Haunted Houses of Northumberland

Halloween is just around the corner and although most of us know it as a time to dress in costume to get free candy from our neighbors, Halloween used to be celebrated by lighting bonfires while in costume to ward off roaming ghosts! So as a tribute to Halloween, lets explore some of Northumberland’s haunted houses and ghoulish tails of ghosts and spirits!

The McKenzie House:

Probably one of Cobourg’s most notorious haunted homes. This home is said to be haunted by 3 spirits. If you visit, you’ll  hear the sound of bagpipes faintly through the halls. Although the bagpiper is rarely seen he's left a mark with his music over the years. The second spirit visits the “Rose” room where she is known to remove items from the room only then to return them a few days later. Last but not least is the little girl known as Elizabeth, who likes to play hide and seek and watch visitors from the staircase.

The Proctor House:

Built in 1867 by one of Brighton’s first families; William Proctor made his fortune by running steam ships across Lake Ontario into Rochester New York. It's been rumored that he was also involved with shipping alcohol during prohibition. From the profits, William made mortgage loans to locals, one of those locals being John Nix Jr. John eventually feel ill and William foreclosed on the mortgage while John was on his death bed. Locals differs on what happens next but one account says that since John left no assets, William sold his body to the local hospital. Another account says William held the body as collateral until his family paid his debt. Talk about a loan shark!

John Nix Jr. can still be seen haunting the halls of the Proctor house to re-pay William back for his down and dirty deeds.

Victoria Hall

Arguably Cobourg’s most famous buildings is usually known for its beauty and elegant architecture but it's also known for a mischievous ghost! The “green lady” (for her green velvet dress) is often spotted by cast and crew of local theater productions. One person reported seeing the tail end of a long green dress go through a backstage wall during  a production. It was later discovered that wall used to have a door to the caretakers apartment which was closed up years ago. Other tales tell of cleaning carts being moved to completely different spots than they were left, and all the phone lines lighting up simultaneously as if someone (or something) had pushed them. The “green lady” has earned her reputation as the mischievous ghost playing tricks on visitors and staff at Victoria Hall.

  

Monkey Mountain

Although not a house, I couldn’t leave Port Hope’s “Monkey Mountain” off the list. There are a few stories on how this mountain got its name, one involves a circus train that was derailed letting loose a horde of monkeys who inhabited the area until winter came when they perished from the cold. The second is that of a fire that burned down a house in the forest killing a family of 6. If you enter the forest at night, you might see little red  lights following you and hear little voices screaming and little feet scampering around you, yet no one is there...

So as you head out this Halloween take a stroll by Victoria Hall to see if you can spot the “Green Lady”, have a listen for bagpipes at the MacKenzie house, or if you’re feeling extra brave, venture near Monkey Mountain and tell me if you hear the voices …

Sources;

Toronto Ontario Ghost Hauntings http://www.torontoghosts.org/

Most Haunted Places in Ontario http://northumberlandparanormal.weebly.com/