THE GREY LADY OF RUFFORD OLD HALL

At medieval Rufford Old Hall near Ormskirk, there have been many sightings over the years of a grey lady who is believed to be Elizabeth Hesketh, a daughter of the ancient Lancaster family. 

In the late 16th century, she was betrothed to a suitor who went off to fight in the Dutch wars.  He died in battle and she never recovered from this.

Her apparition, dressed in Elizabethan dresses, still wanders through the building, awaiting for her lover, who never returned. According to Jessica Lofthouse (1976):

She has been seen in the gardens and in the withdrawing room at various times, and in the living memory she linguered long in the room where Philip Ashcroft, the late curator, was playing on the piano [...]

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Reference list:

Lofthouse, Jessica. North-country Folklore in Lancashire, Cumbria and the Pennine Dales. London: Hale, 1976. Print.

"Most Haunted Rufford Old Hall- Most Haunted." Most Haunted & Most Haunted Live : A Tribute. 20May 2010. 05 May 2017.

Fields, K. (1998). Lancashire Magic & Mystery:Secrets of the Red Rose County. Sigma Press. 11 May 2017.

BLOODY MARY

This legend advises young children, typically young girls at a slumber party, that if they enter a dark bathroom with a candle, stand in front of the mirror and repeat the chant "Bloody Mary" a specific number of times whole turning in circles, the image of a witch or female apparition will appear with a bloody face.  

Simon J. Bronner describes the ritual as "a girls' tradition common in elementary school" that calls on an "atmosphere of the seance" (1988:168).

The spirit can be invoked saying different names: 

• Mary Worthington
• Mary Worth
• Mary Jane
• Sally
• Kathy
• Bloody Mary
• Bloody Bones
• Hell Mary
• Agnes
• and Mary Whales among others. 

Some versions of the legend refer to "Mary Worth" as a witch who was executed at the Salem witch trials, and others refer to her as a young woman who committed suicide after being blamed for the death of her children. 

Reference list:

Bronner, Simon J. American Childrens Folklore. Little Rock: August House. 1988.

Eenthusiast, Ryan Dube Paranormal, and Investigator. "Bloody Mary Legend" LoveToKnow. 10 May 2017.

ADDITIONAL LINKS

Here are some additional links for you to check:

• Paranormal Legends PPT: This link will take you to a very interesting powerpoint we created to show the differences between British and American paranormal legends.

 

• 5 Real Paranormal Cases : Here you can read about some real events that could not be explained for a long time and that were strongly associated with the paranormal.  

• The 19th Century Ghost Story : In this link you can discover the evolution of the ghost in the Victorian period together with the most relevant features of the character and some literary works as a reference. 

• How to write a paranormal story : here you have one of the most interesting pages if you are interested in learning how to create an original paranormal story providing a great amount of topics among other things. 

 
 

MORE PARANORMAL LEGENDS

There are many videos that investigate the presence of paranormal entities in both England and America.

Here you have some examples of paranormal legends in video format:

• In this video, you will learn about a paranormal legend about a ghost lady that roams around the Hollywood sign.

• In our second video, you have a Japanese legend: Kuchisake-Ona.

We hope you enjoyed them!!

INTRODUCTION

Paranormal legends have always been present on every culture across the world. In the past, people had stronger beliefs in the paranormal, since they needed to explain those events that they could not understand.

In addition, some people believed in such a strong way that they even performed rituals to protect themselves from those “paranormal entities,” sharing their knowledge with their descendants. Nowadays, these paranormal legends remain, even though they are understood more like funny stories to tell in the dark, rather than true events.  

As a result of this oral transmission, people still tell these stories differently, depending on the traditional beliefs that people had in the past, even if they are telling the same legend. Oral traditions do not only evolve in a diachronic way, changing with the passing of time, but also synchronically, depending on the culture in which they are set.

In this blog, we will collect the different paranormal legends that prevail in both American and British cultures. In addition, we will also offer interesting and relevant facts as well as some quizzes for you to test your knowledge on the topic!

Take our quizz!