Argyll and Bute Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana
Lady
Location: Rothesay - Rothesay Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Local stories tell of a female form which moves along the battlements after dark. One account says the entity is white in colour, while others maintain the ghost is green. The woman is said to have killed herself after being instructed to marry a Viking raider.
Drowned Sailor
Location: Rothesay - Steam yacht moored in bay
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: July 1899
Further Comments: A member of the crew who drowned days previous was blamed when the skipper and engineer were awoken by knocks and rattling sounds. The lid of a pan was thrown at the men by an unseen hand.
Restless Dead
Location: Saddell - Abbey and castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: It is said that a former laird removed the headstones from nearby churchyards to use as construction material for his castle - hence, much of the area is haunted by those disturbed. Particularly noted are the shades of a monk and that of a white lady.
Glassy Eyed Mermaid
Location: Sound of Mull - Sea
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: Pre-twentieth century
Further Comments: Becalmed in their skiff after setting out from the Sound of Mull, two men spotted a creature in the water which had the head, neck and upper torso of a woman, although the hair was coarser and the eyes glassy.
Stone Throwers
Location: Sunipol, Island of Mull - Campbell household, exact location unknown
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This building was bombarded by stones that were thrown from the beach - armed guards patrolling the area could not find the perpetrators, even though the stones rained down around them.
Huge Paws
Location: Tiree - Beach in the area
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A traveller on Tiree came across a large mystery dog in the sand dunes. The following day he found paw prints the size of his palm.
Barking Hound
Location: Tiree - Cladach a Chrogain beach
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This harbinger of doom, known locally as a Cusith, was renowned for its barking - if it yapped once or twice, it was a sign everything was okay, but three times warned of incoming danger for the listener or their family. Some people believe that the creature can become semi-human in appearance.
Cu Sith
Location: Tiree - Unknown
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Two boys spending the night in a shieling hut were awoken by the sound of a large creature on the roof howling. When dawn came and they ventured out, they discovered the large prints of a Cu Sith on the turf roof.
Lizard-like Creature
Location: Tiree - Waters off the island
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 19 July 1934
Further Comments: A fishing boat reported being attacked by this creature, resembling a lizard but fifty foot (fifteen metres) in length with a long neck. The creature took a bite out of the boat before retreating into the deep.
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