William Clarke, aged 44, was hanged in Lincoln Castle in 1877 for fatally shooting a gamekeeper while poaching near Norton Disney. His dog was then taken in by the proprietors of the nearby Strugglers’ Inn, which Clarke had frequented, and after it had died it was stuffed and kept on display there. Its ghost was said to continue the search for its owner, and to scratch at the door of the pub.  

Public executions at Lincoln Castle had traditionally taken place from the top of the Cobb Tower, and crowds of up to 25,000 turned out for those, but this practice had been abolished after a double hanging in 1859. Clark’s footstone is in the Lucy Tower at the castle, along with those of other prisoners who were executed or had otherwise died in the castle when it contained the city’s prison – which is fascinating, and can be visited. The stuffed dog is also now in the castle, and is a glorious example of awful taxidermy.

Lincoln Castle provides this video (click image to view).

Words by RORY WATERMAN