Kent Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana
Sea Creature with Horses Ears
Location: Cliftonville - Off coast
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: 1950
Further Comments: This sea monster was seen briefly off the coast.
First added: 2002-07-23 | Last updated: 2002-07-23 | ID #1972
Sir Thomas Kemp
Location: Cobham - Darnley Arms public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The pub claims to be haunted by the fifteenth century noble Sir Thomas Kemp, who returned to the site to live out his days after being reprieved from hanging at Rochester.
First added: 2026-05-16 | Last updated: 2026-05-16 | ID #16551
Victorians
Location: Cooling - St James' churchyard
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Phantom women in Victorian clothing are said to walk amongst the headstones.
First added: 2026-02-07 | Last updated: 2026-02-07 | ID #16319
Sir Richard Bloody Baker
Location: Cranbrook - Cranbrook House?
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: An early serial killer, Sir Richard's girlfriend caught him carrying a body. His ghost now haunts the scene of his last crime.
First added: 2002-06-16 | Last updated: 2002-06-16 | ID #1261
Cloaked Figure
Location: Cranbrook - Road towards Marden
Type: Other
Date / Time: 29 September 2011
Further Comments: A driver and passenger watched as a cloaked figure jumped down from the trees in front of their car before leaping over the vehicle. The cloak could be heard 'whooshing' over the car. The figure was too tall for the driver to see the head, although the rest of the entity was described as human-like.
First added: 2011-10-16 | Last updated: 2011-10-16 | ID #10599
Theresa Benenden
Location: Cranbrook - The Pest House
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1970s
Further Comments: A 'pretty' woman has been reported as gliding from the fireplace to the staircase, where she disappears - the shade is thought to be Benenden, and her initials are still carved into a door over 230 years old. She has been seen in other parts of the building, sometimes holding a candle.
First added: 2004-02-28 | Last updated: 2004-02-28 | ID #5016
George
Location: Crawley - Unidentified old cottage in the area
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: Mid 1970s
Further Comments: This entity nicknamed George would be tolerated when restricting itself to moving chairs, creating cold spots, and being heard walking around, but after the family's newborn child was found removed from their cot and sleeping on the ground, he was threatened with a visit from the local Vicar.
First added: 2026-04-06 | Last updated: 2026-04-06 | ID #16519
The Black Prince
Location: Dartford - A2 road between Dartford and Bexley
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1940s
Further Comments: Dressed in black armour, this ghostly figure on horseback was observed several times walking along the road during the Second World War.
First added: 2004-12-30 | Last updated: 2004-12-30 | ID #5737
Dave
Location: Dartford - Acacia Mansion
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 24 November 2007
Further Comments: A ghost hunting group who organised an event at this council property contacted an entity named Dave and another called Poppy. The property is reputedly haunted by a woman seen at the top of a staircase, and shadows in the attic.
First added: 2026-05-24 | Last updated: 2026-05-24 | ID #16601
Horsemen
Location: Dartford - Dartford Heath
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2006 (cats)
Further Comments: The heath is home to three different ghostly horsemen - an English Civil War soldier, a Saxon warrior, and the highwayman Dick Turpin. Two other talking phantoms have manifested in the area, and in 2006, multiple sightings of big cats were reported.
First added: 2026-05-24 | Last updated: 2026-05-24 | ID #16593
Unknown
Location: Dartford - Fox and Hounds public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A brief comment on a Reddit post referred to this site as being haunted, although omitted the finer points.
First added: 2026-05-24 | Last updated: 2026-05-24 | ID #16598
Lavender Lady
Location: Dartford - Library, Market Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1970s onwards
Further Comments: Staff have reported the strong smell of lavender and feeling someone standing close behind them. During the 1970s, blame for the disembodied footsteps was allocated to the phantom woman. The TV show Most Haunted filmed an episode here in 2007 and heard crying.
First added: 2026-05-24 | Last updated: 2026-05-24 | ID #16592
Small Girl
Location: Dartford - Royal Victoria and Bull Hotel
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The occasional poltergeist activity is blamed on the ghost of a young girl named Winifred. A cavalier and a dog also haunt the site.
First added: 2026-05-24 | Last updated: 2026-05-24 | ID #16590
Potato Thrower
Location: Dartford - Undisclosed house at Ruskin Grove
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1975-1976
Further Comments: The Robertson family were forced from their home after experiencing a haunting that lasted two years. Mr Robertson reported seeing a ghostly figure at the top of the staircase on the day they moved in, their pets reacted to an invisible presence, and poltergeist activity would throw around potatoes and clean laundry. No reports have come from the site since the family moved away.
First added: 2009-04-18 | Last updated: 2009-04-18 | ID #9261
Smuggler
Location: Deal - Deal Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Described as 'hideous' in a 1926 newspaper, the phantom of a female smuggler holding a lantern haunted the castle after being violently killed. More recent stories claim the site is haunted by soldiers, a young girl, and other classic haunting motifs.
First added: 2026-04-03 | Last updated: 2026-04-03 | ID #16475
The Lady Lovibond
Location: Deal - Goodwin Sands
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 13 February, every 50 years from 1748
Further Comments: A jealous sailor deliberately ran the Lady Lovibond onto the Goodwin Sands, a treacherous area off the coast of Deal, wrecking the ship and killing all on board. The craft is now said to re-enact the crash, though there are no reports of any witnesses in 1998. Two other ghostly craft are said to frequent the area - the liner Montrose, and a man of war named Shrewsbury.
First added: 2002-06-03 | Last updated: 2002-06-03 | ID #1070
Admiral
Location: Deal - Sholdean Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The admiral who is said to have once lived here is held accountable for the odd knocks and taps heard around the home.
First added: 2002-07-06 | Last updated: 2002-07-06 | ID #1616
Redcoat
Location: Deal - Walmer castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A phantom soldier in a red coat is said to patrol the castle. After retiring, a nightwatchman said he had not seen the ghost but had heard 'some funny sounds'.
First added: 2026-04-03 | Last updated: 2026-04-03 | ID #16476
Bad Sir Giles
Location: Denton - Coppice close to Tappington Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Sir Giles is said to have lured the gamekeeper's daughter into the wooded area and murdered her. Both people were said to haunt the coppice, though no actual sightings are documented.
First added: 2009-05-31 | Last updated: 2009-05-31 | ID #9349
Cyclist
Location: Detling - Site of former RAF Detling
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: August 2004
Further Comments: A cyclist dressed in a Second World War RAF uniform passed by a witness and then disappeared. When the witness mentioned the encounter the following day, they were told horses would refuse to cross the grassy area where the sighting had occurred.
First added: 2017-02-18 | Last updated: 2017-02-18 | ID #12335
Glowing Ball
Location: Detling - Unidentified field
Type: UFO
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: One story said that eyewitnesses watched a glowing ball of light land in a field; when investigated, a burnt circular patch was discovered where the ball had been seen.
First added: 2025-11-23 | Last updated: 2025-11-23 | ID #16181
Misty Figure
Location: Ditton - New Hythe train station
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This ghostly figure is reported to haunt the area in and around the railway station.
First added: 2005-01-02 | Last updated: 2005-01-02 | ID #5744
Dodechild
Location: Dode - Church, and general area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Every seven years (although exact date of the cycle is unknown)
Further Comments: The Black Death of 1349 decimated the village of Dode. A piece of (likely modern) folklore says a young girl hid in the church while the rest of the village caught the illness, although she would also later die. The girl became known as the Dodechild and would manifest every seven years. A local legend claims a plague pit near the church is also haunted.
First added: 2025-12-23 | Last updated: 2025-12-23 | ID #16212
Pacing Man
Location: Dover - Castle Inn
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2010, January 2012 (or possibly 2011)
Further Comments: During renovation of the inn, two painters spotted a man walking around the upper part of the building. They investigated but could not find the man, nor any way the figure could have left the area. Around the same time, the landlady reported rustling on the staircase and keys which jangled unaided. In 2012 the only guest in the inn spotted three men in long shabby coats and hats having a meeting in the room next door, yet the room should have been empty.
First added: 2020-01-01 | Last updated: 2020-01-01 | ID #13513
Laughing
Location: Dover - Cinque Port Arms public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The sounds of laughing are said to be heard in one room here.
First added: 2017-10-14 | Last updated: 2017-10-14 | ID #12574
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