Black Dog of Tring

The Murder of Ruth Osborne
In the parish of Tring, Hertfordshire, a chimney sweep named Thomas Colley was executed by hanging in 1751 for the drowning murder of Ruth Osborne whom he accused of being a witch. Colley was one of the leaders of a mob which gathered at Tring in April 1751 and seized an elderly couple, John and Ruth Osborne, from the local workhouse, accusing them of witchcraft. The mob subjected the pair to a dunking at a nearby pond in Wilstone. Ruth was beaten and dragged through the water repeatedly, until Colley drowned her by turning her face-down with a stick. John survived and testified at Colley's trial.

The Spirit of Thomas Colley
Colley's spirit now haunts the site of the gibbet in the form of a black dog, and the clanking of his chains can also be heard. n one tale a pair of men who encountered the dog saw a burst of flame before it appeared in front of them, big as a Newfoundland with the usual burning eyes and long sharp teeth. After a few minutes it disappeared, either vanishing like a shadow or sinking into the earth.