Poltergeist

**Poltergeist** is an extremely malevolent and destructive entity common in the folklore and mythology of almost every culture on Earth. The name itself translates into "noisy ghost", but poltergeists exhibit specific powers and patterns that differ them from regular ghosts. It is believed that poltergeists will attach themselves to a victim who attempts to flee or exorcise the spirits, resulting in great disaster. Even if exorcised completely, there have been accounts of poltergeists returning to plague their victims again. While ghosts will haunt a specific area (normally the place of their death), a poltergeist may latch onto a family or individual, and become a plague upon their life. Even the moving home is said to be futile, as the poltergeist will follow its victim if it has latched on.

## History

### Drummer of Tedworth

Main article: Drummer of Tedworth
in 1662, when Mompesson met a stranger on the street with a drum who was said to be blackmailing people under false pretenses. The foreigner's official became suspicious that he had come to England with false documents, so he asked the local law enforcement officers to arrest him. His instincts proved correct and so the stranger (under the supposed name of Drury) was brought to justice. He was found guilty and deported from England, but escaped during transportation. The public did not consider him a potential threat, so the case was soon forgotten. Mompesson confiscated his drum from the stranger and returned it to his house in Tedworth, where he was immediately informed that the house was in turmoil.

At first, some kind of "hollow noises" could be heard in the house, which seemed to come from outside every time the family got into their beds. Strange knockings and heavy beatings on a drum, which was stored under a board in the floor in one bedroom, were then heard in the rooms at night. The apparition later imitated other sounds and people and servants' beds were blown up on several occasions. The activity later focused exclusively on the official's children, and when the neighbors and the priest were called to help, prayers only banished the spirit to the attic. During the visit, chairs were moved around the rooms and all the smaller things were scattered around. One rod from the bed hit the priest in the leg, but according to him, in such a way that "not even a ball of cotton would fall so weakly".

In December 1662, the activity changed. According to Mompesson, the ghost performed different tricks every night. Once he scattered his mother's clothes on the bed, another time he allegedly hid the Bible in the ashes in the hearth. Friends of the family saw the shoes being thrown at Mompesson by an unknown force. The apparitions continued every night, and once Mompesson and his wife saw a kind of luminous apparition that entered their bedroom at night. The light then appeared in their children's rooms as well, and the servants also confirmed that the door sometimes closed right in front of their eyes. In January, a voice was even heard in the house repeating only one word over and over: "witch".

Mompesson speculated that all these events were the result of a curse cast on him by Drury the drummer using dark spells. It is said that when he once asked the ghost if Drury was to blame, the apparition confirmed it by tapping. In his diary, he mentions even more disturbing phenomena that focused on his daughter. Once the ghost walked around her bed and repeatedly pulled her from both sides. At other times, sounds similar to the panting of a dog could be heard from the bed, and there were also strange smells and sudden increases in temperature in the rooms where the children slept. It is unclear whether all this information is authentic and how the case ends. Some consider him only a legend and others a mere fraud. In general, however, this is one of the first known cases of the spirit's rampage, which we know today as a poltergeist.

### Mackie Poltergeist

Main article: Mackie Poltergeist
According to a pamphlet first published by local minister Alexander Telfair in 1696, a farm called The Ring-Croft of Stocking inhabited by the family of stonemason and farmer Andrew MacKie was the site of mysterious occurrences such as stones being thrown, cattle being moved, buildings set on fire, voices heard, family members beaten and dragged, and notes found written in blood. Telfair wrote that neighbours were hit by rocks and beaten by staves, and that he had seen and felt a ghostly arm which quickly vanished. In the pamphlet, Telfair described various things suspected "to have been the occasion of the Trouble", including MacKie supposedly taking an oath to devote his first child to the Devil, clothes left in the house by a "woman of ill repute", and failure to burn a tooth buried under the threshold stone by a previous tenant as advised by a 'witch wife', but declared the matter "still unknown." According to the story, after Telfair and several other clergymen said prayers at the farm, the trouble eventually subsided.

Telfair's pamphlet, entitled "A TRUE RELATION OF AN Apparition, Expressions and Actings, OF A SPIRIT, Which Infested the House of Andrew Mackie in Ring-Croft of Stocking, in the Paroch of Rerrick, in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, in Scotland. By Mr. Alexander Telfair, Minister of that Paroch: and Attested by many other Persons, who were also Eye and Ear-Witnesses", was published by an Edinburgh printer in 1696 and sold at the shop of George Mosman. Telfair's account ascribed the activity to a "violent noisy spirit", and in modern times the episode has been referred to as the "Ringcroft poltergeist", the "Rerrick (or Rerwick) poltergeist," or the "Mackie poltergeist".

### Stockwell Ghost

Main article: Stockwell Ghost
In 1772, it was a *hotbed* of *Ghostly* activity of one *Mrs. Golding* a Widower. According to reports (that made Newspapers) Her *shelves came to life*. All cups and plates even food, were thrown about Her House *wildly, with a life of their own!* Mrs. Golding ran to a Friends home and the phenomenon *followed Her*. In short, *wherever she went, so did The Poltergeist*. The Event was witnessed by Mrs. Golding's Servant one Ann Robinson. Then, after investigation, it was noted that whenever Ann was *not present* neither was The *Poltergeist*. Then the truth became known. Ann, it seems was trying to *drive Her Employer quite insane*. Having erected a series of *gimmicks* to achieve the *effects*, the so-called *Stockwell Ghost* was nothing more than a Confidence Hoax. At least this was the official findings of Investigators. Some, however did not readily agree with the findings. While Ann was sent to Prison, and Mrs. Golding died several years later Her House was never again *habitable* by any future Owners (who also reported strange incidents although not as *spectacular*). The House was torn down in the 1870s.

### Great Amherst Mystery

Main article: Great Amherst Mystery
According to Hubbell's account, events began at the end of August 1878, after Esther Cox, then aged 18, was subjected to an attempted sexual assault by a male friend at gunpoint. This left her in great distress, and shortly after this the physical phenomena began. There were knockings, bangings and rustlings in the night, and Esther herself began to suffer seizures in which her body visibly swelled and she was feverish and chilled by turns. Then objects in the house took flight.

The frightened family called in a doctor. During his visit, bedclothes moved, scratching noises were heard and the words "Esther Cox, you are mine to kill" appeared on the wall by the head of Esther's bed. The following day the doctor administered sedatives to Esther to calm her and help her sleep, whereupon more noises and flying objects manifested themselves. Attempts to communicate with the "spirit" resulted in tapped responses to questions.

The phenomena continued for some months, and became well known locally. Visitors to the cottage, including clergymen, heard banging and knocking and witnessed moving objects, often when Esther herself was under close observation. In December Esther fell ill with diphtheria. No phenomena were observed during the two weeks she spent in bed, nor during the time she spent recuperating afterwards at the home of a married sister in Sackville, New Brunswick. However, when she returned to Amherst the mysterious events began again, this time involving the outbreak of fires in various places in the house. Esther herself now claimed to see the "ghost", which threatened to burn the house down unless she left.

In January 1879 Esther moved in with another local family, but the manifestations around her continued and were witnessed by many people, some of whom conversed with the "ghost" by questioning and rapped answers. Some were curious and sympathetic; others believed Esther herself to be responsible for the phenomena, and she met with some hostility locally. Esther was frequently slapped, pricked and scratched by the "ghost", and on one occasion was stabbed in the back with a clasp knife. Interest in the case grew as the news spread, and in late March Esther spent some time in Saint John, New Brunswick, where she was investigated by some local gentlemen with an interest in science. By now, several distinct "spirits" were apparently associated with Esther and communicating with onlookers via knocks and rappings. "Bob Nickle", the original "ghost", claimed to have been a shoemaker in life, and others identified themselves as "Peter Cox", a relative of Esther's, and "Maggie Fisher". After the visit to Saint John, Esther spent some time with the Van Amberghs, friends with a peaceful farm near Amherst and then returned to the Teeds' cottage in the summer of 1879, whereupon the phenomena broke out again. It was at this point that Walter Hubbell arrived, attracted by the publicity surrounding the case, and moved into the Teed cottage as a lodger to investigate the phenomena.

Hubbell spent some weeks with Esther and her family, and reported having personally witnessed moving objects, fires and items appearing from nowhere and claimed that he saw phenomena occur even when Esther herself was in full view and obviously unconnected with them. He also claimed to have witnessed attacks on Esther with pins and other sharp objects, and to have seen her in several of her fits of extreme swelling and pain. He communicated with the various named "spirits" by rapping, and listed three others: "Mary Fisher", "Jane Nickle" and "Eliza McNeal", who were also manifesting themselves as part of events.

With Hubbell's professional help, Esther Cox embarked on a speaking tour, attracting audiences who paid to see her and hear her story. However, she met with some hostile reactions and, after she was heckled one night and a disturbance broke out, the attempt was abandoned. She returned to Amherst once more, working for a man named Arthur Davison, but after his barn burned down he accused her of arson and she was convicted and sentenced to four months in prison, although she was released after only one. After this, the phenomena ceased for good. Esther Cox subsequently married twice, having a son by each of her husbands. She moved to Brockton, Massachusetts with her second husband and died on 8 November 1912, aged 52.

### Cooneen Poltergeist

Main article: Cooneen Poltergeist
1913, phenomena began to happen in the house that had no explanation and which eventually even led to real exorcisms led by local priests. Initially mild signs of haunting eventually led to the family leaving and the house being called the "Coneen Ghost House" to this day.

At first, the family only heard occasional knocks on the front door. However, when someone went to open it, there was no one behind them. The knocking gradually increased and echoed on the windows and other doors, often resembling the melody of well-known songs. A stone staircase led to the attic of the house, on which heavy steps were later heard. However, during the survey, no person was ever found who could cause them. These phenomena were soon experienced by several familiar families who came to visit and confirmed the mentioned reports.

Not long after that, however, things began to deteriorate. The poltergeist, who ran amok in the house, started throwing plates against the wall and lifting the children's beds, sometimes while they were sleeping in them. Events were so dramatic at the time that Mrs. Murphy called Reverend Coyle of Maguiresbridge instead. He also saw strange phenomena with his own eyes, and even supposedly saw some shadows appearing and disappearing on the walls. Pots and pans also flew through the air in his presence in the kitchen due to an invisible force.

Coyle eventually obtained permission for 2 exorcisms to be performed at the house. During them, cups and plates flew around the rooms again, and the sheets on the beds rose into the air as if someone was under them. There was also said to be a loud moan coming from the attic that everyone could hear. The family believed that they would finally get rid of the ghost this way, but as it turned out, it ended up going on a rampage. Some of the locals even started talking about Mrs. Murphy being a witch and that she had caused these phenomena herself. It was also rumored that her son once found a book about demons and dark rituals in the woods near the house and inadvertently summoned a dark spirit.

However, this was too much for the mother of six children, so the family finally decided to move away in 1913 and go to America. But what was even more shocking, the ghost allegedly followed them directly to the ship they were sailing on. There was a knocking and banging coming from their cabin similar to what was heard in the house. However, the captain did not believe these stories and even threatened to throw them off the ship. According to reports, their activity followed them to their new home, but gradually subsided over time. However, one of Mrs. Murphy's daughters reportedly suffered a mental breakdown and spent the rest of her life in an institution.

The house in Cooneen is still believed by many to be haunted by paranormal activity. The story is already known far and wide and served as inspiration for several films. Investigators and psychic mediums who have visited the house agree that it still harbors a very negative energy. However, historical records do not reveal what could be the cause of the haunting. So it is believed to be a poltergeist, and thus a malevolent spirit that may not even have been human during its lifetime. The Coneen Ghost House was recently uncovered when foresters cut down the trees that surrounded it for many years, so the structure is now visible and freely accessible. However, locals and priests still warn visitors not to mess with something they may regret later.

### Borley Rectory

Main article: Borley Rectory
The first paranormal events at Borley Rectory reportedly occurred in about 1863, since a few locals later remembered having heard unexplained footsteps within the house at about that time. On 28 July 1900, four of Bull's daughters saw what they thought was the ghost of a nun at twilight, about 40 yards (37 m) from the house; they tried to talk to it, but it disappeared as they got closer. Local organist Ernest Ambrose later said that the Bull family were "very convinced that they had seen an apparition on several occasions". Various people claimed to have witnessed a variety of puzzling incidents, such as a phantom coach driven by two headless horsemen, during the next four decades. Bull died in 1892 and his son, the Reverend Henry ("Harry") Foyster Bull, took over the parish.

Upon Harry Bull's death on 9 June 1927, Borley Rectory became vacant. In the following year, on 2 October, the Reverend Guy Eric Smith and his wife moved into the house. Soon after moving in, Smith's wife, while cleaning out a cupboard, reportedly came across a brown paper package containing the skull of a young woman.[15] Shortly after the family reported a variety of incidents, including the sounds of servant bells ringing despite being disconnected, lights appearing in windows and unexplained footsteps. In addition, Smith's wife believed she saw a horse-drawn carriage at night.

The Smiths contacted the Daily Mirror newspaper asking to be put in touch with the Society for Psychical Research (SPR). On 10 June 1929 the newspaper sent a reporter, who promptly wrote the first in a series of articles detailing the mysteries of Borley Rectory. The paper also arranged for Harry Price, a paranormal researcher, to make his first visit to the house. He arrived on 12 June and immediately phenomena of a new kind appeared, such as the throwing of stones, a vase and other objects. "Spirit messages" were tapped out from the frame of a mirror. As soon as Price left, these occurrences ceased. Smith's wife later maintained that she suspected Price, an expert conjurer, of falsifying the phenomena.

The Smiths left Borley on 14 July 1929, and the parish had some difficulty in finding a replacement. On 16 October 1930, the Reverend Lionel Algernon Foyster (1878–1945), a first cousin of the Bulls, and his wife Marianne (1899–1992) moved into the house along with their adopted daughter Adelaide. Foyster wrote an account of various strange incidents that occurred between the time his family moved in and October 1935, which was sent to Price. These included bell-ringing, windows shattering, the throwing of stones and bottles, wall-writing and the locking of Adelaide in a room with no key. Marianne reported to her husband a whole range of poltergeist phenomena that included her being thrown from her bed. On one occasion, Adelaide was attacked by "something horrible". Foyster tried twice to conduct an exorcism, but his efforts were fruitless; in the middle of the first exorcism, he was struck in the shoulder by a fist-size stone.

Because of coverage of the case by the Daily Mirror, these incidents attracted the attention of several paranormal researchers, who after investigation were unanimous in suspecting that they were caused, consciously or unconsciously, by Marianne. She later said that she felt that some of the incidents were caused by her husband in concert with one of the psychic researchers, but other events appeared to her to be genuine paranormal phenomena. Marianne later admitted that she was having a sexual relationship with a lodger named Frank Pearless, and that she used paranormal explanations to cover up her liaisons.

### Seaford poltergeist

In Seaford, New York, strange poltergeist events were reported by James M. Herrmann and his family in their house. In 1958, Roll investigated the case with the parapsychologist Joseph Gaither Pratt and suggested that although some of the phenomena may have been pranks from Hermann's twelve-year-old son James Jr, some of the events were the result of "recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis" (RSPK). However, RSPK has never been accepted by mainstream science and there is no evidence it exists.

The case was later re-evaluated by the skeptic Joe Nickell who concluded that all the phenomena could be explained by deliberate trickery from Hermann's son James Jr. According to Nickell, both Pratt and Roll were rather credulous and had little understanding of magic trickery. Nickell concluded that "Taken as a whole, the evidence strongly points to twelve-year-old James Hermann Jr. as having been the deliberate cause of the Seaford "poltergeist" outbreak. The motive, means, and opportunity were his, and the case was unwittingly prolonged by the credulousness of adults."

### Black Monk of Pontefract

Main article: Black Monk of Pontefract
in 1966 (as *Black Monk House*), when a Family (2 Adults and 2 Children), moved in. Before long, it was learned that The House had a very *Evil Personality*. Within weeks of moving in, The Family began to experience Poltergeist-like activity. Books, Dishes fairly everything the Family owned *flew off''* of it's shelves. Further, other items – routinely used, simply vanished. Next, foul smells would come from The Kitchen and Living Room. So foul in fact, that no amount of air freshener could remove it. After several day of the stench, *it* would mysteriously *go away*. The Children reported to their Parents, that at night – a *strange Hooded Figure* was seen at the foot of their beds. The *Figure* did not speak, but simply stood motionless. One of the Children began to call The Figure *Fred*. He said *Fred* was *His Friend* and would *not hurt Him*. However, an even stranger event began to happen *after* naming their new *friend*. Large puddles of water would suddenly appear throughout the House. Quickly mopped up – *they* would appear yet again.

But soon *Fred* became a bit more *dark*. The Boy stated that Fred was *angry* that The Family was living there. Soon. Heavy chest of drawers, beds and bookcases would go crashing – as if they were picked up off the floor by *unseen hands* and thrown to the floor. The Family soon decided to to research on their House. As it turned out, The House was built on ground that once was the site of a Religious Monastery. Standing for nearly 500 years, The Monastery had a *black past*. It was learned that a Monk from The Order was taken outside and Hung by Civil Authorities for the rape of several young girls. In the 17th Century, the abandoned Abbey was torn down and eventually would become land – for Apartments!

The next unnerving Event came after The Family's discovery. Suddenly, certain walls in the House began to exhibit *wet, Red stains*. When wiped and cleaned, they would return. Next, Red *Paw Prints* (as from a Dog), were found throughout the House and *behaved* in a similar fashion when *cleaned*. The Family did NOT own a Dog, either. The final straw (as it were), came roughly 3-months into the Paranormal phenomenon. While watching Television downstairs as a Family, the Daughter of the Group was sitting on the bottom step of the staircase leading upstairs to the bedrooms. Suddenly, *something like hands* grabbed the girl around Her neck and began to drag her BACKWARDS up the staircase! Once on the top floor landing, the *Thing* released Her. This was enough. The Family gathered their belongs and fled. Since then, no other situations were ever reported (although this is possibly due to the fact VERY FEW people wish to rent it. The House has been investigated by Professional Paranormal Investigators many times (the last in 2014). all agree that there is a *Negative Force* which resides inside, and refuses to communicate. Could this *Force* be a 12th Century defrocked Monk, accused of unspeakable acts, whose anger can still be *felt* from The Beyond?

### Enfield Poltergeist

Main article: Enfield Poltergeist
In 1977, a series of terrifying events began in Enfield, England, which went down in the history of paranormal phenomena as one of the most shocking cases of haunting. The Hodgson family began to experience strange phenomena at home, such as knocking on the walls, spontaneous movement of furniture, spontaneous fires and even attacks, which were mainly aimed at children.

The family consisted of divorcee Margaret Hodgson and her four children – 13-year-old Peggy, 11-year-old Janet, 10-year-old Johnny and 7-year-old Billy. One August night in 1977, strange things began to happen in the girls' bedroom when they both claimed that the linen closet began moving around the room on its own. However, after the initial confusion, their mother found nothing out of the ordinary, so she ordered them to lie down again. But then the cupboard suddenly shifted and Margaret had to push it back with her hands. Knocking and other sounds also started coming from the walls. The family then stayed up all night and went to a neighbor's house in the morning. Neighbor Vic Nottingham wanted to investigate the matter and when he entered the house, he also heard a strange knocking that he said accompanied him from room to room.

The phenomena gradually increased in intensity. Lego bricks and other objects were suddenly thrown at family members, furniture moved spontaneously across the floor, and small fires appeared and suddenly disappeared in the rooms. The creature apparently targeted 11-year-old Janet, who was repeatedly thrown out of bed by an unknown force, sometimes levitating the girl in the air. One of these incidents was even reportedly witnessed by two passers-by who spotted Janet in a horizontal position floating in the air through a bedroom window while children's toys floated in the background behind her.

A priest and a medium came to the house after these events, but none of them could stop the antics of the invisible being. The poltergeist once allegedly tried to strangle Janet with a bedclothes, but her mother saved her then. On one occasion, Margaret was so frightened and at a loss that she called the police to the house. One policewoman then saw the chair move across the floor by itself, but she was not sure if it was due to supernatural causes or if someone in the family moved it. Another witness was a reporter from the Daily Mirror who interviewed the family. He allegedly saw a pan fly out of the stove and hit his fellow photographer directly in the head. Famous photographs were then taken in the bedroom showing Janet being thrown from the bed.

It was the turn of paranormal experts Maurice Grosse and Guy Lyon Playfair from the "Society for Psychical Research", who gradually recorded the phenomena in the house for many months. However, the technique sometimes failed inside for unknown reasons, while it worked perfectly outside the house. Grosse is said to have heard Janet scream from the mountain one evening while he was analyzing the evidence below. As he was about to go into the room, he saw Janet dragging something across the floor and down the stairs, ending up wailing at his feet. Playfair once again heard a "loud vibrating sound" that resembled a drill. When he got to the bedroom, he found that the old Victorian fireplace had been ripped right out of the wall.

After several months of invisible terror, other unusual things began to happen. The dog's barking and menacing growls echoed through the living room, except that the family had no dog. Maurice Grosse believed that if a being could produce these sounds, it might also be able to speak. There was also the disturbing question of whether these were even demonic forces. As Grosse began to ask questions, the creature allegedly spoke through Janet (who was apparently already possessed by the spirit) in a rough, unnatural voice that seemed to belong to an older man. From a medical point of view, it would be almost impossible for Janet to speak in such a voice, and even if she could, she would only last a few seconds.

The ghost is said to have introduced himself as Bill and claimed to be the previous occupant of the house, but died in the living room of a brain haemorrhage. After some research, the family of the dead man was contacted and when the recordings were played to Bill's son, he recognized his father's voice immediately. The paranormal activity lasted about 2 years, after which it gradually stopped as suddenly as it began. However, more and more skeptics became involved in the case, which later gained a lot of attention. Grosse and Playfair themselves claimed in their records that they caught the girls several times playing with the strange phenomena themselves. However, they did not believe that they could fake all the phenomena that happened in the house. American magician Milbourne Christopher did not discover anything paranormal during his investigation and declared that "it was just the antics of a clever girl who wanted to cause trouble and confusion". Well-known investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren joined the case, who in turn claimed that Janet was under the influence of demonic forces. Whether the Enfield poltergeist was real or not, it is certain that to this day the case ranks among the most famous of its kind.