Few ghosts stories result in someone actually being killed by the specter, and even fewer

have someone killing the ghost.

Isn't the ghost supposed to already be dead?

But in London in 1803, that's exactly what happened.

A vigilante outhunting for the ghost actually shot and killed it, and then discovered he'd

killed an innocent man who happened to be dressed in white.

But the HammerSmith Ghost case should be remembered best for what can go wrong when the

public gets in a mass panic about something, and takes matters into their own hands.

The HammerSmith Ghost is today on Skeptoid.

You're listening to Skeptoid.

I'm Brian Dunning from Skeptoid.com.

Killing The HammerSmith Ghost.

This famous historical ghost case from London in 1803 is notable in that it impacted the

English criminal justice system, but also in that it involved actual specters, court

testimony, one real death, and possibly two more rumored deaths.

Most descriptions of the case today put it all down to mistaken identity.

But in point of fact, that's about the least interesting aspect of it.

Today we're going to examine several possible explanations and identify the one that best

fits the facts for this tall white clad phantom that might rise up and grab you as you

pass the cemetery at night.

The basic facts of this case, which are the ones you'll find reported most often, is that

there was a ghost scare in the HammerSmith District of London.

...