An online magazine about the paranormal, haunted and macabre. We collect the ghost stories from all around the world as well as review horror and gothic media.
A lock keeper from the adjacent lock next The Portobello Bar in Dublin is said to be haunting it. Ever since his mistake cost the lives of someone crossing, he is said to be lingering in the area.
A lock keeper from the adjacent lock next to The Portobello Bar in Dublin is said to be haunting it. Ever since his mistake cost the lives of someone crossing, he is said to be lingering in the area.
In the heart of Dublin’s city centre, where the Grand Canal glides quietly past brick façades and timeworn bridges, stands The Portobello Bar that is one of the pubs to put on the checklist for a haunted pub crawl.
Read More: Check out all ghost stories from Ireland
The Portobello has seen much of Dublin’s turbulent past. Once known as Davy’s, it became an unlikely stronghold during the 1916 Easter Rising. Rebels seized the building for its strategic position near the bridge, using it to fire on British troops attempting to advance from the nearby Portobello Barracks. Gunfire echoed over the canal, and blood was spilled on the cobblestones just outside the pub’s doors.
The Ghost Haunting the Portobello Bar
At first glance, it looks like any classic Irish pub, warm and inviting with the clink of glasses and low hum of laughter spilling into the night. The Portobello has stood here since 1793, offering shelter and stout to locals and travelers alike. But with its long history, the pub has gathered more than just regular patrons. Some say it still plays host to a guest who never left.
But it is not only the ghosts of war that haunt The Portobello Bar. Locals tell of a restless soul tied to the lock just beside the pub. In the 19th century, it is said that the lock keeper caused the sinking of a horse drawn carriage passing through the canal, either through negligence or in a drunken rage.
The Ghost of the Lock Keeper
Some say he could not live with the guilt or the shame of being fired from his job and took his own life near the water’s edge. Some even claim that it was no suicide at all, but that his death was under mysterious and suspicious circumstances.
On still nights, when the music from the bar fades and the ripples on the canal settle, those walking the towpath have claimed to see him. A shadowed figure stands by the lock, silent and watching. His ghost is said to not have the most gentle energy, some even call him rather vengeful. Some even claim to have felt confused and dizzy, almost falling into the cold canal.
Inside the pub, glasses sometimes clink without cause, doors creak open on their own, and staff report a sudden chill sweeping through the air even when the fire burns high. Patrons have caught their reflection in the window, only to see another figure standing just behind them, vanishing when they turn around.
Could it be that the oldest church in Oslo also has the oldest haunting? From legends about a dragon’s den underneath the structure and the ghostly silhouette haunting, the Gamle Aker Church perhaps has more activity than what meets the naked eye.
During a time when Bulgaria was under the Ottoman Empire, there was talk about a vampire haunting the streets of Veliko Tarnovo. The rumours got so bad, that the Islamic rulers had to turn to pagan belief to rid themselves of the bloodthirsty creatures.
In the windswept landscape of Norway’s west coast lies the Utstein Monastery, a site steeped in history and haunting tales. Known as Norway’s best-preserved medieval monastery, its ancient stone walls and iconic Gothic windows whisper stories of faith, love, and loss as well as the ghost of a Lady in White.
In the ancient St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Dublin, there are said to be restless spirits still lingering. One of the more well known is said to be the ghost of Jonathan Swift, perhaps best known as the author of Gulliver’s Travels.
In one of the city’s oldest buildings, the freshest food is served in the ancient locale. For years though, there have been talks about Stortorvet Gjestgiveri restaurant being haunted, and even made it as one of the most haunted clips in the national ghost hunting show.
Haunting Jone’s Road in Dublin, a headless horseman is said to roam after his life turned dark after scheming peers. And the former Dublin Sheriff, Buck Jones has become one of Ireland’s most well known headless horseman ghosts.
Next to the Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin, there is a pub called John Kavanagh’s ‘The Gravediggers’, where they went to have a pint after working at the cemetery. Rumor has it that the pub is haunted by those buried next door.
Said to be a protector of the Valleys in Armenia, the Dakhanavar vampire hides in the caves in the mountains, waiting for intruders to quench his thirst.
Could the Connolly Station in Dublin be haunted? Some claim that the ghosts of the victims from the Dublin Bombing in world war two could still be lingering near the tracks.
Once a place for executions, the place the Ruffinihaus in Munich, Germany is built upon is said to be haunted. It is said that in the dead of night, the undead rises from their graves, still carrying their heads the executioners took.
Where the former country estate Campagne Mon Repos in Bern once was, the ghostly council of the military leader from General Robert Scipio von Lentulus was given in times of unrest. Is he still haunting the Könizwald woods, even after his estate is gone?
Moon Mausoleum
1 Comment »