By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Psychic Chat - Astrology | Horoscope | News Stories Updated DailyPsychic Chat - Astrology | Horoscope | News Stories Updated Daily
Aa
  • Home
  • Astrology
  • Horoscope
  • Numerology
  • Tarot
  • Psychic Reading
  • Dreams
  • Paranormal Activity
  • UFOs
  • Blog
Reading: Who Haunts Marsh’s Library, Dublin?
Share
Psychic Chat - Astrology | Horoscope | News Stories Updated DailyPsychic Chat - Astrology | Horoscope | News Stories Updated Daily
Aa
Search
  • Home
  • Astrology
  • Horoscope
  • Numerology
  • Tarot
  • Psychic Reading
  • Dreams
  • Paranormal Activity
  • UFOs
  • Blog
Follow US
© 2023 - All Rights Reserved.
Psychic Chat - Astrology | Horoscope | News Stories Updated Daily > Blog > Paranormal Activity > Who Haunts Marsh’s Library, Dublin?
Paranormal Activity

Who Haunts Marsh’s Library, Dublin?

Last updated: 2023/10/06 at 3:55 PM
Published October 6, 2023
Share
6 Min Read
SHARE

Sign up to receive the free Spooky Isles newsletter in your inbox every Friday!

Reading time: 3 minutes

Guest writer, folklorist and musician DAVE McHUGH searches for spirits among the stacks of the historic Marsh’s Library in his native Dublin

Marsh's Library, Dublin
Who Haunts Marsh’s Library, Dublin?

Where would you find something spooky on these spooky islands? A local cemetery perhaps? Or maybe that creepy house you always worried about as a kid – that you would run past?

Or perhaps in the field spoken of dwells a lost spirit, a fairy fortress; or maybe that long-closed hospital that always had a strange feeling about it?

Now suppose I told you that I am now doing research in a library in a library. And that the ghosts of long-awaited books resonate within? Is that creepy?

Walk with me, my friends, up the granite steps and into this library. A studious, creepy one – not an ordinary one. A very spooky one.

An old rusty iron chest in a banker’s shop, tightly locked and wonderfully heavy, is full of gold…

So wrote Jonathan Swift in his short essay ‘Character of primate swamp‘. And indeed, this is a chained library. Are books spooky? Can they be unleashed? Follow me more…

Swift walked down these stairs, Bram Stoker, James Joyce – now me. As I walk from the busy Dublin street behind me, we enter one of the few 18th century buildings in Ireland that is still used for its original purpose.

Marsh’s Library has a collection of more than 25,000 books and 300 manuscripts. There were eighty books printed before 1501, 430 books printed in Italy before 1600, 1,200 books printed in England before 1640, and 5,000 books printed in England before 1700.

See also  Duntrune Castle: Domain Of The Phantom Piper

But who walked these creaking floors and coughed a breath into these ancient walls?

And who was Archbishop Marsh? And is he still browsing the shelves?

Ghosts in Marsh’s Library

Ghosts, you ask – in a library? The stories in these books bring characters to life. Why wouldn’t some stay? Particularly Archbishop Marsh, whose legacy was instrumental in establishing the first public library in Ireland.

Narcissus Marsh was born in Wiltshire in 1638 ‘of honest parents’, as he wrote in his diary. His name, although unusual, was not as distinctive as that of either of his two brothers who were baptized Epaphroditus and Onesiphorus: all three are derived from persons mentioned in the letters of Saint Paul. He accepted religious orders and in 1679 came to Ireland to take up the provostship of Trinity College, Dublin.

The varnish appeals to me. The smell, the smell of the past. Was that a crack behind me?

As I smell the old books and enjoy the spiritual atmosphere of this place, I still feel a slight chill. Of something…

Because this library has more than just books as residents. The ghost of an old man has been seen rummaging through the bookcases around midnight.

A late reading? It is said to be the spirit of Archbishop Narcissus Marsh himself, the library’s founder. Marsh was Archbishop of Dublin from 1694. In 1707 he founded his library in the grounds of The House of St Sepulchre (the archbishop’s house). It is not surprising that Narcissus Marsh returns to a place so important to his life – even after his death.

See also  A personal milestone reminds me why researching the paranormal is so important to me

The story of the archbishop’s ghostly apparition concerns his favorite niece, Grace, whom he had raised as a child.

The story goes that Grace was 19 when she fell in love with a sea captain. Marsh did not approve of this and was vocal in his opposition to it. However, Grace and the sea captain ran away and walked away.

She left a note for her uncle, explaining her disappearance and asking for forgiveness.

This note was apparently placed in one of the thousands of books in the library, waiting for the devastated uncle to read it when he was not so bereft. But Archbishop Marsh never found the note…

And as I look at these shelves, I wonder what that story is. How Marsh’s ghost regularly returns to the library, on an endless quest for it.

The temperature drops, but the sun shines through the window. Traffic has decreased. An autumn day in a library leaves me with many questions.

Are there still deaths among these books? Shhhh! Quiet in the library. Dead quiet.

Have you experienced anything strange in Marsh’s Library in Dublin? Tell us about it in the comments below!

You Might Also Like

Insight into the Doppelgänger phenomenon | HiggyPop Paranormal

Explore Bath’s dark side with a free self -guided death walk through the city

Sapphire & Steel – Assignment I: Escape Through A Crack In Time 1979 REVIEW

Claircognisance: the gift of clear knowledge explained

‘Ghost Adventures’ heads in the infamous Rispin Mansion of California

TAGGED: Dublin, Haunts, Library, Marshs

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
I have read and agree to the terms & conditions
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Email Print
Previous Article Moon Conjunct Jupiter Synastry
Next Article Babylonians used the Pythagorean theorem 1,000 years before it was invented

Psychic Chat

Explore the cosmos within and beyond through our psychic and astrology blog. Unveil insights, guidance, and celestial mysteries in every post.

Subscribe Newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

I have read and agree to the terms & conditions

Find Us on Socials

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Email: Beauty7685@gmail.com
© 2023 - All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?