The Spook beneath the Attic Stairs

This is going to be a serious investigation into what really lives in the cupboard beneath the attic stairs at my parents’ house. It may take a while to complete but I intend to devote a few days at least to it over the coming months.

Ever since I was a small child, ‘Walter’ was talked about. Apparently the elderly hermit ‘Mr Ainscough’ died in the house several months before my parents bought it back in 1983. He was said to be a frail character, gaunt in appearance, and rarely seen.

Growing up in the house my older brothers liked to scare the living daylights out of me with tales of the ‘man in the attic’, who would creep around after dark.

Though activity was infrequent, it was clear to me by my teen years that something was living with us. As to what that something was, I couldn’t and still cannot say.

The Smell

This first oddity we encountered was the smell. If a large move occurs in the house (i.e. the moving of a large piece of furniture), the smell becomes overwhelmingly apparent. As far as evidence goes, this ‘smell’ has been smelled by many, and even my sceptical dad acknowledges it, though he can’t explain it. I’ve even managed to follow it, as it has wandered the upper floor.

Generally the smell can be found in the cupboard beneath the attic stairs, hence the title, ‘The Spook beneath the Attic Stairs’.

I mention the smell first as it’s the only thing I think I can offer as demonstrable proof of this phenomenon, though you’d have to visit the house to smell it first-hand!

Activity

As far as physical apparitions go, I haven’t seen anything. Though this ‘something’ has affected our environment on many occasions. Here are a few examples:

- I’ve heard my name called in the middle of the night, with such unmistakeable clarity that I’ve opened my bedroom door, walked out of my room and responded

- It has interfered with objects in rooms, causing them to physically move or shake. One example of this being a jewellery box that managed to hurl itself horizontally across the room (at speed) to land on my friend’s lap, who before the event was a confirmed sceptic

- I’ve heard footsteps at the end of my bed, clearly defined, pacing back and forth.

- Drag-bump sounds have been heard coming down the attic stairs above my bed

- Shapes ‘darker than darkness’ have been witnessed when wandering the upper floor in the darkness (though this of course could be down to the imagination)

- A recent event occurred in which 3 televisions turned themselves on over the course of 3 nights respectively

Missing Objects

Objects occasionally go missing, only to reappear days or weeks later. One good example of this is the old family dog’s tennis ball. The dog, Lucy, used to obsess over this particular tennis ball, and as a matter of course, when we’d had enough, the ball was hidden on top of a large cabinet in the dining room; this was a daily routine. My mum went to grab it one day only to find that it was missing. In addition to this, Lucy wasn’t staring up at the top of the cabinet in anticipation as she usually would, we could almost tell that she couldn’t ‘smell it’.

We looked everywhere for it. Even going to the extremes of moving furniture… nothing. Then, about one week later, Lucy approached the cabinet, sat in front of it and looked up. Sure enough, the ball had returned.

Bizarre Coincidences / Inexplicable Manipulation

I first moved out of the house in 2003, moving next door (that’s another story). One particularly odd thing occurred the day after I left. My mum awoke in the middle of the night to a bump in the back attic room. Entering, she discovered a framed photograph of myself sitting on the floor; it had fallen from the wall. The photograph and frame were intact, but the glass panel from within the frame had been removed, and was sitting next to it. Here’s the odd part – the glass panel had been removed from the face of the frame. This is physically impossible. Logically, we can deduce that the frame surrounds and holds the glass panel in place, otherwise it would be incredibly dangerous. This particular frame was taped up at the back, eliminating the possibility of a rear exit.

My dad spent the following day trying to figure it out, attempting to reinsert the glass panel into the face - physically impossible.

Witnesses

Several people have witnessed the presence of ‘Walter’ in one way or another. My mum, dad, brother, friends, girlfriends and partners; a few of whom refuse to visit the bathroom due what seems to be an illogical fear of a ‘male presence’ on the upper floor.

No Conclusion

As it stands there is no conclusion, and there are no explanations. I’m not saying that it’s a ‘ghost’ in the traditional sense, but I am 100% positive that there is something not quite normal in that house, and probably living in the surrounding houses (if the kids’ experiences next door are anything to go by).

I plan to investigate further now that I’m older, and somewhat wiser! (I say that with tongue firmly in cheek)

I’d appreciate any suggestions, i.e. things to look for, methods of investigation etc.

Thanks for reading.

PS – Any messages for the dead will be passed to Walter.

I’ve decided it might be productive to colour this thread with other details/experiences surrounding ‘Walter’.

From time to time I will add updates/snippets as they occur or are recalled.

Walter Sightings, and the Kids Next Door

My parents’ house Number 57 is one of three terraced houses attached to a dental surgery as part of a quasi-terraced row, sitting between numbers 55, and 59. The dental surgery is number 53.

The two kids at number 55 claim to have seen several apparitions, the first of these sightings taking place in the middle of the afternoon. Together they were in the dining room playing snooker. After a few games, one of the kids became aware of a ‘man’ in the corner of the room. Nervously acknowledging this, both of the kids glanced towards what appeared to be a gaunt, elderly male, quietly watching them. Of course kids being kids, the first thing they did was shriek, and ran into the living room to tell their parents. “Mum! Mum! There’s an old man in the house watching us!” Apparently the kids have seen the old man several times, though I’m not privy to further details.

The kids’ bedrooms are in the attic, and occasionally, the young boy claims to see a dog in his room, sitting quietly at the foot of his bed. Strangely this hasn’t frightened him in the way sightings of the old man has; apparently he sees the dog as some kind of ‘guardian’.

Could these sightings be down to overactive imaginations?

Maybe.

However, as described by a neighbour, old Mr Ainscough was gaunt, pale, thin, and armed with a pencil-thin moustache, which according to the kids was exactly what the ‘old man in the corner’ had looked like.

In addition to this, an ex-girlfriend had caught a glimpse of this ‘old man’ at both number 57 and number 59 (as I mentioned earlier I moved to that address in 2003), and she too described him in the same way. On both occasions he was said to be ‘quietly watching’.

Who or what is this spook? Is it a ‘ghost’ in the traditional sense or is he merely the figment of our imaginations?

I’ll update the thread again soon.

Keep the updates coming...

You gave a rather detailed description of what is taking place in your house and the others as well - appreciate it, as it gives a "clearer" idea of what you are dealing with.

Sounds like some energy was left behind from someone...and if it is the elderly man that previously lived there, you may want to dig a little deeper into him/house...

This is a complete guess, but from what I have read/seen on the boob tube/heard regarding this topic is that energy usually stays behind because something traumatic happened...

Maybe a little detective work is warranted- you may find a possible explanation as to why Walter still hangs out at the house(s)...

Doesn't sound like a negative thing, so at least you can rule out a haunting...

Good luck and please post more updates!




grammar edit!

[edit on 11/27/2008 by chapter29]

Post was well structured for easy reading. Thanx for that.

As far as your investigation goes... Good luck and have fun. Makes for an interesting read.

Please wont you put up some pics and stuffs for us to have a feel of what it looks like.

Originally posted by chapter29
Maybe a little detective work is warranted- you may find a possible explanation as to why Walter still hangs out at the house(s)...

Thanks for the reply chapter29, as far as we (the family) know, Mr Ainscough (Walter) died of nothing more than old age in what was to become our dining room in 1982. Neighbours living close by at the time have never hinted at any unusual circumstances surrounding his death.

Originally posted by bskivss3
Please wont you put up some pics and stuffs for us to have a feel of what it looks like.

Hi bskivss3, this will be the first thing I do. Unfortunately, I moved out of the house for the 3rd time in September so I'm now waiting for a decent opportunity to start the investigation.

I'll be sure to keep you posted either way! Thanks again.

[edit on 27/11/08 by thebox]

Experiences with Ouija Boards

At the age of 14, my friends and I thought it would be ‘fun’ to play with Ouija boards. My interest in the paranormal had been established and of course I was eager to explore the realms of possibility.

Initially, we treated the Ouija Board as a fun item; something to mess with after a few smokes/beers. None of us really took it seriously. Still, we persisted with it, impersonating friends and family members in desperate attempts to scare.

After a while, the novelty wore off. It was at this time that we started to use the board properly. Over the following months, we witnessed several things –

- A ‘being’ (be it something other worldly or our unconscious minds) began communicating with us through the board, going by the initials ‘B.C.’ We had hours of conversations with this ‘being’, from subjects mundane to the history of our home town - our own unconscious thoughts maybe?

- A light bulb exploded on request

- A shadow-like apparition appeared on request

- The ‘name calling’ in the middle of the night I mentioned in the OP began

- Bizarre coincidences began, for example, many of us waking at exactly the same time in the night for no other reason than to glance at the clock

- This – Ghosts or just coincidence? - Also has further info on our initial dabbling and experiences

The most disturbing thing happened months later. A friend and I decided to dispose of the Ouija Board. Whether our dabbling was purely coincidental or not, we’d had enough of whatever it was that had decided to plague us. We made our way through some thick grass not too far from Number 57, and hid the Ouija Board in the undergrowth. Seconds later, we heard fast-paced, harsh footsteps moving towards us. We turned to see nothing but thick clumps of grass collapsing beneath the weight of some invisible pressure. It goes without saying – we ran.

Nothing caught up with us that day, and to my knowledge that was the last of the Ouija-related incidents.

Whether or not this dabbling inadvertently awoke something at home or not, I don’t know.

Next, Meetings with a Medium

Is it just me or is this turning into some sort of National Geographic Paranormal special?

My personal opinion, LUCKILY NOT Personal experience...

You play with FIRE, you get burned. Some things in this world are just not meant to tamper with.

GL & HF though

Hey there, why haven't you posted more on this thread? I am eager to read more and learn more about what you have experienced. I checked your profile and it says that you are still an active member.

If you don't want to post anymore, I'm just wondering why... it seemed so abrupt.

Originally posted by Ellie Sagan
Hey there, why haven't you posted more on this thread? I am eager to read more and learn more about what you have experienced. I checked your profile and it says that you are still an active member.

If you don't want to post anymore, I'm just wondering why... it seemed so abrupt.

Hi Ellie,

I was away from the thread for a few months and the interest in it seemed to have peaked! If you're following the thread, I'd be happy to post more on the subject.

Thanks!

Well, I've decided to pick up where I left off! As is usually the case, I’ve had to put the investigation off indefinitely – however, a few interesting things have occurred at Number 57 recently according to my mum.

Meetings with a Medium

I’ve never claimed to believe that Mediums/Clairvoyants have any special abilities. I believe that a good 99% of the time they simply tell you what you want to hear. Other occasions however, I believe that we as a species are capable of tapping into some ‘other’ kind of intuition; an inexplicable intuition allowing access to something other than the mundane. Regardless, this medium had some interesting to say.

As I mentioned in a previous post, we dabbled excessively with Ouija boards. The majority of our ‘sessions’ took place at a friend’s house just up the road. (Background information relating to this can be found on another thread of mine - Ghosts or just coincidence?)

As teenagers we spent much of our time in his garage to the rear of the property (though still connected to the house). One day in particular, Matt’s older sister burst through the door yelling at him - she asked what the hell we’d been getting up to.

After a while she calmed down and explained what had happened. She’d decided to visit a local medium as she’d been having personal problems and wanted some sort of alternative ‘guidance’. Upon arrival, the medium greeted her with a question, “What has been going on at home?” Matt’s sister was perplexed. The medium proceeded to tell her that “Somebody at home has messing with something they shouldn’t have and has inadvertently awoken a presence.” According to the medium, we’d awoken as many as four ‘entities’, all of whom were occupying the four corners of the house.

Though what she was told was strange, it was eerily relevant. Matt’s dog, Tyson, used to sit staring into the corner of rooms, particularly when in the living room. He would sit completely still, occasionally growling at what the rest of us couldn’t see. This he continued till the day he died.

Again, it was only after we’d used the Ouija board many times that the things I’ve mentioned in previous posts started to occur.

TV power cable (2009)

Returning to the attic stairs at Number 57 – beneath them next to the cupboard sits a television. Just a few months ago, my dad went to switch it on and nothing happened. Checking the plug, he discovered that the power cable itself had been snipped in two. He couldn’t even blame it on the cats as the snip was neat. Either way, the cats don’t chew cables!

I *really* think you need to leave an audio recorder out and try for EVP. A crystal-clear EVP you catch when nobody is there is pretty hard to dismiss.

thanks for updating! I look forward to hearing more. I know you are not here for my amusement alone, but your story really intrigues me. I too have experienced things like this through my life, but never wrote them down. I am strongly considering doing it. I think it may be eye opening to see if there are any patterns or things like that.

Interesting stuff. I note nothing of 'sinister' nature reported though. I would'nt worry too much about him, so long as he's not eating the last of the tim tams (biscuits)
Must be bored ####less living under the stairs I imagine, perhaps you should put a TV in there!

Returning to the attic stairs at Number 57 – beneath them next to the cupboard sits a television. Just a few months ago, my dad went to switch it on and nothing happened. Checking the plug, he discovered that the power cable itself had been snipped in two. He couldn’t even blame it on the cats as the snip was neat. Either way, the cats don’t chew cables!

Give him Foxtel hes trying to tell you something!

[edit on 15-3-2010 by wayaboveitall]

EVP - That's what I was thinking. As for the voices - I've had my own experience.

This is probably almost 15 years ago now...I heard someone whispering my name while I was sleeping. After a few of these I woke up and heard it one last time before letting out a "WHAT?!" - no one was there. Never said anything of it to anyone. About a month later a friend spent the night and fell asleep in my bed. The next morning he told me about a voice that woke him up whispering MY name. He claims to have seen a foggy apparition in the corner of the bedroom.

That wasn't my only experience but the most profound to me because it was corroborated without any discussion of it.

My brother is coming to visit in a few weeks and he still lives at that house - I'll have to ask him if he's had any odd experiences.

[edit on 15-3-2010 by an0maly33]

reply to post by thebox


I'm loving this thread so pleased you decided to pick-up where you left off.
Better still it's well written ... bonus !

Do you or your parents still live in the house ... have you ever taken any photographs (maybe you could upload a couple for perspective ?

And as someone else suggested EVP would be fantastic.

Can I ask what part of the UK are you in (no need to be overly specific) ... just that if you were anywhere near me in North Yorkshire I'd happily carry an investigation out for you ?

Last question (sorry to bombard you) ... have you ever seen a photograph of the old man who used to live there ?

Woody

Originally posted by HeardTheOwl
I *really* think you need to leave an audio recorder out and try for EVP. A crystal-clear EVP you catch when nobody is there is pretty hard to dismiss.

Between the ages of 15-18, I attempted several times to catch a recording of the sounds I heard at night. Typically, nothing ever happened when the tape recorded was running! Same can be said for the camcorder!

Originally posted by Ellie Sagan
thanks for updating! I look forward to hearing more. I know you are not here for my amusement alone, but your story really intrigues me. I too have experienced things like this through my life, but never wrote them down. I am strongly considering doing it. I think it may be eye opening to see if there are any patterns or things like that.

You really should - I'd very much like to hear about your experiences.

Originally posted by wayaboveitall
Interesting stuff. I note nothing of 'sinister' nature reported though. I would'nt worry too much about him, so long as he's not eating the last of the tim tams (biscuits)

Must be bored ####less living under the stairs I imagine, perhaps you should put a TV in there!

Give him Foxtel hes trying to tell you something!

Haha! Well we've always said that he isn't a sinister entity - he just seems to enjoy creeping us out!

Originally posted by an0maly33
My brother is coming to visit in a few weeks and he still lives at that house - I'll have to ask him if he's had any odd experiences.

I'd definitely like to hear more about your experiences an0maly33.

Originally posted by woodwytch
I'm loving this thread so pleased you decided to pick-up where you left off.
Better still it's well written ... bonus !

Do you or your parents still live in the house ... have you ever taken any photographs (maybe you could upload a couple for perspective ?

And as someone else suggested EVP would be fantastic.

Can I ask what part of the UK are you in (no need to be overly specific) ... just that if you were anywhere near me in North Yorkshire I'd happily carry an investigation out for you ?

Last question (sorry to bombard you) ... have you ever seen a photograph of the old man who used to live there ?

Woody

Hi Woody!

Yes, my parents still live there. I'll be there in the next hour actually (popping round for a brew after work)! I live in Lancashire, just outside of Bolton.

I haven't seen a photograph of him, but a neighbour up the road knew him quite well before he died. I think I mentioned this in the second post actually. This is how we confirmed his appearance when both my ex-girlfriend and the kids next door caught him watching them.

EVP would be most interesting indeed. Perhaps the old bloke simply dosent know he's dead.
What do you expect to see when you wake up in the morning? and what do you see? The same thing right, all the familiar surrounds that are indelibly printed on your concious mind.

Lets assume for the purpous of this post, that this is also the case when we 'wake' on the otherside. Nothing different, because its expected.
Your as solid as you ever were, your room/surrounds are as solid and unchanged as they ever were. This is what is expected.
Is it possible the mind recreates everything from memory and experience, indistinguishable from what we experience here.

How then, do I know Im dead? If my mind can fill the gaps "inbuilt protection from trauma', then everything I experience this morning
seems perfectly normal to my concious mind. I go about my daily task and abolutions, just like any other day.

But suppose I wake, a few months or even years after my death. Wouldn't I experience anomalies, such as the apparent refusal of my family to see, hear or acknowledge me?
Maybe not. If my mind is filling the gaps and recreating reality as I knew it, why would it not also recreate my family, indistinguishable from reality.
Might they appear as normal as they did when I lived? Do the same things they always have, because I expect nothing different? Talk and interact with me as in reality they do now?

If my mind recreates reality, I may not nessesarily be aware of the physical reality around me (the ghost), just as we, generally arnt aware of
anything outside our reality.
But if the mind is so powerful, who is to claim that it cannot affect reality from time to time. I make coffee everyday, its almost automatic behaviour,
and while im doing it, I expect certain things to happen, e.g, I flick the switch and the electric jug turns on. If my reality is a recreation or counterpart of this reality, might not the two converge on occasion.
Poor walter is making his daily coffee, he flicks on the jug and expects it to boil, and ofcourse, it does. Perhaps his jug and the one in reality, being the same for all intents, are equally affected. So the real jug switch is flicked, without a live person touching it, purely the power of suggestion of walters mind. Maybe he has no idea of this at all, dosent perceive what/who is actually in the house, just what he expects to be there.

How long might walters own mind provide this false matrix experience of life. What might change that, shatter the illusion, make him realise he's dead?

Sorry thats so random, just some thoughts I wanted to put down while they were fresh.

Is subjective reality an illusion of perception? Do we experience what we expect to?

[edit on 15-3-2010 by wayaboveitall]

reply to post by wayaboveitall


Some excellent brainstorming there wayaboveitall!

In questioning the nature of the reality, we tend to end up with more questions than answers!

Though we have given this 'presence' a name, followed it around the room as it leaves its 'scent', and some of us have even caught sight of 'him' in the shadows, we still can't be sure that what we are seeing is in fact an 'entity' of some sort.

I refuse to put the whole thing down to coincidence/misinterpretation as we've seen/heard so many things over the years.

So the question remains, 'what' is Walter?

[edit on 15/3/10 by thebox]

So the question remains, 'what' is Walter?

Somebody here (forgive me, ive forgotten who) recently postulated the idea that unknown 'entities', ghost, etc etc might be 'Echo's of life', much the same as where, within certain acoustic enviroments, sound echos.

Perhaps there is some unperceived essence of certain lives that linger thereafter. What might constitute that essence or enviroment conductive to said echos?
Often its claimed trauma/death. Person dies a violent death, echos remain?
Some say its the life experience itself that manifest 'echos' of life after death.

E.G A dog that habitually waits its masters return by the front door each day, may manifest an echo after it dies. We see a 'ghost dog' by the door, like an afterimage, or an area of cleaner wall in the shape of a picture frame that once hung there.

Yes, definately more questions than answers.

A good question came up in another forum/thread that had me wondering about 'walter' too.

Philosophy and Metaphysics » Where does your EM field go when you die?

www.abovetopsecret.com...

This is a question worthy of scientific explanation, and Im sure there is one. If anyone actually knows and can link some relative Scientific information Id appreciate it.
Its a strange question, but one ive never thought of and now my curiosity is aroused.
Science is preferred before philosophy or religious beleif or sheer guess.
I wonder if in some cases, some kind of electromagnetic resonance/residue after death might account for 'ghost' experiences?
Im hoping science will rule this out.