Discover the fascinating story of Bath’s ‘Silk Ladies’ — the women behind a historic dressmaking business, their lives, work and the world of 1920s fashion.

Frome – Bath Theatrical Costume Hire At Unit 8 on Wallbridge Industrial Estate, Bath Theatrical Costume Hire occupies a building with a history of its own. Once a woollen mill, part of the original wall still survives inside the building. The costume hire business moved here in 2001 — and, according to staff, it seems that some of the building’s former inhabitants may have come along too. One of the most frequently encountered spirits is known as James . Staff have occasionally reported the unmistakable smell of cigarette smoke, despite nobody smoking nearby. Keys and pieces of clothing have also been known to disappear, only to mysteriously reappear later in places that are clearly visible. There is a belief that James may have been a Second World War airman , perhaps connected in some way to one of the military uniforms kept within the costume collection. He has also apparently been seen by customers. Staff have reported glimpsing a man standing beside a particular clothing rail, only for him to vanish without a trace when they go over to offer assistance. But James isn't the only presence said to linger here. The building is also possibly a new home to the mysterious “Silk Ladies.” At the original home of the business, in Balustrades, Bath, the owner used to sit on the balcony and sew and would hear the sound of silk skirts swishing up the stairs, giving the name- the Silk Ladies and unmistakable clinking of crockery in the kitchen and gentle ladies chitchat— almost as though an elegant tea party was taking place just out of sight. There have even been reports of the sensation of silk skirts swishing past as the someone glides through the building. So with this in mind, these two spirits are believed to have followed the costume business from its previous premises in Bath. Perhaps the most intriguing question is not who are these spirits? — but why did they choose to follow the business to Frome? Update/ Research - The two women associated with the haunting weren't simply spirits attached to an old building. They were real women who lived and worked at the original premises decades before Bath Theatrical Costume Hire occupied it — and their occupations were remarkably similar to the business that would eventually take over the building, Misses Alice & Marian Patmore were registered at 2 Balustrade, Bath from 1921 - 1935, as milliners & dressmakers.. !  One of the Misses, Marian gave demonstrations to the Women's Institutes in the area in the late 1930's - 1940's, travelling to many villages and spoke about subjects like how to use your coupons efficiently, demonstrations of homemade hats and gave dressmaking hints, she seems to have been a very well known lady. Regarding the building at Balustrade - No. 1 Balustrade (next door) is a former tollhouse, later a shop, and now offices, located at the left end of a terrace. It was built around 1820-1830 and has been altered in the 20th century. The main road at the front of the building was also the Roman Road (Fosse Way) Source - Paranormal Somerset - Selena Wright Britain from Above - Wallbridge Mills 1946 Map 1888 Google Streetview - 2 Ballastrade, Bath 2021 British newspaper Archives & Bath Histrorical Directories

150 years ago today. The Radstock Rail Crash at Foxcote on the Somerset & Dorset Line History - On 7 August 1876 , the August Bank Holiday, the Somerset & Dorset train company ran seventeen extra trains to cater for people enjoying the day off work. These trains did not appear in the normal timetables and the superintendent at Glastonbury, Caleb Percy, had to arrange crossings i.e. issue instructions as to which trains were to be delayed to allow the special trains to be passed over the single line sections. He was hampered in this task by poor telegraph communications all day. Both trains involved in the accident were unscheduled. The "down" (south-bound) train was supposedly an empty stock train returning from Bath, but large numbers of passengers were aboard, returning to Radstock and nearby villages from a regatta in Bath. The "up" (north-bound) train was a relief train from Bournemouth, arranged hastily because the scheduled train was overcrowded. Percy and his staff could get very little information on the location of either train. The replies to their enquiries from the telegraph clerk at Wellow (who was only fifteen, and trying to do the work of the stationmaster who had gone for a drink in Midford) were vague. Those from the clerk at Radstock were apparently deliberately obtuse. The Radstock telegraph clerk sent on the "up" relief train without receiving any crossing order or ascertaining the location of the "down" train. Shortly before midnight, the driver of the "up" train pulled up at the Foxcote signal box. The signalman there, Alfred Dando was barely literate and not physically strong enough to work his signal levers, so the signal arm was somewhere between "safe" and "caution". The signal lamp was out (as he was not given enough oil to light it), so Dando was waving a hand lantern. After a few minutes, Dando allowed the train to proceed. The clerk at Wellow had already sent the "down" stock train on, but without using his block instruments to alert Dando. The "down" train driver could not see the Foxcote distant signal, as it too was unlit. He saw the home signal against him, and also saw the other train, too late to avoid a collision. The accident occurred at 11.20 pm. The first three carriages were thrown into each other where most of the passengers died. The wounded were attended too and removed to Bath hospital and the nearby houses. Colliery workers were assigned the task of removing the bodies, which took a further 12 hours after the accident. Large bonfires were lit at the edges of the gardens to burn off the many fragments of broken carriages Hauntings? - This stretch of old line is now a cycle track, people have reported an eerie feeling on this section and don't like it at night, there is also maybe a report of someone seeing the ghost of a little girl, a young girl was lost in the accident... Source- Story - Wikipedia Old Photo - Ken Marchant - Bath in Time

The Waggon & Horses Pub - Peasedown St John History - The pub is said to originally have been a coaching Inn, built in 1810 and located on the now A367 road which cuts through the village, on the exact path of the original Fosseway Roman Road. Hauntings - The spirit of a man possibly known as George, in a black hat is said to be responsible for objects being thrown around, interfering with beer barrels and taps, in the early hours of morning. One beer crate was thrown up the cellar stairs. On a more disturbing note, a woman once awoke in bed to find a ghost of a man standing over her stroking her hair. One article found in the Western Daily Press from September 1976, reports of poltergeist activity at the pub, from a spirit that doesn't like visitors, alters the pressure on the beer kegs and once bombarded the landlord, Mr Norman Harrison with bottles. Thoughts - There is a famous ghost around Peasedown known as the man in the black hat, seen many times on the road of the new bypass and around Wellow Lane, its said that this man is the well known Reverend John Skinner, a 19th-century preacher who travelled between Camerton, Carlingcott, and Peasedown. His story ends tragically—he is said to have taken his own life in Camerton Woods in October 1839. Some believe the figure seen today may be his restless spirit, still walking the roads he once travelled in life. It would be interesting to know if 'George' was a previous landlord or patron? Have anyone ever heard of any other stories for the pub? maybe worked there and had a paranormal experience? Source - Selena Wright - Paranormal Somerset Images - Google Streetview, Know your place maps Rev John Skinner - Radstock Museum/Pinterest

Village Ghost Stories - Beckington, near Frome History - Beckington is a small Somerset village with roots stretching back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was recorded as a settled farming community. In medieval times, it grew around the wool trade, with mills along the River Frome supporting local cloth-making. By the 17th century, writers such as John Aubrey noted local traditions, including the claim that carrots were first grown here. The village also saw unrest in 1766, when rioters set fire to a mill during a period of hardship. As the wool industry declined in the 18th and 19th centuries, Beckington became a quieter rural parish. Its church became notable as the burial place of poet Samuel Daniel, while Beckington Castle remained a familiar landmark through changing ownership. In the 20th century, Wool Hall found new life as a recording studio, attracting well-known musicians and adding an unexpected modern note to the village’s history. Hauntings - The Abbey - The building known as The Abbey was begun in 1502 as a college for priests, later becoming a private house after the Dissolution.  Over time it has also been a school, restaurant, and dance hall, before returning to private homes. Although it was never truly an abbey, local tradition says the area is haunted by a grey figure, believed to be an abbess. The Castle - At Castle Corner, The Castle was built in the early 17th century on the site of an earlier building. It has been known as Castle House, and later served as a school, hotel, antiques showroom, and now offices. In 1919, when it was advertised for sale, its reputation for being haunted was included as a selling point. A dark shadow is said to pass through the walls. Do you know of any other ghost stories for Beckington village? Sources - Castle photo - George Love Dafnis/ Bath in Time Know your Place Maps 1888 Drawing & Text © PJW Artworks & Somerset Paranormal

In the village of Hinton St George stands the historic Hinton House, a medieval hall house—sometimes referred to as the Grange—rebuilt around the year 1500. Over the centuries the building has worn many identities. During the Second World War it was used as a school for evacuated girls, and later served as a nursing home before the estate was divided into private apartments in 1968. Yet the house is remembered as much for its ghosts as for its history. The Grey Lady of the Staircase - One of the best-known spirits said to wander the house is a cloaked Grey Lady, believed to have been a member of the historic Poulett family.  According to local tradition, she once fell in love with a man considered beneath her social standing. The two attempted to elope. Her father discovered their plans and intervened violently, reportedly running the young man through with his sword. The tragedy ended the lovers’ hopes forever. The young woman is said to have died soon afterward—some say of grief—and her sorrowful figure is believed to linger still, haunting the old oak staircase where she is occasionally glimpsed moving silently through the shadows. The Spirit of the Young Heir Another presence associated with the house is that of a child: young Frederic Charles Poulett (1798–1808). The boy died after a brief illness at only ten years old. Stories claim that his spirit remains tied to one of the rooms in the house, where unexplained disturbances have long been whispered about. The Ghost of Samuel Day Perhaps the strangest tale connected to the house concerns Samuel Day (1756–1806). Day was injured in a tragic accident when scaffolding collapsed during a parliamentary election in nearby Bridgwater. Though he was taken to a local inn, he died several days later. His body was returned to Hinton House in a lead coffin—so heavy that carrying it up the narrow staircase proved nearly impossible. Instead, the coffin was hoisted by rope through a bedroom window. But disaster struck, the rope snapped. The coffin fell, killing one of the men attempting to guide it inside. After this grim event, reports began to circulate that Samuel Day’s restless spirit appeared near the bedroom window where the accident occurred. According to legend, the haunting grew so troubling that seven priests were summoned to perform an exorcism. They were said to have banished his spirit all the way to the Red Sea—a place from which, the tale insists, no ghost could ever return. © Somerset Paranormal Images - Rare Old Prints online 1829 PJW Artworks

Bumps in the Day and a Relentless Female Spirit at Widcombe Crescent.. Bath Widcombe Crescent in Bath is an elegant terrace of fourteen Georgian houses, completed in 1808 to the designs of Thomas Baldwin. Now designated a Grade I listed building, it is particularly noted for its connection to Sir James Brooke — the famed “White Rajah” of Sarawak in Borneo — who made his home at Number 1 between 1831 and 1834. Widcombe Crescent is a quiet road off of Widcombe Hill, but two of its houses have ghostly tales.. the house numbers are with held for privacy.. Ghost Stories- #1 - Bumps in the Day- There was an old lady, who lived with her family, she spent a lot of her time in her bedroom in her twilight years and one day whilst the family were having Sunday lunch she fell out of her chair in the room upstairs, she fell with such a thump that the glass chandeliers rattled.. She sadly declined after the fall and died some months later. The family continued to have their Sunday lunches the same time every week and started to hear a thump noise upstairs which sounded like the sound made previously when the old lady fell out her chair, this started to happen with some regularity, but they could never find anyone there, they kept hearing the thump and just carried on as normal for the following months.. #2 The Terrifying Female Spirit This tale starts with a seemingly normal family, the father was called away to business in London and took the elder son, as soon as he got there he got an urgent message to return home, where he found his wife had committed suicide by poisoning and had also tried to poison the younger son. By some miracle he survived, although scarred physically by his ordeal. The father carried on as a one parent family and was then after some time, suddenly interrupted by the appearance of a female spirit on the stairs.. She had an expression of sheer malice on her face, which terrified the whole household, people would avoid the stairs and run up them when they had to be used for fear of running into her. It proved too much for the family so they moved away. The house then had a multitude of tenants living in it who would always quickly leave and soon it got the reputation as being un lettable. A local parish priest moved in, with a view of ridding the house of this spirit for good, but the female spirit took offence to this and started to appear even more and in all the rooms of the house. The priest decided on an exorcism, which took place with no fewer than 40 priests in attendance, and the female spirit was reported to have been seen by someone in a doorway then.. However this did seem to work, and the female spirit was never seen again.. or has she?? Story Source - Haunted Bath by David Brandon Photo - Widcombe Crescent general view c.1930s - Bath in Time Google Streetview & Know Your Place - Map 1879-1888  #hauntedbath #ghostsofbath #bathghoststories #spiritsofbath #bathparanormal #paranormalbath

East Harptree – The Castle of Comfort Inn History A hostelry since 1684, the Castle of Comfort Inn is believed to have earned its name from its role as a final stopping point for condemned prisoners being taken from Wells Jail to Gibbets Brow, half a mile away, where they were executed in the 1600s. The name itself is thought to reflect this function, offering a last moment of “comfort” in the form of food and drink before death. During this period, the inn is said to have provided refreshments to prisoners sentenced by the infamous “Hanging” Judge Jeffreys, following the failed Monmouth Rebellion against King James II. The building stands on a site of considerable historical significance. It is located near the Priddy Circles, prehistoric earthworks dating back to the Neolithic era, and lies on an old Roman road. The inn also has literary connections to the wider Quantock Hills area, which is closely associated with the Romantic poets Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Dorothy Wordsworth, adding a quieter, more poetic layer to its long history. Hauntings The Castle of Comfort Inn is said to be haunted by the ghost of a murdered landlord, believed to be buried beneath the flagstones of the front bar. He is often blamed for loud crashing noises that are reportedly heard during the night. A cloaked figure on horseback has also been seen on the road outside the inn, described as leaping through a hedge on one side and vanishing through the hedge on the other. In March 1879, a local man named Lewis Franks, aged 39, was crushed by his young horse nearby. He was carried into the inn, where he later died, and some believe his spirit may also linger around the building. See his inquest in the photos. Source - Paranormal Somerset - Selena Wright Rewritten Images - Somerset Live & Know your Place 1894 British Newspaper Archives

Friday the 13th: A Day of Shadows, Magic, and Ancient Memory in Somerset Few dates carry the same quiet charge as Friday the 13th. In Somerset, a county steeped in mist, myth, and old earth energies, the day feels especially potent. From the tor of Glastonbury to village lanes lined with hawthorn and yew, Friday the 13th is often treated with a mixture of caution, curiosity, and half-belief. Some people won’t begin new projects. Others avoid ladders, mirrors, or the number itself. Many will instinctively knock on wood, just in case unseen forces are listening. The Old Superstitions Across Somerset, the familiar customs surface every time the date appears: Avoiding the number 13, with hotels and buildings skipping it entirely. Refusing to walk under ladders or start important journeys. Believing broken mirrors invite seven years of misfortune. Feeling uneasy about 13 people at a table, echoing ancient fears of betrayal and imbalance. Small protective rituals persist too: horseshoes, four-leaf clovers, rabbit’s feet, whispered charms, and the ever-present act of “touching wood”. These habits are so ingrained they often feel less like superstition and more like instinct. Where the Fear Was Born The unease surrounding Friday the 13th is a tapestry woven from religion, myth, and cultural memory. In Christian tradition, Friday became associated with sorrow through the crucifixion of Christ, while 13 was marked by Judas, the final guest at the Last Supper. Together, they formed a symbolic pairing of loss and ill omen. Norse mythology adds another darker thread. The trickster god Loki was said to arrive as the 13th guest at a divine feast, an intrusion that ended in tragedy and death. Over time, these stories fused into what we now call paraskevidekatriaphobia — the fear of Friday the 13th — a superstition that feels ancient, even if its modern form is relatively recent. The Hidden, Older Meaning Yet beneath the layers of fear lies something far older and more mystical. For Pagans and witches, Friday the 13th is not cursed at all, but quietly sacred. Friday takes its name from the Norse goddess Frigg, linked with love, fertility, destiny, and magic. Long before it became a day of caution, Friday was considered lucky for unions, vows, and matters of the heart. The number 13 itself reflects the rhythm of the moon — the 13 lunar cycles of the year — and the cycles of intuition, renewal, and feminine power. It is also the traditional number of a witches’ coven, a symbol of collective magic and balance. To those who walk old spiritual paths, Friday the 13th is a liminal day: a thin place in time.  A moment when the veil feels lighter, dreams feel louder, and intention carries further than usual. A Somerset Day Between Worlds In a land like Somerset — where ley lines, holy wells, and Arthurian legends still whisper through the landscape — Friday the 13th feels less like a date and more like a threshold. Whether feared or revered, it remains a day that invites reflection on unseen forces, ancient cycles, and the quiet power of belief itself. In 2026, Friday the 13th returns twice: in February and March. Two chances to step carefully… or step knowingly into the old magic that never truly left. © Somerset Paranormal Image - PJW Artworks