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North View, Turnover Bank, Gorefield

History of North View

Approx. location

Tales of Cambridgeshire by Polly Howat, 1990, p21f, tells the story of the Gorefield poltergeist. This involves the family of Joe Scrimshaw, a wealthy Gorefield farmer who lived at North View, a small farmhouse built in 1909 on the old Turnover bank, together with his mother and daughter Olive, aged 14.

At dusk on 12th February 1923 a bizarre series of events unfolded which continued until 16th February. The contents of the house flew around, broke into tiny pieces. The daughter Olive was sent away the morning after it started to stay with relatives. The story got into the press as the ‘Haunted House’ and claims that it was the work of a poltergeist were made.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote offering advice. Some locals thought it was witchcraft. The News of the World paid for a local wise woman, Harriet Mary Holmes, aged 59,  to perform a ritual spell-breaking. She used a commonplace form of anti-hexing.

On 5th March 1923, Harriet was found face down outside her own house, drowned in 6 inches of dyke water. It was calculated that the poltergeist was active in the area at the time of her death. Since then other reports of strange activities at the house have been reported.

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London Daily Chronicle 27th February 1923:

Vicar’s Six Witches

Wisbech Bottle to Ward Off Evil Eye

Unsolvd Mystery

from the Daily Chronicle’s Special Correspondent

I was discussing the question of the prevalence of the local belief in witchcraft with a well-known Wisbech antiquary to-day. “Your Goreficld story in the ‘ Daily Chronicle’ this morning of “a man under the spell of an ill tongue interested me immenseiy,” he said.

“Have you ever heard of the Wisbech witch-bottle? There it is—have a look at it.” The bottle stood about ten inches high, and was six inches wide. It was crudely fashioned of brown glazed earthenware, the neck being very narrow and flanked by two handles.

“This witch bottle,” my informant continued, “ was found buried underneath the hearthstone of a house in the timber market here. There was a cork in the neck of the bottle, whick has unfortunately disppeared. The cork was stuck full of pins, with the idea that they would ward off witches.”

SPELL-BREAKING.

The Vicar of Gorefield, the Rev, H. Rutter, fully bears out my statement that in this part of the Fen country belief in witchcraft is by no means dead. ” Such belief,” he said, “is far more generally held than would be credited. I know for a fact that within 24 hours of Mr. Scrimshaw’s strange experiences, a very God-fearing man called upon him and, sadly shaking his head, said, ‘Someone’s witching you, Joe.’

“But I must confess to being surprised when I read of actual experiments in spell-breaking taking place in my own parish.

“When I have smiled upon any witchcraft talk, however, my parishioners have quoted against me the Witch of Endor. And in this respect, in certain quarters, I am regarded as unorthodox – a supporter of the higher criticism against simple Bible faith. And really, what can I say in confutation?

“When I was in charge of a Somerset living I knew no fewer than six witches. Oh yes, they are all dead.

“I imagine that even in your London you may yet find people who have a sneaking fear of witchcraft.

FARMHOUSE MYSTERY.

Mr. Dingwall, the research officer of the Society for Psychical Research, has returned to town, having finished his investigations into the Gorefield farmhouse mystery. He told me that he was of opinion that the phenomena manifested were of a remarkable poltergeist character.

*His one regret was that his society was not immediately communicated with, and I have arranged to telegraph to him in the event of any recurrence of the phenomena.”

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Spalding Guardian 3rd March 1923

The GOREFIELD SPOOK

SNATCH SEANCE BROKEN-UP

A “White Witch” Arrives to Break the Spells.

SOME INTERESTING INTERVIEWS. [By Our Special Commissioner.]

Everything is very quiet and in order at New Barn Farm House and there has been no more furniture moving or crockery thrown around. So that one would conclude that the Ghost has decided to leave the house alone, or that if it has been paying visits it has not been in its most energetic moods, for there has been absolutely no repetition of the silly happenings of some ten days or so ago.

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One of the most amazing things, and, to me one of the most interesting, which has arisen out of this extraordinary affair and its sequel, is the discovery of the enormous number of people in this district who still believe in witches and black magic. They really do believe it and many have put it forward that in their opinion Mr Scrimshaw and his family have been bewitched. I thought all such nonsense had gone out of fashion long ago; but it is not so. The belief is neither dead not forgotten. Many people I have met openly confess it, and others have a secret and sneaking belief in it and go in fear of being “witched” as they colloquially put it. As report last week, Mr Scrimshaw received

A LETTER FROM SIR ARTHUR

Conan Doyle, in which he suggested that the farmer’s 15 years old daughter, Olive, was unconsciously playing the part of a medium, and drawing out an atmosphere or vapour which can be used in a material way by intelligent forces outside ourselves …..

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