Ghost Girl of Wem Town Hall

This photograph of the Ghost Girl was taken as Wem Town Hall burned to the ground in Shropshire, UK in 1995. At the time, nobody saw this girl standing in the doorway of the burning building. Onlookers were stopped by police and firefighters from approaching the burning town hall.

It was only after the fire that the photo was developed and the photographer discovered the ghostly image of the young girl. Experts analysed both the photo and negative and reported that they had not been altered or faked.

Sceptics say that the image of the girl may just be a convenient trick of the light - with smoke, flame and shadow creating an optical illusion at the moment the photographer took his picture. Do you think that’s possible? The image of the girl’s face on the pictures has never been properly explained. Is this a real ghost caught on film?

But if it’s real, who could the Ghost Girl be?

The town hall burned down once before, a long time ago. It happened in 1677 and history books say that the fire was started accidentally by a 14-year old girl called Jane Churm, when she dropped a candle. Locals maintain that Jane Churm was one of the people who died in that fire back in 1677 and has haunted the town hall ever since. Some think her ghost continues to haunt the building because of her guilt for starting the original fire that killed so many others.