The following ghost story takes place in Five Islands, Nova Scotia.
These islands are just off from the mainland and the village which bares their name. They differ in size, although none are large. They are known as Moose, Diamond, Long, Egg, and Pinnacle.
On Moose Island there is a very interesting rock, because of the face of an old man which is plainly embedded in its hard surface.
Early in the 1800s, John Ruff, a Scotsman, settled this outpost with his family. He cleared much of the forest and established a modest mixed farm, supplying the coastal village with produce, wood and charcoal.
He was reputed to be a hard, cruel person, and rumors circulated that he abused his wife and children so cruelly that his sons made up their minds to take his life.
Cold-bloodily they discussed ways and means. One of them proposed throwing him over the end of the island where the cliffs rose to a sheer height above the sea. But to make sure that this would work, they first threw a sheep over. As the sheep was not killed outright, they decided that they would have to adopt some other plan. After much plotting and planning, these unnatural sons determined to take their father's life whilst he slept. Fortune favored their foul plan, for the following day their father fell asleep in the barn.
They committed the crime with an axe, and then proceeded to cover up all trace of it. They dragged the body to the woods, where they felled a tree on top of it, then hurried to the mainland, where they spread the report that their father had been killed in the woods by the falling of a tree.
Years later, the youngest son told how as a little boy he had been sleeping in the barn with his father when his brothers came in and killed his father. The authorities, so the story runs, came down from Truro, disinterred the body and found there the evidence which bore testimony to the truth of the boys story.
A controversial trial led to acquittal, and afterwards the family moved to the mainland, carrying the unresolved mystery with them.
Legend has John Ruff's spirit stalking the long overgrown fields during misty, moonless nights in search of vengeance. On a dark night on the beach, some people have said that they could see a light that walks the shore of the island, while his head is imprinted for all ages in the hardness of the rock.
Story obtained from the Department of Natural Resources of the Province of Nova Scotia, and with corrections from a longtime Five Islands resident, Belindia Meekins, and additional story details from Wikipedia.
If you know of any Ghost stories from this area, or have a story of your own that you would like to share, we would love to hear from you!
Read another great story! - The Ghost in Black