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Gloucestershire Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana

Little Man

Location: Coleford - Unknown building in town
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: 1926?
Further Comments: A little man-like figure was found in crawling around in a coal scuttle. The figure was carried out and left on the driveway, never to be seen again.


ID #11196, last updated 2012-12-16

Rider

Location: Compton Abdale - Puesdown Inn
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2014
Further Comments: A man on horseback, considered to be a highwayman, reportedly haunts this building. It may have been this entity which created the loud heavy footsteps from above which followed one witness along the corridor to the back rooms; when asked, the owners said no one else was updates at the time.


ID #3252, last updated 2024-11-23

Grey Lady

Location: Cranham - General area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: October 2000
Further Comments: A phantom grey woman is said to haunt this village. She may have last been seen by a group of friends out walking across fields in the evening.


ID #9250, last updated 2009-04-18

Smith's Wyrm

Location: Deerhurst - Exact location unknown
Type: Dragon
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: John Smith, a local hero, was rewarded with a large amount of land after killing a dragon that was trying to make a home in the neighbourhood. Smith left a large quantity of milk for the creature to consume. The wyrm drank so much milk that kinks appeared in its scales, enabling Smith to decapitate it with an axe.


ID #2433, last updated 2002-09-22

Strange Woman

Location: Deerhurst - Lane leading to the priory
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1965
Further Comments: A female phantom dressed in green 1920s clothes was observed here. She stared intensely at the witness before quickly moving off and vanishing towards the church.


ID #6803, last updated 2006-03-24

Mistimed

Location: Dursley - Old Bell Hotel, Long Street
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: One witness described being woken by a voice calling out 'Its eight o'clock!', even though it was three in the morning. A phantom monk and a figure resembling a chambermaid have also been spotted within the walls.


ID #3253, last updated 2002-12-05

Grey Lady

Location: Dyrham - Church
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A phantom woman is said to haunt this churchyard.


ID #9241, last updated 2009-04-16

Bottomless

Location: Elmore - Place once known as the Groundless Pit
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown if still present
Further Comments: A pit filled with water was once believed to be bottomless. It probably was not.


ID #13540, last updated 2020-02-04


Madonna in Glory Crowned by Angels

Eoves

Location: Evesham - General area
Type: Legend
Date / Time: AD 701
Further Comments: Evesham is said to have taken its name from a swineherd named Eoves. He had a vision of the Madonna and reported it to the Bishop of Worcester. The Bishop instructed a cathedral be constructed on the site, naming it 'Eoves Ham'.


ID #11013, last updated 2012-07-20


An old woodcut appearing to show figures summoning a winged beast.

Town Witches

Location: Fairford - Poulton Crossroads
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A small group of evil witches are said to have once plagued the town. After they died, they were buried at this crossroads, and their shades now haunt the area.


ID #5119, last updated 2004-05-03

Whisperings

Location: Fairford - Private cottage
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twenty-first century?
Further Comments: The whispering voices of females were heard in the main bedroom, while the presence of a woman or girl would be felt around the stairs and the lower part of the building.


ID #10901, last updated 2012-06-09

Get-it-to-Go

Location: Forest of Dean - Area around Ruardean Hill
Type: Post-Mortem Manifestation
Date / Time: 1890
Further Comments: A family living in the area reported hearing hammering and drilling sounds for several months from a disused pit close to their property. When finally investigated, the body of a man was discovered; a local stonemason nicknamed 'Get-it-to-Go' had disappeared around the time the hammering started, and although the body was in a bad state, it was identified as the missing man. The sounds stopped after the body was removed.


ID #7247, last updated 2007-04-08


An old postcard showing the Forest of Dean.

Moose-Pig

Location: Forest of Dean - General area
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Circa 1802
Further Comments: A massive wild boar was said to live in the forest, large enough to knock down trees. A group of farmers hunted the creature but were unable to find the beast.


ID #11866, last updated 2015-07-05

The Black Boy

Location: Forest of Dean - Littledean Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1984
Further Comments: The Black Boy was a servant of Charles Pyke - they were always considered to be as close as brothers, until the servant killed Pyke in 1744. Now the boy haunts the building, along with a ghostly cavalier, the sounds of screaming and heavy footfalls.


ID #2130, last updated 2002-08-12

Little Man

Location: Forest of Dean - Poolway Colliery (no longer operational)
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: April 1926
Further Comments: 'A little, brown, man-like creature' was found at this mine - witnesses used sticks to move it, but it was 'lost' a short time later.


ID #11195, last updated 2012-12-16

Knight in Shining Armour

Location: Forest of Dean - Saint Briavel's castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Woman seen 1998
Further Comments: Seen in the grounds and along corridors of this former castle (now a hostel) a figure in armour has been known to appear. It is not known if he is responsible for the disembodied footsteps along the walkways. A young child has been heard to cry in the King's Hall (where the bones of a baby were once found walled up), and finally a ghostly woman in white was spotted on the staircase in 1998.


ID #7080, last updated 2006-12-26


An old postcard of The Buckstone in the Forest of Dean.

Flood Placed

Location: Forest of Dean - The Buckstone
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Stone still present (but no longer rocks)
Further Comments: The Buckstone, a former rocking stone, was said to have been placed by the waters of the flood as they subsided. Folklore says it was used by druids as a place of sacrifice.


ID #13927, last updated 2020-09-16


A quiet road leading from Fossebridge, Gloucestershire.

Motorbike & Sidecar

Location: Fossebridge - Roads around the area
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: August 1997
Further Comments: Three men in a car reported being followed by this aging vehicle, ridden by a man with no crash helmet. It suddenly vanished while close behind them.


ID #2500, last updated 2002-10-01

Odin

Location: Gatcombe - Gatcombe Park
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The large phantom dog reputed to haunt this royal household is named the 'Hound of Odin'.


ID #7201, last updated 2007-04-06

Pot of Gold

Location: Gatcombe - Gatcombe Tump (long barrow)
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A woman named Molly is said to have had a dream about finding gold at this location. The story ends either with Molly being struck by lightning as she lifts the stone, a ghost scaring her away, a ghost asking her husband to name five local churches (which he fails to do), or Molly recovering the gold.


ID #11048, last updated 2012-07-29


An old postcard showing the city of Gloucester.

Hooded Figure

Location: Gloucester - 120 Westgate Street (no longer standing)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This ghost was said to stand in the back room of the building, scaring pets and other animals.


ID #3798, last updated 2003-02-12

Robed Figure

Location: Gloucester - Anglian Windows, Westgate Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1988
Further Comments: A robed man and poltergeist activity have been reported in this showroom - in one instance, a roll of carpet was seen to levitate.


ID #11070, last updated 2012-07-29

Helping Hand

Location: Gloucester - Bishop's House
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Guests donning their coats as they prepare to leave have felt someone give them a hand - but no one is there as they turn to give thanks.


ID #3797, last updated 2003-02-12

Bleeding Friar

Location: Gloucester - Blackfriars Priory
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Seen running down a corridor with a serious head injury, it is not known if the friar died because of his wound. Another more common apparition is that of a monk, and he is also blamed for locking doors which are normally left open.


ID #2019, last updated 2002-08-06

Shadow

Location: Gloucester - Blenheim Road
Type: Other
Date / Time: August 1905
Further Comments: Police were called to maintain the peace after hundreds of people arrived at this road to see a ghost, thought the 'entity' was first spotted by an intoxicated man and was later identified as a shadow.


ID #12076, last updated 2016-03-20

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