They Fired Twice at the Hooded Figure. It Just Faded Away

Frank Wood and his younger brother were exploring an abandoned house when they heard someone knocking. The sound was loud and steady, almost as though somebody was deliberately tapping on the walls.

They searched the rooms, trying to find where it was coming from, but the noise seemed to move whenever they got close. Nobody answered when they called out, and there was no sign of anyone hiding inside.

Eventually, the brothers gave up and left. But after telling a few people what had happened, they discovered that some of their acquaintances were interested enough to investigate for themselves.

A Strange Night in Harewood

Frank and his fifteen-year-old brother had been delivering chaff near Harewood, just outside Christchurch, New Zealand. It was around ten o’clock at night when curiosity led them into the deserted house.

The building appeared to be empty, and the brothers had no particular reason to expect anything unusual. They simply wanted to have a look around.

The knocking changed that. It was too strong and deliberate to sound like rats scratching inside the walls, and the boys couldn’t find any obvious cause. By the time they left, they were thoroughly puzzled.

Their story soon reached a group of men who thought they might have better luck finding an explanation.

Four Men Returned to the House

About a week later, four men went back to investigate. They were identified in the surviving account as Mr. Broadhurst, William Cassels of Yaldhurst and two brothers named Tavendale.

They brought lights so they could examine the building properly, and at least one of them was carrying a gun. If someone was playing tricks on people, the men hoped to catch them.

Not long after they arrived, the knocking started again. The men searched the property, but their attention was soon drawn to something happening outside.

Someone Was Standing in the Darkness

Roughly twenty yards away, the men noticed a dark figure standing near the house. It looked human and appeared to be wearing a black hood.

The figure was clearly visible against its surroundings, but it didn’t approach or make any attempt to communicate. The men called out, expecting whoever it was to answer.

Nothing happened. The stranger remained silent, giving them no indication of who they were dealing with or why anyone would be standing near the abandoned building at that hour.

The group had come prepared to confront a possible prankster. Now they were facing someone who apparently had no intention of explaining themselves.

Two Shots Were Fired

After their attempts to communicate failed, someone in the group fired two shots toward the hooded figure. What happened next was something none of them had expected.

The shape didn’t run away or collapse. According to the witnesses, it began fading until it disappeared completely.

There was no movement toward the house or any attempt to take cover. One moment the men were looking at what appeared to be a person, and the next there was nothing left to see.

Whatever bravery had brought them back to the property disappeared as quickly as the figure. The men fled, apparently deciding they had investigated quite enough for one evening.

Reporters Went to Investigate

News of the encounter spread, and the following evening two reporters visited the house. They wanted to find out what had frightened the men and whether there was anything unusual about the property.

Their visit was disappointing. They heard no knocking, saw no mysterious visitors and found nothing that could explain the earlier experiences.

The reporters left without witnessing anything remarkable. Whatever had happened during the previous visits wasn’t repeated for them, and there was no opportunity to examine the strange figure more closely.

The Story Reached Christchurch’s Ghost Researchers

Christchurch had an active community of people interested in Spiritualism and unusual experiences. Some attended séances, while others collected stories about ghosts, strange coincidences and unexplained events.

The Harewood incident became part of that local history. Its account was eventually preserved among the material featured in the University of Canterbury’s Southern Spirits project, which explores New Zealand’s interest in the supernatural.

The collection includes old reports, photographs and records from people who spent years investigating whether spirits could communicate with the living. Among the surviving material is commentary from a journal called Aquarius. Its writer had some interesting thoughts about the men’s encounter, especially their decision to use a gun.

The Journal Had One Big Complaint

The writer in Aquarius wasn’t particularly impressed with how the men had handled the mysterious visitor. The group had gone to investigate something they couldn’t explain, yet when they finally encountered something unusual, their response had been to shoot at it.

The journal questioned whether the incident might have been a hoax, but it also suggested that the men had wasted an opportunity. If the figure really was something supernatural, frightening it away wasn’t going to help anyone learn more about it.

The writer encouraged people interested in such experiences to try making contact rather than immediately treating an apparition like a dangerous intruder.

It was a rather different approach from the one the men had taken.