The Ghosts of Glasgow’s Provan Hall

MJ STEEL COLLINS uncovers the ghosts of Glasgow’s Provan Hall …

Provan Hall is an old Scottish country manor house dating back to the 1460s.

In its heyday, it was popular as the hunting lodge of King James IV and was a rather prestigious prebend of Glasgow Cathedral.

Now, after decades of obscurity, the old house is making an unlikely comeback as a prime spot to carry out a bit of paranormal investigation.

Despite that, Provan Hall isn’t well known in Glasgow. I only found out about it recently, but was keen to pay a visit once I learned of all the ghosts said to haunt the old building; so was my Dad, who shares my love of all things ghostly.

Provan Hall and its neighbour, Blochairn House, are located on the edge of Auchinlea Park in the rather unlikely setting of Easterhouse, a place more famous for its social ills than haunted houses.

It took a while to find, and involved some back tracking, but once we found it, it was well worth the search.

Both houses are set in a small courtyard, next to some well kept gardens.

These days, the houses are owned by the National Trust for Scotland, who rent them to Glasgow City Council. Caretaker, Stevie Allan took us on a tour, outlining the history and haunting of the houses.

Paranormal activity in Provan Hall

Paranormal activity has been a regular occurrence in the houses, particularly Provan Hall.

Stevie is no stranger to it, and has accompanied numerous groups investigating what is going on.

The Ghost Club are particularly notable as they have visited on numerous occasions, not something they often do with other haunted locations.

Ghosts have been seen in various parts of the grounds, and also Blochairn House, said to be haunted by Reston Mather, the last private owner of both houses who died in 1934.

However, it is the Master Bedroom of Provan Hall that Stevie describes as having the most activity. It is the location of a brutal double murder that took place about 200 years ago.

A soldier returning home to the Hall after four years overseas discovered his wife was the mother of a two year old boy. After drowning his sorrows, the soldier stabbed his wife over twenty times and cut the throat of the toddler.

Since then, the ghosts of the victims and the murderer have haunted the bedroom. Stevie finds it difficult to keep it warm, and it was rather chilly on our visit, made creepier by the fact a radiator was on full blast.

Some people find it hard to remain in the room, finding the atmosphere oppressive.

Our visit wasn’t without event.

Whilst I was pondering the mysterious cold spot at my back, which moved with me when I tried to get a warmer spot, my Dad felt something pull him back.

He also felt that the room was full of sadness and picked up on the spirit of the murdered woman hiding away in one corner.

I remained to take some photos following the tour. But I didn’t make it far into the Master Bedroom, just ever so slightly unnerved by the heavy atmosphere. It was somewhat different to my usual visits to haunted places during the day, when the ghosts tend to keep to themselves.

An investigation carried out by Open Paranormal Society recently at Provan Hall also proved interesting when they picked up an EVP of something growling at them in the attic, which can be heard on YouTube.

As for myself, I’m planning on making a return trip. Most definitely during the day!