The Girl, The Ghost, and The Bullwhip: The Dagg Poltergeist

In this episode, Jacklynn and Stevie are kicking off their "Haunted Canada" series with a doozy of a tale from 1889: The Dagg Family Poltergeist. 

Located in the small town of Shawville, Quebec, the Dagg farm became the epicenter of some of the most terrifying and well-documented paranormal activity in Canadian history. It all began shortly after George and Susan Dagg adopted 11-year-old Dinah McLean, a young girl sent from Scotland through a "shady" child immigration scheme. 

What started with "mystery poop" spread across the kitchen walls quickly escalated into full-blown chaos. We’re talking: 

• Physical Manifestations: Objects levitating, butter disappearing, and windows spontaneously exploding. 
• The Talking Ghost: A deep, gruff voice—claiming to be everything from an 80-year-old spirit to the Devil himself—who mocked the family and even debated philosophy for five hours with a local journalist. 
• Terrifying Visuals: Sightings of a man with a cow’s head and cloven hooves, and a large black dog wandering the halls. 
• The Grand Finale: A fiery exit that some neighbors claimed looked like a streaking flame leaving the farm. 

Was it a clever hoax by a ventriloquist child, or something truly malevolent? Join us as we dive into the creepy world of Shawville’s most famous resident. 

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Have a bone-chilling story of your own? We want to hear it! Send your scary encounters to weirdosofwhimsy@gmail.com or DM us. Your story might just make it onto a future episode! 

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Love this part. Go, Grandma. The grandma gave the girl a bull whip and yelled to, let the beast have it. I love it.

SPEAKER_00 0:09

I also just love that she had a bull whip on her.

SPEAKER_02 0:11

As you do. Get it, Grandma. Um, the young girl fought with all her might, and eventually the grandmother started to hear squealing noises as the girl whipped seemingly nothing until she said the being vanished. From that point, it seemed the bolt poltergeist had it out for Dinah, which I mean.

SPEAKER_01 0:30

Uh yeah, if you get the shit out of it with a bull whip.

SPEAKER_02 0:32

With a bull whip.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

Oh my god, that's so scary to me. But yeah, grandma. Let the beast have it.

SPEAKER_02 1:08

You guessed it, Whimsickup.

SPEAKER_01 1:12

Hi, my name is Jaclyn.

SPEAKER_02 1:13

And I'm Stevie.

SPEAKER_01 1:14

And today we are bringing back the dark and spooky lines. Because for this episode, we're talking about a Canadian ghost story.

SPEAKER_02 1:24

Good old Canadian.

SPEAKER_01 1:25

Yes. We're calling it sort of like the Haunted Canada series. Yeah. So uh every once in a while we're gonna do a different haunted Canadian location.

SPEAKER_02 1:34

I'm excited.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

Yeah, me too. Um, and today we are talking about the DAG family poltergeist.

SPEAKER_02 1:40

The DAG family.

SPEAKER_01 1:42

Um, shall we remind everyone what a poltergeist is?

SPEAKER_02 1:44

Yes, please. Okay. Refresh our memories.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

So ghost is a ghost is a ghost, right?

SPEAKER_02 1:48

Ghost is a ghost.

SPEAKER_01 1:49

Poltergeist or a poltergeist sort of activity, um, is I'm gonna say malevolent. It's usually not friendly. It's not like I'm friendly in in a happy way throwing something at you.

SPEAKER_02 2:02

Yep, fair.

SPEAKER_01 2:03

Poltergeists um use their energy to move stuff.

SPEAKER_02 2:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

So is it, you know, cups moving across the counter? Is it cupboards being whipped open? Is it, you know, cutlery being thrown or pillows or whatever? Yeah. Um, it can also manifest in terms of like things just randomly starting to happen, fires being started. Um, you smell something and then you see something, and then it's something is moving. Like it's it's all of the senses, if you will. But typically it's energy from a spirit that's restless and typically usually pretty angry. Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_02 2:38

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

Um, and they'll chuck stuff at your head.

SPEAKER_02 2:40

It's true. There we go.

SPEAKER_01 2:43

So this one um is is she's a doozy. She's a doozy. Um, real quick before we get into it.

SPEAKER_03 2:51

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 2:51

I have never have I ever experienced, I haven't seen poltergeist activity, but the house that I spent my teenage years in, things would go missing. Like they were moved. We I just never saw things specifically move. Yeah. Or I think I told that story in one of our ghost uh episodes. Um about the keys.

SPEAKER_02 3:11

About the keys. That's what went missing.

SPEAKER_01 3:13

The keys. Or we would hear our kitchen drawers being open.

SPEAKER_02 3:18

Yes. But you never saw it. No one ever saw it.

SPEAKER_01 3:21

Never. I don't know if my brother, my mom saw it. I'll have to add my brother never really experienced anything anyway. Yeah. Um, but I don't know if my mom actually saw anything that was like ice.

SPEAKER_02 3:35

I'm sure she would tell you.

SPEAKER_01 3:37

Sure. Um, so yeah, we'll have to see. We'll have to see.

SPEAKER_02 3:41

There we go.

SPEAKER_01 3:42

Yeah. So we let's dive on in.

SPEAKER_02 3:45

Okay. Uh so this instance took place from 1885 to 1889, some minute ago. Yeah. Uh, in a town called Shawville, just outside Portage de Fort, Quebec.

SPEAKER_01 3:58

Nice.

SPEAKER_02 3:58

Uh on the Ottawa River. Yep. It was at the home of Farmer George Dagg.

SPEAKER_01 4:03

Farmer George. Farmer George.

SPEAKER_02 4:06

Always Farmer George. Uh, George and Susan. Uncle Susan. Uncle Susan. George and Susan Dagg lived a happy and quiet life on their farm with their two children, a daughter who was five, and a son that was two. Uh, that is until they adopted an 11-year-old girl named uh Dinah. Yes. Dinah. Dinah McLean, who had arrived from Scotland. Some historical reports claim that Dinah was orphaned, even though other reports say her mother was alive and well in Glasgow. Glasgow? Glasgow. I don't know why I said it like that. It's until 1894. And ended up in Canada thanks to a shady child immigration scheme.

SPEAKER_00 4:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:48

That sent underprivileged children, get this, underprivileged children to Canada and Australia to work for other families in exchange for housing.

SPEAKER_01 4:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:57

Child labor.

SPEAKER_01 4:58

Yeah, exactly that. Like you can join our family as long as you work on the farm. I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 5:03

I mean, uh different times back then, but man.

SPEAKER_01 5:05

Different times. And like, was it the, you know, I'm sure the UK, well, if they were orphaned, obviously they had no one. Yeah. But it sounds like in this case, if her mother was in fact alive, she probably went, let's just pretend. Let's pretend you have no one so you can leave this terrible place and go have a family. Like maybe she just couldn't take care of herself. It's true. Who knows? Who knows?

SPEAKER_02 5:22

It's a thing, I guess. Um, so the family adopted her, and the first few years of her being there were relatively normal. But in 1889, that all changed.

SPEAKER_01 5:32

Oh man, did it ever? So there are a few different versions of this story. Um, but here's kind of what my research found to be the most common tale, if you will. Um, let's start when money goes missing. Always a problem. Yeah. Always an issue when money goes missing. Um, apparently, a $2 bill went missing after George had given the money to his wife for safekeeping. It was eventually found under the bed of their farmhand named Dean. Dean claimed he had no idea how it got there. Shortly after that, Susan walked into the kitchen to find fecal matter spread all over her kitchen and not just any fecal matter.

SPEAKER_02 6:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:13

Human. Human waste.

SPEAKER_02 6:15

I'm a shit on these walls, right?

SPEAKER_01 6:19

That's exactly what was happening. So George immediately thought that this was retaliation from their farmhand dean because they accused him of being a thief and stealing the money.

SPEAKER_03 6:28

Fair.

SPEAKER_01 6:29

Yes. So he dragged this poor boy down to see the judge to sort all of this out.

SPEAKER_02 6:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:35

While George and Dean were away, Susan found even more poop that wasn't there when they left in the house, potentially proving that Dean did not do this.

SPEAKER_02 6:46

Mystery poop.

SPEAKER_01 6:47

Mystery poops. However, the farmers had their suspicions, of course, and he was never welcome back to the farm. I mean, Dean was probably like, I'm out.

SPEAKER_02 6:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:57

I went to an outhouse. Because like, let's not forget. Um, indoor plumbing, not a thing. Not a thing. Especially with like farmers, poor farmers. Like this was an outhouse situation. So you're telling me this kid would have gone and collected poop from the outhouse.

SPEAKER_02 7:12

Or to shit in a house.

SPEAKER_01 7:13

Or to shit in the back. Who knows? And played with it. I mean, I guess we'll never know. But how old was Dean? Uh it didn't say, it just said young, young farmhand.

SPEAKER_02 7:20

Interesting.

SPEAKER_01 7:21

Um, I mean, he was obviously young enough to live on his own. Yeah. Maybe he also was hoping to be adopted, but it didn't say anything. They just said that he was a hired farmhand.

SPEAKER_03 7:29

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 7:30

So after that, what the family perceived as more pranks or other disruptions did start happening. And soon they started to experience things that had no explanation. So while kind of like similar funny thing, not funny, poop is not funny. Poop, but like poopy, I guess. They were like, oh, like, is someone playing a practical joke on us? Because, like, what else do you think of? Um, but certain things started happening that they just like could not explain.

SPEAKER_02 7:59

Damn. Uh, so the family claimed that items were being tossed around rooms, sometimes right in front of their eyes. That'd be a jolt. That would be a jolt. Uh, wash bins would levitate, butter dishes skirted across the tables, milk cans were emptied, butter disappeared, rocks came flying into windows, thrown by seemingly no one. Right. Uh, and more windows were cracking and exploding on their own. Dinah's hair was cut both while she slept and while she was awake. She would scream as her long braid was held out by nothing and started to be sawed off.

SPEAKER_01 8:39

Yik.

SPEAKER_02 8:40

That is terrifying.

SPEAKER_01 8:42

Like, I mean, listen, did my grandfather Turgano pretend to do that all the time? Oh my gosh. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:47

I thought you were gonna say he did that. I was like, oh my god, trauma.

SPEAKER_01 8:50

No, no, he would hold it out and be like, I'm gonna cut this off one day. And it was always like the joke. That was like our joke. I mean, maybe my older female cousins also had this similar situation. I don't know. But that was like something he did. And when I read this, I was like, oh my gosh. But having nothing like your hair just like levitate and be cut off, that would be really scary.

SPEAKER_02 9:10

I don't know why it just pops in my head, but who was wearing a pretty uh pink bow yesterday and isn't wearing one today?

SPEAKER_01 9:18

Oh my excellent reference. Excellent reference. Um, also something that popped in my head, this is so funny and random. So my group of like best guy friends in high school, um, we were, as you could say, nerds. Nerds. We were cool in our own little way. Um, but when like computer editing and like Photoshop just came on the scene, we're like 14 years old, 15 years old. And I had um long hair, like I do now. Yeah. Still like pretty much exactly I have not evolved my hairstyle since I was like, I had bangs. That's the only thing I had to do.

SPEAKER_02 9:50

I would love bangs.

SPEAKER_01 9:52

I've considered it again, but it like everyone's like, don't do it.

SPEAKER_02 9:54

Oh, so Zoe got them. So shout out to Zoe. And they look amazing. They look so good. But she's like, I hate them. Yeah, they're a lot of work.

SPEAKER_01 10:01

I spent my whole life having them, and it was just it was a lot. A lot of work. So um we were like, oh man, it would be so funny if Brian and Oda would like hold my hair up, and then Eric like took them out. They he photoshopped them out. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 10:20

Like standing in my friend Eric's.

SPEAKER_02 10:21

It's like ball.

SPEAKER_01 10:22

No, with hair floating.

SPEAKER_02 10:23

Oh, with hair floating.

SPEAKER_01 10:24

So it's like, I still have it somewhere. And I'm just like funny. I think it's so funny. I'm laughing in the photo and I'm just like standing there, and my hair is floating. And we thought that was like the coolest thing.

SPEAKER_02 10:34

That's so funny. Also, think of that back in the day and think of what you can do now. It's wild.

SPEAKER_01 10:39

Night and day.

SPEAKER_02 10:39

Night and day.

SPEAKER_01 10:40

And we thought this was like the coolest thing.

SPEAKER_02 10:42

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:43

Anyway, shout out to the old team.

SPEAKER_02 10:47

To the old team.

SPEAKER_01 10:48

I miss you guys. Also R.I.P. Brian. Um, okay, so the most serious and scariest events of them all with this spontaneous fires being started in the home.

SPEAKER_02 11:02

Dude.

SPEAKER_01 11:03

It was reported that eight fires were started in one day. Oh my god. Yeah. With the most dramatic moment being the curtains that burst into flames in front of the family's eyes. I would just move. I mean, I guess you can't if you're that poor and you have no rules to do.

SPEAKER_02 11:19

What do you do? Because we talked about this at the Inselhouse. Like, why not just move? Just move. But they had no other.

SPEAKER_01 11:24

All of their money is tied up in the, and like that's their like home that probably has been for many, many years and generations, right? So soon, whatever was in the DAG household started to materialize and appear in front of the family, usually the young children. Why is it always the young kids?

SPEAKER_02 11:41

Always the young kids.

SPEAKER_01 11:42

I mean, we do have theories about that.

SPEAKER_02 11:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Um, they reported seeing a tall, manlike creature that had a cow's head and cloven moves, always with the hooves. Um, another time they reported seeing a large black dog wandering through the home as well. So, like two different shapes. Yes. Was it two different spirits? Who knows? Who knows? Or was it like having an identity crisis and was like, I'm gonna be this and now I'm gonna be this and now I'm gonna be this.

SPEAKER_02 12:09

I feel that.

SPEAKER_00 12:10

Same.

SPEAKER_02 12:11

Uh, one account shared a story about Dinah specifically. The story says that she was in a bedroom with her grandmother when all of a sudden she started to scream about seeing a big black thing pulling off the bed sheets. Terrifying. Yeah. The grandmother didn't see a black mask, but she did see the bed sheets being ripped off the bed. Also scary. Also scary. Love this part. Go, grandma. The grandma gave the girl a bull whip and yelled to let the beast have it. I love it.

SPEAKER_00 12:45

I also just love that she had a bull whip on her.

SPEAKER_02 12:47

As you do. Get it, grandma. Um, the young girl fought with all her might, and eventually the grandmother started to hear squealing noises as the girl whipped seemingly nothing until she said the being vanished. From that point, it seemed the bolt poltergeist had it out for Dinah, which I mean.

SPEAKER_01 13:07

Uh yeah, if you kick the shit out of it with a bull whip.

SPEAKER_02 13:09

With a bull whip.

SPEAKER_01 13:10

Oh my god, that's so scary to me. But yeah, grandma. Let the beast have it. Huh?

SPEAKER_00 13:16

In that accent. Absolutely. For sure. Never mind that it was in Quebec. It for sure was that accent.

SPEAKER_02 13:21

Oh, true, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:25

Yeah, I mean, seriously, that's amazing. Yeah. But so here's here's what's really interesting to me. I mean, all of this is really interesting to me, but like there are several witnesses, including the children and the parents, yeah, that had something happen or saw it. So it wasn't just like just the kids are saying it or just the parents are saying it. Like this is happening in front of many different people. We'll get into more of who that is in just a moment.

SPEAKER_02 13:48

Crazy.

SPEAKER_01 13:48

Um, here's another terrifying encounter. Yep. Okay. Um, this terrifying report, uh, I'm sorry, another terrifying report uh reported encounter includes the five-year-old daughter whose name was Mary.

SPEAKER_02 14:01

Mary.

SPEAKER_01 14:01

Um, she was in the kitchen. Someone's in the kitchen. She would die. Sorry. I'm not sorry. So Mary was in the kitchen when she turned around to see a tall cowman with the hooves that we talked about and it spoke to her.

SPEAKER_03 14:18

Ooh.

SPEAKER_01 14:19

It freaking spoke to her. He apparently pointed to the oven and allegedly said, Want to come to hell with me. Oh, Jesus. What? That's creepy. Fa.

SPEAKER_02 14:31

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 14:32

Right? This is a five-year-old girl. Five-year-old girl. What five-year-old just makes that up?

SPEAKER_02 14:38

I mean, I feel like a lot, Mary. Especially if they're a religious family.

SPEAKER_01 14:42

Oh, yeah, fair. Fair.

SPEAKER_02 14:44

That they drill in that you're going to hell, right?

SPEAKER_01 14:46

That's true. That's a gr excellent point. Excellent point. But scary.

SPEAKER_02 14:50

But scary.

SPEAKER_01 14:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 14:53

After that, the voice would not stop. A deep, gravelly voice, described as sounding like a gruff old man, began speaking from the shadows or empty corners. It mocked the family, used foul language, and at one point claimed to be the devil himself.

SPEAKER_01 15:12

Can we try and do a gravelly voice? Oh, yeah, okay. Do you want to go first? Do you want me to go first?

SPEAKER_02 15:16

You go first.

SPEAKER_01 15:17

But like, really try, I'm gonna really try to be a quote, gruff old man. Okay. Like if I were faking some sort of scary ghosty voice.

SPEAKER_02 15:24

Yeah, are we gonna say, uh, wanna come to hell with me?

SPEAKER_01 15:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 15:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:29

Okay, okay. Okay, no laugh attacks. This is not a laughing matter. Not like yesterday where I laughed for 47 minutes.

SPEAKER_00 15:38

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 15:38

Um, okay.

SPEAKER_00 15:40

Wanna come to hell with me? That was creepy. Was it creepy?

SPEAKER_02 15:44

That was creepy.

SPEAKER_00 15:44

I feel like I look like an idiot.

SPEAKER_02 15:46

Sugar water.

SPEAKER_00 15:48

Moa. Moa. Sugar water. Yeah, it's me. Sugar water. Does anyone know what we're talking about? You have to know that reference. Moa. It was egg. It was someone called Eggger suit. Eggert. I was like, Eggert. Like I just love that whole scene. It was Eggert. I know Eggger. Distant wasn't Eggert.

SPEAKER_02 16:11

She did so good in that scene. If you don't know where we're talking about.

SPEAKER_00 16:15

Oh, one of my top five movies. So good.

SPEAKER_02 16:18

So good. It's Men in Black if you didn't know. Okay, okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 16:23

Okay, your turn, your turn.

SPEAKER_03 16:27

Oh wanna come. Wait, no.

unknown 16:29

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 16:31

It's just gonna be Hegger.

SPEAKER_03 16:32

It's yeah. Wanna come to hell with me?

SPEAKER_00 16:36

Okay. Way creepier than mine.

SPEAKER_03 16:41

Welcome to hell.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

You're practicing. I think you're practicing. You're practicing to be the gatekeeper.

SPEAKER_02 16:49

The gatekeeper. The gatekeeper.

SPEAKER_00 16:55

Where you will say, get me sugar water. Sugar water.

SPEAKER_02 17:01

My throat is hurting.

SPEAKER_00 17:03

Clearly, I'm not supposed to be that low. God damn it.

SPEAKER_02 17:07

I am though. I sing. I can really sing low songs. What is it called?

SPEAKER_01 17:11

Baritone?

SPEAKER_02 17:12

Yeah, baritone, I think. When we do karaoke, I always choose like the low manly.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

You do have a low, like you do have a low voice. You can take her.

SPEAKER_02 17:19

Why thank you.

SPEAKER_01 17:20

What's the lowest note you can hit right now?

SPEAKER_02 17:22

How do I hit a note?

SPEAKER_01 17:23

Oh. That's the lowest I can go.

SPEAKER_00 17:34

I am shock. Who? And then play play back the tapes of us. Play back the tapes of us trying to be werewolves.

SPEAKER_02 17:48

Oh my god, yeah. We're ridiculous.

unknown 17:52

Oh.

SPEAKER_02 17:53

A little concerned goat.

SPEAKER_00 17:56

That's why it was a concerned goat.

SPEAKER_01 18:01

Oh, the tears have started. All right. Well, back to really scary thing.

SPEAKER_02 18:06

Really scary thing.

SPEAKER_01 18:08

All right, I'm sorry I interrupted you.

SPEAKER_02 18:09

Yeah, you better be sorry. Um, there are media reports, official records, and of course, lots of local lore about this talking poltergeist.

SPEAKER_03 18:20

Creepy.

SPEAKER_02 18:20

Witnesses ranging from other local farmers to priests have all claimed to have heard this thing speak. Right. Crazy. Wild. Dinah seemed to be the one it was most attached to, as if it would only speak when she was around. Interesting. And she's very puberty age. Right?

SPEAKER_01 18:41

Uh-huh. She goes from talking like this. Eventually, word got out to neighboring towns and cities, and as it does.

SPEAKER_02 18:52

As it does.

SPEAKER_01 18:53

And a journalist by the name of Percy Woodcock, hey, was I just talking about Percy the Pigeons? You were. Yes. Um Percy Woodcock from Brockville wanted to investigate. Upon his arrival, fully expecting this to be fake, he asked Dinah if she could summon the talking ghost. To his surprise, a low, growling voice started to appear from nowhere, um, swearing at him and mocking him mercilessly. Wow. Probably like, nice last name, Woodcock. Uh, that's what I would say.

SPEAKER_03 19:24

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 19:24

Allegedly, Woodcock and the polster geist poltergeist. Polstergeist? Polstergeist. Woodcock and the polster geist. I did it again. Woodcock and the poltergeist spoke for hours about philosophy, life and death, mortality, everything.

SPEAKER_03 19:40

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 19:40

He even went so far as to try and banish it from the property and to leave the little girl alone. So I ask you, like, what 11-year-old knows could have a conversation like that. And it it like I couldn't at 11. 11. I was like, I love Winnie the Pooh and Eeyore. Like, what am I? You know what I mean? Yeah. Um it it there were a couple of different reports. This is where it was like differing. One report said that this discussion went on for five hours.

SPEAKER_03 20:05

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_01 20:06

One report said that he gathered a bunch of witnesses to also listen to this, which of course a lot a lot of witnesses have reported hearing it talk. So maybe that also um happened during this, too. Another report said this voice started to play the harmonica.

SPEAKER_02 20:23

The voice did. Oh weird.

SPEAKER_01 20:25

And everyone's like, where's that harmonica coming from?

SPEAKER_02 20:28

Interesting. Wild. Um also, what 11-year-old could hold a conversation for five hours?

SPEAKER_01 20:33

Well, this is it, right? I mean, I don't care. Are you when you're 11 in 1885? Are you actually like 42? I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 20:40

I mean, this is actually a very valid point. Right.

SPEAKER_01 20:43

Because like cult clearly, there were some suspicions were they were middle-aged by then. Ready to yeah, I'm not even gonna say it. Um, like there were some people who thought that she was doing this. But when you when when this Percy Woodcock journalist person came and like held these kinds of conversations, that changed things for him, he said. Um, because like, yeah, philosophy, yeah, what child knows and especially back then.

SPEAKER_02 21:09

Yeah, people weren't as educated.

SPEAKER_01 21:10

Exactly. Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 21:12

Wild.

SPEAKER_01 21:12

So here's a part of a group statement from those witnesses reported on by the Ottawa Citizen, a paper that I found online that explored this case. Here's a quote When the child Dinah is present, a deep gruff voice like that of an aged man has been heard at various times, both in the house and outdoors. The witnesses attested. And when asked questions, it answered so as to be distinctly heard, showing that he is cognizant of all that has taken place.

SPEAKER_02 21:42

Interesting.

SPEAKER_01 21:44

Bizarre.

SPEAKER_02 21:45

Yeah. The voices' claims were all over the place. It said it was a devil, the devil, the spirit of an 80 year old man who had died on the property 20 years prior, and would go from incredibly angry. And malevolent to quite chatty and willing to shoot the shit.

SPEAKER_01 22:03

I mean, sure. Sure. Honestly, that's me sometimes. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:07

At one point, it seemed to have a sense of humor. According to a re report in the November 1889 paper, The Ottawa Free Press, a priest had gone to try to do an exorcism and it told him, better stick to photography.

SPEAKER_01 22:24

How do you not laugh in that example? That's hilarious. I mean, obviously, if it's like a terrifying situation, then fine. But if this kid is like, better stick to photography, jerk. Like, come on. That's pretty funny.

SPEAKER_02 22:34

That is funny.

SPEAKER_01 22:35

Um, because I assume obviously they were taking photos of this young girl. None of which I could find, by the way. Um so as suddenly as it arrived, the activity ceased in late 1883. According to local lore, the entity's voice shifted from a growl to a beautiful angelic tone. I don't know why I went like dumb. Yeah. Sorry if you sound like that, you're not dumb. Oh my god. Um, and joined the family in a final hymn and claimed, right? Like, let's I I know I terrorized you guys and spread shit all over your house and threatened you in all sorts of ways, but let's sing a song. Um, it claimed it was actually, in fact, an angel all along and was testing the family.

SPEAKER_02 23:21

Uh, I mean, I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 23:24

I mean, listen. So it eventually shot up into the night sky after saying its final goodbyes in a fiery ball of light streaking across the stars and then vanished.

SPEAKER_03 23:35

Wow.

SPEAKER_01 23:36

Some neighbors did claim to see a streaking flame leave the farm as the spirit departed in line with the date that they say happened.

SPEAKER_02 23:44

Interesting.

SPEAKER_01 23:46

After that, all activity stopped, never to be reported again.

SPEAKER_02 23:51

Wow. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_01 23:53

So what the hell was that?

SPEAKER_02 23:55

What the hell was it?

SPEAKER_01 23:56

Right?

SPEAKER_02 23:56

Demon turn angel, flame of whatever flame of flame on!

SPEAKER_01 24:00

Flame on.

SPEAKER_02 24:03

Uh, so we have some theories and aftermath things. Um, so we obviously have the hoax theory. Right. Skeptics at the time suggested Dinah was a ventriloquist.

SPEAKER_01 24:15

Hell of a one.

SPEAKER_02 24:16

Hell of a ventriloquist. Or was pulling pranks to get attention or escape the hard labor of farm life. I mean fair.

SPEAKER_00 24:23

Yeah. We've both done farm tours.

SPEAKER_02 24:25

Yeah. Not fun. However, investigators noted that the fires and flying heavy objects often happened while Dinah was in full view of others or even in a different room.

SPEAKER_01 24:38

Right. So, like, how's that happening?

SPEAKER_02 24:40

How is that possible?

SPEAKER_01 24:41

How is that happening unless she like made some unless this 11-year-old girl from Scotland was the smartest person ever and could like, you know, wire up some tricks of fire and who knows? But that's what I can't get because like I would if it was again, if it was just a family, I would be like, this girl is doing it.

SPEAKER_03 25:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:02

Like we've all seen the reports of those poltergeists, quote unquote, where it was like a kid doing it.

SPEAKER_03 25:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 25:07

I can't get over the fact that multiple witnesses had this happen in front of them and the kid was like just standing there beside them.

SPEAKER_02 25:14

Yeah. I don't get it.

SPEAKER_01 25:16

Also, how do you play a harmonica as a ventriloquist?

SPEAKER_02 25:20

I don't think you can.

SPEAKER_01 25:21

I don't think you write in.

SPEAKER_02 25:22

Yeah. Well, I worry we are not um up to date on our ventriloquist lore, but or harmonica. I don't think any voice could make it sound.

SPEAKER_01 25:32

Like, how could you even? Okay. This is my best harmonica.

SPEAKER_02 25:35

Oh god, here we go. Sign and blow, sign and blow. That last part was actually pretty good.

SPEAKER_01 25:43

Thank you. So, like, there you go. There you go. That's my best king of the can.

SPEAKER_02 25:49

Um, so the haunt the haunting was marked by a real life tragedy. The Daggs' young daughter, Eliza, died during this period in a fire that some locals actually linked to the demon. Though official records vary.

SPEAKER_01 26:04

Right. So, like, was this happening? This poor child died, and then that spirit also joined in on the chaos because it was like I died out of trauma and tragic circumstances.

SPEAKER_03 26:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 26:15

Like terrible.

SPEAKER_03 26:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 26:16

Um, also, I don't know why. Like, I had to really search for that.

SPEAKER_03 26:22

Did you?

SPEAKER_01 26:22

There were some stories that like barely spoke about Eliza at all. So I thought I'd, you know, put that in as the end as like, yeah, maybe this is why. Weird.

SPEAKER_02 26:31

So the DAG family remains a point of interest for folklorists. The National Film Board of Canada even produced a short film about it in 1957 called The Ghost That Talks.

SPEAKER_01 26:43

We need to see this. I want to watch it. Yeah, we need to see this. We gotta find that. Really interested in it. Um, also found that the farm is still standing. Oh, okay. People live in it.

SPEAKER_02 26:54

Oh, wow.

SPEAKER_01 26:55

Yep. A family uh or a family had lived in it. I don't know if the woman is just on her own now or not. Um, they have again, this was light reading about the that family. Um, she hasn't experienced the trauma that these folks talk about, but like weird things happened. Yeah. Footsteps being watched, things out of the corner of the eye. Yeah. But nothing like what this family had reported.

SPEAKER_02 27:20

Interesting.

SPEAKER_01 27:21

So um, but you can go. I don't want to say you can go and visit. Don't rush this person's personality.

SPEAKER_02 27:27

It is yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:28

But um the Ottawa Citizen, which is a paper that I found that um talked about this case a lot, they actually sent a photographer and a reporter. Oh, cool. Check it out. So um they just said, yeah, they just like talked a lot about how it was like creepy and scary and weird, but um, nothing obviously intense happened. Um, but it is a place that actually still exists to this day.

SPEAKER_02 27:50

Cool.

SPEAKER_01 27:52

So apparently that apparently I am not meant for TV interviews.

SPEAKER_02 28:00

What? I already fucked it out.

SPEAKER_00 28:01

Oh, that's fine. Vocal stamps again. I love it.

SPEAKER_01 28:04

Um what was I gonna say?

SPEAKER_02 28:06

I'm so sorry. She gong.

SPEAKER_01 28:08

Apparently, let's just end it with apparently. I don't I that thought has left building rain. Oh, I remember what I was gonna say.

SPEAKER_02 28:17

There you go.

SPEAKER_01 28:17

Apparently, this is like one of Canada's most notorious ghost stories.

SPEAKER_02 28:21

Oh, yeah. You were saying that.

SPEAKER_01 28:22

I had I mean, listen, I am never heard it. I have never heard of it.

SPEAKER_02 28:25

I've never heard of it.

SPEAKER_01 28:26

Um, but that's always exciting. Yeah. There are stories that I've never experienced. This country is large and it's old. Well, not super old. But um, yeah, I just love exploring.

SPEAKER_02 28:36

Well, the land is old. The land, honey, the land.

SPEAKER_01 28:39

Honey, the land. He drowned. Does that make sense?

SPEAKER_02 28:44

Pink, pink ring. Pinkering.

SPEAKER_01 28:46

Eliza and Adam Pinker. I don't know if it's Eliza. I don't remember.

SPEAKER_02 28:50

I don't remember.

SPEAKER_01 28:50

So if you want to know what we're talking about, I hope so. Google it. The land, honey, the land.

SPEAKER_02 28:55

Google that one.

SPEAKER_01 28:56

Um, but yes, absolutely that.

SPEAKER_02 28:59

That. Very that.

SPEAKER_01 29:01

Love finding out about new and exciting ghost stories. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 29:05

So this is gonna be a fun little um sprinkled throughout the year. Yes. We'll have haunted Canada stories.

SPEAKER_01 29:12

And if any of you have um haunted Canadian stories that you want us to explore or that you know about, yeah, write in.

SPEAKER_02 29:20

Right in.

SPEAKER_01 29:20

Please write in and let us know.

SPEAKER_02 29:22

Um we have the link in pretty much our bio of uh Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, wherever you can find us. Yeah. Click the bio link and there'll be a little caption where you can write in. It'll take you to um Gmail or whatever mail you use. Mail. Mail. Whale whale.

SPEAKER_01 29:42

Easy peasy. Let us know.

SPEAKER_02 29:44

Yeah, and then write in. Um also DM us on Instagram or whatever.

SPEAKER_01 29:47

Totally. Also, we would love to do sort of like a listener's email session. Um, if you have a scary story that you want to share with everybody.

SPEAKER_02 29:56

Scary, spooky ghost story, or if you've ever experienced a cryptid or something like just weird, supernaturally paranormal.

SPEAKER_01 30:03

Anything weird and whimsical. Yeah. Just let us know. We'd love to do an episode about that.

SPEAKER_02 30:07

Yeah, we want to do some like listener write-ins and you can be anonymous.

SPEAKER_01 30:10

Right. Yeah. Or you can say your full government name with your birthday and your sin.

SPEAKER_02 30:15

But yes, totally upstairs. We support.

SPEAKER_01 30:18

I'm just kidding. Don't send in any personal information for the love of all that is holy. Um, okay. Well, any other thoughts? I don't think so. Okay. That was an interesting one. It was creepy.

SPEAKER_02 30:30

Creepy, haunting the sexy. That needs to go on a shirt, I think.

SPEAKER_01 30:34

That's a yeah, merch. Turn a merch for sure. Um Okay, well, thank you so much for listening to the Weirdos of Whimsy. We will be back again soon with another episode that guides you through the weird and whimsical journey that is our brains. Be sure to follow us on Instagram and TikTok and YouTube at Weirdos of WhimsyPod. Watch that space for updates and release dates and other treats and delectable morsels.

SPEAKER_00 31:03

I don't know. I was like in a levitate.

SPEAKER_01 31:05

Wait, wait. What? What's happening? Oh my god. So stupid. Uh say goodbye, Stevie.

SPEAKER_02 31:13

Goodbye, everybody.

SPEAKER_01 31:15

And as always, big gulps, eh?

SPEAKER_02 31:18

Well, see ya later.