Westbury Ghost Stories...#2 Traditional Cache

Westbury Ghost Stories...#2 - The Chalford Hauntings

The area of 'Chalford' is a small Hamlet that sits between the bridge that goes over the road dividing the two Leighton House Estates, and 'Wellhead Drove'. Whilst a small area, there are a number of ghost stories associated with buildings in this area....

The Chalford House Hotel

The Chalford House Hotel is not only not sat in the Hamlet of Chalford (It sits technically in an old area of town called 'Townend'), but it also hasnt always been called the Chalford House Hotel. Originally called 'Hill Tyning' it became 'The Cedars Country Club Hotel' in the late 1940s which it remained known as for at least 6 decades. Now called 'The Chalford House Hotel' since its most recent take over in 2013 by its current owners, the Hotel has a long history of being haunted.
The hotel is often used by visiting Railway employees and also by visitors to the nearby Army Officers Selection Board. A number of these visitors have reported sightings of a 'Grey Lady' within the hotel. One Railway employee was asleep one night in a bedroom on the upper floor. He awoke suddenly and with no reason, and sat bolt upright in bed. At the end of the bed was stood a tall grey lady, dressed in a long grey dress who then proceeded to glide across the room, and vanish through the wall. 

The 'Grey Lady'

Aside from the story listed above, there are two other reported sightings of a 'Grey Lady' within Chalford. The first is the ghost of a lady who is frequently seen in the garden of a house within Chalford. She is described as wearing a long grey dress and has been nicknamed 'Sarah'. She has been spotted by both children and adults. 
The second is within another house on the Warminster Rd. This house is frequently visited by a female ghost who is also described as being dressed in grey. The woman has been seen by not only the occupants, but by visitors to the house on more than one occasion. Could these hauntings be the same Grey Lady of the Chalford House Hotel?

Leighton House

Leighton House stands within its own extensive grounds and has been the home to two prestigous families within Westbury before being used for a number of different purposes in the 20th Century. Being orignially owned in the 1500s by the Phipps brothers who gained their money by owning plantations in Georgia America. The Phipps brothers also owned other properties in Westbury including Heywood House and Chalcot House. The house was abandoned in 1792 and was rebuilt with various additions by descedants of the same family in the year 1800. It was then sold to William Laverton in 1888 who added various additions of his own, including a theatre, a cricket pavillion and a 9 hole golf course. Unfortunately due to the decline of the woolen industry, Mr. Laverton was forced to sell off the estate and the West Wilts Council acquired it in 1921 where it then became 'Victoria College' a private school for boys. It then sat derelict until 1936 when it was acquired for the War Effort by the War Dept. It is now owned by the MOD for the 'Regular Commisions Board' who carry out the selection of Army Officers there. 
There has been a lake within the grounds since the original acquisition of the land. However, there are stories of a young girl who tragically drowned in the lake in the late 1800s. There are a few versions of the story of the girl in the lake, but almost all versions agree that she drowned herself deliberately. What varies in the story is whether she drowned herself after her lover left her for another woman, or whether her lover tragically died and she could not bear to live without him. Many people have reported to seeing the ghost of a lady, circling the lakeside, soaking wet and crying. 
There has also been a much more hair-raising series of sightings within the Army Board's catering hall. A lady who worked within the catering hall for many years has on more than one occasion reported that she has been visited by the ghost of a male figure, who would appear suddenly, watch her working for a while and then disappear silently. This figure made the employee feel very uncomfortable, all the hairs on the back of her neck would stand up and she would feel a cold chill come over her body from the moment he appeared until a while after he had disappeared.

The 'Haunted Chair'

Inside a house within Chalford Hamlet is a large wooden chair that is being looked after by a man who has been entrusted with the chair since its actual owner cannot abide to have it in the house. The chair is dated from 1670, made of a black solid wooden frame and features ornate carvings in the back peice. The reason that the owner of the chair does not want the chair in his home is because there is a resident that accompanies the chair who is no longer living. This is the ghost of a Cornish man affectionately named 'Will' by his current caretaker, and has swept back grey hair, wearing breeches and a short jacket and smoking a pipe. When the ghost of the man appears in the chair he quite often looks confused and angry at the people around him, before putting his feet up in front of him on an invisible support. Who is he...?

Many of these stories have been inspired from The books 'The Child of Ivy House and other Ghost Stories around Westbury'; 'The Chair at Chalford and other Eerie tales around Westbury' and 'Westbury through Time' all available from Westbury Town Information Centre.
If you have any good ghost stories about the local area you would like to share please feel free to message Fefe_alabama with them! 

Happy caching!