The Paranormal Database

Nellie

Location: Slaughterbridge - Worthyvale Manor
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1960s
Further Comments: The footsteps heard around the site during the 1960s were attributed to Nellie, a phantom woman who had been rejected by her lover.

Dorcas

Location: St Agnes - Old mine, Polbreen
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This woman who committed suicide near the mine was often seen drifting around the site, and once saved the life of a miner by calling his name, preventing him from being buried by a rock fall.

The Martyrdom of Agnes from the Golden Legend, 1497.

Stones

Location: St Agnes - St Agnes Beacon
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Stones still present
Further Comments: The stone formation at the top of the hill were carried up by either Saint Agnes or a giant's wife. Another account says that Agnes managed to turn the Devil into stone, where he remains to this day.

Stone Hat

Location: St Austell - Long stone NW of town
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: Saint Austell (or Saint Roach) lost his hat and staff during a storm. When he returned to look for them the following day, he realised the Devil had turned the items to stone. Only the staff remains, in the form of a long stone.

Chef

Location: St Blazey - Cornish Arms public house
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 2006
Further Comments: The poltergeist found in this establishment enjoys ringing a bell in the kitchen which then sounds a different tone. The bottoms of female staff are pinched by an unseen hand and voices have also been heard in an empty bar. A clairvoyant identified the entity as a former chef.

Noisy Dog

Location: St Blazey - Road near town
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This large black dog (some say it is a bear) is said to have sounded like a horse trotting, startling the witnesses who had expected to see a pony.

Hares

Location: St Buryan - Boleigh Fogou
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The Devil would play his pipes at the Fogou during sabbats, with witches transforming into hares and disappearing into the structure.

Frank Lenine

Location: St Buryan - Churchyard
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The son of a farmer, Frank fell in love with one of the servants, a young lady named Nancy. Horrified at his son's choice of potential bride, Frank's father sent him to Australia. A few years later Frank came back but drowned as his ship struck rocks off the coast. He was buried in St Buryan's churchyard. The night after the funeral, Frank appeared to Nancy, taking her from her home to his grave on horseback. She died two days later.

Fairy Cow

Location: St Buryan - Field called Park-an-Ventan, Bosfrancan (no longer there?)
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local farmer once kept a cow that was used by fairies after dark - the little folk were driven away, and the farmer's luck changed from good to bad.

Scraping and Bumping

Location: St Buryan - Moorcroft semi-detached bungalow, exact location unknown
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 1968
Further Comments: Sounds of something large being moved plagued this family of three for several months. The source was never discovered.

Petrified Maidens

Location: St Buryan - Stone Circle
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Stones still there
Further Comments: This stone circle and the surrounding monoliths were once maidens, two pipers and a fiddler (so the legends say) who were turned into stone. It is said that the stones are impossible to move; cattle used in one attempt fell and died.

Jogger

Location: St Cleer - Footpath to Golitha Falls, Bodmin Moor
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: July 2003
Further Comments: A couple walking back from the falls spotted a jogger behind them. The woman was wearing modern fitness clothing and swinging her arms, but never closed the distance between herself and the couple, which remained at around thirty metres. The final time the couple turned to look at her, she had vanished, with no discernible place to go.

Nine Maidens

Location: St Columb Major - Standing Stones
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: These ten stones are said to be nine maidens and a fiddler who were turned to stone for making merry on the Sabbath.

Figure at the Window

Location: St Day - Old church
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: December 2021
Further Comments: Local press carried the story that a paranormal group released video purporting to show a figure standing in an elevated window of this empty church.

Raining Blood

Location: St Dennis - General area
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Prior to disaster
Further Comments: The rain of blood is said to have first fallen here when St Dionysus was murdered in France. It now falls at times of national disaster.

Dando

Location: St Germans - Erth Hill, near the rivers of Tiddy and Lynher
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Circa fourteenth century?
Further Comments: Dando was a monk and a bit of a rogue - he enjoyed hunting on a Sunday. One Sabbath he was out hunting for hare when the Devil appeared and grabbed all the game Dando had hanging from his horse. Old Nick ran, Dando in hot pursuit - unfortunately, the monk lost his balance on the bank of the Tiddy and fell in. The waters turned to steam, and Dando was taken to hell.

Monk

Location: St Germans - Port Eliot Manor House
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: A phantom monk is said to have appeared in this building while a party was underway - he was seen by many of the attendees, which led to the celebration ending prematurely. The ghost is said to be seen mainly by children and is described as a harmless, sad-looking figure.

Ianto Ffranc

Location: St Hilary - Bush Inn
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Highwayman (or pirate) Ianto Ffranc was discovered hiding in a cave close to the inn - he was caught and executed. Ffranc's ghost now haunts the bar.

John Penneck

Location: St Hilary - Exact location unknown
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This former preacher is blamed if the area is hit by large storms, on account of his fiery temper (during life).

St Ives Beach, Cornwall.

Lady with the Lantern

Location: St Ives - Beach
Type: Crisis Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This phantom is said to be that of a shipwrecked woman who lost her child in the accident - she now patrols the beach looking for the youngster and spotting her is considered an ill-omen. Another local story tells of a sinking ship that was once seen off the shore. When rescuers closed in to help survivors, the ship suddenly vanished into thin air.

Reginald Bottrell

Location: St Ives - Carn Glaze
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Circa 1832
Further Comments: Bottrell was a local pirate and rogue, and after he died, took to haunting his former home. A twelve year old child watched the entity for about a minute before it vanished, describing the ghost as short, plump and bald, wearing a long velvet coat and shoes tied with a bow.

Hugh Edwards

Location: St Ives - Globe Inn (aka Tap House), no longer operational
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: Once the residence of the Edwards family, the inn was said to be haunted by Hugh, who accidently rode his horse down an open mine shaft at night. The ghost would be heard walking loudly up the staircase and using his riding crop to strike thrice on a bedroom door.

Well Dressed Lady

Location: St Ives - John Knill's House, Fore Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: A room in this building was sealed off to prevent the inhabitants disturbing the ghost of a wealthy lady that lurked within.

Jack Harry's Lights

Location: St Ives - Off coast
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Weather Dependent: Prior to a storm
Further Comments: Reputedly named after the first person to mistake the lights for a real ship, the lights appear and attempt to lure other vessels out to sea to be caught up in an impending storm.

Howlers

Location: St Ives - Old Market House (demolished 1830s, rebuilt on same spot)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Pre-1830s
Further Comments: Once used to hold prisoners, the Market House became known for their ghosts which would howl when the sun descended. The ghosts were banished by a local ghost layer who, armed with bell, book and candle, performed his exorcism through a window.