The Black Swan – Peaseholme Green (York)
The Black Swan Inn. This is one of the best surviving 16th/17th century domestic buildings in
York. Renowned for its live entertainment, this beautifully timbered 15th century pub is one of the
oldest in the city. Folk music is a speciality and they host regular beer festivals.
One of the regular visitations is by a beautiful young woman in a long white dress,
who stares distractedly into the fireplace. There is also a man, who by the cut of his clothes
and his bowler hat, belongs to Victorian times. He appears to be waiting impatiently
for someone…but gradually fades away.
The Golden Fleece Inn – York
The Golden Fleece is said to be the oldest and most haunted Coaching Inn in York.
It is mentioned in the York archives as far back as 1503, and it initially belonged to
The Merchant Adventurers, who were responsible for the burgeoning woollen trade based on
the River Ouse. The yard at the rear is named after Lady Alice Peckett, whose husband John
was the Lord Mayor of York and also owned this historic inn around 1702. Many guests
have reported seeing the late Lady Peckett wandering the endless corridors and staircases
of the Golden Fleece in the small hours. Including ghostly apparitions and moving furniture, hers
is just one of the five supposed resident spirits at the Golden Fleece!
According to the local history,
development of the site of the Black Boy dates back to the 1330s, though the
first reference to licensed premises on the site was in 1729. The site has
housed a pub intermittently since.
Regulars are
supposed to have photos of ghostly apparitions; one was grabbed round the
neck by a pair of ghostly hands appearing from the bar wall. Rumour has it
that a landlord’s dog was apparently so traumatised by spending a night
downstairs in the pub that it had to be put down.
Pontefract Castle
Wandering around the ruins of Pontefract castle today it comes as something of a surprise to find that this was once one of the most important fortresses in the country. The execution of traitors, the imprisonment of enemies and even the murder of kings - it all happened in Pontefract.
See our message board to find excellent photo's and information of Pontefract Castle by Neil