Ruskington.
Spooks and Ghosts.
Much excitement has been caused in the village, and many young persons have had their nerves unstrung, by reports of mysterious knockings to be heard in a house in High Street. These have been going on for a long time, but appear to have become more acute recently, and especially so when one of the lady occupants had a lady friend to sleep with her following a dance. After they had retired the noises started, and they sang hymns, the knockings rhythmically beating time to the tunes.
When the report got abroad, large numbers of people assembled in the street for several successive nights, and reliable witnesses assert that the noises were to be heard on the opposite side of the Beck, beginning with rapid strokes and then carrying on with measured beat.
It is rumoured that a spiritualist was called in, but it is not known whether a solution was found. The mystery has been attributed to spooks and ghosts, but since the occupants have been going out to sleep further noises have been heard in the street, and there is no doubt that the cause of all the trouble is more material than occult.
Sleaford Gazette, 14th January 1928.
Excitement has been caused in the Lincolnshire village of Ruskington by reports of mysterious knockings in a house in High-street. These had become worse during the past week or two, and were especially loud when one of the female occupants had a lady friend to sleep with her following a dance recently. After they had retired the noise started, and, it is said, when the ladies sang hymns, the knockings beat time to the tunes!
Later in the week the sounds were louder, and many people gathered near the house. The weird sounds could be heard some distance away. A local spiritualist failed to solve the mystery, but in the early morning, a police constable, patrolling the streets, heard knockings, and discovered they were made by a horse, stabled a short distance away, stamping quickly. Thus ends the story of the village ghost!
Nottingham Journal, 16th January 1928.
Village Scare.
Ghostly voices that sing at Ruskington.
Mysterious noises in a house at Ruskington – a village four miles from Sleaford – have aroused a sensation in the district, and although every effort has been made to trace the cause, there is no solution at present.
These eerie sounds, which have been going on for some times, have been accentuated during the week, and so alarming did they become that the inmates, scared out of their wits, have been going out to sleep. It is stated that voices singing well-known hymns were heard every night, and knockings, as if beating time to the tunes, sometimes loud and then more modulated, were frequent and distinct.
These generally occurred after the inmates had retired to bed and the lights extinguished. People who have been attracted to the place, are said to have heard these uncanny noises from the outside.
Boston Guardian, 21st January 1928. (clearly a misunderstanding which totally changes the story).