Paranormal Vigil Planned For Haunted Shropshire Hotel

Spooky goings-on at a Shropshire hotel are set to go under the spotlight when a group of ghosthunters book themselves in.

A paranormal investigation will be carried out at The Old Rectory Hotel, in Wem, after staff and guests experienced peculiar goings-on.

Legend has it that during its previous incarnation as a rectory, a nanny employed to look after the rector’s children hanged herself on the top floor of the building. It is said that the children loved her so much that they died shortly afterwards, supposedly of broken hearts.

Children have been heard laughing by several members of staff, objects have been heard being thrown around and an apparition of a man has been seen on several occasions on the stairs leading to the kitchen.
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History of the Old Rectory Hotel in Wem

The Old Rectory in Wem was built in 1804 with funds from Queen Anne's Bounty to provide a new home for the rectors. In 1874 the Victorian wing was added in order to make it a more comfortable and convenient residence. During the Second World War it was requisitioned and the main part used as a hospital for American Soldiers, a time remembered well by one local lady who has fond memories of sliding down the handrail of the Georgian staircase while she worked there as a nurse!

The last rector to reside at The Old Rectory lived there from 1931. In 1961 he purchased the building from the church and used it as the family home until it was sold in 1981 and converted into a restaurant, with bedrooms being added later. Unfortunately in 1991 it fell into disrepair and lay derelict and abandoned for the next few years.

However, in 1996 the Rectory's saviours came along in the form of the Hanmer family, who spent the best part of the next 10 years lovingly restoring it to its former glory. It was re-opened to much fanfare in 2005, now boasting 14 uniquely-styled bedrooms, bar and drawing room, restaurant and a conservatory which overlooks the 3.5 acres of grounds that this listed building is situated in.

Sweeping up the gravel driveway to this impressive building, you would be forgiven for thinking you had stepped into the pages of an Agatha Christie novel. Indeed, there is much mystery and intrigue at The Old Rectory, but only in the form of paranormal activity. For since the re-opening, staff and guests alike have all experienced peculiar goings-on.

Legend has it that during its previous incarnation as a Rectory, a Nanny employed to look after the rector's children became filled with despair and hanged herself on the top floor of the building. It is said that the children loved her so much that they died shortly afterwards, presumable of broken hearts. We can find no historical evidence to confirm this story, but it would explain the strange atmosphere in that area of the Rectory. Children have been heard laughing by several members of staff, and a childlike scrawl was found on the wall in one of the bedrooms. Upon being cleaned off, it promptly re-appeared shortly afterwards.

Room 17 on the top floor appears to be the focus of much of the paranormal activity. Although primarily used for storage, previous owners have heard objects being apparently thrown around the room and the current housekeeping staff refer to it as 'The Scary Room'. Many people believe that it would have been the ill-fated Nanny's room.

It is also thought that at least one of the rectors still visits his former home as an apparition of a gentleman dressed as such has been seen on several occasions on the stairs leading to the kitchen.

One night, the current manager was cashing up in reception; she left in order to go to the bar and on returning noticed to her surprise and bemusement that three files had been moved from the cupboard onto the floor. This incident was also accompanied by the strong smell of cigarette smoke, yet she was the only person in the hotel at the time. This aroma of tobacco has been experienced many times since the re-opening, which is especially unusual given the present-day smoking ban!

Incidentally, the North Shropshire town of Wem is already well known in the paranormal community due to this famous photograph taken in 1995 as the Town Hall burned to the ground. It appears to show a young girl standing in the flames, yet the photographer is adamant that there was no-one in the shot at the time. Some people believe it to be the ghost of Jane Churm, a young girl supposedly responsible for a previous fire at Wem Town Hall in 1677.

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