West Malling Ghost Stories for Halloween

As the nights draw in and Halloween approaches, it seems the perfect opportunity for a few spooky stories and terrifying tales about the ghosts we are said to roam amongst us in West Malling.

In a town as ancient as West Malling, with its rich history and medieval buildings, it’s no surprise to find reports of ghostly sightings and frightening phenomena. Whether you take them seriously or simply see them as a bit of fun in the lead up to Halloween is entirely up to you.

The town of West Malling grew around Malling Abbey, now St.Mary’s Abbey, which was established by Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester around 1090. 

Despite the fact that the abbey has largely been occupied by Benedictine nuns, a surprisingly large number of West Malling ghosts appear to be monks. In the abbey itself the ghost of a monk was seen by a cleaner, walking towards her on a different level from the floor she was cleaning. He actually knocked over her bucket of water as he reached her and she ran away in terror.

In a sixteenth-century hall that was built on the site of ancient Abbey buildings, and is now Frank’s Mussel Bar, a ghostly monk has been seen sitting upstairs at a writing desk. The same ghost has been seen on several occasions walking across the bedroom of the building next door. Another ghostly monk has been seen further along the High Street, in the upstairs wine bar of the building that was Mackenzines and we believe is soon to be The Hungry Guest. The owner was just closing the bar at night when the apparition materialised and walked across the room. It was later discovered that the fireplace in the wine bar was once part of the Abbey buildings.

As well as monks there are also a couple of nuns reported to be haunting West Malling. A cleaner at the library was frightened off when she saw the ghost of a nun in the back room, who was thought to be linked to the former leper hospital in King Street. At the former Brewery Tap on Swan Street many of the staff reported seeing a beautiful nun who would appear in the rooms that needed to be cleaned and then disappear through the wall. An oppressive presence was also often felt next door in Abbey Brewery Cottage, in the room which shared a wall with the Brewery Tap.

Douces Manor

Some buildings in West Malling are thought to be haunted by multiple ghosts and Douces Manor is one such example. The ghost of Miss Savage, whose family used to live at the Manor, is often reported to be seen looking out of a bay window at the garden. She turns to look at anyone who enters the room. Another fair-haired apparition, who describes herself as the Merry Widow of Mereworth has been known to wake up and even speak to visitors to the Manor. Finally the ghost of a World War Two pilot is thought to haunt the cellar, known during the war as The Twitch Inn.

Douces Manor isn’t the only place where sightings of ghostly World War Two airmen have been reported. During the Great Warbirds Airshow that took place in 1982 on the former RAF West Malling Airfield (now Kings Hill) many visitors reported seeing apparitions of wartime planes and their crews around the runway and hangars, almost as if the show had stimulated their appearance. During the filming of the television series ‘We’ll Meet Again’ in the same location, the director asked for two airmen and a WAAF who were looking into the engine compartment of a jeep to be moved out of shot, but as they were approached they vanished.

St Leonard's Tower viewed from the west
© English Heritage

We tend to think of ghostly apparitions as frightening and malevolent, and there is a very old tale of a beckoning figure leaning out of the window of St. Leonard’s Tower, who is thought to bring disaster to those who see him, but there are also some very friendly and helpful ghosts around the town. In Lucknow, a listed building on the High Street, the ghost of a former housemaid is said to haunt the bedrooms, and to turn down the beds on a regular basis. Similarly, the Farmhouse Pub, formerly The Bear Inn, is thought to be haunted by a former potman who still moves ghostly barrels around the cellar.   

There are so many other ghost stories connected to West Malling, it’s impossible to relate them all here, but hopefully this spooky selection has got you in the mood for Halloween. Whether it’s ghostly knights riding down the Offham Road, spooky revellers dancing at the former Assembly Rooms on the High Street, or the ghost of the original Mr Baldock appearing at the shop counter, the many ghostly tales and legends of this town are just another part of its charm and heritage. 

The accounts in this post are taken from Ghosts of West Malling by Margaret Gadd which is available from West Malling Library. 

Happy Halloween 2013! 

Why not tour West Malling this weekend - on foot!

As the Bank Holiday weekend approaches most of us will be planning activities for the extra holidays. Instead of getting stuck in the bank holiday traffic as you head out of town, why not search for hidden treasures on your very doorstep and take the West Malling Walking tour?

St. Leonards Tower

West Malling is a medieval town with a fascinating history, and there are plenty of sights to see if we just take the time to look for them.

Start your tour at St. Leonard’s Tower at the south end of West Malling, opposite Manor Country Park. This tower was built by Bishop Gundulf of Rochester around 1080 as a symbol of the might of the new Norman regime, and a secure administrative centre for the parish. Continue up the road past Douce’s Manor, a mansion built in the eighteenth century on the site of a Tudor farmhouse. During the Second World War this was the headquarters for officers from RAF West Malling, and their candle smoke signatures can still be seen on the ceiling of the Twitch Heritage Centre in the basement.

As you approach the town centre the Norman church of St. Mary the Virgin stands on the highest ground in the area with its needle tower which was rebuilt in 1838. Further along the road on the left you’ll see the seventeenth century façade of the Tudor House which hides a medieval interior, as well as the town pump, the eighteenth century gothic Old Vicarage, and two original Georgian town houses, Forsters and Wisteria House.

Saint Mary's Church 

Of the two pubs that face each other at the top of the High Street, the Five Pointed Star was probably the first, constructed around 1380 as a farmhouse where ale may have been brewed. Across the road The Farmhouse, formerly known as The Bear, was a coaching inn famous for a Twisden family duel around 1700.

Continue along the High Street and turn left down West Street where you’ll see The Colonnade, a former malt loft and wagon shed with first floor doors. Turn right along King Street, an ancient Droveway which runs parallel to the High Street. Here you’ll see medieval timber framed buildings with jettied cross wing fronts including Avicia Cottage and The Prior’s House. Many buildings on King Street hide medieval structures behind more recent brick facades.

Looking back up the High Street

Continue along the High Street and turn left down West Street where you’ll see The Colonnade, a former malt loft and wagon shed with first floor doors. Turn right along King Street, an ancient Droveway which runs parallel to the High Street. Here you’ll see medieval timber framed buildings with jettied cross wing fronts including Avicia Cottage and The Prior’s House. Many buildings on King Street hide medieval structures behind more recent brick facades. Re-join the High Street on the green at the end of King Street and take a look at the West Malling Village sign commissioned by the Malling Society. One side shows Bishop Gundulf overseeing the three local Norman towers, while the other shows the cricket match described in Dickens’ Pickwick papers which is believed to have been set in West Malling. You can also see the Millennium bronze sculpture of hope. Across the road the Bull pub is part of an original fifteenth century farmhouse, which was partly demolished when the railway arrived in West Malling.

West Malling

Heading back along the High Street towards the centre, have a look at the fifteenth century house that is now Franks Mussel Bar. In the outer wall at pavement level there is a carved stone figure which is all that remains of the original Market Cross. On the other side of the road were the eighteenth century Assembly Rooms which housed a grand ballroom upstairs, and were later used as a Masonic temple and a magistrate’s court.

Turn left down Swan Street and pop into the Mill Yard and craft centre on your right. As well as a tall stone corn warehouse, there is also a Norman house built around 1160, which may have been
constructed to house important visitors to the Abbey. Further down Swan Street you’ll find the Abbey itself which was a nunnery founded by Bishop Gundulf around 1090. You can still see the original west tower from Swan Street, and the Cascade which originates from the late eighteenth century. On the opposite side of the road Went House and its railings are one of the best examples of Queen Anne architecture in Kent.

Swan Street West Malling

We’re often so busy with our daily routine that we forget to look around us and appreciate the
historic gem we have right here in West Malling, but hopefully this Easter you’ll have the chance to
enjoy it for yourself. Much of the information in this post was taken from the West Malling Town
Walk leaflet which is funded by Kent County Council and The Malling Society, and which is available
at the West Malling library.

We hope you enjoy your walk around West Malling.