Introduction

Standing on the site of a historic coaching hostelry - The Castle Inn - this impressive public house was reported as being the site of Paranormal activity during the course of considerable renovation work in 1998.

Contractors involved with the refurbishment of the site regularly reported tools being moved, cold atmosphere's and objects disappearing without explanation. One workman, Bob Robinson, claims to have seen a ghostly face - that of a man, covered with a hood - appear from one of the cellar walls!

Following the subsequent opening of the pub, five separate members of staff are said to have reported a number of strange experiences - ranging from glasses flying of a shelf seemingly of their own volition, to a shadowy figure seen moving through a wall.....

The activity reported at the pub is said to have attracted the interest of two local paranormal researchers, and an unspecified amount of investigative work is believed to have taken place at that time. (Unfortunately, the Ghost Club have yet to identify the researchers concerned and thus precisely establish their degree of involvement in the case?)

In mid-August, 2001, the W.M. Ghost Club contacted the (then) present owner of the Brewery Stores - Mr. Keith Francis - who most generously invited the group to conduct an investigation at the pub.  As luck would have it, Mr Francis and his family had only just taken over the establishment a week or so earlier after having spent the last ten years in the United States.

Despite not having any idea whatsoever of his new pub's ghostly heritage, Mr. Francis tells us that he is certainly no stranger to the subject of 'Haunted Hostelries'.  Prior to moving to the States, he apparently owned a hotel in Pendine, Wales, that was haunted by the ghost of one Parry Thomas - a 1920's 'World Speed Record' contender who was killed during a record attempt in the Bay opposite the premises.

Our first visit to the Brewery Stores took place on Thursday the 6th of September, 2001.

Throughout the duration of the entire night a number of video and (Digital) audio recordings were made in the cellar of the building.  Also, group members held one 45 minute, manned vigil during the early hours of Friday morning.  While a number of anomalous 'clicks' were detected on the recordings made, nothing of an 'obvious' paranormal nature was found.

A second visit to the site was conducted on Wednesday, October the 31st 2001.

We were told that, since the initial WMGC visit, a member of staff - who regularly works in the Cellar Bar - had reported seeing a 'shadowy form' pass across the far end of the room on two occasions.  (The 'Vaults' end of the Cellar).  He described this as seeming to go from one side of the room to the other - right to left as you face the rear end of the room - and was seen vaguely in his peripheral vision.

Because of the recent (visual) experiences related to us by the member of Bar staff, it was decided that all recording sessions made throughout the night should focus on the rear section of the Cellar.

A number of video recording sessions and 'manned' vigils were conducted throughout the night.

Over the week following our vigil at The Brewery Stores Public House, all of the material recorded on the 6th to 7th of Sept. was thoroughly checked by team members.  A number of mildly anomalous sounds were detected on the video recordings, but these were mainly attributed to the general 'night-time' sounds that one often detects in old buildings.  Nothing of an obvious paranormal nature was detected.

Temperature readings fell gradually throughout the night, but these were gradual and not indicative of anything untoward. (Thermometer 1 went from 15.2c to 14.4c overnight, while No.2 went from 15.9c to 15.00c).

*One key feature of possible importance to potential activity reported at the building was the fact that - on a number of occasions throughout the visit - investigators reported the fact that they kept getting the impression of seeing 'movement' out of the corners of their eye's.  Not normally prone to this effect, it was suggested that the lighting in the building - and especially the Cellar Bar area - might be playing tricks with our vision?

While W.M.G.C. involvement with the Brewery Stores officially ended in late 2001, Mr Francis was kind enough to allow us to use his premises for a subsequent feature in the Walsall Advertiser newspaper.

Our final visit to the site – albeit most fleetingly – occurred in late September 2005, while the group was investigating the Green Dragon public house, almost directly across the road from the Brewery Stores.  Coincidentally, the manager of the Green Dragon was in the process of leaving the premises at the time of our visit, having recently purchased the Stores building……  Needless to say, group members couldn’t help taking another peek at the site of our former investigations during the evening!!