The Real Haunted Story of Edinburgh’s South Bridge Vaults

Bridge vaults are located under the historic walled city of Edinburgh, Scotland. These subterranean tunnels and chambers were the home places of the destitute, and the criminals throughout the time period in which they were constructed. When circumstances deteriorated, the chambers and tunnels of the gloomy stone vaults became homes and places of employment for merchants and traders. However, as conditions worsened, the chambers and tunnels became the homes of the poorest residents of Edinburgh. And they were there that they often passed away. The vaults were filled with prostitution, poverty, bloodshed and disease. And notorious serial murderers have been known. To conceal their filthy work inside the stone depths itself. In Scotland, the industrial period brought about employment and income, but housing planning and public health did not advance at the same rate as other aspects of society. Living conditions in urban areas were quite deplorable.

There was overcrowding since families of more than 10 people lived in small apartments. Death rates were high, greater than in England and other European nations at the time, and there was little sanitation. No running water. No sunshine, which led to the spread of sickness and a developing issue with TB. The difficulties were made much more difficult for individuals who resided in the deeper levels of the Edinburgh vaults. During the Irish Potato Famine that occurred between 1845 and 1847, Scotland was inundated with migrants, many of whom found themselves at the very bottom of Southbridge.

Not only did criminals. And those living in the underworld trade illegal items via the tunnels in a black market. But they also built a red light district that included gambling establishments as well as a large number of bars and brothels. As a result, criminal activity, robbery and murder proliferated. At one point in time, the circumstances were so deplorable that it was alleged that serial murderers were able to slaughter more than a dozen helpless victims and deposit their remains in the vaults without being discovered or prevented. What is often referred to as the Burk and Hare killings is an example of this kind of crime. 2 Irish immigrants named William Burke and William Hare are accused of killing 16 individuals, the most of whom were women, in the year 1828.

They are said to have hidden the remains of the deceased in the tunnels and chambers. And then sold them to a physician so that he may dissect them during his famous anatomy lectures. The fact that corpses were not discovered so close to the individuals who lived in the vaults tells loudly about the circumstances that existed there. The demand for cadavers at a period when medical research was expanding meant that bodies were a desirable commodity. Some evidence suggests that even the most impoverished residents of the South Bridge slums were abandoning the area between the years 1835 and 1875. Despite the fact that the date is not included in any of the papers that have been preserved, the Volt complex was intentionally shut down and hundreds of tons of debris were poured within at some time.

The dreadful past of the Southbridge vaults was eventually forgotten by the passage of time. In the decades that followed, everyone neglected to remember that families had previously resided in the tunnels under Edinburgh, a Scottish rugby player made an accidental discovery of the subterranean tunnels and chambers. In 1980, more than a century after they had been found. The tunnels and chambers were then excavated and repaired after hundreds of tons of rubbish were removed. When excavators discovered children's toys, medication bottles, dishes and other household objects in midden piles, that is when experts determined that the Southbridge had been home to a large number of unlucky individuals. It should come as no surprise that reports of paranormal occurrences have been made about the dark corridors, damp rooms and cramped areas of the vault. Given the unsettling ambience and the gloomy narratives of the vault's past. In addition to the terrifying accounts of Burke and Hare's slain victims in the vaults, there are a number of distinct spectres that are supposed to presently haunt the chambers.

These spectres are said to be haunting the vaults. According to the legend, a spectral youngster known as Jack is believed to grasp the hands of visitors, while the more sinister Mr. Boots, who is characterised as a nasty piece of work, is reported to hurl rocks at victims. A few individuals who have visited the vaults have reported hearing the sound of his heeled boots stomping on the cobblestone, as well as his voice reverberating down the passageways. The mysterious occurrences and ghostly voices have been the subject of a number of important documentaries and television series that have received widespread attention.