The Haunting of the Borley Rectory

When I was in sixth grade, I used to go to my elementary school library and listen to old records with ghost stories on them. I can distinctly remember that you had to ask the librarian to get the records out from behind the desk because they were deemed "inappropriate" just to be left out for any small soul to venture upon. I have since learned that material held secretively behind a desk or counter, even as an adult, is probably the best stuff to listen to or read. I never really remember being frightened by ghost stories, but I do remember the giant headphones and the scratchy record sometimes gave me the heebie-jeebies. Most of the stories were this-one-really-happened or based-on-a-true-story or believe-it-or-not, so I never really thought these things actually happened. Needless to say I still don't let my foot or arm hang outside of my covers or dangle from my bed, just in case, you know. However, I do remember that one of the stories in particular chilled my bones. The story was about these two English sailors who stumbled upon this vacant rectory in Essex, England one night in need of a place to stay. The place was rather dilapidated, so they went in, settled down in the large main foyer, and made a small fire to keep warm for the night. Shortly after midnight (of course) one of the sailors heard a screeching noise at the top of the large staircase in front of him. The sailor proceeded to climb the stairs in search of the noise. Once at the top, he saw, coming from one of the many rooms in the long, dark hallway, a mist which formed into the shape of a large, devil-like creature with broad shoulders, a hideous scowl on its face, coming towards him. He then described the most disturbing detail of this entity: It's arms were so long that its fingernails were actually dragging along the ground, making a hideous scratching sound as it approached him. He quickly turned to run, but the entity was soon upon him, pressing him backwards towards the ledge of a larger picture window that was adjacent to the staircase. The being forced him backwards and back against the window sill. The sailor leaned back and fell backward through the window and down to the ground a story below. His back was broken. The other sailor, hearing this awful commotion, looked to begin to ascend the staircase. Upon beginning to climb the stairs, he saw this enormous figure standing at the top of the stairs. It was pointing directly at him. He quickly ran from the building. Once outside, he heard the screaming from his friend and quickly went to his aid. They reported the story to the local authorities, to which they were told of many, many occurrences happening at this reported haunted house. That house was called the Borley Rectory.

The history of Borley Rectory begins with the building of a gothic Benedictine monastery in the 13th century. Legend has it that a monk and his lovely young love-interest, a nun from a nearby convent, were both done-in while trying to elope the establishment and start a new life together. They were captured and the monk was hung while his fiancé was walled up, alive in the cold walls of her convent. After its stint as a monastery, it was sold off as a residence and a rectory was soon added in 1862 by Rev. Henry Bull and his family. Reverend Bull had become pastor of Borley Church in 1862 and despite local warnings, built the rectory on a site believed by locals to be haunted. Over the years, Bull’s servants and his daughters were repeatedly unnerved by phantom rappings, unexplained footsteps and the appearance of ghosts. Reverend Bull seemed to find these happenings as wildly entertaining and he and his son, Harry, even constructed a summerhouse on the property where they could enjoy after-dinner cigars and pleasurably idle away the time waiting for an appearance of the phantom nun who roamed the property.
After Reverand Bull passed on in one of the more famous of the haunted rooms (the Blue Room), his son Harry inherited the establishment and position until he himself passed on in 1927. Following Harry’s footsteps was Rev. Guy Smith who was so unnerved by the spectral sights and sounds, that he left the rectory just one year after moving in. After Smith’s hasty departure, the house was then inhabited by Reverend Lionel Foyster and his wife, Marianne. The house only seemed to be getting warmed up as their experiences grew in intensity and frequency. Without any explanation, they found themselves locked out of rooms, windows would suddenly smash and personal items would vanish under their noses. Ịt wasn’t uncommon for them to hear unnerving noises from all over the house. As time went on, these mischievous antics turned aggressive and Marianne was actually accosted one evening. She was thrown off her bed in the middle of the night and even slapped by invisible hands of which she was helpless to do anything about! The final straw was when she was nearly made unconscious by a mattress that was held over her face. It was during a first investigation that actual handwriting on the wall started to appear, usually when Marianne was present. The writing’s ghostly owner seemed more sympathetic to Marianne compared to the other ghosts as some of the messages scrawled were, “Marianne, please help get” and “Marianne light mass prayers”. Price was more of a guest at the manor until the Foysters moved out in 1935 at which point he leased the house for a full year for deeper investigation. Now that Price had the house to himself for an extended period, he ran an ad for other paranormal investigators to help him monitor and document the ghostly activities. He had to weed through some not-so-savory types though, but he ended up working with 40 people to uncover some of the fascinating history of Borley Rectory. In 1937, a fire was started by the new owner, Captain WH Gregson, as he was unpacking library books when an oil lamp fell over and started a fire. The fire spread fast through the manor and the rectory was in shambles, later to be demolished in 1944. Since previously unattainable areas were now exposed, Price decided to excavate the cellar where he indeed found a few small bones, which seemed to be those of a young woman.

Please enjoy the short video clip below in regards to the rectory.