Five of the Most Famous Ghosts

There are multiple famous ghosts around the world. This article will focus on five of the more well-known ghosts: Anne Boleyn, Lady Howard, the Amityville Horror, the Borley Rectory Ghosts, and the Tennessee Bell Witch.

Anne Boleyn was the second wife of King Henry VIII of England in the 16th century. When King Henry VIII decided he wished to re-marry, he had charges manufactured against her that were largely untrue. He had her beheaded. It is said that on the anniversary of her death, she can be seen walking around the Tower of London, carrying her head underneath her arm. According to Patrick Bernauw in his article called "The Traveling Ghost of the Headless Witch: Anne Boleyn," Anne Boleyn has been allegedly spotted in various homes where she had lived and standing in a window in Windsor Castle.

Lady Howard of England allegedly murdered her four husbands. To pay for her crime in the afterlife, legend has it that she must ride in a phantom coach constructed with bones from her four late husbands. She must take a thirty-mile nightly ride from her family home called Fitzford House to Oakhamptom Castle in Devonshire. A dog accompanies her (either skeletal or huge and black depending on which version you read). The dog plucks one blade of grass only. He gives this to the woman who must place it in her Bible or on her person. She must place it on a granite slab at her family home. She must continue with this task for all eternity or until there is no more grass around Devonshire Castle, whichever comes first.

The Amityville Horror haunting took place on 112 Ocean Avenue, Amityville, New York. There are rumors that the house was built over where an ancient Indian was buried. He might have something to do with the haunting. Then on November 13, 1974, a family of 6 were shot around 3:00 in the morning. The only surviving family member, Ronald DeFeo was given the blame. In one trial, he claimed that the devil made him do it. There are also rumors that one of his sisters murdered the family and then Ronald murdered her. The Lutz family moved into the house in December of 1975 and spent 28 days there. They experienced a lot of poltergeist-type activity including infestations of flies, red eyes outside a window that may or may not have belonged to a flying pig, being physically touched by an invisible presence, and many other strange happenings. After 28 days, the family escaped the house never to return. Paranormal investigators led by Ed and Lorraine Warren looked into the haunting. Books and movies have resulted. It is since been suggested the whole thing may have been a hoax to make massive amounts of money.

The Borley Rectory burnt down in 1939. Prior to the suspected arson, the paranormal investigator Henry Price described this rectory as being "the most haunted house in England." After the fire, the haunting took place in the nearby church. According to legend, the rectory was built on the same location where an ancient monastery used to stand. In the 13th century, a nun and a monk tried to elope. "The monk was hung and the nun was walled up alive in the rectory." In 1945, they discovered her remains and gave her a Christian burial. So, it appears, the nun is one of the entities responsible for the poltergeist-type activity. The other entity accused of causing the haunting was the reverend Harry Bull who died in the rectory on June 9, 1927. There have been people who have tried to successfully find logical explanations for the happenings. Others believe the haunting to be authentic. Perhaps it was a little of both. It was said that the ghost of that nun was sometimes seen. Was this true or was it part of a hoax? I guess we'll never know for sure.

The story of the Tennessee Bell Witch is the most widely-documented ghost story in the state of Tennessee and perhaps in the whole country. From 1817 to 1821, the family of John and Lucy Bell were haunted by a poltergeist many people either call Kate or the Bell Witch. This haunting took place in a little town called Adams, Tennessee, 40 miles north of Nashville. Andrew Jackson himself was said to have had a run-in with this ghost. There have been rumors and theories galore about who was truly the perpetrator of the haunting. Many people try to wrongly accuse a neighbor woman by the name of Cate Batts of being the poltergeist who haunted the family, even though she was a living woman at the time. Others try to say that the teenage daughter, due to raging hormones, somehow caused the poltergeist-type activity. Others say that John Bell allegedly murdered two men and cheated a third out of some sacred Indian land back when he lived in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. From early in 1818 until the spring of 1821, no less than four people and sometimes fifty people squeezed themselves into the Bell house to witness this phenomena that took place every night. Movies have been aired and books written about this saga. Even all these years later, many people in Middle Tennessee still are fearful that the Bell Witch is still around causing mischief. According to the archives, John Bell was murdered by this poltergeist on December 20, 1820. One theory explains that he actually died of natural causes. Additionally, his teenage daughter was tortured until she agreed to not marry her sweetheart, Joshua Gardner. It was not until she broke the engagement that the poltergeist finally left the town. It promised to return in 1828 which it did for two weeks and again in 1935. Some say it never made its final appearance. Others feel it did. Still others believe the poltergeist never left. So who is right and who is wrong? It is up to you, as the reader, to judge for yourself.

So what ghosts have you heard the most about? Please share your favorite ghost stories in the comment box below.

Resources

Famous Ghosts by Monstrous.com
The Traveling Ghost of the Headless Witch: Anne Boleyn by Patrick Bernauw in Paranormal, February 17, 2009, published by Socyberty
Lady Howard's Perpetual Penance from Information on Britain
The Amityville Horror, From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 1 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 2 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 3 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 4 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 5 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - The Real Amityville Horror - Part 6 by FilmmakerEBW
YouTube Video - Ghosts, Borley Rectory
YouTube Video - Haunted Houses - Borley Rectory
YouTube Video - Borley Rectory most haunted house in England
YouTube Video - (1/2) Borley Rectory Ghosts
YouTube Video - (2/2) Borley Rectory Ghosts
Borley Rectory, From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Bell Witch Website by Pat Fitzhugh
The Bell Witch Unveiled Website by DJ Lyons