GhostHidden
The Baker's Tree
Ninety-nine times round the tree, then the ankle went.
Stand where it happened
- What's there
- Marshland village church stand-in; tree unknown
- Legend from
- Victorian marsh lore
- Best time
- Windy nights
- Tone
- Eerie
Somewhere near Barling stood a tree where, if you walked round a hundred times, a dead baker went back to work.
Near Barling stood a haunted tree with a story attached. A good and successful baker became miserable about something, though nobody knew what, and one evening he walked to a lonely spot and hanged himself from the tree. His spirit found no rest, and on windy nights people said they could hear his heels knocking together. If you walked round the tree a hundred times, you would see the baker at his kneading-trough. One man determined to see the ghost, even if it killed him. He went round ninety-nine times in the dark, then slipped and sprained his ankle, which locals thought a fair punishment.
One sourceOnly one written account of this legend has been found so far.