Not a haunted dig, as such. But a site where rather disturbing discoveries during a relatively recent dig and an (allegedly) older ghost story supposedly intersect.
Fin Cop is a distinctive hill rising above Monsal Dale in the Derbyshire Peak District. It's visible to the north of the A6 Buxton to Bakewell road. Walking, the nature of the landscape means that if you approach from the east you may not even be aware you are on a hill, but the view from the west, with its almost impossibly geometric looking slope, is distinctive.
Taken from the valley bottom:
View attachment 65906
Taken from the other side of the valley:
View attachment 65907
It’s long been known as an archaeological site (although the 'Roman Fort' tag on Google Earth is misleading), but seems to have been left, relatively speaking, in peace – even by the Antiquarian barrow diggers who were once common visitors to this area of the Peak.
However, between 2010-2012 a community lead archaeological project uncovered – among other things – evidence of an ancient massacre.
Source:
Lullaby of the Larks: The Fin Cop Massacre.
In regard to this thread, a later addition to the Buxton Museum website relates the following story:
Source:
Ghostly Echo of Fin Cop.
The chronology is iffy – I mean, it’s easy to come up afterwards with a story from before; if there was evidence of a story existing before the dig took place, I’d be more convinced.
But still – it’s a story. And Fin Cop is the kind of place that demands them.
As to other factors – on a quiet evening, with the wind in the right direction, I’d entertain the notion that you could just about hear the sounds described coming from the Cop while you were parked up on the road. But I doubt it would be audible in a moving vehicle. That said, that particular stretch of road is exactly the kind you might stop for a bit to enjoy the view.
I’ve looked for other tales associated with the area, and there are a few, but none I can find that are associated in this way with Fin Cop.
There's a blog post about the dig by a Canadian bioarchaeologist - interesting, and with some nice photographs. But no ghosts, unfortunately.
Excavations at Fin Cop, Derbyshire.