The Ghost Club and Cambridge’s Role in Paranormal Research

Long before ghost hunting shows hit our TV screens, Cambridge University had already become a hub for serious supernatural investigation. Home to secret societies, psychic scholars, and the world’s oldest paranormal research organisation, this ancient city has been at the heart of ghostly inquiry for nearly two centuries. In this article, we explore how Cambridge helped shape the modern world’s obsession with the afterlife.

Table of Contents

• The Birth of the Ghost Club at Trinity College
• From Ghosts to Groundbreaking Science: The Society for Psychical Research
• Paranormal Legacies Hidden in the Colleges
• Lord Byron, Aleister Crowley, and the Occultists of Cambridge
• How to Explore Cambridge’s Paranormal Past Today
  • • References

The Birth of the Ghost Club at Trinity College

It was within the cloisters of Trinity College in 1862 that two curious students launched what would become the oldest paranormal society in the world: The Ghost Club. Originally a semi-secret society, its goal was to investigate ghost sightings and other supernatural phenomena in a serious, systematic way.

Far from being fringe eccentrics, the club’s members included future bishops, scholars, and even a future Archbishop of Canterbury. They addressed each other as “Brother Ghost” and held annual meetings on November 2nd—All Souls’ Day. Once initiated, membership was for life… and the afterlife too.

From Ghosts to Groundbreaking Science: The Society for Psychical Research

In 1882, the desire to study paranormal phenomena expanded beyond college walls. A new organisation emerged from the university’s intellectual elite: the Society for Psychical Research (SPR), founded by Cambridge academics including philosopher Henry Sidgwick and his wife Eleanor Balfour. Their aim? To apply scientific methods to questions surrounding the existence of spirits, telepathy, and life after death.

One of their most famous efforts was the “Census of Hallucinations,” which collected over 17,000 personal accounts of ghost sightings and supernatural experiences. Their approach was rigorous and scholarly—and many within the society genuinely believed they were on the verge of proving the existence of the afterlife.

Paranormal Legacies Hidden in the Colleges

Several of Cambridge’s colleges played direct roles in these movements. Trinity, the cradle of The Ghost Club, has its own haunted rooms and legends—tales of ghostly children and cursed chambers that have driven students out in fear.

The Perrott-Warrick Fund, established at Trinity College in 1937, continues to this day. This endowment supports academic work into “phenomena which suggest the existence of supernatural powers of cognition or action in humans... or the persistence of the human mind after bodily death.” A real-world fund for investigating the unknown—founded in the very place where it all began.

Lord Byron, Aleister Crowley, and the Occultists of Cambridge

Trinity College was also home to some of Britain’s most notorious and mystically-inclined figures. Lord Byron, who kept a bear in his rooms and may have inspired the aristocratic vampire trope, and Aleister Crowley, dubbed "the wickedest man in the world", both studied here. Crowley was said to have performed his first dark rituals in his rooms overlooking Trinity Lane, while Byron's eerie poetry and fascination with death still cast a long literary shadow.

How to Explore Cambridge’s Paranormal Past Today

For modern ghost hunters and curious minds, Cambridge remains a treasure trove. You can explore haunted sites, hear tales of psychic experiments and Victorian séances, and even walk the very paths where The Ghost Club once gathered.

The best way to experience it all? Join a guided ghost walk with Terrible Tours’ Creepy Cambridge Ghost Tour. You'll hear first-hand accounts, visit real haunted locations, and uncover the eerie academic history that put Cambridge at the centre of supernatural study.

• Visit Trinity College: Explore the birthplace of paranormal research.
• Learn about the SPR: Visit the Society for Psychical Research to dive deeper into their historic archives.
• Join a ghost tour: Discover real hauntings and legends on foot with expert storytellers.

References

• The Ghost Club at Trinity College (1851):
  In 1851, students from Trinity College formed The Ghost Club, described as "a society for the investigation of ghosts and all supernatural appearances and superstitions." Source
• Society for Psychical Research (1882):
  Founded in 1882, the Society for Psychical Research was the first organization to conduct scholarly research into human experiences challenging contemporary scientific models. Source
• Perrott-Warrick Fund at Trinity College (1937):
  The Perrott-Warrick Fund, established in 1937 and administered by Trinity College, supports research in parapsychology. Source
• Lord Byron’s Pet Bear at Trinity College:
  Lord Byron, during his time at Trinity College, is reported to have kept a pet bear in his rooms, circumventing college rules that forbade dogs. Source
• Aleister Crowley at Trinity College:
  Aleister Crowley attended Trinity College, University of Cambridge, where he gained a reputation for his involvement in occult practices. Source

About the Author

Hugh Wood
Founder & Chief History Nerd, Terrible Tours
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Hugh Wood is the Director of Terrible Tours and an expert in medieval and local history. Total history buff, also loves a laugh and believes that to be the best way to learn, regardless of age!