Welcome, curious minds, to the top 10 spookiest roundup of declassified Project Stargate paperwork. Between 1972 and 1995, the CIA and a handful of U.S. agencies recruited a generation of bright‑eyed volunteers to probe the uncharted terrain of the human mind. The resulting files are a bizarre blend of sketches, cryptic notes, and jaw‑dropping visions that still make us shiver. Let’s dive in, one eerie document at a time.

Top 10 Spookiest Project Stargate Files

10. The Navajo Necklace

Remote‑viewing logs in the Stargate archives often consist of handwritten sketches and terse captions. Known in the intelligence world as clairvoyance, remote viewing is the claimed ability to employ extrasensory perception (ESP) to “see” a distant object, person, or locale without any physical contact.

Most of these logs are sparse on typed narrative, yet they serve as a goldmine of oddball details about daily assignments given to Project Stargate viewers. Among the many entries—ranging from the Tunguska explosion to the Rendlesham UFO encounter—one stands out: a cryptic session centered on an aged Navajo necklace.

In this particular experiment, Subject 052 received a set of geographic coordinates and a few simple prompts. The mission: coax Subject 052 into accurately describing a silver Navajo necklace that was stored at a remote location.

Subject 052’s report painted a vivid tableau: unfamiliar architecture framed a left‑handed artisan hard at work, fashioning a chain that appeared either gold or steel—an enigmatic glimpse into a world far beyond the necklace’s physical form.

9. Humans On Titan And Aliens In Alaska

In November 1986, a remote‑viewer was dispatched to Saturn’s moon Titan. The subject described stumbling upon a base on the moon’s surface, stepping inside, and finding an entire crew of humans—two fit young men operating a control panel under the supervision of an attractive female overseer.

The same file later recounts two additional missions, this time back on Earth. When sent to Mount Hayes in Alaska, the viewer reported seeing two mysterious “entities” laboring outside a structure. Inside, a human‑looking technician was busy with a strange machine that seemed aware of the observer’s presence.

8. Parapsychology In The USSR

Since the end of World War II, the CIA kept a relentless watch on Soviet scientific endeavors. Unsurprisingly, among the 12,000‑page CREST archive sits a report titled “Parapsychology in the USSR,” outlining how Russian researchers dabbled in psi long after the 1917 October Revolution.

From 1922 through 1928, a wave of paranormal papers emerged from Russian universities. The turning point arrived after the alleged telepathy attacks on the USS Nautilus, prompting the Soviets to fully mobilize a state‑backed psychic program.

By 1967, more than thirty Russian academic centers were devoted to psi research, collectively drawing an annual budget exceeding 13 million rubles. The Soviet pursuit of the paranormal became both a source of envy and a thorn in the side of their CIA counterparts.

7. The Grill Flame Project Report

Project Grill Flame was one of the earliest initiatives under the Stargate umbrella, tasked with uncovering potential military applications of psi technology. Though officially run by the U.S. Army and INSCOM, declassified files confirm that the CIA was involved from day one.

One of the most celebrated CIA‑affiliated remote viewers, Army officer Joe McMoneagle, participated in dozens of missions. The Grill Flame Report, delivered in October 1983, recommended a broad sweep of psi phenomena for tactical exploitation, hinting at everything from battlefield reconnaissance to covert influence operations.

6. Mars Exploration

By 1984, Joe McMoneagle had risen to the top tier of the CIA’s remote‑viewing cadre. After countless missions aimed at counter‑terrorism and Cold‑War espionage, McMoneagle received a truly out‑of‑this‑world assignment.

While staying at fellow remote‑viewer Robert Monroe’s Virginia estate, Monroe was handed a sealed envelope tucked into his shirt pocket. Inside lay a cryptic set of coordinates pointing not to a terrestrial site, but to the planet Mars—specifically, a point one million years in the distant past.

Here’s what Joe saw:

An enormous, ancient pyramid of sand rose from a deep basin, towering roughly 20 kilometers (12 miles) high. Turbulent storms churned across the Martian sky, suggesting a cataclysmic event. When the scene shifted forward in time, the sand‑covered structure glimmered with metallic sheen, and towering, thin humanoid silhouettes emerged, claiming to be a forgotten race doomed unless its exiles returned.

Although McMoneagle was later given additional coordinate sets to explore, his principal focus landed on the Cydonia region—home to the infamous “Face on Mars” and a massive pyramid‑like formation first photographed by Viking 1 in 1976.

5. An Evaluation Of Remote Viewing: Research And Applications

The Stanford Research Institute (SRI) entered the Stargate arena in 1972 as an external contractor, staying allied with the CIA until the program’s conclusion. Over the years, SRI produced a trove of classified reports that eventually made their way into the public FOIA release.

In a 1995 assessment, SRI concluded that remote viewing was unlikely to prove useful for intelligence gathering. The judgment wasn’t rooted in a debunking of psi itself, but rather in the “suspected characteristics of the phenomenon,” suggesting that the mind’s capabilities resisted conventional analysis.

The institute’s findings echoed a familiar refrain: you can’t bottle, label, or sell the human mind. When funding evaporated, the Stargate program collapsed within months.

4. The Uri Geller Experiments

Uri Geller is a name that instantly ignites fierce debates across YouTube comment sections. Whether you view him as a genuine psychic or a master illusionist, his public feats have sparked endless discussion.

The reality is that most of Geller’s purportedly supernatural tricks can be replicated by seasoned magicians. Nevertheless, Geller claims his abilities stem from an alien consciousness transmitted from deep space, insisting that his mind alone powers the phenomena.

Two factors keep his legend alive. First, Geller amassed a fortune not only through uncanny financial predictions but also by consulting for corporations seeking hidden resources. Second, declassified Stargate files reveal his involvement with the CIA’s SRI program during the 1970s. Some even speculate he may have been a conduit for Mossad’s psychological‑warfare efforts, though the CIA certainly found him intriguing enough to dispatch a remote viewer to study him in September 1990.

3. A Dynamic Psychokinesis Experiment With Ingo Swann

Ingo Swann, another celebrated psi‑sensitive recruited by the CIA, is best known for his remote‑viewing exploits—but his talents didn’t stop there. Swann also displayed a knack for psychokinesis, the alleged ability to move or influence physical objects with the mind alone.

While most Stargate experiments focused on remote viewing for its perceived tactical edge, the agency occasionally dipped its toes into psychokinetic research, probing whether the mind could directly affect matter.

In February 1976, Swann was taken to Maimonides Medical Center, a partner facility, to test whether he could sway the output of a random‑number generator. According to the declassified report, Swann succeeded, offering tantalizing evidence that psychokinetic influence might be more than folklore.

2. An Experimental Psychic Probe Of The Planet Jupiter

Swann enjoyed a special privilege during his tenure with the CIA. In 1973, he and fellow remote viewer Harold Sherman were tasked with probing the gas giant Jupiter. While Swann sat under observation at SRI’s California labs, Sherman relaxed in a custom‑built sensory‑deprivation tank at his home, miles and time zones away.

After their sessions, the duo compared notes over the phone and were stunned to discover strikingly similar details—despite the fact that no close‑up images of Jupiter existed at the time.

Both reported correctly identifying the planet’s iconic Great Red Spot and a massive dark cloud trailing behind it. They also described endless fields of suspended crystals glittering amid the swirling clouds.

The crystals, they noted, reflected both sunlight and the intense electric storms raging on Jupiter’s surface, painting a picture of a planet awash in shimmering, otherworldly light.

Swann estimated the planet’s solid surface lay roughly 193,000 kilometers (120,000 miles) beneath the visible cloud layers, underscoring the depth and complexity of the vision.

1. Oklahoma City Bombing

America’s most infamous domestic terrorist attack— the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing—has long been the subject of intense scrutiny and speculation. On April 3, 1995, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols detonated a massive bomb at the federal building, killing 168 people.

To mark the ten‑year anniversary, author Jayna Davis released The Third Terrorist, positing that Iraqi operatives, possibly with Iranian blessing, may have orchestrated the attack. Her theory gained traction when Congress cited her work during a hearing on the bombing.

Crucially, the declassified Stargate files contain what may be the program’s most unsettling report. On April 20, 1995—just a day after the blast—the CIA received unsolicited intel from psi‑sensitive operative Joe McMoneagle. He claimed that five men, not two, carried out the bombing, and that three of them were Arabic, pointing to Iraq as the most likely origin.

The report’s most puzzling element was McMoneagle’s insistence that a man named “Carl” would be linked to the event. No known perpetrator bore that name, and none of the alleged Arabic conspirators were called Carl.

Yet a man named Carl Spengler, an on‑call physician at a nearby hospital, was indeed the first responder to arrive at the devastated scene—making McMoneagle’s cryptic hint eerily prescient, if not fully explanatory.

Humans have been sailing for millennia, yet the eerie world beneath the waves remains a realm for only the bravest. In this top 10 spookiest roundup we explore submarines that have become legends for their ghostly crews, monstrous encounters, and baffling phenomena. From World‑War‑era U‑boats to Cold‑War nuclear vessels, each of these steel hulls carries a tale that will make you think twice before diving deep.

Why These Vessels Earn the Top 10 Spookiest Reputation

These ten underwater machines have earned their place on this list because each one is steeped in tragedy, mystery, or outright the supernatural. Whether it was a commander turning his gun on himself, a phantom officer haunting the decks, or an unidentified object hovering over a periscope, the stories behind them are as chilling as the ocean’s depths themselves.

10 505

On the night of October 24, 1943, the German U‑boat U-505 endured a ferocious assault when British destroyers dropped depth charges. Amid the chaos, the vessel’s commander, Peter Zschech, took a pistol and shot himself in the head right in front of his crew inside the cramped control room.

According to a firsthand account by crewman Hans Goebler, Zschech’s shot did not immediately kill him; he continued to make loud noises, which inadvertently helped the British locate the sub via sonar. Goebler described how two sailors seized a pillow and pressed it over the commander’s mouth, despite the ship’s doctor protesting. The pillow was held firmly until Zschech fell silent, allowing the British to maintain their sonar advantage.

With the captain dead, Zschech’s second‑in‑command assumed control and steered the crew through the remainder of the attack. Everyone survived the onslaught except the commander. The logbook entry for that day simply read Kommandant tot, meaning “Commanding Officer dead.”

9 65

Another German vessel, this time a World‑War‑I U‑boat, earned a reputation for unsettling luck. Before UB-65 even set sail, a torpedo mishap exploded, wounding several crew members and killing the second officer, Lieutenant Richter.

Shortly after departing port, a lookout stationed in the conning tower claimed to see Lieutenant Richter’s apparition standing on deck, as if he had returned to haunt the submarine. Over the following days, more crew members reported sightings of his ghostly figure, prompting the Imperial Navy to dispatch a pastor in an attempt to exorcise the lingering spirit.

The final, eerie twist came when an American submarine encountered UB-65 off the Irish coast. As the Americans prepared to fire, the German boat inexplicably exploded on its own before any shot could be taken. An American officer also reported seeing a silhouette on the deck—a German officer in full overcoat, arms folded, watching the vessel sink.

8 5

Who doesn’t love a good sea‑monster yarn? On April 30, 1918, the German U‑boat UB‑85 surrendered to a British patrol boat after a dramatic series of events. Captain Krech, the commanding officer, claimed that the night before, a massive, strange beast had surged from the sea and latched onto the deck, its enormous weight nearly dragging the submarine under.

According to Krech, the creature possessed huge eyes set in a horn‑like skull. The crew fired sidearms at the beast, eventually injuring it enough for it to release its grip. However, the encounter left the deck so damaged that UB‑85 could no longer dive. In 2016, the wreck was located, reigniting debate over whether a sea monster or something more mundane caused the incident.

Further research uncovered an interview with another crew member suggesting a more prosaic explanation: a heater installed in the officers’ quarters had wiring that ran through a watertight hatch, making it vulnerable to flooding. The “monster” story may simply have been Krech’s dramatic cover‑up for an engineering mishap, though monster enthusiasts still cling to the kraken theory.

7 The H.L. Hunley

Imagine stepping into the year 2000 as a diver tasked with raising the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley, the first combat sub to sink an enemy warship. The vessel vanished the very day it sank the Union frigate USS Housatonic on February 17, 1864.

When divers finally opened the hull, they were met with a haunting tableau: eight skeletal crew members frozen at their respective stations, each appearing undisturbed by whatever calamity had befallen the sub. The bodies showed no signs of panic or movement, as if they had simply been caught mid‑action.

Scientists later determined that the tragedy stemmed from the explosion of the Hunley’s own spar torpedo, which detonated upon ramming the Housatonic. The blast knocked the crew unconscious, leaving them unable to steer or escape. The submarine settled about 300 meters (1,000 feet) from the wreck of the Housatonic, preserving this eerie scene for over a century.

6 USS Trepang

Submarines aren’t usually the setting for UFO sightings, yet in 1971 a French magazine published photographs that seemed to prove otherwise. Officer John Klika, aboard the USS Trepang, captured images of a cigar‑shaped object while the sub patrolled the remote waters between Iceland and Jan Mayen.

The pictures, later featured in the magazine Top Secret, show a sleek, elongated craft hovering just beneath the surface, clearly visible through the periscope. The encounter occurred during a routine expedition, and the crew reportedly stared in disbelief at the unexpected visitor.

British UFO researcher Nigel Watson noted that similar cigar‑shaped sightings have been reported since the late 19th century, appearing worldwide. While he expressed skepticism about the authenticity of the Trepang photos, the story continues to fuel imaginations of underwater extraterrestrials.

5 Quester I

Ever strolled along Coney Island Creek and felt a chill? Among the rusted hulks there lies a peculiar yellow‑orange conning tower that once housed the experimental submarine Quester I. Its creator, Jerry Bianco, envisioned the craft as a treasure‑retrieval vessel, designed to dive down and salvage valuables from the wreck of the Andrea Doria, which sank off Massachusetts in 1956.

Bianco financed the project in the late 1960s, opting for a bright yellow paint job simply because it was the most affordable option. After four years of labor, the sub was finally lowered into the creek on October 19, 1970. However, a miscommunication led the crane operator to submerge the vessel completely, despite instructions to keep it partially above water.

Because Bianco had only removed ballast from one side to cut costs, the submarine tipped dramatically, listing on its side. Investors lost confidence in its ability to stay afloat, and the vessel never left the creek. To this day, the abandoned Quester I remains lodged in the water, a rust‑colored relic of an unfulfilled dream.

4 219

On October 3, 1986, the Soviet nuclear submarine K‑219 patrolled the Atlantic roughly 1,100 km (700 mi) northeast of Bermuda. An engineer noticed a leak in the torpedo‑room plug and attempted a repair, but water surged in, eventually causing a torpedo casing to split and explode. The blast claimed three crew members and produced a massive flood.

In the aftermath, a brave crewman entered the nuclear compartment, shutting down the reactor to prevent a catastrophic failure, allowing the sub to surface. When the captain opened the hatch, he discovered two long scratch marks running along the hull—marks that did not correspond to any known collision.

Soviet officials initially blamed a nearby American submarine, the USS Augusta, for the damage, though the U.S. Navy denied involvement. In 2010, former captain Nikolai Tushin suggested an alternative culprit: an enigmatic underwater phenomenon dubbed a “Quacker,” named for its peculiar duck‑like quack mixed with a frog’s croak. Such sounds were reported by Cold‑War sonar operators, and Tushin believes the mysterious entity may still linger near the wreck of K‑219.

3 166

While most associate World‑War‑II naval action with the Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico also saw a fierce German U‑boat campaign. One of the seventeen German submarines operating there was U‑166. In 1942 it encountered the American passenger steamer Robert E Lee, whose passengers reported seeing a shark‑like silhouette beneath the water before a torpedo struck, sinking the ship.

Following the attack, the U.S. Navy’s patrol craft PC‑566 dropped a depth charge on the suspected U‑boat, though the crew never confirmed a hit. Coast Guard aircraft also bombed a nearby U‑boat, but the missions were classified, leaving the fate of the German sub unknown at the time.

It wasn’t until 2001 that a petroleum survey located a wreck near the site of the Robert E Lee disaster. Subsequent investigation confirmed the wreck to be U‑166, confirming that the earlier depth‑charge attack had indeed destroyed the submarine. Both the passenger ship and the German sub now rest side‑by‑side on the Gulf floor, a haunting reminder of a war fought close to American shores.

2 The Surcouf

Launched in 1929, the French submarine Surcouf was the largest of its kind, built to rival the increasingly advanced German U‑boats. When Germany invaded France, Allied commanders feared the French fleet might fall into enemy hands, prompting the Surcouf to be ordered to Plymouth, England.

During the transfer, tensions flared between the French crew and their British hosts, culminating in a violent confrontation in which four men lost their lives. Mutual suspicion persisted: French sailors suspected the British of covert collaboration with the Germans, while the British worried the French might be secretly aiding the enemy.

Eventually the submarine was dispatched to the Pacific, stopping in Bermuda for refueling. In February 1942, the Surcouf vanished in the Caribbean off Panama’s coast and was never heard from again. Some speculate a collision with an American merchant ship, others attribute the loss to the infamous Bermuda Triangle. To this day, neither the wreck nor the crew’s fate has been definitively determined.

1 537

During World II, the German navy launched a daring scientific mission to the Arctic Circle: establishing a covert weather station on Labrador’s northern shore. The task fell to U‑537, which was specially outfitted to transport the equipment and set up the remote outpost.

The voyage proved perilous. The submarine struck an iceberg, sustaining severe damage that rendered it unable to submerge. Undeterred, the crew pressed on, installing the weather station and disguising it by assigning a fictitious Canadian name and scattering American cigarette packs to create the illusion of an Allied operation.

On the return leg to occupied France, U‑537 endured three attacks by Canadian aircraft, yet managed to evade destruction each time. The vessel’s story concludes with a brief personal note: “Louise enjoys coffee, dogs, and people‑watching,” a quirky reminder that even in wartime, life’s small pleasures persist.

As a mystical land filled with mythology and legends, it’s no wonder that Wales has its fair share of mysteries that have yet to be resolved. From the mountains of Snowdonia to the vibrant cities of the south to the ragged but beautiful coastline of the west, there are tons of incredible landscapes filled with spooky goings on. No matter what kind of mystery takes your fancy, from con artists to mass executions to extraterrestrial incidents, you’ll find them all throughout Wales’s illustrious and storied past.

So, what are the ten most spooky mysteries in Welsh history? Let’s dive in and find out more.

10 The UFO of Berwyn Mountains

The first on this list is a spooky tale with a strong feeling of conspiracy in the air. Known as the Roswelsh event after the similarities with the infamous Roswell extraterrestrial event in the U.S., the cause of this 1974 phenomenon is still up for debate, despite official MOD files being released back in 2010. Those who were local to the event smelled a coverup!

Witnesses claimed to see a bright ball of light overhead before feeling a huge tremor underfoot. Some say a UFO, some say an unregistered earthquake, and some say a combination of the two. Many have tried to make sense of it all, and the list of theories is long. Even still, no one really knows what happened, even those who live in the Berwyn Mountains.^[1]

9 The Sunken Kingdom of Cantre’r Gwaelod

There are so many legends and mythological tales linked with Wales, especially the coastline around Cardigan Bay. One such story has a lot of parallels to the legendary Atlantis. Cardigan Bay is home to some outstanding coastal trails overlooking the bay, with many people saying that they can see glimmers of buildings underneath the water.

This has led to the story of the Sunken Kingdom of Cantre’r Gwaelod—a city that was once thriving had been lost to the waves due to the carelessness of a lock keeper called Seithenyn. As the story goes, he got too drunk one night and failed in this duty, leading to the whole kingdom being flooded and hit by a huge storm. People still claim you can see the buildings and hear the bells ringing out to this day.^[2]

8 Teggie of Llyn Tegid

So you’ve probably heard about Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster, right? Well, Wales has its own watery monster that’s a little less well-known. Thought to be located in Llyn Tegid (Bala Lake in English) lies the legend of Teggie.

First spotted in 1975, Teggie is thought to be an amphibian of up to a whopping 12 feet (3.65 meters). There have been sightings throughout the years, but nothing substantial, much like Nessie. It seems like Nessie and Teggie are two British water myths that are cut from the very same cloth. Grab your binoculars and see if you can catch a glimpse of this magical and mystical being.^[3]

7 What Happened to Trevaline Evans?

Normally, when a shopkeeper puts up a sign saying they’ll be back in two minutes, they’ll be back within the hour, right? Well, Llangollen shop owner and antique dealer, Trevaline Evans, put up this sign in 1990, and she has not been seen again.

The curious thing is that Evans left her coat and handbag in the shop, so she clearly thought she wasn’t going to be long. Her car was also parked less than 100 feet (30 meters) away and remained where it was. To this day, the case remains open, with calls for information still being asked for… over 30 years later.^[4]

6 The Hanging Judge of Skirrid Inn

It’s no secret that Wales has a bloody history, just like the rest of the UK, and nothing demonstrates this more than the tales of the Skirrid Inn in Monmouthshire. This popular pub has a dark past as a courtroom, specifically one run by George Jefferys, a sadistic judge.

Jefferys was notorious for sending people to the gallows—he almost relished the act and the power. In fact, after the Monmouth Rebellion in 1865, he’s rumored to have hung 180 people. And not in the town square—no, in the pub itself. The rebels were, in fact, hung from a huge oak beam that is still there. It’s a morbid attraction, but one that is full of intriguing and spooky history. Have a pint and look out for the ghosts who are rumored to haunt the place.^[5]

5 What Happened to Owain Glyndwr?

If you’ve been in Wales for any length of time or know any Welsh people, you’ll have heard all about Owain Glyndwr, the last native Prince of Wales. A national hero throughout Wales, he suffered a defeat to the English, led by Henry IV in 1400. However, no one knows what happened to the prince himself.

After his defeat, he fled and went on the run. The rest of the Glyndwr family were captured, but Owain’s men were loyal and kept him hidden for years, with the last sighting being around 1412. The mystery is that no one knows where he ended up, where his remains are, or how he died. It’s a curious ending to a huge figure in Welsh history that has baffled historians and stoked debates throughout the UK for generations.^[6]

4 The Disappearance of Richey Edwards

One of the biggest mysteries in modern Welsh times is the disappearance of the rock star Richey Edwards. As the guitarist of the cult Welsh rock band Manic Street Preachers, Edwards was increasingly becoming more well-known. He joined the band in 1992, and by 1995, taking on America was on the immediate horizon.

In 1995, the band, including Edwards, was supposed to fly to America for a promo tour. Instead of leaving London for the airport, Edwards decided to drive to his homeland of Wales. After this point, he was never seen again. There’s a theory that he jumped off the Severn Bridge, but no evidence or bodies were ever found to corroborate this story. So, even to this day, we have no idea what happened to Richey Edwards.^[7]

3 The Mystery Life of Violet Charlesworth

Although con artists are having a moment with Netflix adding numerous documentaries, one woman from Rhyl in North Wales, Violet Charlesworth, was in a league of her own. At just 24 years old, Charlesworth famously faked her own death after conning multiple men out of their fortunes.

She claimed to be the goddaughter of General Gordon of Khartoum, luring in prospective wealthy men with her fake £100,000 inheritance. Popular on the society pages for her opulent lifestyle, Charlesworth was caught, and Violet and her mother were sentenced to five years of hard labor, which was reduced to three. Following her prison stint, Violet Charlesworth and her mother disappeared off the face of the earth. As first-rate con artists, they could’ve been anyone, working any kind of graft. Who knows! Truly a 20th-century Anna Delvey!^[8]

2 Is Ynys Enlli the Site of Avalon?

When it comes to Arthurian legend and mythology, Wales has no shortage of claims. One of the most common legends is that of Avalon, the Vale between worlds with mystical properties. Arthurian academics and fanatics have worked tirelessly to try and connect the mythology and stories with real-world locations. The leading theory is that Ynys Enlli (Bardsey Island) off the Llyn Peninsula could be Avalon. Other theories also posit that it’s the final burial spot of King Arthur or Merlin. It’s a rich, legendary spot!

It’s already a mythical spot, being one of the leading pilgrimage spots throughout the 6th century. In fact, some say that this island was the second most popular pilgrimage sight behind Rome at the time. It was just that significant! It’s said that there are over 2,000 saints’ souls who have been laid to rest there, bringing all kinds of supernatural and religious properties to the island. Visit the island by boat and see if you encounter any ghosts of the pilgrims or saints that have been journeying to the island for centuries.^[9]

1 The Haunting of Plas Teg

More often than not, haunted buildings are a result of a romance gone wrong. Located on A541 in North Wales lies the gorgeous but dark Jacobean mansion, Plas Teg, a property with a seriously spooky history.

The legend goes that Dorothy, the daughter of Sir John Trevor I, fell in love with a farmer’s son. Obviously, her father did not approve, so Dorothy planned to elope with her beloved. In order to start their new life, she buried some jewels in the ground outside Plas Teg that she’d dig up to help them begin their marriage.

Unfortunately, things did not go to plan. Under cover of darkness, Dorothy wandered over to the spot where she buried her jewels but accidentally fell down a well to her death. Until today, visitors still claim to see the ghost of a young girl in a white dress wandering the grounds, trying to find her jewels and her beloved. See if you can spot her or the jewels on your next visit.^[10]

An ancient land with a rich and vibrant culture, Scotland is known for its outstanding landscapes, beautiful people, and storied past with a penchant for the dark and disturbing. It’s also the country that was home to the infamous grave robbers Burke and Hare, which has consequently made tourist attractions out of the creepy criminals. Scotland definitely has a twisted history that’s full of mysteries.

From unsolved murders to mysterious disappearances to serial killers who have never been caught, Scotland is a country that’s full of dark twists and turns. Let’s dive in and find out more—if you dare!

10 The Mystery Hangman of Dundee

You have to have a distinct kind of morbid curiosity to want to be a hangman, but in the 19th century, hangings were all the rage in Scotland, but not in the city of Dundee. Following the Jacobite rebellions and the mass executions, no one in Dundee wanted to hold the post of hangman. Understandable, right?

So from 1745 until 1835, Dundee did not have a hangman. That changed with the arrival of a troublesome gang called the Black Band, who were terrorizing the city. Eventually, one of the gang members, Mark Devlin, was captured and subsequently sentenced to death by hanging. The problem was that they needed the hangman to come all the way from Edinburgh.

With just hours to go and no sign of the professional hangman, the city decided to ask the locals for volunteers. One such man agreed, but under the proviso that he could wear a mask to conceal his identity. To this day, no one knows who hung Mark Devlin, but we know it was a morbid Dundee local who knew how much being a hangman would affect his reputation.^[1]

9 The Madeleine Smith Case

As history has repeatedly told us, forward-thinking and caring women are often treated horrifically. An aristocrat’s daughter, Madeleine Smith, decided to follow her heart and have an affair with an apprentice nurseryman named Pierre Emile L’Angelier. Oh, to be 20 again.

Obviously, her parents weren’t thrilled about the match. Instead, they set Madeleine up with a wealthy suitor. When she tried to break things off with L’Angelier, he threatened to publish some of the 250 letters she’d written to him and go to the press. With her family’s reputation, that was clearly not an option.

Following this, L’Angelier curiously and mysteriously died of arsenic poisoning. The police obviously found the letters and saw that Madeleine had recently bought arsenic and put two and two together. Cut to a scathing and popular trial that questioned a woman’s moral integrity more than it looked for evidence of a murder. As a result, there was not enough evidence to convict, but the damage was done, and Madeleine had to relocate to London. It’s tough being a woman!^[2]

8 The Murder of Marion Gilchrist

Prejudice is rife throughout history, and Scotland is no exception. After a well-known spinster named Marion Gilchrist was bludgeoned to death with a hammer by a home invader in 1909, there was a huge miscarriage of justice with a Jewish immigrant, Oscar Slater, being convicted.

As a neighbor interrupted the burglary, the killer only got away with a brooch. Later, Slater pawned a brooch and had a ticket to New York, and this was all the evidence that the biased judicial system needed at the time. He was supposed to be sentenced to death, which was later commuted to a life sentence.

There was a huge uproar about the case, with famous novelist Arthur Conan Doyle publishing a pamphlet about the lack of evidence. Slater was released almost 20 years later and given £6,000 in compensation. The creepiest part? The real murderer was never found.^[3]

7 Who Killed the Red Fox?

In another case of miscarried justice, the identity of the killer of the Red Fox, actually named Colin Campbell of Glenure, has remained a mystery for centuries. To be frank, Campbell was not popular. The whole clan was assumed to be doing the bidding of the English and were tax enforcers for other clans.

It was rumored that on the day of his death, Colin was about to kick a few Stewart families off their land and replace them with his Campbell brethren. However, he was shot and killed before that could happen. Within two days, the leader of the Stewart clan, James of the Glen, was arrested and tried for murder.

In what was the most biased jury of all time—predominantly made up of Campbell family members and presided by the chief of the clan—inevitably, James of the Glen was executed. However, it was clear that he was not the murderer. To this day, although it’s been rumored that it was the work of younger Stewart clan members, nothing has been verified.^[4]

6 The Mrs. MacRae Mystery

Fast forwarding through Scottish history to 1976, we have the Mrs. MacRae mystery. As the longest-running missing person’s case in Britain, it’s been a huge question mark for almost 50 years.

On her way to see her sister in Inverness, Mrs. MacRae and her son, Andrew, seemingly crashed their car. This has never been confirmed as the case but assumed by a passing bus driver who saw the car on fire. The bizarre and spooky thing? There’s been no sign of Andrew or Mrs. MacRae ever since—dead or alive!

William McDowell, Mrs/McRae’s alleged married lover, has long denied any involvement in the disappearance. He was eventually arrested for the murder of the mother and son in 2019; his trial was held in 2022. He was found guilty, although the defense argues that there was no evidence of a murder and that his client was not guilty.^[5]

5 The Fairy Coffins

What’s creepier than a stack of hidden tiny coffins in the hillside? Add in the mystery of not knowing who did it, why they’re there, or what they represent, and you start to get the spooky vibes associated with Edinburgh’s Fairy Coffins.

In 1836, a few boys were exploring the famous Arthur’s Seat hill in Edinburgh when they found 17 tiny coffins with little wooden figures in them hidden behind some slate. Although there wasn’t a ton of interest initially—in fact, they only sold the lot of them for £4—they’ve now been sold onto the National Museum of Scotland, where the conspiracies and mysteries are alive and well. Was it for witchcraft? Was it a ritual? Was it a message to do with Burke and Hare? Who knows.^[6]

4 Bible John

This list would not be complete without a serial killer, and Bible John became legendary in Glasgow in the 1960s. Stalking around the popular Barrowland Club, Bible John took to raping and strangling girls with their own tights.

Where did the name come from? Well, some witnesses claimed that he read bible passages, specifically from the Old Testament, to his victims as he attacked them. Creepier still is the fact the identity of Bible John is still a mystery, and justice has not yet been served. ^[7]

3 The Lost 9th Legion

It’s no secret that there is a long and bloody history of war in Scotland, especially against England. In around AD 100–190, when the Roman Empire took over what was then known as Britannia, the emperor Augustus sought to also take control of Caledonia to the North––which was essentially what we now know as Scotland.

To complete this ambitious task, he sent the Ninth Legion to Caledonia to fight the clans. The Ninth Legion had been successful all across the empire, so confidence was high. However, the entire legion seemingly disappeared from all records. Being 2000 years ago, this might seem unsurprising, but the Romans were meticulous in keeping track of their military units.

The assumption is that they were annihilated in such an embarrassing display that no one wanted to commit it to the history book. It’s also rumored to be the fuel behind building Hadrian’s Wall.^[8]

2 The Flannan Isles Lighthouse’s Missing Keepers

To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, to lose one lighthouse keeper may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness. The Flannan Isles actually ended up losing three, for which Wilde had no response. This habit of missing lighthouse keepers has become a spooky legend throughout Scotland.

In the 1900s, all three lighthouse keepers who worked on a rotation system disappeared without a trace. A fourth lighthouse keeper was set to join them and was sailing across on the Hesperus. On closer inspection, they could see that no preparations had been done—that being the main job of a lighthouse keeper. Upon arrival, none of the three men could be found anywhere on the island and have never been seen since.^[9]

1 The Aberdeen Harbor Arm

A washed-up limb, a missing teenager, and a huge mystery to unravel. It sounds like the start of a Scandi-noir drama, but it was actually the real-life story of Elizabeth “Betty” Hadden from Aberdeen in 1945. After hearing a bloodcurdling scream on December 12, an arm was found in Aberdeen Harbor.

They deduced it was Betty’s arm and had been sawed off with a knife, but the murderer still remains a mystery. The leads were so cold that they got local girls to volunteer to scream in different areas of the city to work out where the attack may have happened. Alas, Betty’s remains were never found, and her killer was never brought to justice.^[10]