Haunted Liverpool Pubs

You'd think that there would be lots of info out there on haunted pubs in Liverpool; everyone seems to know some vague story about one old pub or another. And yet, I've had a huge amount of trouble trying to find any verifiable* stories pertaining to haunted boozers in Liverpool. Anyone know of any good stories that I might be able to get my teeth into? Anything that's been in the Echo or another paper?


*by verifiable I mean anything with enough facts in terms of names, dates, recorded accounts or anything like that to even begin researching properly.

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Originally Posted by researchwriter

You'd think that there would be lots of info out there on haunted pubs in Liverpool; everyone seems to know some vague story about one old pub or another. And yet, I've had a huge amount of trouble trying to find any verifiable* stories pertaining to haunted boozers in Liverpool. Anyone know of any good stories that I might be able to get my teeth into? Anything that's been in the Echo or another paper?


*by verifiable I mean anything with enough facts in terms of names, dates, recorded accounts or anything like that to even begin researching properly.

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How are you getting on with your book?
I don't know of any pub stories I'm afraid.
Might be an idea to write a letter to a few pubs asking?

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Originally Posted by DaisyChains

How are you getting on with your book?
I don't know of any pub stories I'm afraid.
Might be an idea to write a letter to a few pubs asking?

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It's coming on very well thanks for asking. Unfortunately, my other work has been rather getting in the way lately so I haven't had as much time to devote to the book as I would like.

I have written to a few pubs (and emailed) but so far the response has not been too good sadly.

'fraid I'm a bit vague too.

I heard that the pub on Scotland rd, the Throstles Nest' is supposed to be haunted, but I can't remember how the story goes.

There was a gay bar off dale street I heard that was supposed to be haunted , but it turned out it was just a couple of guys trying to put the willies up each other.

Tom Slemen mentions a story about the post house in Cumberland street being haunted by a couple of skeletons playing the old joanna?

The Punch bowl in Sefton is supposed to be haunted by a few ghosts and both the above stories were featured in the echo some time back but as you'll know with ghost stories - very unreliable!

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Originally Posted by Ged

Tom Slemen mentions a story about the post house in Cumberland street being haunted by a couple of skeletons playing the old joanna?

The Punch bowl in Sefton is supposed to be haunted by a few ghosts and both the above stories were featured in the echo some time back but as you'll know with ghost stories - very unreliable!

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The Poste House is a lovely little pub, supposedly where Hitler had a pint too isn't it? Or was that Slemen too... ?

Just found this about the Punch Bowl

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Reader Mark Tomlinson reports that a pub next door to the church, called the Punch Bowl, is said to be haunted by the ghost of a man in blue nautical garb, which has been reported there for many years.

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from http://paranormal.about.com/library/.../aa101804b.htm

Sadly, it falls outside my catchment area for the book, as does anywhere "over the water" (despite the fact that I've been given one or two nice stories from over there).

I've dropped the Throstles Nest an email, cheers lindylou. :PDT_Piratz_26:

The person who wrote "Played in Liverpool" seems to think it was originally called "The Billiards Hotel".
It was always "The Throstles Nest", and had "Billiards" and "Hotel" painted on the side of the building just to let people know what was available.

Try getting in touch with The Oxford in Oxford St/Abercrombie Sq area, have a look at this - there's another of Slemen's stories where some lads went into a timewarp in this vicinity as well.

http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/e...name_page.html

I have stayed in Haunted pubs, the first was the Belvedere in Sugnall Street L1, My wife and i were staying there for a few days while the Landlady was taking a break, at the time i was involved in research but had no equipment with me apart from a dictaphone, on the third night i left it on the bar as we cleaned up for the night, it was also taken into the cellar on the same night and left on the stairs as we collected a few crates of bottles to refill the shelves. At the time nothing out of the ordinary took place but on reviewing the tape a voice whispering the name Barbara can be heard just after the tape is left on the bar (i was cleaning glasses and you can here the fruit machine on the far side of the room what the wife was playing), There is the sound of a "knock" just after me leaving the tape on the stairs in the cellar, and also while listening to the recording the window/frame at the front of the building upstairs shaked without cause?
The Railway Inn in Wavertree has a few stories, my Grandchildren have seen a Figure downstairs in the lounge, but i used to like watching the orb's on the security monitor. If ye get the chance (when/if it reopens) see if you can get a look at the security systems hard drives. I've also seen these "orbs" on the security system in the Brunswick Bar in the town centre.
Call me Lazy but iv'e never really needed to collect Evidence, i don't beleive you can convince people about Ghosts/Whatever, the best thing is to have an experience for themselves, i know only to well what it's like to be the butt of a workforce's jokes, but i also know that each person has a story to be told.
I no longer have access to these pubs but if ye ever need a hand collecting evidence or a body out in the field im always up for action!

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Originally Posted by SteH

Try getting in touch with The Oxford in Oxford St/Abercrombie Sq area, have a look at this - there's another of Slemen's stories where some lads went into a timewarp in this vicinity as well.

http://icliverpool.icnetwork.co.uk/e...name_page.html

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Cheers Ste, the Oxford is one of those pubs that I've always quite fancied but never actually been in. Sadly, I can't find any contact info for it online at the moment.

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Originally Posted by Devo

I no longer have access to these pubs but if ye ever need a hand collecting evidence or a body out in the field im always up for action!

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That's why I'm so disappointed to be having such a hard time with the pubs; it'd be such a good excuse for visiting a few.:PDT_Aliboronz_24:

The story about the Belvedere (a lovely little pub) is very interesting. Did you ever hear any more about the haunting from anyone? Was it pre-existing (and dare I hope ongoing)? Did the name of Barbara mean anything to you or anyone else at the time? I'd love to hear the tape...

the weighing machine on wavertree road, supposedly haunted by an ex manager who commited suicide by hanging himself after being threatened by a liverpool gang who called themselves the peanut gang. think this would have been in the fifties, i remember my dad telling us one long winter evening when we were kids sitting round the fire

Andersons Bar was reputedly haunted. Before the refurb there was a ships bell that used to occasionally ring on its own. The staff used to close up and find things had been moved overnight

Cheers Hakeswill (and belatedly to you Peter), the book is done and dusted now but a haunted pub guide might be a nice follow up idea. ;)

Was once sitting in the bar with a mate (on the Hardman St side) of the Philharmonic, when our conversation was interrupted by an ashtray on the counter suddenly moving sideways about six inches. Yes: 'it's the trains in the underground' or 'there's spilled beer on the counter acting as a lubricant' were the first two obvious explanations that came to mind. But, when we got up to investigate, we found that the counter was dry as a bone, and the ashtray both abrasive on the underside and seemingly weighing more than a bag of sugar. It didn't even move when we pushed it. Felt quite 'weirded out' . . .

Are you still looking for haunted pubs? My grandad was a Higsons tenant/manager in the teens twenties and thirties. First pub was the Palatine on the corner of the Dock Road/Dublin Street (picture in inacityliving) Not sure what it was called in his day - not the Palatine, I think. Apparently it was an 18th century sea-captain's house. Said sea-captain had young and lovely wife, and ended up dead in mysterious circumstances. All the usual pub haunting phenomena took place - things moving etc etc. When my mother was a baby (1919) she was being fed by the maid-of-all-work in the back kitchen, which had no light or access except a skylight. The maid heard "the three knocks" from the area of the skylight - and ran screaming from the room, leaving the baby in the high-chair. Shortly afterwards my sick aunt (aged 4) died. Family legend.

Next pub - Roscommon in Roscommon Street. (I think that area was bombed to feck in the War) Back alley was haunted(polt?), and Grandad was pushed from behind so hard by something invisible that he packed everyone up and moved.


As the Palatine was still there until about 10 years ago, there may be people who remember drinking there, and might have known subsequent landlords and be able to confirm if there was any "funny business" there. Presumably you can also research the original site of the Palatine from old maps and newspapers to see if there were dodgy doings - and a retired sea captain living there at some point. Also - if there's anything in Roscommon Street you could presumably wander about for a bit and see if you get pushed about!

There's also a story about the Green Man, but I'll have to ask around as I have forgotten the details.

I can't confirm if these events are true, but I do have about 20 cousins who can confirm that these stories were told by the previous generation. My grandad was Dan Ferris, and there should be a record of him at Higsons.

Verifiable must be hard to find it?s not as if you would go striate to the echo or some other paper because you have seen or think you have seen a ghost. I think most people would not report such a thing to the press for fear of being scoffed at. I work in a haunted pub that?s said to be haunted by several ghosts but there is one who lived in the building that is seen most often. I myself have seen a ghost on several occasions; many of the regulars have seen ghosts and had strange things happen. It was quite scary at first but over time you get used to it. We had a visit from one of them yesterday who introduced themselves by removing the keys from the till and throwing them across the bar. However it is hardly likely that I am going to go running to the newspapers to have it verified.

Colin

Which pub is it Colin...The Slaughterhouse, the Punch bowl, another??? - Will you disclose it? ;)

Its the Conservative club in Kirkby,
a big old Victorian house known localy as the SCARY HOUSE because of the way it looks from the outside. We have managed to find out who one of them are and located the grave. although one of the others has been identified by someone in the club i have not done any reseach. We have a lot of people who claimed they have seen ghosts inside the building or strange things happen to them but we also have people who have visited the club for years
and not seen anything. I have tried to keep a diary of events but stopped as there was no particular days or times they visited. and it matters not whos there or what time of day it is, I have seen it when the club is packed and when the club is empty as have customers. On Monday night it threw the keys whils a customer was at the bar being served so it was witnessed by staff and the customer. We have lots of other things like Smells and sounds or name calling but it is only the last few months we have had things thrown.
It threw a guitar down a set of stairs a few weeks ago. I'm not sure and have mixed feelings about ghosts if they exist or not and this just gets harder and harder to explain.
Colin

Thanks Colin. I suppose if you've actually seen one, it has to change your way of thinking about them but I suppose i'm just like the rest of those people in your packed club who went merrily about their drinking whilst a ghost was in their midsts, unknown to them. :)

I used to drink in the Belvedere, great little pub. Never saw nothing myself like. It had a lot of old ornaments inside.

Mate of mine used to be the manager of Chauffers on Hope street ( sadly now gone, great club ) He had a row with his wife one night and slept in the club on one of the benches. He said he woke up and saw a young boy staring back at him. The lad then ran up the stairs. My mate said he looked everywhere for him with no sign, and the was no way that he could have got into the club?

Then he realised that the boy had been dressed in old clothes? like a Butler he put it? a young Black boy aged about 10?

My mate had never talked of ghost before, but this really spooked him.

I dont believe in Ghost myself, but the Wooky Hollow did have a witch.

I've also been told the Belvidere, Sugnall Street is haunted. Great little pub and well worth a visit. The barman told us in all seriousness that the ghost of a former maid haunts the place. Dont know how true it is though?

Thanks again, Shoney, for that contribution. I really laughed out loud.

As for most of the others, just a big sigh, I'm afraid.
Stan H.

My brother has just been talking to the daughter of the manager of the Vernon, they have moved there from the Excelsior but not because of the following.

She reported that a lot of students used to go into the Excelsior between 5pm and about 8pm and one of them somehow found his way out through a back door to the fire escape - possibly lost looking for the toilet or for a ciggie - she never found out, as he came back in shaking having seen something, porceeded to throw up (though he wasn't drunk) - rushed off and wasn't seen again in there.

Aww this jealousy of tom has got to stop, why dont you do what he does, get out there and find out for yourself

That's a very strange post for someone's very first post, especially when i've just read all 25 posts on this thread and not one disses 'tom' ???

If Liverpool did have a pub on every corner. I wonder how many cellars still remain, despite the pub above it being demolished?

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Originally Posted by Ged

That's a very strange post for someone's very first post, especially when i've just read all 25 posts on this thread and not one disses 'tom' ???

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Even stranger when that person's been a member for almost 2 years. Anyway, Allo Margy :)

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Originally Posted by margy grace

Aww this jealousy of tom has got to stop, why dont you do what he does, get out there and find out for yourself

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Is it you Tom? Welcome to Yo. :PDT_Piratz_26: