Laxham Hill is about three miles from railway station of Stephenson

Even in the summer it is a high desolate place prone to sudden mists

As you can imagine in the winter months it is very bleak

With the short darkening hours suffocating the daylight very quickly

Diary Note

Samuel Salt


There was nothing really remarkable about Albert Bell apart from his height

Is was said that he was over eight foot tall although this might have been exaggerated

Albert was born on the 31st of December 1899 in Stephenson the son of a solicitor

His height had been noted at a very young age as he was over six feet tall by the age of ten

Over the next few years Albert was examined by various specialists but none of them could find the cause of his excessive growth

As his mother later said Albert was just accepted in the village and his height often proved to be very useful when working on local farms

But Albert was more than a general farm labourer as he excelled academically and was lucky enough to attend university although ill health hindered his studies

He had initially planned to leave Stephenson and live in Manchester but because of his health he decided to return to his family home

Albert soon came to terms with the restrictions his disability placed on him

Like his father he became a solicitor and for many years nothing really changed

This was until the last day of March in 1931 when his fathers lifeless body was found in Varrat’s Pond

It was presumed that a terrible accident had occurred

But this all changed when a letter from Albert’s father

Was discovered amongst his personal papers

The inquest brought in a verdict of felo de se

This shattered Albert and he took a great deal of time

To recover from the shock although he did not show it outwardly

He took over his fathers practice and things slowly returned to normal

It was at about this time Albert expanded his interests and took over a practice in Bury

He became a regular traveller

Travelling out on the first train

And returning on the final train

Due to his height he always sat in the final carriage as not to inconvenience others

In 1935 he purchased a second home as in the years after his fathers death

Albert had met Christine the daughter of a clergyman in Bury

They became engaged and planned to marry and live in the town

Although Albert still retained his interests in Stephenson


On the 9th of January 1937 Albert caught his morning train as normal and was observed by Mr Patrick the stationmaster returning on the ten past six train

He also noted that Albert did not have his walking stick with him and enquired whether he had left it on the train

Albert said that he no longer used a stick and had not done so for many years

An answer which confused Mr Patrick as he knew that Albert always travelled with his stick as walking had become more difficult due to his exceptional height


The Crow and the Cow was an small inn at the foot of Laxham Hill

Between six and six fifteen in the evening on that brittle January day

Albert entered the inn which was rare as he was not a regular patron

He ordered a whisky and remarked about the freezing temperatures

The landlord a Mr Bennett remembered the time of the visit as he was winding up the clock in the bar

Albert left about five minutes later after finishing his whisky


Mrs Betty Henry had worked with Albert since he had taken over the practice in Bury

She became very familiar with Albert’s working day which was very regular

He always left at the same time without fail either to meet Christine or catch the final train back to Stephenson

On that day of his disappearance Mrs Henry had left early as her sister was unwell

Albert said that he would lock up

It was as she walked back down Clear Road that she noticed that the lights were still on in the practice

She saw Albert sitting at his desk long after he said he would leave

Mrs Henry did consider visiting the office to see if everything was in order

But decided not to do so as Christine’s bicycle was leaning against a nearby fence

She remembered looking at her watch for no real reason

It was seventeen minutes past six

This was the last time she saw Albert


His disappearance especially considering his father’s fate became big news and became even more mysterious when others reported sightings of Albert all between six and half past six in parts of the town

Christine added to the confusion when she told the police that she had seen Albert in Manchester at about the same time

She had called out to him but received no acknowledgement even though he looked in her direction

The search for Albert was one of the largest ever undertaken in the North of England

It lasted for a number of weeks before it was slowly wound down

It was thought that due to his extreme height that it was only a matter of time before he was found either dead or alive

Sightings were followed up all over the UK but all proved false

His movements on the day of his disappearance

When he was seen by different people

In different places

Many miles apart

At roughly the same time

Could not be answered

There was no logical reason for these events

In time the case went cold

It was not closed but neither was it active

There was excitement in the summer of 1959 when a skeleton of a giant man was found buried in a Lincolnshire field

But these bones dated from the Middle Ages

There are stories that Stephenson Railway Station is haunted by Albert’s ghost and that on cold winter nights his walking stick can be heard tapping along the empty platforms

He is also supposed to have been seen in the vicinity of Laxham Hill

When interviewed a number of years ago Christine said that it was unlikely that the truth about Albert’s mysterious disappearance would ever be solved and that it should be left alone

No good would come from probing too deeply

Some things are beyond our understanding