Peculiar Archives

The death of St John’s Church at Liverpool

January 16, 2009 by Andrew Leave a Comment

The area of St John’s Garden in Liverpool was once a burial ground. In 1767 the area contained a small mortuary chapel and general burial site. The construction of St John’s Church began in 1775 and was started by Thomas Litoller. Litoller would use a gothic design that would later influence buildings like St George’s Hall.

The construction of St George’s Hall started in 1854 and when it finished St John’s Church was hard against the west elevation.

The name St John’s Garden comes from St John’s Church as the Church once stood within the grounds of the garden.

The graveyard and cemetery contained about 27,000 bodies before it was closed in 1854. The closure was due to the extension of St George’s Hall and surrounding buildings. Parts of these buildings still remain on the old burial ground.

Demons from the TV: safety tips

January 16, 2009 by Andrew 3 Comments

It’s pretty common to feel the chills after watching a TV program like Most Haunted or Ghost Hunters. Sometimes, however, sensitive people might suspect that there is more going on than just a case of getting the spooks and that the atmosphere at home has really changed.

The question is can a demon or apparition enter your home through a TV?

Is there something strange at Bidston Hall?

January 15, 2009 by Andrew 35 Comments

Bidston, just west of Birkenhead and south of Liverpool, is an area of Merseyside with dark history.

One of the worse murders of the 19th century can be attributed to the area. The discovery of the remains a family of five was found buried in the cellar of a building near Rain Hill. Emily Williams and her children; Bertha, Marie, Lilla and Syndey had been cruelly butchered.

Suspicion soon fell on the surviving member of the family – the father and husband – who had fled. Police investigated and discovered that Williams had a dark past. Williams true name was likely to be Deeming. Deeming was also suspected for murder – his wife Marie. He had grown up in the Bidston area of Birkenhead before going on to travel the world and using such esoteric aliases as Baron Swanston.

Ghosts and murder at Samlesbury Hall

January 14, 2009 by Andrew 11 Comments

Samlesbury Hall has been investigated by a number of professional ghost-hunters from the UK and abroad. In this video (1m44) the BBC narrates some of the more popular stories while the American ghost-hunters set up their equipment. There have been many deaths at Samlesbury Hall in its 700 year history.

Most Haunted (series five) investigated the hall. Derek Acorah was possessed by a spirit calling herself Dorothy. While possessed Acorah refers to ‘father’ and ‘the devil’.

Ghosts in the mortuary and witches in Liverpool’s Central Library?

January 13, 2009 by Andrew 7 Comments

Liverpool’s Central Library is a complex set of buildings, some of which are grade II listed and others due for demolition and replacement. The library’s eldest building is the William Brown Library and Museum, which was extended in 1879 to the Picton Reading Room and then the Hornby Library in 1906.

Central Library is part of the William Brown Street conservation area. This area includes the unusual St John’s Gardens and St John’s Church.

St John’s Church was designed by Thomas Litoller and construction started in 1767 in an area which was once used as the general burial ground of a small mortuary chapel. St George’s Hall’s west elevation backs against the Church.

Is the Stanley Dock Tobacco Warehouse now haunted by Headless Moll?

January 12, 2009 by Andrew 13 Comments

The Stanley Dock opened in 1848 and was designed by Jesse Hartley. The Stanley Dock Warehouse was opened later, in 1901, and is a grade II listed building. In 2006 work began in a £20,000,000 exercise to link the connecting Leeds and Liverpool Canal to the waterways of Pier Head.

In 1901 when the Stanley Dock Tobacco Warehouse was finished it covered the largest area of any other building. The building was used by a morgue for dead American servicemen during the war during which time it became infamous when a body snatcher was discovered and shot dead.

The dock and warehouse were used up until 1980. During their lifetime they served as a port on the sea routes between the United Kingdom and America. As a busy port it was the location for numerous murders. Immigrants and travelers, especially the Irish, were often blamed for the deaths and sometimes without any evidence at all.

The Empire Theatre and other haunted theatres in Liverpool

January 11, 2009 by Andrew 4 Comments

Liverpool was the European City of Culture for 2008. In 2009 it handed the title over to the Austrian city of Linz. The city itself was founded in 1207 as a borough and now has a population of a little less than half a million. There are a number of theatres in Liverpool and this […]

Psychic criminology

January 11, 2009 by Andrew Leave a Comment

Psychic criminology is the use of psychics in the investigation of civil or criminal cases. Psychic criminology is also used in jury selection. Psychic criminology has grown since World War II, has had a number of public successes with some celebrity psychics but remains controverial. Psychometry is the main psychic technique used in psychic criminology […]

St George’s Hall

January 10, 2009 by Andrew 5 Comments

Described as the first non-classical building in Europe, St George’s Hall was designed by Harvey Lonsdale Elmes and opened to the public of Liverpool in September 1854. St George’s Hall was frequently visited by Charles Dickens. Only 25% of the building was open during Dickens time and the hall fell into a state of disrepair. […]

The White Lady of Tyrone: Ghost-hunters flock to the scene

January 8, 2009 by Andrew 1 Comment

In recent weeks there have been a number of reported sightings of a white lady haunting a remote spot in Country Tyrone in Northern Ireland.

The reported sightings have become so wide spread and so common that cars belonging to sightseers and ghost-hunters clog the Mullaghmoyle Road, near Coalisland, where the ghostly woman has been seen the most often.

The sightings are compelling. Raymond Bell told the Daily Telegraph that his 17-year-old son did not believe in ghosts but after witnessing the white lady on numerous occasions had changed his mind.

Local politician Desmond Donnelly dismissed the sightings, saying; “If you ask me, it’s more likely to be a reflection of the moon on the river that flows through the area.”

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