Bewsey Hall is the oldest and quietest building in Warrington.

The silence was broken when the Earl of Derby had words with John Boteler, the 12th lord of the manor, over the building of a bridge. The arguments carried on until he made his son end the line of John Boteler.

Accompanied by Piers Leigh and William Savage, the men gained entry by bribing a servant. To keep the servant quiet, they hanged him in Bewsey Park. The intruders made for John's bedroom and hacked him to pieces. They met resistance from his faithful servant Thomas Houlcroft. This allowed enough time for Mrs Boteler to slip away. How her child got away is still a mystery.

One story tells of how a messenger put the infant in a basket. The other possibility, perhaps the more credible, is that the nanny ran off with the child.

The intruders were never punished for their crime.

Sometimes they did the crime from the other side with the sounds of fighting and bloodstains on the floors.

Secretary John Morris saw green mist after he went to investigate the alarms ringing on the first floor. Could this be Mrs Boteler refusing to rest until there is justice?

Ghosts & Legends