The Old Barn Scares Me And My Friends.

Welcome Everyone and thank you for taking time to read this. Hope you enjoy it. I'll answer questions if I can, so ask if you have any I won't be upset. I have questions myself.

Back in 2017, a farm came up for auction in Milton Keynes, UK. Family estate sale. Furnishing included, Farm equipment etc. As a antiques collector and restorer I thought it would be nice to take a look if not to buy but at least see what was around and if they had any intention of auctioning separate lots of say unwanted furniture or farm gear as I run a Antique Auction House.

My partner who I'll call M and I drove down for the weekend (auction was on Saturday and we decided to make a weekend break of it).

Saturday morning 11 am we turned up for the inspection prior to the auction and signed up for a number etc. Yes there would be extra lots besides the house and barns and cars etc for sale. Another friend of ours I'll call J was coming to look at some old cars and machinery they had as he restores old cars etc.

The house was amazing and very pretty. Lovely Stone work and hedges all around the front. Very elegant in the style showing the era it was built in. It had been restored with care and the family members had lovingly looked after the garden.

It was on two floors plus a basement. And the basement had been turned into a guest house. Very elegant all turned wood stairs etc

I talked to M about maybe buying it and turning it into a Bed N Breakfast (we'd run one previous) or a farm stay (which is very popular). M thought about it and said we should have a good look around which means she likes it and is thinking the same thing.

OK we look around the house and it couldn't have been more perfect if it tried. Was very obviously loved and looked after. Very good energy about the house. And I think both of us really were thinking this is kind of perfect.

Out in the back of the house was a 4 car garage, a farm vehicle shed, a animal food and storage shed. And a huge old barn with stables and cow pens and a chicken shed on the side. There was a outdoor arena and a undercover riding ring. And some other thinks like cow yards and a crush and a milking area. Very beautifully layed out and very clean even with animals still there.

We walked around a bit and met up with J and his wife we'll call L. Talked about the cars and machinery we saw that they wanted. And J asked about the barn. All of us looked at him like well it looks nice but none of us had really looked it over.

So we all decided to check it out.

The barn was very large and very good condition considering it was so old. And we walked down the center aisle and out the far end to the outside riding area. We left the barn door open and walked across the arena to look at a truck they had parked out the back (as a former truck driver I wanted to see the old truck and if it was in good enough condition to restore and save or if it was too far gone. Turns out it was in very good condition for its age and J and I were saying we have to bid for it and we're joking about me (all of barely 5 foot tall), trying to get up and look in the cab with J hoisting me up and M giggling at the pair of us wobbling all over the place (OK so you had to be there), J's wife couldn't stop laughing at us. And all of a sudden the barn rear door which swung on hinges slammed shut and open and shut and open about 5 times in about a minute. We stopped fooling around real quick thinking we'd upset someone. So we quickly looked over the truck quietly and then left through the side gate thinking the owners may have been in the barn working and us messing around had upset someone. I should mention is was a still non windy summers day so there wasn't anything to blow them shut and it was only one of the 2 doors that did it.

Around the side near the chicken shed M and L started looking up to the windows at the top of the barn and stopped dead in their tracks suddenly. M and L both looked at each other like did you see that?

J and I walking behind still talking about the old truck nearly run into them. I said what's wrong and M said she was sure she saw a face then two faces looking at us walking up the path back to the house and the faces didn't look happy.

J said its probably the two who banged the doors when we were mucking around they're probably annoyed we were making so much noise.

I said yeah don't worry about it the brochure says there is rooms up there their probably hanging out there waiting for the auction to be over.

So we get back to the auction but we missed out on the farm it went for way more than we were willing to pay but I bought the truck and several boxes of things and some furniture for the shop.

All was well and good when we left...

But two weeks later we'd worked out a time to come and get the truck on a hauler as it didn't start and needed work (I've just finished restoring it December 2019 and it's lovely to drive and can't wait to drive it more soon. It's a lovely old truck well worth saving). We turned up with J and another friend I'll call R and his brother T. Who were helping load this behemoth of a truck. J and I was talking to the estate manager about the barn and how we hoped the rooms upstairs will come to good use to the new owners as the view from up there would be amazing into the barn and out to the fields. He looked at us and asked what we meant. And we said the rooms at the top of the barn that's listed on the auction details and the windows you can see on the outside of the barn.

The guy says oh yeah if they want to do the work to repair the stairs to get to the rooms I guess they could use them again.

I'm like what?.

He says oh yeah that's what annoyed some people at the auction. They knew about the rooms up there too but were annoyed when we told them the stairs were rotted out and all but fallen down about 20 years ago. No one had needed the rooms upstairs since then so they'd been left.

He even took us and showed us what was left of the stairs.

There was no way they could have gone up there whoever they were. The stairs were the only way up.

There was no other way to climb up.

And no the girls didn't see shadows in the windows we looked again as we followed the hauler out and the girls said the window they saw looked like it was open when they saw the windows and the people the last time.

This time we looked up and the windows were not only closed but very very dusty. And we couldn't see anything through them. I was sure they didn't look that dirty last time we were here.

As we were packing up. M jokingly said to the estate manager someone should fix the rear barn doors. They keep slamming shut and opening. The guy looked double startled. He said. Those rear doors are rusted open, you can't close them and that they'd tried several times prior to the auction.

The poor guy must of thought we were nuts by the time we all left. And I think by the look on his face he was glad we didn't ask any more. I think we freaked him out a little.

So who was watching us that day from rooms no-one could get to and who was slamming doors that were rusted open! Did we upset someone laughing and joking around? Did we bother the farms spirits?

I think we must have. I'd have liked to apologize to them but I've never been back. But I've heard the farm has sold over and over since that auction and no one has stayed very long. I don't think someone was happy the farm was sold out of the family.

My truck also has an interesting energy about it too. Sometimes I think its past owner visits when I drive it. Maybe the person is happy I fixed it and got it back on the road. Maybe I'll write about the truck another time. That's got its own weird behavior. But I still love it.

Thanks for reading. Sorry if it's a bit long. I'm not used to this writing. Haven't written this much since college. So excuse me if I'm rambling.