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| Ghosts Archive 1989 |
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 Ghosts news, views, gallery and archive brought to you by Weird Wiltshire Introduction Latest News News Archive Longleat House Sign of an Angel Bewley Court Red Lion Westbury Pool Maud Cunnington Wardour Castle Manor House Hotel Devizes Castle Kings Arms Malmesbury Abbey Lacock Abbey Avebury Manor Littlecote Manor Lydiard House Gallery Postcards Wallpaper Forum Links |
First published on September 22, 1989 Tourists trek the haunted tunnels The tourist industry in Highworth is going underground. Visitors to the historic town are being treated to an unofficial attraction - which lies buried in the back garden belonging to the chairman of Highworth Historical Society. Local history buff Jan Body was enchanted when she first set eyes on Westrop Cottage in Cricklade Road 13 years ago. When she discovered the 17th century house came complete with tunnels she snapped it up. Now, Jan shares her buried treasure with visitors who flock to Highworth to join town walks in the summer months, "They are usually fascinated, especially about the ghost," she said. For like every good historic tourist attraction, the tunnels are reported to house their very own spook. "I haven't seen it yet, much to my disappointment," said Jan. People lucky or unlucky, enough to have seen the ghost believe it is the mistress of the man who had the tunnels built. "A chap used to stable his motorbike nearby and he saw her coming out of the opening one night," explained Jan. "She just wafted out. It gave him such a fright that he didn't take his bike down there again." There are also reports of the spook knocking on the door of Westrop House, from where the tunnels originally ran. They went from the large house, next door to Jan's cottage, to nearby stable buildings, and were used by servants who needed to keep themselves out of the limelight. Now, just a few yards from Jan's back door lies the entrance to the winding tunnels which end in a deep ice house. Visitors are told by Jan how 19th century folk collected ice, either from Sevenhampton Lake, or specially shipped in from the Arctic via Bristol. "The ice lasted three years, and we presume food would have lasted the same length of time," she said. Her underground system features the brick-lined ice house, about 30 yards of tunnel, and an extra ice house in a separate system, which could have doubled up as a coal hole. Special niches were built into the walls where bees were housed during winter. All the passageways have air vents which percolate up to Jan's lawns. During Highworth's festival last year, 200 people pounded down the tunnels - and as an added treat were given a cup of tea in Jan's kitchen to round it off. Back to 1989 index |
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