Kingdom of Shadows: Ghosts Go To Court

When one buys a home in our country, by law, the real estate agent must fully disclose any and all problems that are either occurring or have occurred at the house. Leaky faucets, repairs to the roof and problems with mildew are usually the most reported problems. However perhaps the strangest thing that a real estate agent must disclose is whether or not the home has any former residents who supposedly still call the house home, of course I speak of ghosts. Although this may be the law of our land it would appear that Great Britain does not share this law. In 1999, a lawsuit was taken to the British legal system that made national headlines throughtout the realm. A young family who bought a 250 year old cottage in Upper Mayfield, Derbyshire claimed that they experienced harrowing spectral activity that was not only terrifying but showed itself to be dangerous as well. Allow me to lay down the facts as we know them concerning the strange case of Lowe’s Cottage and you be the judge. And just as a note, names have been changed in this narrative to keep my ass from possibly being sued. Enjoy.

In the summer of 1994, Mr and Mrs Jones and their two children desperately needed a new home that was much bigger to accomadate their expanding family and a need to escape the noise of the big city. When they came upon Lowe’s cottage, a two story home in the village of Upper Mayfield, they knew that they had finally found their dreamhome, a house where they could raise their family while enjoying the piece and quiet of the bucolic English countryside. The home was being offered at a surprisingly cheap rate by two sisters who had lived and grown up in the cottage their whole life. Although the Jones’s lacked the full payment required to buy the home the sisters decided that they seemed like honest folks and worked at an arrangement where the young family could pay the remaining balance in installments. The Jones family agreed with this very generous arrangement and after the papers were signed the charming little cottage in the English countryside was theirs.

The first few months seemed to go off without a hitch, no serious problems were reported by the Jones family who loved living in the 250 year old cottage that seemed to have an air of history to it. However the seemingly innocent cottage appeared to have a darkside to it. Upon a visit to a local pub, the Jones’s discovered that some rather dirty dealings had taken place at the cottage in it’s history. At first the Jones’s probably thought that it was the alcohol speaking from their informants but when the subject of ghosts haunting the cottage came up the Jones felt that perhaps they had bitten off more than they could chew.

At first the activity the family experienced in their new home appeared to be innocent. Cold drafts were felt in several rooms in the home when no windows or doors appeared to be open. Soft footsteps that sounded like the footfalls of a woman were heard going up and down the stairs. And water seemed to pour from the walls where there was no plumbing. I’m sure the Jones’s probably thought that this was really not a problem, so they had a ghost that seemed to mean them no harm. However, the harmless events and the alleged spirits that lived in the home had more sinister plans for this young family and the events that came shortly after would be far more terrifying.

Previously, the ghosts had only made their presence known through cold spots, steps and the mist that seemed to cover the Jones’s feet and the floor however now they were making an appearance. At first the family would see the spirits out of the corner of their eyes but then one day as Mrs. Jones sat relaxing in an easy chair she claimed to clearly see the apparition of a woman in 19th century clothing walking around a room directly across the hall from her. Mr. Jones saw the apparition of a large mass moving about the cottage and the acrid smell of garbage now accompanied the mist that was growing thicker and so dense Mr. Jones later stated that he could barely see his hands as he waved them in front of his face. The ghosts were now stepping up their assault on the terrified family but the culmination would come soon.

A common occurance with a violent haunting or haunting by a spirit that means business has been known to manifest itself through night terrors and bad dreams and what the Jones family experienced for those four years in the cottage was no different. One night as the family slept fitfully, Mr Jones was awakened from his slumber when he could feel his wife battling with something next to him. When he looked at his wife she writhed in the bed clutching at her neck desperately trying to free herself from some unseen presence. Unable to lay there and watch his wife do battle, Jones threw himself over his wife and the attack quickly came to a halt. When Mrs. Jones was able to regain her breath which came in short raspy breathes she told her husband that some unknown force which felt like a powerful man was pressing her body into the bed. She stated that she could feel large rough hands grasp her neck, whatever unseen force haunted their homes meant to do them harm and to the Jones enough was enough.

The next day the Jones’ contacted the local Vicar and told him all that had been going on in their home and the attack that Mrs. Jones suffered the night before. The vicar, a man of God who claimed to have investigating many hauntings told the frightened couple that he would be there as soon as possible and the only thing that would be able to drive this demonic force from their home was the ancient ritual of exorcism. He assured the family that he had done battle with the forces of darkness on many occassions and only the power of God could save them from the depredations of this heinous spirit. The calvary was coming and the Jones had faith that this man of the cloth could deliver them from whatever evil inhabited their home.

Over a two week period, the Vicar and his assistant performed five exorcisms on the home. During one of the rituals the Vicar told the Jones’s to sing religious hymns as he walked throughout the home saying prayers of deliverance. As the couple sang the hymns a powerful force attacked Mrs. Jones, and knocked her to the floor and she once again grasped at her neck desperately trying to free her throat from the invisible force. The Vicar rushed to her aid and commanded the spirit in the name of Jesus, to depart. The attack came to end, however none of the exorcisms were effective and according to the Jones family the attacks by the invisible force became for frightening and more intense. The Jones’ family could take no more they fled from their dream home and never returned leaving all their worldly goods behind.

Now this is where things get really interesting. Shortly after fleeing the home in terror, the Jones’s contacted the two sisters and told them that they would not be paying them the rest of the money because the sisters did not disclose to them that the home was haunted by a powerful force that meant harm and malicious intent. The sisters told the frightened couple that they had grown up in Lowe’s Cottage and never once had they experienced any of the bizarre activity that the Jones’s reported to them. The sisters further stated that if the Jones’ family did not pay them the money owed to them they would sue the Jones’s and take them to court. When the money was not forthcoming they did exactly what they had threatened they filed a lawsuit against the family who claimed to have been chased from their home by an agressive demonic force.

Although this case was strange it made national headlines all over Britiain and everyone was now familiar with the bizarre activity that sent a young family fleeing into the night. Mr. and Mrs. Jones told the judge and the court every minute detail of the strange phenomenon that forced them to flee their home they also claimed that they would counter sue on the grounds that the sisters did not disclose such serious details when they bought the house. After several weeks of the trial the judge found in favor of the two sisters, the judge claimed that the British legal system does not recoginize the existence of ghosts or demons and the Jones family would have to pay the rest of the money they owed to the sisters. The judge further went on to say that Mrs. Jones appeared to be, “A woman who suffered from hysterics and needed to seek professional help.” The judge further went on to say that Mr. Jones was, “Devious.” The supernatural had it’s day in court and the court of Great Britain decreed that the supernatural did not exist.

If this case seems familiar, it should, the case of the hauntings at Lowe’s Cottage and the impending lawsuit was featured on “Unsolved Mysteries”. One can not help but wonder if the events that occurred to the Jones Family was legitimate paranormal phenomenon or were they just looking for a way to skip out on paying their mortgage. There are many cases on record where families claimed they were victims of harrasement by an unseen presence and it turned out to be an elaborate hoax either to make money or skip out on The Man, the famous Amityville Horror case is possibly one such instance. However the Jones family endured the harsh British legal system, a lawsuit that I’m sure did not do wonders for their credit rating and they did not make a single cent or shilling on their report. Perhaps the Jones family really did experience the terrifying phenomenon they claimed and they were merely a victim of circumstance. You be the judge.

Rick E. Hale

t_seeker@hotmail.com