Cavalier Road Ghost - Tadcaster

[Jackie59]

Hi All

My husband and myself had an uncanny experience in Tadcaster about 30 years ago now. A young man dressed like a cavalier ran in front of our car near Turnpike Road. My husband braked hard and the man just pixelated and disappeared in front of us.

I’m wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience in Tadcaster. Does anyone know anything about the history of Tadcaster in the civil war! Please get in touch if so. Thanks

 

[EnolaGaia]

Welcome to the forum!

Can you provide any additional details to help flesh out the scenario? For example:

- day or night?
- weather conditions?
- general scene (street in / near town; country road)?
- how far out front was the young man when you first saw him?
- was he crossing the street / road, or did he stop in its middle?
- did you see him prior to his being on the road / street (did you see him approach the pavement)?

 

[Jackie59]

It was nighttime I think about November and a fine night.

The road is the main road that goes through Tadcaster, it was the main coaching route to York and the South before the A64 bypass etc. The road off to the right where he appeared is Turnpike Road - this is just given for proximity.

We were doing less than 30mph. We didn’t see him approach the pavement, and weren’t aware of him until he ran in front of us as if crossing the road.

He would have been 4 foot in front of us, our car didn’t hit him as my husband hit his brakes.

I could see his long boots and clothing clearly and his hair was long (shoulder length) dark and lank. As he was illuminated by the headlights and solid like a person until he pixelated.

It wasn’t a frightening experience, more interesting, but I was aware of the man’s panic or desperation.

 

[maximus otter]

Hi All

My husband and myself had an uncanny experience in Tadcaster about 30 years ago now. A young man dressed like a cavalier ran in front of our car near Turnpike Road. My husband braked hard and the man just pixelated and disappeared in front of us.

I’m wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience in Tadcaster. Does anyone know anything about the history of Tadcaster in the civil war! Please get in touch if so. Thanks

Yorkshire generally stood for the King in the Civil War:

Red = Royalist areas

There was a good road between York (upper right) and Tadcaster (lower left) in the 1820s, so it's safe to assume that there were good comms between the towns in the 1640s:

Surveyed 1817-1828

There was a minor skirmish in Tadcaster itself on 7th December 1642, but it involved little more than a distant exchange of musket fire, when the Earl of Newcastle advanced from York and drove the Parliamentarians under Lord Fairfax out of the town.

The major battle of Marston Moor was fought not too far away on 2nd July 1644, when Fairfax defeated the Royalists under Prince Rupert. Almost 6,000 men were killed, wounded or captured.

maximus otter

 

[maximus otter]

The road is the main road that goes through Tadcaster, it was the main coaching route to York and the South before the A64 bypass etc. The road off to the right where he appeared is Turnpike Road - this is just given for proximity.

Left = late Victorian/Edwardian 25" to the mile; right = junction main road and Turnpike Road.

Close location of junction:

53° 53' 25" N, 1° 14' 40" W

Turnpike Road to right

maximus otter

 

[Krepostnoi]

Hi All

My husband and myself had an uncanny experience in Tadcaster about 30 years ago now. A young man dressed like a cavalier ran in front of our car near Turnpike Road. My husband braked hard and the man just pixelated and disappeared in front of us.

I’m wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience in Tadcaster. Does anyone know anything about the history of Tadcaster in the civil war! Please get in touch if so. Thanks

I was a Civil War re-enactor in the late 80s/early 90s, and I had long, dank hair. As did many of my peers. I don't recall any events in Tadcaster, but I never got to them all.

Max's aerial photo also makes me think reenactor: the green expanse to the south is the sort of place we hired for our campsites.

ETA I completely missed the detail about the figure pixelating and disappearing before your eyes. I saw reenactors do a variety of unlikely things, but never that.

 

[TangletwigsDeux]

Shades of Weatleys "A Field In England", a royalist fleeing from war to be thrust into the supernatural and destined to repeat his travails for eternity.

Sorry must be something in my porridge.

 

[Sabresonic]

It was nighttime I think about November and a fine night.

The road is the main road that goes through Tadcaster, it was the main coaching route to York and the South before the A64 bypass etc. The road off to the right where he appeared is Turnpike Road - this is just given for proximity.

We were doing less than 30mph. We didn’t see him approach the pavement, and weren’t aware of him until he ran in front of us as if crossing the road.

He would have been 4 foot in front of us, our car didn’t hit him as my husband hit his brakes.

I could see his long boots and clothing clearly and his hair was long (shoulder length) dark and lank. As he was illuminated by the headlights and solid like a person until he pixelated.

It wasn’t a frightening experience, more interesting, but I was aware of the man’s panic or desperation.

I wonder if he got a fright seeing a strange cart with lights i.e. your car....a bit like the brilliant BBC show The Living and The Dead ?