Twitter’s Dear David

Adam Ellis

Adam Ellis shared this disturbing encounter with a child ghost on his Twitter account back in 2017.

He first posted—

“My apartment is currently being haunted by the ghost of a dead child, and he’s trying to kill me.”

Illustration Adam Ellis drew.

He then followed this tweet up with an illustration, he drew after seeing this ghost sitting in a rocking chair at the foot of his bed.

He described what he saw—“he has a huge misshapen head that is dented on one side.”

This ghost then came to him in “a dream” and explained he had been killed when a bookshelf had fallen and crushed his head.

Cats at the front door.

During this time, Adam’s cats began to act strangely. They sat at his front door, crouched down and sniffing at the bottom crack for four nights in a row. They refused to move.

Adam snapped several photos of the hallway at the entrance to his apartment. He used two different cameras, but despite this space was well lit, his photos came out pitch black.

Dark hallway

One of his followers on twitter then took one of these photos and “brightened it.” This revealed a figure standing at Adam’s door.

 

Brightened photo showing figure.
Click to enlarge.

Ellis had another dream where David “dragged him.” He woke up the next morning with a bad bruise on his arm. At this same time, he began to receive strange phone calls, multiple times a day that didn’t show up on his Caller ID.

When he answered a weak voice would say, “hello.”

Adam now concerned, set up a video camera in his apartment. His first recording captured his green rocking chair moving on its own. This link is to Ellis's twitter account where you can view this chair moving.

Ellis began to see this ghost child standing on his roof. He snapped several photos, but the figure moved too quickly. But he finally captured the image he saw.

Image Adam Ellis captured on his roof.

A screenshot of one still from the video.
Click to enlarge.

Adam set up another video to record while he slept. He then captured the most disturbing image of all. This recording shows the ghost running over his bed, and then it ducks down by the side of the bed, only to pop up and then duck down again.

Here is a link to a twitter feed that still has a gif of this video.

Adam Ellis after this moved and got another job.

The Unquiet Grave

The Unquiet Grave *, a traditional English folksong, from 1916, is the forerunner to Alan Schwartz story, “Cold as Clay”. This story can be found in his first book, Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark.

This song and story are similar. Both highlight two lovers separated by death. But in the traditional song the woman dies, in Schwartz’s story, the man dies.

In both versions, the dead lover comes back as a ghost.

*  Other variations of this ballad include William and Margaret and Scarborough Fair.

The Unquiet Grave

Cold blows the wind to my true love,
And gently drops the rain,
I never had but one sweetheart,
And greenwood she lies slain.

I'll do as much for my sweetheart
As any young man many;
I'll sit and mourn all on her grave
For a twelvemonth and a day.

When the twelvemonth and one day was past,
The ghost began to speak;
Why sittest here all on my grave,
And will not let me sleep?

There's one thing that I want, sweetheart,
There's one thing that I crave,
And that is a kiss from your lilly-white lips
Then I'll go from your grave.

My breast is cold as clay,
My breath smells earthly strong;
And if you kiss my cold clay lips,
Your days they won't be long.

Go fetch me water from the desert,
And blood from out of a stone;
Go fetch me milk from a fair maid's breast
That a young man never had known.

O down in yonder grove sweetheart,
Where you and I would walk,
The first flower that ever I saw
Is withered to a stalk.

The stalk is wither'd and dry, sweetheart,
And the flower will never return;
And since I lost my own sweetheart,
What can I do but mourn?

When shall we meet again, sweetheart,
When shall we meet again?
When the oaken leaves that fall from the trees
Are green and spring up again.

Here is one version of The Unquiet Grave song.

Whereas the song picks up the story after the true love has died, in Alvin Schwartz’s tale, Cold as Clay the backstory for this tragedy is described.

A farmer’s daughter is denied her love and sent to live with relatives. Her male lover dies of a broken heart. The farmer regrets his mistake and cannot tell his daughter her lover has died.

Her lover appears to bring her home. She goes with him, not knowing he is a ghost.

Here is Schwartz’s version.

The Burial of Octavia Spencer

Blue Ridge Mountains

Here is a classic Appalachian ghostlore story. 

Octavia Spencer died of a mysterious illness, after giving birth in the 1890s.

Her son died within days of being born, and Octavia went into a deep depression. Her husband and family were unable to help her, so a doctor was called in.

By the time this man arrived, he found Octavio in a dream-like state, similar to a coma. Frustrated, the doctor was unable to determine what was happening.

Within hours his patient appeared to stop breathing, and the mourning husband following the hill custom quickly arranged to bury Octavia that same day--on top of the mountain.

Several days later, the doctor found himself treating several patients that exhibited the same symptoms as Octavia’s.

They all had a strange "sleeping sickness."

Their breathing turned shallow as well. But within a day they began to wake up. 

It dawned on the doctor that he had made a terrible mistake. He immediately demanded the husband arrange for Octavia’s body to be exhumed.

When her coffin was opened, it became apparent that she had died of asphyxiation.

To everyone’s horror, there were signs Octavia had struggled before her death. The wood lid of her casket was shredded with claw marks, she had tried to escape.  

In shock, the doctor and husband looked upon Octavia's face, which was frozen in a mask of terror.

Her body was then reburied in the family plot in Pikeville, Kentucky. The husband tormented with guilt had a tall stone statue placed upon her grave.

For over a century, witnesses have claimed there is unusual activity near Octavia’s grave.

Many locals have reported hearing hysterical cries at night. Others who are brave enough to stand near her grave state they heard scratching sounds.

Once a year, on the anniversary of Octavia's death, it is said, this statue rotates--turning its back on Pikeville.

A Deadly Game of Hide and Seek

This classic ghost story has been immortalized in film, short stories, and in a famous song and poem.

It is known under various names. The Lost Bride, Bride and Go Seek and in England as The Mistletoe Bough or The Mistletoe Bride.

This story was first published in 1809 in Germany in an article entitled The Melancholy Occurrence, which tells the tale of a bride who goes missing on her wedding day.

Samuel Rogers’ poem entitled Ginevra, published in 1823, also tells the moving story of how a bride disappears on her wedding day only to be found years later.

“Full fifty years were past, and all was forgot . . .

The mouldering chest was noticed . . .

‘Why not remove it from its lurking place . . .’

It burst, it fell; and lo, a skeleton . . .”

The full text of this poem can be found here.

Roger’s poem inspired Thomas Bayly to write the lyrics for a ballad song entitled, The Mistletoe Bough, music composed by Sir Henry Bishop, in the 1830s. Here is a part of this song.

“They sought her that night, and they sought her next day,

And they sought her in vain while a week passed away . . .

At length, an old chest, that had long lain hid,

Was found in the castle—

They raised the lid,

And a skeleton form lay mouldering there

In the bridal wreath of that lady fair!”

The entire song lyrics can be read here. A popular version of this ballad is shared below.

By 1859, this song in England was so beloved it was shared in most households at Christmastime. Many knew the heart-wrenching lyrics “by heart.”

This story was retold in two short stories: The Old Oak Chest by Susan E. Wallace in 1887 and The Romance of Certain Old Clothes by Henry James in 1868.

The story was also made into a silent film in 1904 by Percy Stow; this short film has since been restored and is below. Two other movies based upon this story were made in 1923 and 1926.

Percy Stow film

This story has been told for over 2 centuries now. Various versions of this myth have circulated in America. A simplified version was retold in the early 1970s.

Alfred Hitchcock produced his own version of this story in 1948 in his film entitled Rope. In his film the main character, Brandon Shaw hides the body of a murdered son in a chest.

However, most versions of this story are similar so here is the English version -- The Mistletoe Bough.

A young bride was married to Lord Lovell at Christmastime. After the ceremony, she suggested they play a game of Hide and Seek, which the younger members of the wedding party could enjoy as well.

The young bride was picked as the first person to hide. No one suspected as she went off this would be the last they would see of her.

Her husband, father and the wedding guests searched and searched, but she was not found. The wedding guests eventually had to leave, many assured the family as they parted that surely the bride must have just fallen asleep in her hiding place.

The groom, father and the servants continued to search late into the night and the next day but their efforts were unrewarded for the young bride was not found.

The days turned to weeks and the weeks turned to months then years, but the bride’s disappearance remained a mystery. Lord Lovell grew old, and the story was now legendary.

The family home was eventually sold, and several years later the home’s attic was emptied. Amongst the old paintings and furniture, there was an old oak chest that appeared to be locked.

The lid was pried open and inside was a skeleton dressed in a wedding gown-- it was holding a withered wedding bouquet. At last, the bride was found.

Chest opened.

Bramshill House

Many stately homes * in England over the years have claimed to be the location for this chest. They include: Bramshill House and Marwell House both in Hampshire. Castle Horneck in Cornwall, Basildon Grotto in Berskhire, Minster Lovell Hall in Oxfordshire, Exton Hall in Rutland, Brockdish Hall in Norfolk and Bawdrip Rectory in Somerset.

* Some of these homes lay in ruins today.

A number of these homes also lay claim to the ghost of the unfortunate bride that is said to haunt their grounds. She is seen wearing her wedding gown.

I share more recent sightings in my post--Branshill's Entombed Bride.

Here is a recording of the song, The Mistletoe Bough.

The following is the restored silent version of the 1904 film version of this story. It is short.

Terrifying Tales: Mary Shaw and Her Dolls

“Beware the stare of Mary Shaw. 

She had no children, only dolls,

If you see her in your dreams, 

Make sure you never scream . . .

For she’ll rip your tongue out at the seam.”

The poem above was shared in a film entitled Dead Silence. This poem is based upon an old ghost story that was told in Ravens Fair for generations.

It was told to children to keep them in line, but some claim that there is some truth to the story. Regardless, it has evolved into a terrifying tale to tell at Halloween.

Is the curse that Mary Shaw placed real?

Outside of Ravens Fair, there is an old theatre—the Guignol—that sits near Lost Lake. It was 1941, and Mary Shaw was performing her ventriloquist show on stage.

A boy in the audience, Michael Ashen made fun of Mary. He called her a fraud and stated he could see her lips moving as the dummy talked. The audience then laughed.

Several weeks later, Michael went missing. The townspeople and the Ashen family became convinced that Mary had something to do with his disappearance.

A group of men, including Michael's family, and locals, challenged Mary one night. What had she done with Michael?

She screamed her innocence when they would not believe her claims that she had nothing to do with it. They grabbed her, cut out her tongue, and left her to bleed to death.

The local mortician noticed Mary had several odd requests in her will, but he followed them. 

She requested her dolls, which she called “her children” should be buried with her, and she stipulated her body was to be made up to look like a doll.

Several days after Mary was buried the killings began.

Each man who was involved in her murder was visited by one of the dolls. They were found dead, with their tongues ripped out.

Mary’s ghost then began to visit the wives and children of these men. As the years passed, their children’s children were visited. All were found in mid-scream with their tongues ripped out—dead.

The residents of Ravens Fair, still refuse to utter Mary Shaw’s name. For they are terrified Mary and “her children” are waiting in their grave for their next victim.

This begins a series of stories on Seeks Ghosts under the Terrifying Tales title that will be shared
between now and Halloween.

The Uninvited

Dorothy Macardle adapted one of my favorite screenplays from her original book The Uninvited published in 1942.

Her ghost story is set in England in the 1930s. It follows two siblings Roddy and Pamela Fitzgerald as they explore Devonshire in hopes of finding a country house.

Roddy is a young successful London literary critic who wants to get away from the city and hopes to install his sister Pamela in a suitable country home so she can recuperate from caring for their ailing father for the past six years.

The two stumble upon a large picturesque home high above the sea on a cliff and fall in love with it. But there is a catch—the home, Cliff End has been empty for 15 years and the man who owns it—a retired navel commander by the name of Meredith does not want to sell it.

Roddy persists since the siblings want the house and he is attracted to the Commander’s sad but lovely granddaughter Stella who lives with her grandfather in a town nearby.

Roddy and Pamela

The Fitzgerald’s prevail as the Commander reluctantly relents and sells them the house. Shortly after moving in they discover Cliff End is haunted.

In a series of frightening events the sibling hear chilling moans, and sobbing, they feel cold air and smell the sweet aroma of mimosa perfume. They also see a startling vaporous apparition.

Roddy spends time with Stella against the Commander’s wishes and finds out her mother Mary Meredith had died in suspicious circumstances when she fell from a cliff near the home.

Another woman, Carmel who was an artist model for Stella’s father had been implicated in this tragedy in a vague mysterious way.

Roddy notices Stella wears the same mimosa perfume that he and Pamela have smelled at Cliff End each time before the ghostly activity occurs. She tells him that she wears it in warm memory of her mother.

The locals tell the siblings that they believe Mary Meredith haunts Cliff End. As the story unfolds Roddy discovers that the reason the Commander does not want Stella to associate with the new owners is he does not want Stella to enter Cliff End.

The Fitzgerald’s end up spending a lot of time trying to unravel the mystery as to why the house is haunted. Stella and the town’s doctor who takes a fancy to Pamela help.

The four end up battling two ghosts—one good, one dark. Macardle provides a story with many twists and turns including a surprise ending.

Her characters are very likable and she keeps the reader or viewer in the moment by setting her story in an ever-changing atmosphere that keeps everyone guessing.

Macardle adapted her book into a screenplay of the same name that was made into a popular film in 1944, which stars Ray Milland, Ruth Hussey and Gail Russell. I talk more about this film here.

What is unusual is many prefer the film to the original book because it gets straight to the ghost story whereas the book has many sub-plots. 

The Hollywood screenwriters that touched up the script changed several character's names--"Rick" for Roddy etc. They also changed the name of the house and made Rick a music critic.