The Uninhabitable House

Eight miles east of Winchester along A272 is the village of Hinton Marsh in Hampshire. Less than a mile further along the road is a turning to the right leading to Hinton Ampner, the church and the manor-house being on the right.

For a number of years a very frightening set of ghosts haunted the old manor-house, the site of which is some 50 yards from the present manor, to such an extent that eventually it had to be demolished as no one was prepared to share it with the ghosts. Nevertheless the spirits were so strong that they were, to a lesser degree, to disturb the owners of the new dwelling from the period it was built in Georgian times until it was largely burnt out in 1960. No ghostly phenomena have been reported since the second rebuilding.

It is very difficult trying to piece together a story which could adequately explain the hauntings, as they were rather nebulous and indefinable. A memorial plaque in the church bears the name of one of the principal personalities in the affair, Honoria Stewkeley. She came to Hinton Ampner House after her sister Mary had married Edward Stawell in 1719.

After Mary died in 1740 rumour had it that there was an affair between Honoria and Lord Stawell, as Edward was then, and much gossip concerning them was spread by the servants in the village. This included a report that a baby was born to Honoria and was murdered in the hope that any scandal could, in this cruel way, be avoided. Honoria died in 1754 and Lord Stawell lived for only one more year.

For the following ten years Hinton Ampner House was little used, but in 1765 a family by the name of Ricketts rented the house and took up residence there. William Ricketts, the husband, was a wealthy merchant who spent much of his time travelling, leaving his well-educated wife Mary alone with their servants. The servants as well as the mistress suffered from the ghostly activities, and they were not locals with a knowledge of the house's early history but were brought from London by the Ricketts.

The new household hardly had time to settle in before the disturbances began: the slamming of doors, the rustling of silk, the appearance of a tall lady dressed in dark clothes, the sound of music in empty rooms, heavy footsteps and a curious murmuring sound for which no one could account.

By 1771 yet another disturbance was added to the others. This took the form of an argument which invariably ended with bangs, crashes and piercing screams.

By the end of 1771 Mary Ricketts was so terrified of living in the place that she left, taking her children with her. This was not the act of a hysterical woman, for the decision was reached with the help of her brother and his friend. They had sat up night after night in the house and experienced the sounds of gunshots, groans and door slammings. After the Ricketts had left, the house was briefly inhabited by a family called Lawrence, but they left suddenly after only a very short stay.

About 1800 the house, much decayed, was demolished. During the demolition a skull, possibly that of a child, was discovered beneath the floorboards in the house.