Throwing The Baby
If you are looking for a magestic example of a half timbered mansion then look no further than Speke Hall which is one of the finest in all of England. The walls of this glorious home date back to the 1530's but it is mentioned in the Domesday Survey of 1086. There are many instances of priest holes in the building. These were hidden areas in some homes that were built to hide priests during the era where priests were hunted by the law. In the 17th century the house passed on to a grand daughter who married Lord Sidney Beauclerk and it then passed on to three generations of their family but no one really lived there and it fell into ruin. The Walt family took over ownership of it and started restoring the place to its previous grandure.
There are several ghosts who haunt the halls. One is an unknown female who frequents the tapestry bedroom and doesn't do much but glide across the floor before disappearing into the walls. A secret passageway was discovered where she always appeared and it is thought that perhaps this is a passageway she used to use during her lifetime. One theory of thought is that she may be the wife of Lord Sidney Beuclerk who apparently threw her child from the window of the tapestry bedroom upon learning her husband made bad business decisions and they were now penniless. She later committed suicide in the Great Hall. This theory is dismissed by some because althouth that family owned the home, they are not believed to have ever lived in it, so who this person is, remains a mystery. 
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