Beneath the Sheets; The Screaming Orphans of Bedern (detail) - Colour Edition

My investigations have shown that the souls of the lost congregate not only in the hallowed ground whence they are laid to rest, but also that the spirits are drawn to sites of tragic events, misfortune and sinister deeds. Here, their tortured souls reside, waiting to seek revenge or to recount their tales as a warning to others.

In the previous century, the area known as Bedern housed some of the city’s most unfortunate members of society. Many were children, unwanted, their parents slaves to drink, or orphaned, parents taken by the Lord from this dark overcrowded slum, rife with disease.

Mr George Pimm, Master of the York Industrial Ragged School in Bedern, “the house of prayer,” was paid a coin for the upkeep and welfare of each of the misfortunate wretches in his care. Although workhouses and orphanages existed to offer shelter for the most vulnerable, those that should protect are often the most insidious. 

Pimm, a cruel and greedy individual, instead rented the children as workers to local farmers and chimney sweeps. Excessive labour, starvation rations, squalid conditions and the savage beatings dished out by Master Pimm led to the untimely deaths of many of these tragic orphans. 

Rather than lose his coin from the church, Pimm chose not to inform his benefactors, instead hiding the little bodies within the walls of the orphanage.

Once the tiny corpses had reached fourteen in number, the smell of decay was invasive, and Pimm, often under the influence of strong liquor, was increasingly aware of the souls of the dead surrounding him. Soon their chatter began to turn into screams. 

A harsh winter frost prevented him from burying the deceased and he was forced to live with the bodies around him. Suspicions arose about the erratic behaviour of Pimm and there followed an investigation by the church into the conditions within the school. His crimes were soon discovered and Pimm was sent to the lunatic asylum where the screams of his victims overwhelmed him and he took his own life.

There have been many tales of encounters in the back alleys of Bedern - the giggles of children at play or the tugging of clothing as though the small hand of a child is trying to attract one’s attention. Strangely there have been no reports of the screams which haunted the evil George Pimm, perhaps their souls can be children once more.

Professor Matthias J. Braithwaite

The diary entry, printed on parchment effect paper, is in the reverse.