The Paranormal Database

Strange Noises

Location: Hazelwood - The Knowle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Pre-1953
Further Comments: After writer Edith Maud Hull's death, her former home became the headquarters to the Anglamol company. The company said in a newspaper article that they occasionally received queries whether the staff heard strange noises at night, caused by the resident ghost (they had not).

George Pole

Location: Heage - Heage House (now converted into cottages?)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Pole unknown, Mrs Argile early twentieth century
Further Comments: Pole was an evil man who beat his wife until she slowly wasted away (some say she may have committed suicide). Even though he built the local church to atone for his sins, his ghost was seen several times after his death in various forms (including a foal and a large crow) before being laid by a Parson. Many years later, another phantom took up haunting the house - Mrs Argile died in 1927 but was seen a few years later by a serving girl who herself died six weeks later.

Mary Queen of Scots.

Mary Queen of Scots

Location: Heage - Pickard Lane
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The ghost of Mary Queen of Scots, who visited Heage Hall whilst incarcerated at South Wingfield, manifests as a figure on a brown horse dressed in her Tudor riding clothes, although it is said she is more likely to be heard rather than seen.

Lady in Dress

Location: Heage - The Ridgeway, a private house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: A young lady wearing a summer dress silently descended the staircase and vanished once reaching the bottom.

Sukey

Location: Heanor - Sukey's Hollow, near White Cottage (no longer standing)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown - pre 1930s?
Further Comments: Sukey was a servant murdered along this once dark footpath and refused to leave post-mortem. Her presence may have remained at a warning to others, for another woman had previously been killed along the lane.

Black Car Vanishes

Location: Holme Moss - A6024, where it emerges from the Longdenvale Valley
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: 1999
Further Comments: Mr Andrew Sylvester reported seeing an old fashioned car in mint condition that vanished behind him as he drove along this barren road.

Invisible to Some

Location: Holmesfield - Bury Hill ('three lane ends'), although cannot find on modern maps
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The barghast, a demonic dog with saucer-sized eyes, was considered a death omen. The creature which lurked here was spotted by a woman, but remained invisible to her sister who walked besides her. The sister died a month later.

Secret Passage

Location: Holmesfield - Holmesfield Castle
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A piece of local folklore said the castle and Holmesfield Hall were connected by a secret passage. Contained within the passage sat an iron box filled with treasure, but it was protected by a cockerel which would crow if approached.

Kindly Fairies

Location: Holmesfield - Moorwood's Farm (aka Morewood's Farm)
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown, possibly pre-nineteenth century
Further Comments: A woman who lived at the farm returned from her daughter's funeral to find her home had been tidied and a fire burning in the hearth. The woman believed that the little folk had been at work.

Shadows

Location: Holymoorside - Birkenshaw Wood, Cliff Bottoms
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 6 February 2020, 17:30h
Further Comments: Just after crossing the steppingstones here, a witness reported the hairs on the back on their neck stand up just prior to spotting dark shadows moving around ahead on the path. The experience lasted around fifteen seconds before they faded away. The witness spoke to one of the villagers who said their dog would cower if taken to the wood.

Bright Lights

Location: Holymoorside - Windy Fields Road
Type: UFO
Date / Time: 06 February 2020, 19:30h
Further Comments: While walking their dog, a witness watched several fast moving bright lights high in the sky performing irregular manoeuvres. The witness later checked for aircraft in the area, but the UFOs could not be explained by the few aircraft which were out on the night in question.

Second World War Aircraft

Location: Hope - Aston Lane, near the railway bridge, skies over
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: April 1995
Further Comments: Witness Tony Ingle watched a totally silent aircraft fly past him, a mere 15 meters above the ground, before it dived behind a hill. Expecting to find the crash site, Mr Ingle investigated but found nothing there.

Running

Location: Hope Valley - Traveller's Rest public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late 2004 - Early 2005
Further Comments: An employee leaving at the pub reported hearing two sets of footsteps running down the corridor, one light and one heavy. The sounds turned into a loud banging sound, as if someone had fallen down the stairs. Over the next few months, only the light footsteps were heard, as were gentle whimpering sounds.

Lorry

Location: Hyde - A57, between Hyde and Mottram in Longdendale
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1930
Further Comments: This phantom vehicle was blamed for a series of accidents on this stretch of road in which several people died.

Waist-High Cat

Location: Ilkeston - Bridge Street
Type: ABC
Date / Time: 29 May 2025, just after midnight
Further Comments: A man walking his dog encountered a large black cat that stood around waist-height. He reported the encounter to a police officer who he spotted on the way home, although the officer could not locate the cat.

Blurred Figure

Location: Ilkeston - Denleen Separates Ltd, Primrose Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1972
Further Comments: A grey woman wearing a long flowing dress was seen by several witnesses working in the building, always at 08:00, running towards the staircase where she would vanish.

Different Gates

Location: Kneesall - Churchyard
Type: Other
Date / Time: Nineteenth century
Further Comments: The church was said to have two gates. One was the lychgate (or corpse gate), the other being the bride gate. The bride would never enter via the lychgate.

Peggy Whooper

Location: Kneesall - Common on the road between village and Ossington
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The road was said to be home to a phantom woman who would make her presence known after sunset.

Beast of Carsington

Location: Kniveton - General Area
Type: ABC
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: Seen dozens of times over the nineties, this ABC matched the description common over the country - large and black.

Hairy Man

Location: Ladybower Reservoir - A57, roadside
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Family sighting in 1991, figure in the trees reported Early 2006
Further Comments: Standing almost two and a half metres tall and covered in long brown hair, a family watched this creature from the roadside. A passing car scared the man-like figure off, and it vanished into nearby woodland. More recently, a group of friends reported a figure in the trees accompanied by small green lights.

Horse & Cart

Location: Ladybower Reservoir - A6013
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Mid twentieth century?
Further Comments: A motorcyclist encountered a horse pulling a cart with a high back and sides, being led by a man holding a large whip. As the cyclist slowed to overtake the cart, he was momentarily blinded by an approaching car. When his vision had returned to normal after a few seconds, the cart had vanished.

Headless Coachman

Location: Leam - Leam Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Early twentieth century
Further Comments: A groom and his assistant heard galloping approaching Leam Hall. Expecting the lord and lady of the hall, the pair stood outside awaiting the coach. However, instead of the master's coach, the approaching vehicle was of a 'strange design' and was driven by a headless man. The phantom coach was driven straight past the witnesses and vanished into a closed gate.

Woman in Skirt

Location: Linton - Private residence, Coton Park
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1970s
Further Comments: A former resident reported seeing a woman in a long grey skirt pass by one of the doors in this property. On another occasion, the same witness spotted a boy sitting on the foot of their bed - the figure faded away. Years after moving from the property, the witness heard that former occupants had left after their children had experienced strange sights.

The Devil gives chase across a field.

Cheated Devil

Location: Longdendale - Devil's Elbow (rock formation)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Rock still present
Further Comments: This rock formation is said to be made from the Devil's arm, which was turned to stone after he failed to catch a maiden on the run from her father.

Flickering Person

Location: Longdendale - Path between Rhodeswood and Torside along Rhodeswood Reservoir
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 23 September 2023, around 19:15h
Further Comments: A married couple walking along the path spotted a figure dressed in dark clothing approaching them. The figure seemed to flicker, and the facial features could not be seen. As the couple moved closer, the dark figure moved into the bushes and disappeared. When the couple investigated where the figure had gone, they could see a wide stream beyond, but had not heard any splashing or other noises from the area. One of the witnesses said the figure acted as if it was frightened.