20 of the most haunted places in Yorkshire mapped

As Halloween approaches we take a look at some of the spookiest spots in Yorkshire.
Picture shows: Ripley Castle.Picture shows: Ripley Castle.
Picture shows: Ripley Castle.

From jilted lovers to violent poltergeists, Yorkshire’s haunted houses are home to some of the grimmest ghost stories around.

We have pulled together six spooky tales from across the county below, with another 14 horrors on our interactive map

Number 30 East Drive, Chequerfield Estate, Pontefract, where poltergeist activity was recorded during the summer of 1966. p317b235Number 30 East Drive, Chequerfield Estate, Pontefract, where poltergeist activity was recorded during the summer of 1966. p317b235
Number 30 East Drive, Chequerfield Estate, Pontefract, where poltergeist activity was recorded during the summer of 1966. p317b235
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1 - Europe’s most violent poltergeist at 30 East Drive, Chequerfield, Pontefract

From the outside, the three-bed semi-detached looked like any other home built on a 1960s council estate.

However 30 East Drive is said to be home of one of Europe’s most violent poltergeists which dragged the teenage girl who lived there in the 1960s around the house by her hair.

2 - Thundering hooves at Bramham Park, Leeds

ghostly image.ghostly image.
ghostly image.

Phantom war horses are said to have been seen crashing into battle and the thunder of horses hooves have been heard in the dark depths of the park.

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Local hearsay claims the beasts are the ghosts of horses killed in the Battle of Bramham Moor in 1408.

3 - Headless Knight haunts Scarborough Castle

The begrudged ghost of Piers Gaveston, the son of a Gascon Knight, is said to haunt Scarborough Castle, after the impressive defences failed to keep him safe in 1312.

Scarborough Castle.  (BR1002/09w) 7 February 2014.  Picture Bruce RollinsonScarborough Castle.  (BR1002/09w) 7 February 2014.  Picture Bruce Rollinson
Scarborough Castle. (BR1002/09w) 7 February 2014. Picture Bruce Rollinson

Although Gaveston was beheaded in Warwickshire his headless ghost has been spotted among the slopes and battlements, followed by his head which pulls itself along the ground by its teeth.

He is most likely seen at the barbican gate, by the east wall which is close to where there once was a Anglo-Saxon chapel, as if his tormented soul is seeking some religious consolation.

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Others see him peering out of a window, filled with melancholy, into the depths of the North Sea and legend has it the spirit has even attempted to lure people over the cliffs to their deaths.

4 - Bloody Footprint left in Birstall’s Oakwell Hall.

Oakwell Hall is said to be haunted by the ghost of William Batt, owner of the house in 1684. He was a young man of 25, a bachelor, whose widowed mother, Elizabeth, lived at Oakwell. His ghost was seen coming home to the house at dusk, when he had been killed that very afternoon.

Legend has it that he left a bloody footprint behind in a bedroom. There is historic evidence that he was in London on that day, that he had borrowed money, and that he died “in sport” slain by a Mr Gream. He was buried in Birstall on December 30, 1684.

5 - Mourning Mother at Ripley Castle

Reports of a sad figure dressed in 19th century costume have come from visitors to the stately home of Ripley Castle.

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Said to be the ghost of Lady Alicia Ingilby, who lost her only two children to meningitis in the 1870s, the figure has been seen walking towards the children’s bedrooms before passing through a locked door.

The stately home boasts 700 years of history and the ghosts of civil war soldiers, lined up and shot by Cromwell’s firing squad after the battle at Marston Moor are said to haunt the castle walls, where the bullet holes can still be seen.

6 - Mystery Mayor at Halifax Town Hall

An unknown former Mayor of Halifax is said to haunt the town hall building which dates back to the 1860s.

The ghostly apparition of a Mayor has been spotted around the corridors in full Mayoral Robes, scaring workers and visitors.

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