Broughton Hall

A phantom known as "Red Socks" or "Red Stockings" haunts this building - a cleaning lady felt someone near her as she cleaned the long gallery attic and staircase. She saw a man walking down the staircase, described as solid with red socks, and she stood up to greet him, but the man walked through her; there are also tales of something invisible brushing past people on these stairs. The legend is that a young heir to the Broughton family saw Cromwell's forces marching up the drive and yelled his allegiance to the king from a window, whereupon the troops opened fire at him. The young man staggered down the stairs, blood pouring everywhere, including his socks and he died shortly afterwards. It is not clear if this phantom recurs or if this sighting was a "one off." Another version of the tale says that he was hit in the Long Gallery, but managed to crawl to one of the bedrooms where he perished. Several women have slept in this bed and felt it vibrate.

Link: Stoke Sentinel