The Ghost Of Lady Churchill

 By Maryanna Gabriel

With flooding and storms, I kept a promise to myself. As my birthday last summer consisted of recovering from a back fracture, this was my treat. I took the ferry from Salt Spring Island to Victoria, to spend the night in a vintage hotel, The Bedford Regency. There are a section of buildings along Government Street which are absolutely charming. "Any ghosts?" I asked. The lobby was definitely dated. A young woman at the counter was forthcoming. The Bedford, built in 1910, did have ghosts. I listened, fascinated. Back in the day, after the building was commissioned to house a stationary business, it became The Churchill Hotel. She said Lady Churchill had witnessed the brutal murder of the man she loved. The trauma was so great she had committed suicide. Apparently, she can still be heard singing from her old room. 

Undaunted, I checked in and then wended my way to the Garrick Head Pub which used to be Garrick's Head Saloon. It is one of the oldest pubs in Canada, dating to 1867. I had the clam chowder and studied the old wood floor, and wished some of the history was featured more prominently in the décor. A man named Mike Powers who was murdered over 100 years ago, is reputed to be seen sometimes warming his hands by the fire. It was not advertised the pub was where prisoners used to have their last meal. Condemned by Judge Begbie, otherwise known as the hanging judge, they were hung in the gallows across the way in Bastion Square.

I suppose faffing about where ghosts hang out isn't terribly birthdayish, or Christmasy for that matter, but I was loving it. Fortunately, Lady Churchill refrained from humming a few bars during my stay.