As with many urban legends, the origins of the Screaming Tunnel are lost in distorted stories.
The tunnel was originally supposed to be part of a train line, but the tracks were never laid. It's 125 feet long and narrow -- on the brightest days, one feels lost amongst the pressing darkness. Quiet closes in, followed by sensing another presence. And then, if a wooden match is lit, a piercing scream resounds and extinguishes the flame.
It's said that over a century ago, a farmhouse stood on the land at the south end of the tunnel. There's several versions of what happened, but the basis remains the same. A young girl, her clothes and hair ablaze, ran from the house and perished within the depths of the darkened tunnel.
Some say the house caught fire for unknown reasons; others say it was arson, set by her mentally ill father, even suggesting that he set her on fire, not the house. This theory goes hand-in-hand with the idea of a bitter divorce and custody dispute over the girl. Upon learning the mother was granted custody, he burned the girl alive in a fit of rage.
Another, quite different, version doesn't involve the father at all. This one says that she was raped, then left to burn in the tunnel to cover the evidence.
Some claim they feel her presence and have heard the scream. Nearly all have the creeps in the depths of the tunnel. It may be the sulphuric, rotten smell from the natural sulphur springs. Or it may be, if standing still, the noises that come from all around. This, again, is due to the springs moving stones around, but certainly makes the visit interesting.
Screaming Skulls: England
The stories are isolated to England, and there are several. It would seem in most cases that while alive, certain family members and servants were promised interrment on the family's grounds or in their homes. Those that broke the promise and tested the waters were plagued with bad luck, strange occurrences, activity resembling that of a poltergeist, storms, and naturally, a blood-chilling scream.
It's been suggested that the legends became tradition due to Celtic reverance of the head. Skull shrines and carved heads have been discovered by archaeologists. We also have Celtic myths that have passed down stories indicating the truth in this. The only discrepancy in this theory is the isolation to England, not Scotland and Ireland, which were also Celtic areas.
Perhaps the stories aren't so isolated as they first appear. Consider Ireland's banshee. The banshee can be either a good or bad omen to families, and again, screaming accompanies the banshee's presence.
Burton Agnes Hall ~ The skull is believed to be that of one of three sisters. She was attacked in a park and died of her injuries. Her sisters promised to bring her head back to their home so that she might see the completed manor, since it was under construction at the time of her death. Instead, her entire body was buried, and almost instantly, they began hearing strange moaning sounds. When they had enough, the skull was disinterred and brought to the home. The strange noises stopped. At one point, a servant tried to get rid of it. She wrapped it and placed it in the back of a wagon. The horses reared and trembled; pictures on the walls of the house shook and fell. Upon it's return, the activity again stopped. Eventually, it was sealed into a wall to prevent it's future removal.
Bettiscombe Manor ~ This home, too, was plagued by unseen forces due to a skull, but in this case, it was the skull of a West Indies servant. It was the servant's dying wish for his remains to be returned to his homeland, the master vowed to do so, and then had him buried in a local cemetary to spare himself the expense. Screams and gutteral noises emitted from the grave of the servant, and poltergeist activity began at the manor. It didn't cease until the bones were exhumed and brought to the house, which for some reason seemed to appease the spirit, in spite of the fact that his remains still weren't shipped away.
Tales such as these abound in England's history. Very little eye-witness documentation of the hauntings exist, so it may be local legend, superstition, or a combination of both.
