The Paranormal Database

Shaking Tree

Location: Stalybridge (Lancashire) - Unknown farm
Type: Other
Date / Time: Prior to a death in the family
Further Comments: The leaves in this tree would shake violently just prior to a family member dying, regardless of wind and weather conditions.

Sarah Harrington

Location: Staveley (Derbyshire) - The Hagge (aka Hagg) (former mansion, now a farmhouse)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Harrington was a former Maid of Honor to Queen Henrietta and is thought to be the phantom woman in white who haunts this building. A mighty oak which stood in the garden was thought to scream and bled when cut; unfortunately, the tree blew down during a gale in 1883.

Elderly Lady in Flowery Dress

Location: Stithians (Cornwall) - Kennall Vale woods
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: September 2004
Further Comments: Two people out for a walk in the woods watched an elderly lady bending down ahead of them, appearing to be picking something up from the ground. The witnesses looked away from the woman briefly, during which time she quickly vanished. The area is also said to be haunted by mill workers.

Army on Manoeuvres

Location: Stockton on the Forest (Yorkshire) - Skies above area
Type: Environmental Manifestation
Date / Time: 13 January 1792
Further Comments: Several people reported seeing a forest in the sky, with soldiers in black uniforms moving around in formation. More soldiers wore white clothing, but appeared to be allied to the other troops, rather than in conflict.

Hanged Soldiers

Location: Stogumber (Somerset) - Heddon oak tree
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The shades of many soldiers hanged on this tree by James II's men are still reported to float around the area. Sometimes the executions can be heard. Another story says that the ghosts are Monmouth's men.

Harriet

Location: Stogursey (Somerset) - The Witch Tree
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The shuck which appears here is believed to contain the spirit of Harriet, once a local witch who remains much feared.

Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?

Location: Stourbridge (West Midlands) - Hagley Wood
Type: Other
Date / Time: 1940s
Further Comments: A woman discovered inside the hollow trunk of a Wych Hazel was thought to have been murdered in an unknown ritual. Shortly after the crime, graffiti sprang up asking 'who put Bella in the Wych Elm?'. The crime remains unsolved to this day, and animals are reported to be weary of the area.

A ghostly dog.

Small White Dog

Location: Stretton (Rutland) - Stocken Hall Farm (now part of an open prison?)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Early twentieth century
Further Comments: This pallid mutt was seen by many people on the site who would try to interact with it, only realising it was a ghost when it vanished before they could touch it. The building was also home to a woman in black who would be seen moving quickly down a corridor, and a ghostly hanging body that dangled from a tree on the grounds.

White Lady

Location: Tangham (Suffolk) - Forest
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Late nineteenth or early twentieth century
Further Comments: A man driving a horse and cart through the woods was startled by the appearance of a white lady on the seat next to him - she vanished as he drove past the last tree of the forest. This story could be an early version of the phantom hitchhiker tales.

Lady Anne's Cracked Grave

Location: Tewin (Hertfordshire) - St Peter's Church
Type: Legend
Date / Time: 1780 to present
Further Comments: Not believing in an afterlife, during her earthly days Lady Anne Grimston scoffed that trees would ruin her tomb if she were wrong. Sure enough, her tomb is now ruined by a large tree that has split the stone open. One legend has the Devil appear near her grave every New Year's Eve, on the stroke of midnight.

Thetford Forest, Norfolk.

Eric

Location: Thetford (Norfolk) - Thetford Forest
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: August 2005
Further Comments: The spectre of an elderly gentleman is said to wander around the picnic site in the forest - it is reported that people have spoken to him before he vanishes into thin air.

Jumping Devil

Location: Thornecombe (Dorset) - Trees between village and Birdsmore Gate
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The Devil is sometimes thought to exercise by jumping over the trees located between these two locations.

Horse sized Dog

Location: Thorney (Northamptonshire) - Woods in the area
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Summer only (reoccurring)
Further Comments: This great dog is said to be the size of a small horse, also sharing a few other equestrian characteristics.

Toft's phantom older lady.

Old Woman

Location: Toft (Cheshire) - Seven Sisters
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The shade of an old woman is reported to sit under this group of trees.

Piskie Kidnapping

Location: Treonike (now St Allen, Truro) (Cornwall) - Nearby woodland
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A young local boy was taken one night by the fairies but found several days later alive and well. He said that a beautiful lady had taken him into a fantastic palace where he had fallen asleep, only to wake up to see his rescuers.

An old woodcut of a ram attacking a well-dressed gentleman.

Shuck and Friends

Location: Tuamgraney (County Clare) - Wooded area
Type: Environmental Manifestation
Date / Time: 31 October (reoccurring)
Further Comments: This wooded hollow is particularly haunted around Halloween, when it is said to change into dense woodland with demonic creatures, including a red eyed dogs and rams.

Little Drummer Boy

Location: Upper Halling (Kent) - Wooded area in the village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: July & August 2004 (dusk)
Further Comments: Local children have reported hearing drumming in an area which is believed to be haunted by a young drummer who died there.

Black Sally's Tree

Location: W1 (Greater London) - Hyde Park
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A tree in the park is rumoured to be haunted by Black Sally, murdered as she slept underneath the canopy. The tree no longer stands, though the rumours of ghosts continue. A clump of trees close to Lancaster Gate were also said to be haunted, this time by the groans and cries of a cancer-ridden man named Sammy. Finally, an elm tree was considered 'evil' and none of the local homeless population would spend a night close to it - the tree was said to whisper during the night, trying to convince anyone sleeping nearby to take their own lives.

Scarred Figure

Location: Ware (Hertfordshire) - Presdlaes School woods
Type: Other
Date / Time: Seen 2003?
Further Comments: A locally told story is that of a hooded character wearing a black cape that runs around this wooded area. The ghost's skin is covered with scar marks, and its bright yellow-green eyes have black slit pupils. The entity chases after anyone it meets.

The phantom horseman never reaches journey's end.

Speeding Horseman

Location: West Auckland (Durham) - Route between town and Hamsterley Forest
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Seen galloping at the speed of an arrow, this horseman vanishes once he enters the dense woodland.

Grey Man

Location: West Saltoun (Lothian) - Woods south of village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A wizard executed in Edinburgh confessed to talking to the ghost which haunted these woods, which manifested as a man dressed in a grey gown.

Warriors

Location: West Stoke (Sussex) - Kingley Vale
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The ghosts reported in this area are said to have strong links to the nearby barrows, connected to a battle that occurred here between Saxons and Viking warriors in the ninth century. Some say that the trees in the area transform into something else at night and move around the area.

Monk

Location: Westerfield (Suffolk) - Tree visible from public footpath between Westerfield and Ipswich
Type: Other
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: A section of dead tree on a footpath running along a farmer's field resembled a monk; young people playing in the area would scare each other with stories about how a monk was hanged there.

Talking Trees

Location: Whitcombe (Dorset) - Culliford Tree (also known as Came Wood)
Type: Other
Date / Time: 1960s
Further Comments: A woman who planned to build a house on this barrow said that she changed her mind after hearing a voice talking to her, sounding as if it had come from the trees.

Little Creature with Glowing Eyes

Location: Wichling (Kent) - Wooded area and the church
Type: Other
Date / Time: 2003
Further Comments: A group of four people in the church yard at night reported seeing a small entity with glowing red eyes run by them. They quickly left after hearing a strange whistling and watching a fast moving cloud cover the area. There are other stories which involve small figures seen standing by the edge of the woods.