| SHUCKLAND Introduction Alphabetical List of Locations | |
| Location: | Ditchingham, NORFOLK |
| Legend: | "The author, Sir Henry Rider Haggard, who lived at Ditchingham House, two miles from Bungay, mentions in 'A Farmer's Year', published in 1898, that a vague belief persisted in the region - 'that the devil is on rare occasions to be met with in these parts, and especially on Hollow Hill, in the concrete shape of the black dog of Bungay'." |
| Source: | Christopher Reeve: 'A Straunge & Terrible Wunder' (Morrow, 1988), p. 66-7. |
| Comments: | 'Hollow Hill' is now marked as Holly Hill [c.TM335918.] The course of a Roman road follows the A144 through the general area of the hill. |
| Place Name: | Ditchingham - OE 'homestead of Dic(c)a's people', or OE 'homestead of the dwellers at the dike or ditch' |
| Other: | See also encounter below. |
| Location: | On road between Maltings & Railway Station, Ditchingham |
| Encounter: | The witness was walking to his home near Ditchingham railway station one fine wind-less evening in early autumn of 1938. With about 1 1/2 miles to go, St. Mary's Church clock struck 10pm as he crossed Bungay market-place. He passed down Bridge Street, across Ditchingham Dam, turned right past the Maltings, and was about half-way between
[the former] Ditchingham Station and the foreman's house at the Maltings
(in Pirnhow Street), when he saw coming towards him a black shape, about 75 yards away.
He was then on the left side of the road, close to the hedge [at about TM34179065, HERE on Street View] As it got nearer he saw it to be a large black dog, about 28-30" tall, with a long, black, shaggy coat, trotting along the same side of the road as him. The witness moved towards the centre of the road to let it pass, but when it got level, it just vanished. Despite looking round all round and over the hedge and into an empty meadow, for several minutes, he could find no trace of the dog. He suddenly felt frightened, and hastened home. The next day he told some friends about his experience, and the said immediately that he had seen 'Black Shuck', which everybody knew about and many had seen. Although he continued to go past that same spot at all times, he never saw anything again. |
| Source: | A. A. MacGregor: 'The Ghost Book' (Robert Hale, 1955), p. 66-7 (first-hand account given to the author.) |
| Other: | Encounter occurred about 500 yards from the site of an early Neolithic horseshoe-shaped enclosure on Broome Heath. |