Peg Powler is a
hag
HAG is a Swiss maker of model trains. The company was founded by Hugo and Alwin Gahler on 1 April 1944 in St. Gallen, Switzerland.
The Gahler brothers originally manufactured model trains in O scale but due to competition, particularly by Märk ...
and
water spirit in
English folklore
English folklore consists of the myths and legends of England, including the English region's mythical creatures, traditional recipes, urban legends, proverbs, superstitions, and folktales. Its cultural history is rooted in Celtic, Christian, ...
who inhabits the
River Tees
The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has be ...
. Similar to the
Grindylow
In English folklore, grindylow or grundylow is a creature in the counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West Engl ...
,
Jenny Greenteeth
Jenny Greenteeth a.k.a. Wicked Jenny or Ginny Greenteeth is a figure in English folklore. A river-hag, similar to Peg Powler or a grindylow, she would pull children or the elderly into the water and drown them. The name is also used to descr ...
, and
Nelly Longarms Nelly Longarms (or Nellie Longarms) is a hag and water spirit in English folklore who dwells at the bottom of deep ponds, rivers and wells. Like the Grindylow, Peg Powler and Jenny Greenteeth she will reach out with her long sinewy arms and drag c ...
, she drags children into the water if they get too close to the edge. She is regarded as a
bogeyman
The Bogeyman (; also spelled boogeyman, bogyman, bogieman, boogie monster, boogieman, or boogie woogie) is a type of mythic creature used by adults to frighten children into good behavior. Bogeymen have no specific appearance and conceptions var ...
figure who is invoked by parents to frighten children into proper behavior.
[Briggs, Katharine (1976). ''An Encyclopedia of Fairies''. Pantheon Books. pp. 323–324. .] The 19th century folklorist William Henderson describes Peg Powler as having green hair and "an insatiable desire for human life" and she is said to lure people into the river to drown or be devoured. The foam or froth which is often seen floating on certain parts of the Tees is called "Peg Powler's suds" or "Peg Powler's cream".
[
A similar creature named Nanny Powler is said to haunt the ]River Skerne
The River Skerne is a tributary of the River Tees. It flows through County Durham in England.
Course
The Skerne is about long and begins in Magnesian Limestone hills between Trimdon and Trimdon Grange and ends at Hurworth Place where it joi ...
, a tributary of the Tees. Michael Denham regards her as either the sister or daughter of Peg Powler.
Elliott O'Donnell
Elliott O'Donnell (27 February 1872 – 8 May 1965) was an English author known primarily for his books about ghosts. He claimed to have seen a ghost, described as an elemental figure covered with spots, when he was five years old. He also claime ...
paints a somewhat different picture of Peg Powler in his 1924 book ''Ghosts, Helpful and Harmful''. He describes her as a spirit who lures men and boys to their doom in the River Tees by appearing as a beautiful young woman with green hair and pretending to drown so that her victim will enter the water in an attempt to save her. She may even appear on land on foggy nights and lead men astray until they stumble into the river. The Peg Powler myth is at the heart of the novel ''Ironopolis
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
'' by Glen James Brown.
References
County Durham folklore
English legendary characters
Female legendary creatures
Northumbrian folklore
Water spirits
Hags
Bogeymen
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