British Columbia Ghost stories –file 2
1-Spectral Cowboy Of Paska Lake
We received the following account of a spectral cowboy in March 2010:
“The experience was what I believe to be a ghost. I was camping alone at Paska Lake in the interior of B.C. I have been to this lake many times before, but never by myself. There was only one other party that was camping and they were on the other side of the camp-site, so I was pretty much the all alone.
Next to my camp site there was a very old bunk house and corral, I believe a resting point for when cattle and cowboys where driven though back in the day.
Sometime after I had gone to bed in my camper, I was awakened, although I’m not sure why, as there was no sound that I remember. I had opened my eyes and in front of me was this energy, light and within this was what I can only describe as a cowboy.
Now there was no lights on in my camper and no light outside, it was pitch dark. I had let out a gasp and the energy, cowboy was gone. After collecting myself and turning on a light I saw the camper door was open.”
2- North Vancouver Residential Haunting
The witness writes:
“I had been working in a residential home as a life skills worker for a couple of years including some overnights. One evening about an hour or so, after I had given the residents their medication and saw them to bed I was watching television when I caught a glimpse of what looked like one of the residents dressed with a hat, scarf and winter coat walking from the kitchen through the dining area. I immediately went to check after her but at the same time was filled with awareness, dread and shock as I prayed that this was not what I feared it was. The clients were indeed in bed and there was absolutely no possibility that this being was anything else but supernatural. I waited by the front door (with the door open) for the evening staff to arrive. When she did finally arrive I had asked her if she had ever seen anything unusual in the hose. She was not surprised and just asked me ‘Where did you see it?” as if she knew there was something in the house. I told her, and she said. “They are everywhere”. I found out later that many of the staff had seen not only this apparition but others. One person had even been physically awaken and slapped in her face. I do not work there any longer. I phoned my grown sons and had one of them stay on the phone with me all the way home. (The drive is about 1 hour). That night I had a horrible night and awoke soaking wet. In the morning, I had to see a doctor because I could not turn my neck without turning my entire torso. Needless to say, I no longer accept shifts at this house. From what I have heard from other staff the spirits or whatever they are seem to assume the physical appearance of the residents.”
2-Ghostly Dog In British Columbia
“My boyfriend, and our 18mth yr. old girl. and I moved into a new place. I got home late from work and while lying in bed trying to fall asleep, I heard a noise and looked out into the hallway and saw a dog! I thought somehow a dog got into our place, but after searching the house, this is not possible. It was a small white dog and I watched it for about maybe ten-fifteen seconds and then it walked into my daughter’s playroom.
My boyfriend believed I saw something but figured there was some explanation and even I myself deep down find it hard to grasp that I actually saw a ghost. I who have always believed firmly in ghosts but I guess I never imagined the possibility of a dog as a ghost.
For the next two nights we slept with the lights on. Last night, (with the lights out) our little girl woke up crying for some juice. After she fell asleep, I was lying there and heard a noise again. I instantly woke Allan and a dog walked right past our bedroom door. We both saw it and we both saw the exact same thing. Allan freaked out totally.
I am relieved that he has seen it also. He has never believed in ghosts and was very skeptical but now has absolutely no doubt in his mind. Like I said the dog was small and white. The first night I saw it, I saw only the hind quarters and it was just kind of sniffing around and then went into the other room, with no way out I might add, and it wasn’t in there when we searched. When we both saw it, it was a side view and came out of my daughter’s play room.
There is no question that it is a ghost. Even the look of it. It makes a noise to alert it’s presence but as it walks it makes no sound. The colour is not really see-through but not solid either. A strange translucence about it, like an aura.
My daughter has had unexplained cries out of the blue and then runs to me terrified. Once I was with her and she appeared to be looking at something and jumped into my arms in a panic. This was before we saw the dog but even then I said to my boyfriend it’s like she’s seen a ghost. She is afraid of dogs, so it would make sense that if she had seen it, she would be scared even not understanding it’s a ghost.
I have a very wise and spiritual friend that I called and she believes that this spirit, whether it was actually a dog or a spirit taking on the form of an animal, is trying to get where it is suppose to be and that it senses intuitively that I can help it get there. She says it’s important that I get over my fear so as not to scare it off. She offered suggestions as to what I could do. I still feel afraid though, even though I sense it is a friendly spirit. I will see what happens tonight. It seems silly but we are only here for four months and I feel responsible for this ghost and want to help it somehow, because I do feel it is showing itself to us for a reason, and we need to help it on its way.
We live in a two story house and I questioned the people below us (without telling them what I saw), about who lived here before us. Before us there were two young guys that lived here, but before them a lady lived here for four years and owned a small white dog that she had to put down.”
3- Shadow People In Prince George
We received the following report in November 2009:
“My family and I have been living in this house for almost three years. I have seen I guess you could call them shadow people or a person who seems to walk across my house (interior) and my husband has seen a person running down our driveway only to vanish on the steps leading to our deck.
I don’t feel personally that this is harmful, but more of a startling nature and its on almost a daily basis but not meant to harm. I don’t know how I know this but that’s the case.”
Webmaster’s note: The number of reports of “shadow people” continues to rise around the globe since we first saw a surge of them in the 1990s. This seems to be a phenomenon that is experienced by a diverse group of people that crosses all cultural, and socio-economic bounds.
4 – Cat Haunts Vancouver Condo
“I visited my sister in Vancouver last fall because of family circumstances. I travelled there by bus, and arrived very tired. I went to bed as soon as I could and settled down to sleep right away.
I was no sooner asleep than I was awakened by the arrival of a cat springing onto my bed. I hadn’t seen a cat in my room before closing the door, but thought one must have sneaked in and hidden until I switched off the light.
It did what cats do–found a good spot, kneaded the bedclothes for a while, purred like a hand operated lawn mower, then fell asleep. So did I.
A short while later the cat got restless and jumped off the bed, landing on some plastic grocery bags on the floor. This woke me (I could see nothing– the room was pitch black) and I was irritated enough by the disturbance to get out of bed, muttering nasty words, intending to eject the offending animal. When I switched the light on–no cat! It was a small spare bedroom with an empty closet, a closed door and a closed window. There was no cat in the room.I searched. I finally climbed into bed, tired and fed up and went to sleep. Once again I was awakened by the THUMP of a cat hitting my bed.
This time I got up and switched the light on right away.No cat– just indentations where it had been.
I left the light on and fell asleep until morning.
I told my sister the next morning and she said, “Oh yes! The last person who slept in that room said the same thing.”This was in a condo in Vancouver. A few years previously, one of the tenants of the building had been murdered in Stanley Park. I looked him up online, to try to determine if he had left behind a lonely cat. I couldn’t find any details of his life, but I found a picture of him with a — DOG! I wonder if there’s any reasonable explanation for the apparent haunting of my sister’s apartment by a cat?? What do you think?”
5- Prince George Private Home
“In the summer of 1996 my family relocated to Prince George from Calgary. I went ahead, found a house (XXXXXX, Prince George, BC) and my belongings followed. My wife and children were delayed due to car problems. So the furniture arrived ahead of them (by a few days).The first night in the house, I went to bed – around 2 am I was awoken and saw this image of a women standing in the doorway. Startled the image disappeared and I went back to sleep. Some time later I was awaken again, with the weight of someone, or something sitting on me. I physically pushed the weight off of me with both hands.
There were several other ‘happenings’ in the house that both my wife and I experienced. On one occasion, we were getting ready for bed (our young kids already in bed) and putting our dog into her kennel. When both of us heard a young voice say (good night mommy). we turned around expecting to see one of our kids – no one was there. A quick look found both kids sleeping in their rooms. Who’s voice did we hear?
On another occasion, I was having a meeting in my basement and we heard the doorbell ring once, I assumed my wife would answer the door (she was upstairs at the time). When it rang again, I got up to answer the door. I asked my wife why she did not get the door – she responded “the door bell never rang”, My dog, who was sitting at the door, never barked and the sound of the bell.
We moved from the house six month later.”
Vancouver’s Hycroft mansion is one of the city’s most stately homes, and is also reported to be one of the most haunted houses. The 20,000 square foot Shaughnessy home was used as a veteran’s hospital from 1943-1960, but is now owned by the University Women’s club.
There are reportedly seven ghosts in the 30-room home, including an older man in a First World War officer’s uniform. The ghost is believed to be Alexander McRae, a prominent politician and war hero who built the home in 1909. His wife Blanche is also known to cause some disturbances.
Since the University Women’s club bought the property in 1962, the home is often used as a film set.
Source:Supernatural B.C. attracts visitors from beyond
7-The Irish Heather Pub
The Irish Heather Pub is located in the historic Gastown area of Vancouver British Columbia. It is an authentic Irish pub right down to its Irish owners, and well worth a visit!
The pub is housed in a building that was reportedly Vancouver’s first police station, however when a PSICAN investigator looked into it he found the following:
“I did research on this building and could find no reference that this building was the first police station or first jail I did find a small reference to the first jail being a log cabin with out locks on the doors that was destroyed in the great fire. To the best of my knowledge only 2 buildings survived the fire and this was not one of them I also found a reference that this building used to be a hotel which consisted of most of the block.”
No matter the structure’s original use it is reportedly haunted, and its ghosts experienced by both staff, and patrons.
The Old Spaghetti Factory in Gastown is reportedly haunted by a male ghost that is dressed in old fashioned looking clothing. The male apparition is most often seen sitting in the trolley car located in the dining room, but has also been seen/felt in other areas of the restaurant including the bathroom.
Long time employees have heard their names being called by a disembodied voice, objects appear, and disappear, and on occasion the cutlery is disturbed.
A picture of what is believed to be the ghost on the steps of the trolley car hangs in the restaurant. The spirit is thought to be connected to the car, possibly a former conductor.
Hat Creek Ranch is a historic site located near Kamloops, and just north of Cache Creek. There are several original buildings on the site, and early use of Bonaparte Valley by people of the Shuswap nation can be experienced through Native Village.
“Prominent among the 20 historic structures here is Hat Creek House, established in 1861 by former Hudson’s Bay Company trader Donald McLean. Originally a small log building, it soon became popular as a stopping house offering good meals for travelers and was enlarged over the years. In 1863 the building momentum of the Cariboo Gold Rush brought the Royal Engineers and their Cariboo Wagon Road right past the front door!. McLean was ready to provide rooms, food, whiskey, and stables to thousands of miners and settlers heading north. Alas, while riding with a posse in 1864, he was shot and killed, and a succession of other managers assumed operation of the ranch over the following years.”
There have been reports of a transparent spirit, phantom horses, mysterious lights, and the sounds of tools being used when none were around.
10 – Fairacres Burnaby Art Gallery
In 1909 multimillionaire Henry Ceperley built a mansion for his wife Grace. The mansion was affectionately dubbed Fairacres, and Grace reportedly loved it for its peaceful setting. When Grace passed away it was revealed in her last will and testament that should Henry sell her beloved mansion at any time he was to give the money to the City of Vancouver in order to build a park for local children. Fairacres was sold in 1922, but the money made from the sale was never given to the city, and no playground was ever built for the children as Grace had expressly wanted.
Some people believe that Grace is haunting the structure to this day because her last wishes were not respected.
Over the years Fairacres, changed hands a few times and had a variety of different owners. At one time it served as the tuberculosis ward of the Vancouver General Hospital, and then later as the home of a Benedictine order of monks.
After the monks left Fairacres, the mansion was bought by William Franklin Wolsey who was a wanted criminal in the United States. He turned the mansion into the headquarters of his cult, and it became the scene of much mental, and physical abuse, which included the ritual, and sexual abuse of young children. Many people suffered tremendously at the hands of the “Temple of the More Abundant Life” cult leader within the walls of Fairacres. And had the spirit of Grace, who in life had dearly love children, remained behind, she certainly would have been tormented by the horror committed within her mansion.
When the cult was exposed for its crimes Wolsey fled to the USA, and the mansion was converted into a dorm for students from Simon Fraser University. And that is how it remained until 1967 when the city began to do renovations on the old house in order to convert it into the art gallery.
The renovations of Fairacres seemed to stir the spirits within the home, and hauntings began to be experienced with great frequency by those who visited the site.
Both Henry and Grace Ceperley are rumoured to be haunting the building. Apparitions of a lady in white, and a man in old fashioned clothing have been seen throughout. The male is particularly prominent at the top of the stairs. Children’s forlorn faces have been seen looking out of the third floor windows where they are also heard crying on occasion by some of the staff of the art gallery.
There has been many incidents of poltergeist activity over the years including phantom footsteps, running, other odd seemingly misplaced sounds, furniture being moved by unseen hands, pictures being moved from their locations, and other assorted items disappearing only to reappear in a different place.
11- The Keg Steakhouse New Westminster
It seems that every Keg restaurant has a resident ghost or ghost story and the Keg Steakhouse in New Westminster is no different.
There have been sightings of an apparition, and much reported poltergeist activity reported by staff, customers, and paranormal investigators over the years. Tne researcher reported that when she visited the Keg on an investigation she heard strange noises and smelled unusual smells that could not readily be explained by either herself or her team mates at the time.
Another investigator writes:
“I was there once with the group on a hot day in the middle of summer sitting at one of the tables when a very cold column of air passed by me. There were also rumours of a family of 4 that had died in the upstairs part of the building in the fire that burned down much of new west, but I could not find any reference to this. I guess it is possible that they were waiting for a train and were from out of town. Also where the keg sits now the building was moved there from another place.
12- Confederation Park Burnaby
Confederation Park in Burnaby is reportedly haunted by a phantom jogger. The jogger is seen to materialize, only to vanish as quickly as it appeared, and then reappear again in a different spot.
“A friend who is in his late 70s told me this story today. He said that when he was 10 or 11 years old, he and two friends (now deceased) were playing in the bush in Confederation Park in Burnaby, that would make it the summer of 1937 or 1938. He said he and his friends heard a roaring sound and he ran out of the trees to Willingdon Avenue and saw two streaks of smoke in the sky coming from the east parallel to the ground and at a fairly low altitude. As the smoke trails got closer he saw two round balls of fire at the head of the trails. Suddenly the two fireballs roared like a rocket straight up at a ninety degree angle and disappeared into a clear blue sky. He said that today he would compare them to jets, but of course there were no jets back then. He still remembers the incident even after the amount of time that has transpired.”
13- Ghosts Of UBC
Stories tell that very close to the grounds of UBC there is hitchhiking phantom very similar to the Resurrection Mary story from Chicago. The apparition is said to be of a young woman who died in a car accident nearby. She is said to be seen hitchhiking, and when drivers stop to either question her or let her enter their car she will vanish in front of them.
Another ghostly story associated with the University is that an old woman in a white dress is reportedly haunting the main library. No one seems to know who she might have been, but she too will vanish if approached.
14 –Haunted Vancouver Townhouses
Written by BCGHRS
SE Marine Drive Townhouses, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
The following is an account of our research and investigation into a number of strange happenings at a townhouse complex near SE Marine Drive in Vancouver, BC. This account is now featured in Susan Smitten’s Canadian Ghost Stories Volume II
BACKGROUND
The complex is located near SE Marine Drive in the Vancouver neighborhood of Killarney. It consists of 70 housing units built nearly eight years ago, and residents in at least six of these units have come forward to say they’ve had strange encounters with what they believe is to be paranormal.
Hundreds of years ago the Killarney region was a popular summer residence for a number of First Nations groups, including the ancestral relatives of today’s Squamish, Burrard and Musqueam bands.
The area was favored by those people for its lush forests, abundant wildlife and close proximity the Fraser River… unfortunately, those elements were also attractive to the British settlers of the 1800s.
While we have yet to find evidence to suggest that natives were forcibly removed from this particular region, it is a documented fact that during this period it was common for white settlers to use violence against aboriginals to enforce their occupation of many parts of British Columbia … including murder.
Extensive logging operations began in Killarney at the turn of the 19th century, a highly profitable operation because of its easy access to river barge transportation.
In 1868, a large portion of the region was granted to William Henry Rowling (1826-1905), a surveyor with the British military’s Royal Engineers which had completed an exploration of the Esquimalt region on Vancouver Island a few years earlier.
Rowling’s lands consisted of a 3.5 km stretch of riverfront along the Fraser which extended a few kilometres north just past where the townhouse complex stands today.
Prior to moving to his new property with his wife Mary and their five children, Rowling had owned a pub called “The Retreat” in New Westminster’s Sapperton district. The city of Vancouver’s website lists the Rowling family as Killarney’s first official settlers.
Fast forward to December 25, 1889 – Rowling had thrown a Christmas party at one of the three homes he’d built on the property over the years.
Many of the guests in attendance belonged to various chapters of the Masonic Lodge, and a horse-drawn buggy containing several of their young members was soon met with a terrible fate.
Documents at the Vancouver City Archive show that the buggy was struck by a massive falling tree ,as they headed down the North Arm Road, an early incarnation of today’s Marine Drive which ran through the Rowling lands.That night four young men were crushed to death: James Bodwell, 21; Clarence Campbell, 22; James Lawson, 16; and Jasper Locke, 24.
Lawson’s younger sister Mayo escaped with a minor injury to her arm, and another passenger, James Mashiter, was unharmed.
A news article appearing in the Dec. 27, 1889 edition of Vancouver-based “Daily Colonist” states:
“The news of the sad affair cast a gloom over this city and the North Arm, all the parties being well known. The bodies were crushed and mutilated almost beyond recognition.”
James Saint, a neighbour and relative newcomer to the area, was said to be partly responsible for the deaths.
A few days earlier Saint had cut into the tree’s trunk and deposited burning coals inside.
Burning trees down from the stump was a common method for bringing them down, and the process often took several days. Why the tree wasn’t cut to land safely is unknown.
Nearly 50 years later, much of the city of Vancouver had developed with the exception of Killarney, which was still largely uninhabited.
Aside from a scarce few residents, it was also home to one of the city’s landfills through the 1940s and 1950s. The landfill is no longer there, but by our estimation it too was situated on the former Rowling lands about a block south of the current townhouse site.
The Townhouse Tragedies
The following is a partial list of the activities reported by a variety of tenants scattered throughout the townhouse complex.
“Donna” – TOWNHOUSE #1 & #2
Donna has served as a liaison between the BCGHRS and residents of the complex. She was one of the first residents to move into the development with her husband and children about eight years ago. During that time she has lived in two separate townhouses at the site, and has had paranormal experiences at both. Donna has since moved into a new home in Burnaby, and we thank her for her efforts to assist us.
Activities in #1 include:
- sightings of shadowy figures;
- TV set turning on by itself when nobody was home;
- disappearing \ reappearing objects
NOTE: while this activity occurred with a variety of household objects like keys, personal belongings, etc., the most notable instances surrounded the frequent disappearance of her birth control pills.
The packages would often vanish from their usual spot on a countertop whenever someone left the room. Donna even tried keeping them in a locked drawer, but still they vanished.
At the time she thought someone was breaking into her home to play a cruel joke, and even raised the issue with other residents at a strata council meeting. It was after that declaration that some of her neighbours came forward and shared some of their strange personal stories. Like Donna, they thought they were going crazy.)
Activities in #2 include:
Sightings of shadowy figures and balls of light,
mysterious smells of Old Spice aftershave, cinnamon and flowers;
unusual cold spots and auditory phenomena
NOTE: On two occasions Donna heard glass shattering in her downstairs kitchen and upstairs bathroom. Upon investigation there was nothing there.
One morning around 4 am she heard the loud, unmistakable sounds of a man walking past her home whistling a familiar tune. As she couldn’t see anyone from her windows she rushed outside to greet the culprit… naturally there was nobody there, although she could still hear him walking a short distance away.
Another time she awoke to the voice of a “tormented” woman playing through a baby monitor. The microphone was in her infant son’s room, and again, no trace of a woman could be found.
Donna insists that this was not a case of transmission interference, a common occurrence with baby monitors. She said that you could actually hear that the woman had increased her proximity to the microphone while she was talking before pulling away.
Other instances have included the sounds of various bells ringing inside her home.
“Meghan” – TOWNHOUSE #3
Meghan moved in just a few years ago, and was also a particularly active participant in the BCGHRS investigation. Special thanks once again.
Activities in #3 include:
- sightings of shadowy figures and balls of light;
- lights turning on\off;
- water faucets turning on\off;
- footsteps walking up the stairs;
- a persistently vibrating picture frame
NOTE: The silver-colored picture frame stands about eight inches high and folds on hinges in the centre. It once belonged to Joan (see below), who resides in one of the most active homes in the complex.
Meghan said that she kept the frame on her bedside dresser, and several times a month she’d wake up to the sound of it rattling loudly. At first she attributed it to heavy vehicle traffic passing by her home. But she soon came to realize that it was only the frame that was shaking – all other objects on the dresser were still.
Her attempts to replicate the vibrating motion were unsuccessful – even physically shaking the dresser failed to reproduce what had been happening.
Unfortunately, she said it still feels like a presence is in her home.
Steve Ramsey- Calgary- Alberta