The Cock Lane Ghost

Record summary

The Cock Lane Ghost involved alleged nocturnal scratching and knocking associated with Elizabeth Parsons, a child in a London house. Public attention, clerical involvement, pamphlets, and a Royal Society investigation made it an influential episode in the history of English supernatural controversy. Investigators concluded that the phenomena were fraudulent, with later accounts implicating human agency and concealed communication. The case is useful for comparing publicity, witness management, and competing evidentiary standards, but precise responsibility remains discussed in historical accounts.