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City of Caves
Picture Gallery
(Click to Enlarge)
GHOST HUNT AT NOTTINGHAM'S 'CITY OF CAVES'
OUR FIRST EVER INVESTIGATION AT THIS LOCATION!History of The Caves
Nottingham was originally known as Tigguacobauc, meaning 'Place of Caves'. Since Saxon times the city has played host to a fascinating assortment of man-made caves which were cut out of the sandstone for a variety of interesting purposes. By the late 13th and 14th centuries they were mainly used as homes by poverty stricken families but they were also utilised to house monks, prisoners and maybe even a leper colony!By 1600 there were around 100 caves in Nottingham, with many more added over the next few centuries. It is thought that today there are over 500 caves underneath the streets of Nottingham. Some are still in use as cellars for the pubs in the city centre, a gun club meets beneath Nottingham Castle and fire officers train in the caves below the Guildhall!
The area now known as the tourist attraction, 'City of Caves', occupies what was once Broad Marsh, a notoriously poor area of Nottingham which provided a haunt for criminals and unsavoury characters alike. During the 16th and 17th centuries, when Broad Marsh was, as the name suggests, marshland, the area was occupied largely by tanners who not only made leather nearby but used the caves, which at that time were accessible at the base of a cliff, to ply their foul-smelling trade.
Tanning, the process of turning animal skins into leather, was a rather dangerous job due to the diseases which could be caught (animal faeces played a major part in the tanning process) and it is certain that many would have died as a result of their occupation. The tannery was closed in 1639 and slowly the caves disappeared as houses and shops were built on top of them and they were shortly forgotten. The tannery caves were hidden from view by Drury Hill, a prominent and exceedingly narrow street. Occasionally, the caves would issue a reminder of their existence, such as in 1826 when several boys were killed as the garden they were playing in collapsed and swallowed them whole, or in 1880 when a shop built over a cave fell down into it.
The caves lay dormant and unused until World War II when some were converted into air raid shelters. After the war they were once again left neglected and forgotten about. In the late 1960s the decision was made to tear Broad Marsh down as it was largely empty and derelict and build a shopping centre in its place. The caves were re-discovered in 1971 when Drury Hill was demolished and the decision was made to preserve them; a structure was built which supported the shopping centre without posing any threat to the caves below. They were granted ancient monument status and opened to the public in 1994. Visitors today can see the tannery as it would have been in Tudor and Stewart times, a well cut from the sandstone complete with hand and foot holds and the Victorian basements of Drury Hill. However, some visitors experience the history of the site in a rather more unusual way...
Update 2012: The shopping centre which lies above the caves has just re-opened after being heavily refurbished. There are countless reports of haunted venues seeing a spike in paranormal activity after building work/refurbishing has taken place - we sincerely hope this will be the case in the caves!
Ghosts of The Caves
Nottingham's City of Caves is one of those enigmatic places which is apparently haunted by unknown souls for reasons we can only guess at. These caves have borne witness to centuries of death and disease, sorrow and torment; to lives filled with poverty and hardship. If the stone tape theory is correct, that emotions and highly charged situations can be 'recorded' by the fabric of a structure and replayed years later then it is not surprising that City of Caves is reputed to be very haunted indeed.Paranormal activity reported in this network of caves includes the regular sighting of dark shadowy figures darting around and the apparition of a woman in Victorian clothing who appears very upset. Several people have reported hearing loud explosions coming from above - perhaps a brief residual haunting from the time when the caves were used as air raid shelters during WWII.
There is also a great deal of apparent poltergeist activity in the caves, it is incredibly common for people to experience the unnerving incident of stones being thrown towards them in the darkness, a common phenomena in haunted venues. However, no-one has ever been hurt, indicating some kind of intelligence behind the activity.
As anyone who has investigated Nottingham's other incredibly haunted location The Galleries of Justice can attest, being underground in sandstone caves at night, with no source of natural light, can be very scary indeed! But for any serious ghost-hunter, Nottingham's City of Caves is an essential venue, steeped in history and an important part of England's haunted heritage.
Ghost Hunt at Nottingham's City of Caves Includes:~ Welcome Drink of Traditional Mead
~ Tour of the Caves with Ghostly Tales and History Talk
~ Late-Night Ghost Hunt & Paranormal Investigation
~ Opportunity to use Ghost-Hunting Equipment
~ Séance and Controlled 'Contact Experiments'
~ Refreshments Throughout*The event will run from approx. 9pm - 3:00am*
Ticket Price: £49 per person
Use the link below to purchase places for the event or book over the phone by calling 0845 201 3994
A deposit option of £25 per person is available with balance payable 3 weeks before the event. Please call us on 0845 201 3994 if you would like to use this option.
10% Discount for Groups of 10 or More
(Contact us to Check Availability Before Booking)
Please Read Terms and Conditions Before Booking
To Pay by Cheque Click Here to Download Booking Form
PHONE US ON: 0845 201 3994
EMAIL: queries@eerie-evenings.com
Click here to find Nottingham's 'City of Caves' on Google Maps
