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The following report was adapted and published in the November 2007 Edition of Paranormal Magazine
INTRODUCTION AND HISTORY Folklore, myths and murder bring the Spiral team to explore the historic Lumley Chapel in Cheam. The oldest standing building in the London Borough of Sutton, Lumley Chapel has been standing for over 900 years and in times gone by was the nucleus of the ancient Village of Cheam. Now overshadowed by a 19th Century Church dedicated to St Dunstan’s (itself a replacement for an earlier Georgian structure); Lumley Chapel is all that remains of the original medieval structure. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538, Cheam was bought by Henry Fitzalan, who upon his death passed the Estate onto his son John, Lord Lumley; he is buried in the Chapel with his two wife’s Jane and Elizabeth along with their children who unfortunately died in infancy. Although this was a daytime investigation, we were the first paranormal team to investigate this historic property so we were eager but respectful to see what would present itself.
HAUNTINGS AND FOLKLORE There have been at least two murders in the Chapel and on numerous occasions, screams have been heard coming from within the building whereby the police had been called only to find no one there. The surrounding Graveyard is an ominous place at the best of times and St Dunstan’s Churchyard is no different. Underneath a concrete slab lies the bodies of 14 children, apparent victims of the Great plaque. At the adjoining St Dunstan’s Church, a priest had died at the altar and he is still believed to haunt here. Various people who work here have claimed to have seen his spirit, with one of them running out in tears. One grave marks the resting place of a young woman who was murdered along with her son many years ago – in an unusual example of graveyard plotting, her killer is buried next to her (at ground level) in-between two graves, a final insult for this horrific crime of not being on consecrated ground. According to legend, the first person to be buried in a Churchyard would be the Spirit Guardian of the area. With our ancestors being very superstitious, it is believed that the early inhabitants of Cheam butchered the Village simpleton by cutting his throat and allowing the blood to spill into the graveyard so to be the first Guardian. At the bottom of the Graveyard, a dark, oppressive force is said to project itself from an ancient tree. People have reported as though they are walking through thick cobwebs although there is nothing there. There was also once a Well behind the old Caretakers shed and many years ago an unfortunate victim, a girl called Lucinda Jarrott; fell to her death and her spirit has been seen many times walking through the old building.
CHAPEL INVESTIGATION With the team gathered consisting of Marq, Alexis, Patricia and Kathleen, we entered the Chapel. Almost immediately, we were startled to hear two prominent knocks against the wall. Unfortunately this was not caught on camera and we were intrigued to know where it came from although to no avail. Whilst we were acquainted ourselves with surrounding area, the camera picked up a gentle whistling sound. We all heard this and we were all sitting quietly at the time. We had only been in the Chapel a short time and things seemed to be happening already. Various dowsing and crystal experiments were undertaken amongst members of the team and seemed to respond to commands. The girls attempted a communication circle in an effort to contact any members of the Lumley family. Call outs were given and faint taps were heard in response to questions. It was during the communication that the light’s suddenly switched on automatically. This activity threw us slightly as the lights are only activated by the door opening (which had been shut for at least forty-five minutes) and no other sensors are in place in the building. This continued a few more times with the light’s turning on and off (some on command) so Marq decided to speak to the Site Manager during a break. The Site Manager told him that this simply could not happen and was a little spooked himself when told. After the break we continued the vigil. Although Alexis does not claim to be psychic, she sensed a feeling of an unhappy marriage between John and Elizabeth Lumley and later on this was indeed confirmed to be true. We eventually closed our time in the Chapel and decided to explore the Churchyard and hear more stories about it’s long history from the Site Manager.
CONCLUSION Even in the daytime, Lumley Chapel had been a fascinating place to explore. The light’s activation in the Chapel had fascinated us and we still have no satisfactory explanation for this occurrence. Various audible’s were also heard but it is difficult to determine whether these were paranormal or the buildings natural ambience (or just the light’s powering down). The team felt a further investigation of this location was needed – but this time, it will have to be at night! |
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MEV Productions / Spiral © 2007 |
