Hauntings of Northumberland
October is upon us. The nights grow longer, and fallen leaves scrape along the sidewalk like fingernails on an ancient tomb. Many believe this is the time of year when the veil between us and the spirit world grows thin. Many believe this is the time of the year to put giant inflatable Bette Midler witches on their front lawn. Either way, it’s spooky season y’all!
There are plenty of Halloween happenings around Northumberland for all ages, from fall-festive face-painting, pumpkin carving, and corn maze outings to the more hair-raising, full-on frights of Phantom Farms. This year, Experience Cobourg is hosting Ghost Walks every Friday evening in October, which offers a haunted jaunt from Covert Street to the Marnia, exploring the town’s dark history.
Can a ghostly ship be seen on foggy nights from Cobourg Beach? Has a vicious dark energy attached itself to the Cobourg Jail? Will delinquents ever stop making a mess in a cemetery they say is haunted? In the spirit of the season, we decided to fill your goodie bag with some spine-tingling tales of terrors that may just be hovering right at our own doorstep.
VICTORIA HALL — Cobourg’s historic Town Hall is said to be haunted by the playful “green lady,” a ghost often spotted in a green velvet dress. Over the years, the cast and crew of the Concert Hall, as well as Victoria Hall maintenance staff, have claimed to have experienced the apparition. They reported seeing it disappear through walls where doors once were, turning on taps, moving cleaning carts, playing around with the lights and levels on the phone lines and sound boards, and lurking in the back of the theatre during rehearsals. Some speculate that the green lady might be Lena Fisher, who spearheaded the campaign to restore Victoria Hall in the 1970s but passed away before seeing her dream come to fruition. When Ms. Fisher’s name was mentioned in the opening ceremony, a globe light fixture in the hall unexpectedly shattered.
ST. ANNE’S COUNTRY INN & SPA — This stunning country estate in Grafton offers a charming and tranquil setting perfect for a relaxing getaway… and perhaps an experience not entirely of this world. In certain areas of the inn, guests have reported encounters with the apparition of a teenage boy, often accompanied by the sound of his laughter. Also, some have claimed to see the ghostly figures of two elderly women in hooded cloaks wandering the corridors of one of the inn’s wings.
MONKEY MOUNTAIN — Some say that if you walk in this thickly forested, uninhabited trail system in the center of Port Hope at night, you might hear the voices of children and see mysterious red lights trailing along the paths. According to legend, a home in the area once burned down, claiming the lives of a family of six. The voices are said to belong to the children who lost their lives in that tragic fire, and it is rumored that the remnants of the house can still be found hidden somewhere among the hills and ravines of the woods.
LAKESHORE ROAD — The stretch of Lakeshore Road west of Port Hope near Port Britain is known for its haunting atmosphere. Legend has it that over a century ago, a young woman living on Lakeshore Road was set to marry her beloved. However, the night before the wedding, her father intervened, believing she should not marry, and locked her in her room to keep her from attending. A year later, on the night her fiancé married someone else, she put on her white wedding dress, crossed the fields, and tragically drowned in Lake Ontario. On warm autumn nights, her spirit, dressed in white, is said to roam the road or walk across the fields toward the lake. Alongside sightings of the sorrowful bride, many people report feelings of depression, sadness, goosebumps, or even nausea while driving on Lakeshore Road.
PROCTOR HOUSE MUSEUM — This Victorian mansion was built in Brighton in 1867 by the Proctor family, one of the village’s prominent families. Around 1900, mysterious sightings of a fiery ball near the house were reported, contributing to other ghost stories surrounding the property. Museum staff openly discuss these spirits, claiming multiple hauntings, with the most notable involving William Proctor, the home’s builder. William, who made his fortune operating steamers, was rumored to transport illegal goods. With these ill-gotten gains, William Proctor provided mortgage loans to local residents. One of his local mortgage clients, John Nix Jr., fell ill and lost his home to foreclosure while on his deathbed. William allegedly seized his body, either selling it to a hospital or holding it until debts were settled. This act of cruelty is believed to have led to John Nix Jr’s ghost haunting Willam Proctor’s house for all eternity.
