Edinburgh Vaults — 18th-Century Underground Chambers Yield Consistent Paranormal Reports

Beneath the South Bridge of Edinburgh, Scotland lies a series of underground chambers and passageways built in 1788 that were originally used as workshops, taverns, and storage spaces. When the vaults were eventually abandoned and forgotten, they reportedly became one of the most documented sites of paranormal activity in the United Kingdom. The vaults were rediscovered in 1985 and excavations revealed evidence of the desperate poverty of those who had lived in them — cramped, damp, airless spaces where people existed in terrible conditions. The bones of children were found in some rooms. Historical accounts suggest the vaults were also used for criminal enterprises and possibly murder. Paranormal tour operators began running tours of the vaults in the 1990s and quickly accumulated a large body of reports from visitors. The phenomena include: children being pulled or pushed, poltergeist activity including objects moving, scratches appearing on skin, figures seen in peripheral vision, overwhelming feelings of dread in specific rooms, and electronic equipment failures. A formal investigation by Dr. Richard Wiseman in 2001 found that visitors reported significantly more unusual experiences in locations that had a history of reported activity, but could not rule out environmental explanations for some effects. The Niddry Street Vaults are considered separately from the South Bridge Vaults and both remain heavily visited paranormal destinations.