Chester: England's Most Haunted City

Roman Experience?

The Dewa Roman Experience , up narrow Pierpoint Lane, just off central Bridge Street, is a popular Chester visitor attraction – but with a very unusual feature. For as well as the reconstructed Roman galley, street and baths, it incorporates a fascinating walk-through archaeological excavation.

As part of their trip through the ‘dig', visitors descend into a once-buried 18th-century cellar complete with coal chute and bricked-up doorways. The ceilings are low and the cobbled floor is still dark with ancient coal dust. The light is dim and sacks rest in a cobwebbed corner.

The cellar is where most visitors feel uncomfortable. Perhaps subconsciously they sense it's the scene of a haunting.

Staff at the Dewa Roman Experience are convinced there's a supernatural presence. Back in 1996, museum guide Steven Knowles said, “I was leading a tour, and talking to an elderly couple, when something flashed by me. The old lady felt it too, because she grabbed my arm and asked me if I was alright. A few days later, I was in the excavated cellar when I saw something move from the corner of my eye. But when I turned around there was nothing there…”

Kane, a pet Labrador belonging to another staff member, flatly refused to enter the cellar. “We've tried enticing him with biscuits”, said the young woman, “but he just sits down, begins shivering, and won't move.”

More recently, in July 2004, the manager, Christine T*****, confirmed that a terrified customer had rushed from the cellar claiming she'd felt ghostly hands closing about her neck. The panicky woman didn't even ask for her money back – she just pushed through the exit doors and was last seen disappearing down Pierpoint Lane.