the cairn.

 Also Near by is 

The Nine Ladies Close Circle – Also known as the Grey Ladies – Bakewell

Sadly only 4 stones now remain of this stone circle. These are the largest stones in Derbyshire, they stand isolated in a farmers field on Harthill Moor, which is almost west of Doll Tor.

Thomas Bateman recorded seven upright stones at the site aswell as sherds and flints. Further excavations happened in 1877 which may have also disturbed the stones and what remains today is a rectangular setting of 4 stones. The tallest is 2 metres high and would have formed a circle of about 13 metres in diameter, if there was 9 stones, ‘nine’ could be a corruption of ‘noon’ .

It appears that at least one of the stones as survived, and now stands as part of a drystone wall to the south of the circle. A short distance south is the rock outcrop of Robin Hood’s Stride which could have been served as a sacred hill alter. From the centre of the circle the major southern moon is seen to set between two stone pillars on the top of the hill.

The circle is also known as and is often referred to as ‘The Grey Ladies’. This is based on a local tradition that the stones are transformed to dancing women at midnight. Othera believe the transformation occured when some unfortunate ladies were transformed into the stones.

It is also said to be the place where fairies sometimes meet and local folklore relates how fairy music has been heard and hundreds of mystical shapes have been spotted dancing around the stones.

A tale from the 19th century even tells of a farm labourer who found a clay pipe at the stones and when smoked it was able to peer through the surface of the earth near one of the stones and see a subterranean land inhabited by fairy folk.

Arbor Low And Gib Hill Barrow

Bakewell – DE45 1JS

Arbor Low is the finest Stone Age ‘henge’ monument in the North of Englans. The site is situated on a high point of 375 metres above sea level and though it doesnt look a high hill when you reach the top the view on a fine day is amazing

It is unknown to why this circle is here or what exactly it was used for aswell as its sister circle at Dove Holes ( The Bull Ring) but what is known is that they have been focal points for the people of the time. It is believed it was constructed about 2500 BC  and has a deep enclosing a circular central ‘sanctuary’ area. There are entrances at the north- West and South- East of the bank.

The Central area contains 46 large and 13 smaller stones arranged in a circle with a group in its centre. The stones are currently laying flat but it is unknown to whether they was once standing.

One theory is that early christians laid them flat in order to  desanctify’ the site. It is also believed that initially they could have been wooden posts and later changed to stone.

A Bronze Age tumulus had been added at a later date just within the bank and is 200 metres away to the south west, It was built on top of a stone age long barrowwhixh could have been older then the circle,  this later feature was found to contain several burials.

There has been ghost sightings around the circle and that is of a boggart, locals believe that who ever spends time here after dark may risk upsetting this entity.

There have also been many UFO sightings around the circle and it is believed that from above arbor low could resemble some kind of clock and is believed to be on a ley line which some may say why there has been so many UFO sightings.

Charlene has investigated Arbor Low at night and did encounter some interesting activity within the circle from equipment.

Ley-line – UFO and Stanton Moor 

Philip Williams

A ley-line is a straight fault line in the earth’s tectonic plates; this is a scientific fact. What science though refuses to believe that through these, cracks in the earth’s tectonic plates that the magnetic energy released are very powerful. 

but still ley lines still doesn’t have any conclusive evidence to prove that these lines give out spiritual energy.

Ley lines are mainly found by individuals that use dowsing instruments. i have read up on some experiences of energy surges that flow up there body and that the powerful surge knocked them unconscious. 

Many races and cultures on the planet has known about these lines yet everyone had different names for these lines. look at some of the ancient cultures of the earth.

The native Indians , they used to call lay lines spirit lines and their Shaman’s used to use the magnetic energy in these lines to help them contact the spirits.

 

They even designed their medicine wheel on the spirit lines, as they knew that these lines followed a straight round line. How did they know about these lines and the energies that they give off? The answer’s simple: the sky Gods told them. Also take aborigines Australians called these lines dream lines (song lines mainly referred too). Many races around world has referred some were on line that information was given to them by sky gods. I am not saying that this is true maybe it’s just coincidence that groups from around the world shared the same knowledge. 

 

What started me writing this article was the nine ladies at Stanton moor. There has been a rise of reports round the area mainly around Stanton moor were the stone circles are. one account that i found interesting was a couple Linda and her husband in 1990s took a trip from usa to Stanton moor nine ladies. when they arrived to site there was at the centre of the stone circle. Linda came across a round piece of glass that they referred to as a monocle. In the centre of the glass was a green triangle that was 1/3 inch in diameter. they pocketed the object and took their walk back to car, the time was 3:45 pm. At this point there thought that the time was wrong because that would mean they spent seven hours at the site, when total time would have been two hours.

 

But other there has been many other reports of abductions, strange objects that fly across the sky at an unbelievable rate to cults practicing their magic. Now reports of these unexplained lights, sights and saucers have been released by the Ministry of Defence – a total of 25 files, containing 4,400 pages Defiantly a place of interest if you are into ufo spotting.  

The latest The latest UFO files can be viewed at www.national archives.gov.uk/ufos