For years the owners of Heale House in Devon, England, were visited by a mysterious ghostly Edwardian-era woman, who roamed their halls and bedrooms, as if looking for something.
A chance visit to a 'junk shop' provided the woman's identity and means to stop the haunting
A chance visit to a 'junk shop' provided the woman's identity and means to stop the haunting
The Haunting
Lampton Court (formerly Heale House). On some nights, seemingly chosen without rhyme or reason, the ghost of a woman would be spied by the owner and guests at Heale House, a historic fourteen bedroom estate in Devon, England. This ghostly woman, dressed in Edwardian-era clothing, could be seen seated at the piano or roaming the halls, entering bedrooms as if looking for something.
Guests would wake up to find her leaving their rooms, but the owner of the mansion, Alan Smith, would see her standing at the foot of his bed, the blue light given off by this spectre being what roused him from his sleep.
A final creepy addition to the sightings is that she was often accompanied by the sound of a piano playing low as if in the distance, typically classical pieces by Chopin.
For Mr Smith, these visitations were more of a curiosity, that there must be some kind of scientific explanation (which he never found,) but for friends and family staying at the estate, the sightings were terrifying.
For all involved it seemed that this extra resident had a deep rooted interest in the house, but who she was and what she really wanted remained a mystery... that is, until a chance encounter occurred at a local junk shop (actually named 'Junk Shop').
Guests would wake up to find her leaving their rooms, but the owner of the mansion, Alan Smith, would see her standing at the foot of his bed, the blue light given off by this spectre being what roused him from his sleep.
A final creepy addition to the sightings is that she was often accompanied by the sound of a piano playing low as if in the distance, typically classical pieces by Chopin.
For Mr Smith, these visitations were more of a curiosity, that there must be some kind of scientific explanation (which he never found,) but for friends and family staying at the estate, the sightings were terrifying.
For all involved it seemed that this extra resident had a deep rooted interest in the house, but who she was and what she really wanted remained a mystery... that is, until a chance encounter occurred at a local junk shop (actually named 'Junk Shop').
The Painting
The painting that stopped the haunting. Whilst looking through the bric-a-brac Mr Smith was approached by the shop’s owner and asked if he was the owner of 'Heales', to which Smith replied 'yes'. The shop owner then told him that she had an object that belonged to the house, and one that should be returned to its rightful place.
That object was a painting, the glass shattered, one that showed a woman seated at a piano, a woman that Mr Smith instantly recognised as the one who had been seen about his home in the dark of night. What's more, Mr Smith recognised his drawing room as being the room in the background of the painting.
With painting in hand, research into past owners of the house began, and soon the identity of the woman came to be known. Her name was Mrs Bell, she was the wife of a beef rancher who lived at Heale House until the early 1900s. Shortly before Mrs Bell's death the family went bankrupt, and all of their possessions had to be sold, including one of Bell's favourites, her portrait painted by prominent Parisian artist Cyril Roberts.
Could it be this favoured possession that Mrs Bell was in search of?
That question answered itself! When Mr Smith placed the portrait in the drawing room of Heale House, all visitations by Mrs Bell ceased, and she was never seen again. Since that time the family have made attempts to actively contact Mrs Bell, but all failed – she has well and truly moved on, free from her search at last.
So in fact this is not the story of a haunted object, but rather the story on how an object stopped a haunting.
That object was a painting, the glass shattered, one that showed a woman seated at a piano, a woman that Mr Smith instantly recognised as the one who had been seen about his home in the dark of night. What's more, Mr Smith recognised his drawing room as being the room in the background of the painting.
With painting in hand, research into past owners of the house began, and soon the identity of the woman came to be known. Her name was Mrs Bell, she was the wife of a beef rancher who lived at Heale House until the early 1900s. Shortly before Mrs Bell's death the family went bankrupt, and all of their possessions had to be sold, including one of Bell's favourites, her portrait painted by prominent Parisian artist Cyril Roberts.
Could it be this favoured possession that Mrs Bell was in search of?
That question answered itself! When Mr Smith placed the portrait in the drawing room of Heale House, all visitations by Mrs Bell ceased, and she was never seen again. Since that time the family have made attempts to actively contact Mrs Bell, but all failed – she has well and truly moved on, free from her search at last.
So in fact this is not the story of a haunted object, but rather the story on how an object stopped a haunting.
By Ashley Hall 2014
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