From ghost sightings to paranormal activity... Omagh -born author recounts local tales of 'Haunted Tyrone'

A GHOST sighting in Drumquin, paranormal activity at a former Omagh hotel, and even a haunted bed - these are just some of the local ghost stories that may be recounted beside burning turf fires with Halloween just days away.

Even in today's digital age the tradition of oral storytelling survives, with chilling tales, often passed down through generations, making a reemergence amid pitch black evenings and howling winds.

The tradition of spooky storytelling at Halloween is etched in history.

Originating with the ancient Celts some 2,000 years ago, was a time of heightened superstition, and the belief that the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred.

And even in modern times, the most logical person could be forgiven for wondering, at this time of year, about the paranormal.

One person who knows better than anyone of supposed supernatural goings-on in Tyrone is former Omagh man, Cormac Strain.

Now living in Co Laois, the former Knockmoyle man is author of the 'Haunted Tyrone' (2014), which is a first-hand account of his visits to local supernatural locations, including  conversations with unnerved local residents on their own supernatural experiences.

According to Cormac, intriguing tales of ghost stories have haunted Tyrone’s past for centuries.

"There are quite a few ghost stories in Omagh, and I would say the most well known is Knock Na Moe Castle Hotel," he said. "The hotel was a staple in the town's nightlife until it closed down. I spoke to former members of staff, and I heard all sorts of stories.

"Stuff like seeing and hearing all sorts of strange things in the hotel itself, including objects moving on their own. The location is probably the most well known in the Omagh area for paranormal sightings."

Cormac's supernatural investigations also took him to a derelict house outside the village of Drumquin, which, he discovered, had an unsettling history.

"I was asked to investigate a derelict house in Drumquin, which dated back to the 1930s and ‘40s," he said.

"The house was being fixed up in the 1980s, and the family were hearing a lot of weird things, such as people upstairs walking around when there was no-one else in the house.

"The story goes that the son was going off to college, and was looking to make some money selling wood from the trees around the property to make a few quid for his travels.

"He was chopping wood when he felt uneasy - and turns to the house and sees a woman looking down at him from the top story window, before vanishing. Suffice to say, he done a runner!

‘Chilling’

"I visited the house when writing Haunted Tyrone, and it still had that uneasy feeling. It was still half finished and there was even a pile of half chopped wood in the garden. It was chilling to say the least.

And it's not just haunted houses that Cormac has researched. He said that haunted items have been experienced by some in the locality, including one unfortunate Omagh man.

"One man came to me with his story of a haunted bed, which I thought was amazing," Cormac said. "He had bought a second hand bed from an undisclosed place in Omagh, and he said he was experiencing poltergeist activity, things he couldn't explain, right up until he dumped it."

‘Human Psyche’

With Halloween days away, Cormac said that it is part of the 'human psyche' to wonder about the supernatural.

"Everywhere, including West Tyrone, there is superstition. It's part of our psyche to wonder about these types of things, and we are always going to be curious about it at some stage.

"I have no idea what's out there, but I just know that strange things can happen and I find that interesting. I do believe there's a lot going on that we don't have any inkling of or understanding about."

Outside of his investigative work for his book, Cormac said he has experienced several unexplainable occurrences first hand although he is reluctant to label these incidents as exclusively 'supernatural'.

"I have had paranormal experiences that I can't explain, simple as that," he said. "I have seen bright lights in a forest in Aughnacloy. It was something that I couldn't' quite believe so I snapped photos, but they all came out black.

"When I owned a house in Leicester, I was hearing all kinds of things and truthfully, I thought I was going mad.

"On some nights, even though everyone was in bed, I would hear someone walking up the hall and going into the bathroom. I first thought it was the children, but I looked a few times and no-one was in the bathroom. I heard doors slamming, books hitting the floor, lights going on and off, that sort of thing.

"I was going to consult a doctor about it, until one of the kids told me that they had been seeing and hearing the same things. Between the two of us, we realised that we didn't know what was going on.

"It was the experiences in the house that really sparked my interest in the supernatural and paranormal," he concluded.