Rare Scottish Stories #6 An In Depth Look At The Haunting Of Ballechin House
Ballechin House in Perthshire, Scotland before it was devastated by a fire and subsequently demolished.
Ballechin House was built in 1806 in rural Perthshire on land which belonged to the Steuart (Stewart) family, descendants of King Robert I of Scotland. Major Robert Stewart inherited Ballechin House after the death of his father in 1834. At the time, Major Stewart was serving in India as part of the East India Company. He retired after 25 years of service in 1850 and moved back to his families estate. To his new house keeper and locals, it became evident that Major Stewart was quite the eccentric - he was a devout Catholic yet had strong beliefs in spiritualism and reincarnation from having lived in India for over two decades.
Amongst his many eccentricities was his profound love for dogs - he had 14 of them at the time of his death but his favourite by far was a black spaniel. It was the Major's desire that when he died, he be reincarnated in the body of this black spaniel. It seemed odd to many of the locals that the Major remained unmarried throughout his whole life and lived in the large estate on his own with his young housekeeper (27) Sarah until she died suddenly in 1873. A cause for her death was never given and to this day we do not know what happened. The Major's only family were two brothers and six sisters - one of whom, Isabella, became a nun and assumed the name Frances Helen, living in a nunnery until she passed in 1880.
Major Stewart made a will in 1853, leaving Ballechin House to the 5 children of his sister Mary. The oldest son to inherit died without heirs, and the Major later excluded the three younger children from his will. Major Stewart passed away in 1876 and Ballechin was inherited by Marys' second son John who had a wife and children.
Being religious also, but in a more conventional way, the family was repulsed by the idea of the Major having reincarnated in the form of one of the estates dogs and shot each one of them. In doing so, the family had made a massive mistake and this went on to be the most documented haunting in Scottish history.
As per his request, Major Stewart was buried beside his housekeeper Sarah. Not long after his death, the strange happenings began at Ballechin. Johns' wife, while sorting accounts in the Major's old study was suddenly overcome by the strong smell of dog and felt snuffling at her feet as though an invisible dog were sniffing her. As she got up, she was pushed over by the animal onto the floor of the study. Other issues began to materialise such as the sound of people arguing, banging and the sound of explosions in the wood of the house. None of these things were happening physically but the governesses and servants were so terrified that they refused to continue working in the house.
From the book The Alleged Haunting of B-House, published in 1899, showing illustrations of the nun that was often seen.
During this time, word started to get out about the strange happenings at Ballechin and the most haunted room in the house was the main bedroom where John and his wife slept - where Sarah had died and where the Major had also died. It is strange indeed that a house keeper would be in her masters bed and die there. Overall, John and his family lived on the estate for 12 years but in 1883 John felt compelled to build a new wing of the house to ease the living situation for his family as many rooms had became no go zones. The area of the house where the Major had lived (and was haunting) was then offered up as a retreat for nuns.
One morning in 1895, John was talking on the telephone before leaving for London on family business. Their conversation was interrupted by three loud, violent knocks from within the house. Later that day, John was fatally struck by a taxi on a busy London street and killed. By this point, gossip had began to circulate lead by former staff and guests. The idea to allow nuns to reside at the house had only worsened the situation. Still huge explosions could be heard from within the wood of the home, invisible dogs disturbed everyday life and disembodied arguing between two people was so prevalent as to be accepted as the new normal for the family.
In 1892, Father Hayden, a Jesuit priest, slept in two different rooms of the house after hearing loud noises consisting of barking, scratching and shouting. The next year, Hayden met a woman who had been a governess in the house for 12 years, but who had left because of the strange noises heard in the very same two rooms. Some details began to become clearer... There were three types of haunting - a man, a woman and a dog. It is present day speculation that perhaps brings us to think that in burying the Major beside Sarah (and their deaths), the death of the black spaniel and the nuns occupying the house that a cocktail of supernatural energy had been created and a reincarnation prevented. Had the Major murdered Sarah perhaps? Was this really the crux of the matter? Did everyone under the roof live with air of cruelty? We will never know what really goes on behind closed doors.
In 1896, a family paid to rent Ballechin for 1 year but left after only a few weeks due to what they described as poltergeist activity - bedsheets puled off while they were sleeping, rustling and snuffling noises, explosions, arguing and the apparition of a man was commonly seen.
Lord Bute, an avid paranormalist agreed to sponsor an investigation at Ballechin. He rented the house for two investigators - Colonel Taylor and Goodrich-Freer. On their first morning, the researchers heard clanging sounds repeated at two hour intervals, the sound of voices, footsteps, dragging across floors, loud bangs, thumps, and knockings. The investigators invited guests to stay at the house, all of whom were unaware of the house's reputation.
13 of the guests reported numerous supernatural activities, including strange rappings and knocks, the sound of someone reading aloud in the manner of a priest, a spectral hunchback walking up the stairs, the apparition of a black spaniel, and phantom dogs' tails heard striking doors and other objects.
Ballechin House as it stood in its glory days.
Goodrich-Freer had brought her own dog with her to the investigation and was awakened one night by it crying and whimpering on the bed beside her. Following the dog's gaze, she saw two disembodied dog's paws on the bedside table. A male guest reportedly saw a detached hand in the air at the foot of his bed, holding a crucifix. A maid saw the upper half of a womans' figure wearing a gray shawl, seemingly suspended in the air. This was said to be the spectre of a nun.
The investigators conducted further investigations with a Ouija board and also received automatic writing messages. One message instructed the researchers to go to a nearby glen at sunset. Doing so, Goodrich-Freer found a figure dressed as a nun move slowly up the glen and then disappear under a tree. She saw the same figure other times, either weeping or talking. Other reports described the figure as a young woman with a pale face, long hair and wearing a hood, and who disappeared quickly when people approached. Some people speculated that the figure was that of Isabella.
The entire account of the investigation was reported in The Times newspaper and was recorded in a book, The Alleged Haunting of B-House, published in 1899.
The Stewart family raised huge objection to the publishing of the book and the negative press about the house. The objection was so large that all full names had to be removed from the story. This muddied the waters of credence and as such the investigation had to be noted as only as alleged haunting.
Was the haunting of Balechin House caused by an interrupted reincarnation or was there more sinister activities at hand? Was the Major responsible for Sarah's death and his sister, the nun, was aware? Was this why she was seen crying in the glen and could not be at peace? After all, the Major had served in the army and PTSD may have been likely - perhaps even boughts of rage?
Did the Major want to be rid of his human guilt and that was why he wanted to come back as a dog? Or was he just a kind hearted man whose reincarnation went sour and this caused his soul to linger in the house? Whatever happened we will never truly know. Most of Ballechin was demolished in 1963 after a fire.