This 1891 photograph presents the figure of a man faintly seen sitting in the lefthand chair. The head, collar and right arm are clearly discernable; the spectre is believed to be the ghost of Lord Combermere.Lord Combermere was an early 1800s British cavalry commander who distinguished himself in several military campaigns. He was struck and killed by a horse-drawn carriage in 1891. At the time of his funeral held 4 miles away, Sybell Corbet took the above photo. She reported that the photographic exposure took about an hour. While some believed the image could have thus been produced by a servant who, during this time, wandered into the room and sat in the chair., this idea was later refuted by members of the household as all personnel were attending Lord Combermere's funeral.
Combermere Abbey is located in Chesire, England, and is today a tourist attraction and hotel.
2 comments:
Great photo! This reminded me of something. Back in Texas, an elderly neighbor was having a small family reunion at her house and she called me to come and take a photo of all everyone in her front yard. Her camera was old and she had a brand new roll of film and asked me to help her load it. A week later, she called me to come and look at the photos that she had just picked up. She pointed in the kitchen window of her house behind the group of her family and said "You never got to meet my husband. He died before you moved here, but this is what he looked like". It was a very clear picture of him standing in the window. His face was lit up and I could make out all of his features. He was wearing a blue shirt. I so wish I would have gotten a copy of that! She was in a nursing home last I heard, but that photo was such a comfort to her.
This is just a few miles away from me here in Cheshire! I use this image on my Ghost Walk in Crewe, as the land here used to be owned by the monks at Combermere Abbey - which later became (like 700 years!) Lord Combermere's estate.
I also gave a presentation on my Ghost Walks there last October.
Up to date website of theirs HERE
Cheers
Tim
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