Halloween is usually the holiday connected with supernatural activity, but is it possible that Valentine’s Day can also revive restless spirits? For some, Valentine’s Day can be a bitter reminder of loneliness and heartbreak. These stories will show you that heartbreak can still remain alive, even if the person is not…
“CRAZY” IN LOVE
There once was a manor called Vermont House in Shooter’s Hill, a town in the UK. Many avoided this house because there were multiple sightings of an evil looking woman with long black hair wearing a purple dress. Legend had it that it was the ghost of Bertha Rungate, a young woman who was madly in love with her cousin, Philip Rungate. When he refused to return her affections, Bertha supposedly killed Philip and buried his body under the house. Years later, Philip’s body was found and buried in a proper gravesite. After his body was gone, the haunting of Bertha’s ghost abruptly stopped.
THE REAL CORPSE BRIDE
If you’re driving along one of the haunted highways of California, you just may spot a grief-stricken lady in a wedding dress. Some say the woman was engaged to be married at a chapel just off of Highway 152. But on the eve of her wedding day, her fiancé ran off with another woman. The next day, she was humiliated at the altar, waiting for her husband-to-be. Devastated, she wandered up and down the highway searching for her fiancé. Days later, when she gave up hope, she took her own life. It seems her ghost still wanders the highway, seeking revenge on her would-be groom.
LOVE THROUGH DEATH
One of these haunts has a happy ending, and it takes place at the 900-year-old Tiverton Castle in Devon, UK. In the 17th century, Sir Hugh Spencer lived in the castle with his 21-year-old daughter, Alice. Alice was arranged to marry the wealthy yet temperamental Sir Charles Trevor. Alice had already fallen in love though with the castle’s manager, Maurice Fortescue, who also returned her love. After hearing of Maurice’s love for Alice, Sir Charles challenged Maurice to a duel that he unfortunately won. After hearing the news that her true love was gone and she had to marry another man, Alice took her own life. But even though Alice and Maurice passed on, visitors and castle workers still see their ghosts walking in and around the castle, hand in hand. It seems their death was what finally brought them together.
Illustrations by Yasman Khavarian.