In the 12th Century, the monks of Kirkstall Abbey built a small settlement and Abbey on the land given to them by Robert De Lacey, and in the process removed a number of inhabitants to make room for these. Unhappy at being thrown off their farms the locals metered out revenge by setting fire to the Abbey and killing three Ley Brothers who were in charge. In 1287 the land was given back to the De Lacy family by the Abbot and became part of the Manor of Clitheroe.

The area of the town centre where the Abbey reputedly stood is now called Black Abbey Street, probably as reference to the blackened and charred remains of building and its inhabitants. The area has always been synonymous with paranormal activity, particularly the ghost of ‘Ursula’ who has a tragic story of forbidden love and revenge to tell.

The story goes that during the heyday of the Abbey a young member of the devout order of Monks who inhabited the Abbey fell in love with a Nobleman’s daughter. They took to meeting in secret, biding their time until the Monk could leave the order and marry. One night, however, their tryst was discovered by Ursula’s father and his henchmen, and the Monk was captured. He was chained to a wall and set on fire. Ursula, on hearing his screams, ran to help only to find her lover a black and charred heap of bones on the floor. She died shortly after of a broken hear and her ghost is often seen floating down Black Abbey Street towards the River Hyndburn which cuts through the centre of the town. She is described as being surrounded by a halo of light, her long blonde hair flowing down her back as she silently glides towards her witness, arms outstretched as if beckoning them towards her. Once approached, however, her appearance changes and the flesh seems to fall off her bones as she lets out a blood curdling wail of anguish. Some witnesses claim she bursts into flames as they approach her, others say that she horrifically morphs into a blackened and charred skeleton before suddenly fading from sight. Whatever her appearance, Ursula and Black Abbey Street seems forever entwined with that fateful event many centuries ago.

Whilst researching this book I became aware of a number of stories that linked in with the murder of the Three Monks. Close by to Black Abbey Street is Manchester Road, and on the corner of Spring Gardens is the now abandoned sight of Accrington Police Station and Courts.

The Police Station and Courts were built in 1933, and a Grade II listed building. The building was designed by Percy Thomas, and is in stone with a flat roof. The Magistrates' court faces Manchester Road, and is in a single storey with a central porch rising to a higher level. The porch has a giant arch with voussoirs, and contains a recessed doorway. The court is attached to the Police Station, which faces Spring Gardens, and has two storeys.

In Spring of 2021 I interviewed a member of a local paranormal group who had investigated the Police Station and Courts a number of times, and confirmed the rumours that the three Monks killed in the fire had been manifesting themselves by floating through the abandoned building and across Manchester Road towards an area known as Broad Oak. He told me a number of overnight vigils had been held and a startling amount of paranormal activity had been witnessed, including electrical phenomenon and cell doors inexplicably slamming shut. On one occasion, during a ghost hunt organised by the ‘Most Haunted Experience’, a number of people were locked inside a cell for two hours whilst fire crews had to be called to get them out.