The Enfield Poltergeist
20/02/2009 by: eyepriestess
THE ENFIELD POLTERGEIST
The Enfield Poltergeist is regarded as one of the most fascinating cases of paranormal activity ever recorded. One thing that distinguishes the Enfield haunting from most other cases is that the strange events were witnessed by over 30 people including neighbors, police and reporters.
To add even more validity to the existence of the Enfield Poltergeist, there were over 2,000 pieces of evidence collected by reputable paranormal researchers, Maurice Grosse and Guy Lyon Playfair. Both Grosse and Playfair were members of the Society for Physical Research.
The night of August 31, 1977, started out just like any other night for Peggy Hodgson and her children. While the children, Margaret 12, Janet 11, Johnny 10 and Billy 7, were upstairs getting ready for bed, Peggy was tidying up as usual. Little did she know, this ordinary night would be the beginning of a supernatural nightmare which would last for more than a year!
It all began with the children complaining of their beds moving up and down. The activity stopped when Peggy entered the room and turned on the light. Believing the children were making it up, Peggy had no reason to be overly concerned and went about her normal routine.
However, the next night, the children began to complain of a shuffling noise in their bedroom. Again, the paranormal activity stopped when Peggy entered the room and turned on the light. But, as she turned the light off to leave, Peggy heard the shuffling noise too, as well as loud knocks and a chest of drawers scooting across the floor.
Terrified and shaking, Peggy immediately took all of the children out of the house and went to the neighbors for help.
Though they later searched the entire home, they could not find anyone in the house. But, when the neighbors began to hear the knocking noises as well, the police were then called to the home.
As the police entered the North London council house, Peggy turned off the lights. Almost immediately the knocking began and this was witnessed by the policeman who heard it coming from different walls. They also saw a chair glide about four feet across the room with no one around it.
The next day the paranormal activity increased and became worse over the preceeding months. Items such as toys, pictures, plates, cutlery and even furniture was hurled across the rooms. Puddles of water and flames would appear and then suddenly vanish and items began materializing and disappearing.
Soon the events became more sinister and even life threatening. One morning, Playfair heard a loud vibrating noise and ran into the bedroom to find a cast iron fireplace had been ripped from the wall…an incident which was captured on tape.
Whilst all of the Hodgson family were affected by the Enfield Poltergeist, it seemed to have more interest in Janet.
One evening Grosse was going over the days and events when he was interrupted by Janet’s screams. As he reached the foot of the stairs, he witnessed Janet being dragged across the floor and then hurled down the stairs.
This was just the beginning of the torment directed at Janet. She was later seen hanging in mid-air and then spun around – banging into a window – she then levitated and dropped to the floor.
Also, curtains were twisted and wrapped around one of the other children’s necks in an attempt to strangle them.
The poltergeist would answer the researchers questions by knocking or opening doors. But soon Janet was seemingly possessed by the poltergeist and they would get to talk to him. As Janet spoke in a deep, raspy, masculine voice, Grosse’s son would conduct what is referred to as an “interview with a poltergeist”!
He learned that the man’s name was Bill. At one point he asked him how he had died, the poltergeist replied, “I went blind, then I had a hemorrhage and fell asleep. I died in a chair in the corner downstairs”.
Later, when Grosse located the son of the previous owner, the tape was played for him. The son confirmed that his father had indeed died in the matter in which the poltergeist described.
The paranormal activity began to decline by the spring of 1978 and eventually stopped, allowing the Hodgson family to get back to their normal lives.
While many of the local residents had been eyewitnesses to some of the phenomena, many others believed the Enfield poltergeist be a hoax. One of the reasons for their doubt was the fact that Peggy had called the media in so quickly. But, when the police, a local vicar and a medium couldn’t help, she had felt they were her only resource.
In fact, the suggestion that she contacted the Society for Physical Research had come from the media in the first place. And, thanks to Grosse and Playfair, there are hours and hours of recorded evidence as well as photographs and documentation. But still, even today there is much debate about the truth behind the Enfield Poltergeist!
By, Connie Corder
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By Connie Corder, (Copyright, 2009 @ World Mysteries And True Ghost Tales).
This is really an amazing story. I would like to hear those recordings and I wonder why this hasnt been made into a movie. Of course, if they did make a movie from this story I am sure they would change it too much from what the real facts were so perhaps it would be better that they didnt.
I have, in fact, heard about the Enfield Poltergeist before this but I never knew this much about the story of what happened.
I love this website!
Ghost Hunter,
my parent’s and my sister live in Enfield, North London, this is why I am so interested in this particular story.
I will try and get hold of those recordings, this may take some time though.
Thank you for the compliment on our site.
I have always been fascinated by the Enfield Poltergeist Case and, I have to say that after reading this article I am impressed by the amount of information you managed to include in it. I really enjoyed reading it and will certainly make a point of watching for similar articles.
This story is so good, i’ve heard about it before, but not read about it properly. Thanks
This story was very interesting and a prime example of how “hard headed” some people can be. Even with the mountains of evidence, lot’s of people still claim it’s a hoax and it’s referred to as an “alleged” poltergeist haunting. There is a book about the Enfield Poltergeist and I’m sure it would be one of those books you couldn’t put down until you finished it all!
I have also been reading about this.. It certainly is interesting.
I don’t know how anyone can say it was a hoax with so many witnesses.
I wonder if that entity is still in that house today?
I can’t even imagine living through something like that.. especially when it is happening to your own children! Thank god the attacks stopped before someone was seriously hurt!
Mama’s chick
I’ve read some stuff about the Enfield Poltergeist and can’t find anything about the “fate” of the spirit. Everything I’ve read so far just says that it pretty much started slowing down and then just stopped. I’d be very interested in knowing what happened, if anyone finds out let us know!
I’m sure since she continued to live in the house until she died that nothing else was going on. If there was still paranormal activity going on, it must have been minor or I think she would have moved out to get away from it.
Mama’s Chick,
I’m looking into this at the moment, as to whether or not it is still active in the house, plus i’m trying to get permission to put up some recordings. Unfortunately, if i do get permission, this does take time.
Coco,
I too am looking into this, it’s hard though as there is, like you say, nothing about the end result of all this. I’m going to try and find out though.
Recordings, please click on this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSEXE8I0DpE
It is funny most poltergiests are evil and demonic, this Ghost was just a confused old man, how come he was able to physically move things to a stronger degree than others?
To Handsome Harry,
don’t get you really, what do you mean about this? I imagine spirits don’t have the same physical strength if any from when they were alive???
This story is so good, i’ve heard about it before, but not read about it properly. Thanks
wow,just watched the u-tube this is freaky
I sure would like to see the pictures of you can show them to us all. A great story!!!!!!!!! I would also like to have heard the tapes. I am glad you and your family are safe now. lol
If you look at the ‘levitation’ picture why is the girls hair raised liked it would be if she was falling? Isn’t she supposed to be levitating upwards? If she was levitating upwards then her hair would be down not up. The picture is, in my opinion, a very bad fake.
The police woman saw a chair move in the the dark. Where were the two girls when this happened? Fishing wire looped round the leg and pulled could acheive this.
The tapes to me sound like a 12 year old girl messing around. In one instance the voice says “shut up, this is dumb”. Doesnt sound like the words used by an old man.
I agree Gary, it’s not one of the most convincig ghost stories around. I’ve thought that about the hair too, she looks like she just leapt off the bed.
Maybe why this has never been made into a film, at least i’ve not heard of a film about it.
I WOULD ALSO LOVE TO HEAR MORE OF THE TAPES IF POSS. I HEARD PART ON YOUTUBE…. JANET SPOKE… AS AN ADULT ABOUT HER EXPERIENCES THEN… I BELEIVE IT…. AND MAYBE FOR SOME ITS EASIER IF THEY HAVE HAD AN EXPERIENCE TO BELEIVE IN OTHERS…APART FROM THAT JANET IS TOTALY CREDIBLE…….I WAS INTERRESTED IN THE “EPISODE” WHERE SHE HAS GONE THROUGH A WALL INTO A NEIGHBOURS…AS SHE LATER SAYS …”SOLID THROUGH SOLID” ….. WHEN MY DAD DIED AND HIS BODY WAS IN THE HOUSE AWAITING THE FUNERAL…ONE NIGHT I HAD A TERRIFYING EXPERIENCE OF THUNDEROUS NOISE AND FEET ACROSS THE CEILING….OUR LOFT WAS NOT VERY BIG AND NO ONE COULD STAND UP IN THERE…. ALSO MY BEDROOM WALL CHANGED IT WARPED AND WAVED LIKE LIQUID ALMOST… I HAD TO SLEEP WITH THE LIGHT ON FOR MONTHS….I KNOW I DID NOT IMAGINE THIS…I DIVED UNDER THE COVERS AND EITHER MENTALY OR VERBALY ASKED PLEASE GOD MAKE THIS STOP… AND IT DID INSTANTLY! ALSO I DISCUSSED IT WITH MY MOTHER NEXT MORNING… SHE SEEMED TO KNOW SOMETHING HAD HAPPENNED…AND SHE TOLD ME THAT MY BROTHER WHO SLEPT IN THE ROOM NEXT TO MINE HAD SEEN THE WALL MOVE….BUT HAD HEARD NOTHING….THATS WHY I CAN UNDERSTAND WHEN JANET MENTIONS GOING THROUGH THE WALL. ITS BEYOND OUR CURRENT COMPREHENSION…BUT DOESNT MEAN ITS IMPOSSABLE….CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHY SOMETIMES THE FAMILY IN THE ENFIELD CASE ARE SOMETIMES REFERED TO AS HARPER AND OTHER TIMES HODGSON?
Paul, that is a horrifying experience, especially since your brother experienced the wall warping. You did right in asking for God’s assistance. Did you feel that you couldn’t move as this was happening? I’d like to think that this may have been sleep paralysis had you been the only one to experience this: You could read about it and see what you think, here is a link to SP: http://www.worldmysteriesandtrueghosttales.com/category/paranormal/sleep-paralysis/
@eyepriestess
when i asked God to make it stop it was just something you say… but it worked… the sound was deafening louder than actual thunder but of that nature….this is another reason why i can make a good connection between poltergeist activity and the souls of the dead…and in the enfield case i beleive that the apparition of the old man was seen at the table… by mrs. hodgson’s/harper’s brother…. i suppose they cant make it any clearer but we always doubt….
i suppose maurice grosse will have the answers he was seeking…now….having passed into the great beyond himself…
well personaly that experience i had was one of many to follow but not connected to my father…i still have premonitions and they can happen out of the blue then nothing for a very long time…
but the actual experience traumatised me….as i mentioned i had to have a light on for months in my bedroom… and a radio going… until one time my mother came to the bedroom door and said… dont you think its about time to turn this light out?
i think after that i became very shy… i was always shy but more so… and started thinking on the questions that have no answers… its fair to say that in some ways it effected my life… i definetly wasnt sleeping…which is borne out by the fact there was another who witnessed it….
but my dad knew i was interested in the after life… infact the afternoon of the day he died(he died in the evening) he was in bed…. and i had a book from the library…how to tell your fortune…and there was this wheel chart… and you put pins in at random… to get information..or something… and i jokingly said to my dad… this is a ouija board …. we were talking of that before…and he was quite annoyed… reminding me that he had seen work colleagues… terrified by doing that… and that it was “tampering with nature”…..but i was only kidding…. i would never do that…. sometimes i think that maybe he was demonstrating the existence of another life… and ie; his survival… and re-enforcing…his warning…. who knows….
sorry about cap locks earlier… i doidnt realise it would come out like that…
i forgot to answer your question…. yes i could move…i mean i was just as normal…as far as being in a single bed goes… i dived under the covers as a gut reaction…
Oh i definately did that for a long long time Paul… keeping the lights on and tv on after my paranormal experience, lol but it’s not funny for us is it. I still get very scared sometimes at night time and still occasionally have the lamp on.
Your dad was wise to steer you away from the ouija board, that was the start of my troubles.
As for the sounds being like thunder you heard, wonder what the heck it is that is making that. It sounds like poltergeist activity to me. Do you hear anything in the daytime? I’d love it if you would tell me your whole experiences and send it in to me, if you would like to, click on submit a story above on home page and i’ll post it for you.
Oh and dont worry about the cap locks lol, i just thought you were being really expressive
Well, that almost means this wasn’t sleep paralysis then. I had that oncce and you can’t move a muscle until its over.
It’s funny how we think our duvet is going to protect us, but we all do it…slightest thing and there we are quivering under the covers even if it’s the hottest summer night. I won’t even have my feet out
Paul,
I think this is poltergeist phenomena – do you still have it happen?
@M.A.N
only one other occasion i experienced noisey phenomana… which was when i lived alone once…and had gone to bed in the early evening… cos i was bored and lonely… i think it was june…. i was just getting off to sleep around 9pm…. and suddenly i awakened to hear my bedroom door handle rattling violently… now, im paranoid about locking up… and always make sure every window and door is locked….anyway… there was a gap at the door… i mean it wasnt tight closed and i could clearly see no one was at the other side of this door in the landing…. ofcourse my first terror filled thoughts were that someone had broken into the house and could kill me, but i took the bull by the horns… and opened the door wide and immediately felt a rush of whirlpool like air on the landing… i then just pushed the door closed… but not tight and could see… shrugged my shoulders…. then the handle gave one last bang… and that was that…. but for weeks prior… i had smelled perfume in my kitchen…. and used to smell my clothes that were washed and sitting in there… thinking it was the washing powder… but nothing i had smelled the same… like an old fashioned old lady perfume….another thing i noted… was that i was so impressed by this incident that i wrote it down and timed dated it…. but when i went to get that ..where i left it next day or so…. it was not there and i never found that…. but i know that this happenned…. my most recent experience was at new year in a friends house…which i beleive haunted in some way
@eyepriestess…. yes i hope to tell more of my personal experiences… it may be a relief in some ways… as i have no one who has similar exoeriences… to get some feedback from… so ive always carried my feelings around… not knowing how to make sense of them
the thunder sound was tremendous… deafening. but of the nature of thunder… not sounding contrived if you know what i mean?
I think you should pray to God for relief of this Paul, i’m not doubting you have already, but also ask for this problem to be taken from you. It seems like you have something attached to you, but try not to worry too much. Someone was once in a terrible fight against evil and poltergeists (a good friend of mine who is extremely trustworthy) once advised me to place as many Holy objects around my home as possible. I also suggested this once on another site, so you may have seen this suggestion before. If you place objects of Holyness around your home such as crosses, Bibles, etc, then it is like a deterrant with evil as a burgler would be deterred from a burgler alarm. And if you would also consider getting rid of any occult games (you may have, not saying you do) and books on the occult, this will also help you.
After i had my bad experience, i binned about 200 pounds (my pound sign isn’t working on keyboard) of books in my home. That is alot of pounds down the drain, but i didn’t care, what was important was that NOTHING remained in my home that may ever attract evil again. This wasn’t just for my benefit, but for the rest of my family too.
God bless you Paul!!
i understand…. i have mix of things here…. but nothing bad has occurred here except unhappiness…oh once … when i came here…. not long into my time here…. i had the most awful dream….and it was so real i cant remember having one so vivid…. i was literaly fighting for my soul against this black cowled figure…. honestly i knew it was my soul at stake…. and i panicked…i think i was lying on a stretcher type thing and… i suddenly cried out…in the name of jesus christ go from me or something like that and i woke up with this still being uttered… i sat bolt upright in bed…. now before this… i had bother with a neighbour….in my last place… this person represented evil to me…. we squabbled…. i used to be able to feel his badness come through my house when he was outside…. he actualy wanted the house i rented and in the end got it….even upon leaving there the last day… my then partner nearly crashed the car…it did a u turn…in a dual carrigeway…i actualy thought this is it…im gonna die…. and i felt resigned and calm….. but it was ok we landed in middle of grass island…. truly horrifying experience…. really …. that was ireland now im in england and few weeks later had that dream or nightmare really. i think i pick up energies a lot
My parents live in Enfield, so i know the place well.
Makes me wonder if the person who wanted you out was causing these dreams. I’m going to give ;you a link to how dreams can make you feel, brb with it…