Midweek Mysteries: Whitby *New Blog Series*

Hello my lovelies and welcome to my new blog series Midweek Mysteries! Every Wednesday I'll be publishing paranormal stories from around the world. I thought I'd kick things off with a few stories from the town that featured in my last post, Whitby.



Whitby is an ancient town in North Yorkshire which is surrounded by folklore and creepy tales. Residing within the North York Moors, it isn't hard to picture ghostly figures wondering around on the long, dark Winter nights when the wind is howling through the silent, cobbled streets. You can read more about the town in my recent post here.

Our first story takes us up the 199 steps to St. Mary's Churchyard. Imagine climbing the Abbey steps on a bitterly cold, dreary Winter night and entering the graveyard in front of the church. It's so dark that the ruins of the Abbey are barely visible, but still looming over you. You walk around the churchyard, among the tombstones of deceased sailors who died on land and therefore couldn't be buried at sea. You think you hear horses trotting in the distance, and then assure yourself that no one is around this late. You continue walking around the graves, admiring the view of the town from the cliff top when you suddenly see the silhouette of a horse-drawn carriage hurtling towards you, the driver whipping his horses to gallop faster and faster. It's too dark for the driver to see so you start to run towards the steps, trying to escape. You hear the carriage slowing down and turn around just in time to see it stop in front of the church doors before slowly fading from view... You are alone once again.

This is the haunting of the Barguest Coach. According to legend it would come to visit the graves of sailors on the third night after they were buried. Witnesses of the carriage have reported that it is driven by headless horses and the skeletons of dead sailors ride inside the coach. They come to pay their respects to their fellow seaman, before his soul boards the carriage with them and they ride off together. Those unlucky few who happen to be in the churchyard in the dead of night might just encounter the Barguest Coach...

St.Mary's Churchyard with the Abbey in view

Our second story is on the East cliff, the other side of the town. You've now descended the Abbey steps, walked along the cobbled, moonlit streets and crossed the swing bridge. You walk along the harbour towards the sea and onto the pier. You gaze out to the ocean as you try to catch your breath, still frightened from what you've just experienced in the churchyard. You glance the lighthouse at the end of the pier and find it rather charming. You ramble along the pier until you stand at the base of the lighthouse, which now appears much larger than it did from a distance. The wind howls loudly around the building and black waves crash off the pier. It unexpectedly starts raining, heavily. You aren't wearing a raincoat and you try the door handle. To your surprise, it opens and you step inside to shelter from the rain. You think you hear footsteps upstairs, but remind yourself that it's probably the rain battering down on the lighthouse. You hear some more steps, before a series of loud bangs echoes down the spiral staircase. Terrified, you grapple for the door handle but in your frenzy you struggle to turn it. You hear a loud bang right behind you and then silence. Maybe something fell down the stairs, you think. The wind could've got through a broken window and blown something down the stairwell. You slowly turn around and see a lifeless man lying at the foot of the stairs. Frozen in terror, you are too scared to scream for help. Almost immediately, you come back to your senses and start dialling for help. You look up from your phone, the body has vanished.

The haunting of Whitby West Lighthouse. Many years ago there was a huge storm one night in Whitby, the winds were so strong that the lighthouse keeper decided to leave his home and head out into the storm to fulfill his duties. He knew how dangerous this storm would be for any boats deciding to come into the harbour and he didn't want any shipwrecks or fatalities on his watch. He only achieved the former, there would be one fatality that night. He hurriedly put on his coat and rain boots and trenched out into the storm. He climbed the stairs of the lighthouse, his coat was soaking wet from the rain. He didn't notice the water dripping onto the steps. He turned the light on, and confident that he'd completed his work for that night he hurried back down the steps. On the way down he slipped on the rain-soaked steps and tumbled all the way down the staircase. By the time he reached the bottom, he was dead. Some people who visit the lighthouse have reported seeing the ghostly lighthouse keeper walking towards the end of the pier to fulfill his duties. An unfortunate few have seen his lifeless body lying at the base of the stairs...

The West Lighthouse


Our third and last story happens in the place you might go to seek refuge from the strange occurrences. You run out of the lighthouse and sprint back down the pier, no longer caring about the rain. You run past the empty arcades and restaurants, past all the shops along the harbour front and past the swing bridge. You run down New Quay Road and past the train station. You see Pannett Park ahead and breathe a sigh of relief. You're back at your hotel, Bagdale Hall. You open the door and take in the cosy, warm reception area. The bar is still open so you order something strong to help calm your nerves. The bartender jokes that you look like you've seen a ghost. 'There's plenty more of them here' he laughs before sauntering back into the kitchen. You hear a child crying right behind you, but when you turn around the room is empty...

Bagdale hall is a 500 year old Tudor building opposite Pannett Park which boasts plenty of spirits that haunt the halls. Both guests and hotel staff have reported spooky happenings whilst inside the hotel. The most well-known ghost to manifest is of a pirate called Browne Bushell, who owned the hotel during the 17th Century. He often jumped sides during the English Civil War and was eventually beheaded for his treason. He supposedly returned to the hotel after his death and a sense of doom lets frequenters of the hotel know when he's around. There are many other spooky occurrences at Bagdale, including the sound of children playing in empty rooms and poltergeist activity.

So that was my first Midweek Mysteries post, I'd love to know what you thought of it and if you'd like to read more of this series! If you have any suggestions for what place I should feature next, please let me know in the comments below.

Sweet dreams...

Loppy x

Sources:
https://www.thewhitbyguide.co.uk/five-haunted-places-in-whitby/
https://shoreline-cottages.com/whitby-life-blog/whitbys-famous-ghost-stories-and-mythical-tales/

6 comments:

  1. I'm so gonna keep up with this series; they are so nice like spooky but nice spooky. loved them. Keep writing

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow these are great urban legends! I love a good ghost tour or haunted city tours not only do you get some history you might see a spirit of two. Perfect for a spooky fall nighttime adventure!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ooooo i am terrified of anything spooky yet i could not stop reading! Loved this post!!

    ReplyDelete

INSTAGRAM