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leg and refused to get treatment—Hall’s neighbors discovered that his real name was William Henry Bucke, a man in hiding from the authorities for having embezzled serious money from the Covent Garden Theatre. It was also rumored that he’d married his stepmother, a famous actress, or was she an opera singer? In any event, she supposedly met a tragic end, drowned, and as a result haunts the place to this day. The real story of the jinxed William Bucke is recounted by David Sackmyster in his carefully researched book, The Belhurst Story. Bucke had some affiliation, it seems, with the Covent Garden Theatre, though there’s no documentation that cements his credentials as the theatre’s treasurer. He did, however, appropriate ticket money and, together with Isabella Robinson, a beautiful actress, left England for America. Isabella was introduced before sailing to Bucke’s son, William Jr. as his new stepmother. Though it’s a juicy detail for gossip, she was not William Sr.’s stepmotherwife. Whether she and Bucke were married is murky. On the sea voyage, William changed his name to an alias, Henry Hall. He changed his son’s name to William Nathaniel Hall. Henry and Isabella met a fellow traveler on the ship, James Simons, who comes back into their story years later. The three-member Hall household, Isabella, Henry, and William Nathaniel, made their way to Geneva where they met James Fellows. Henry Hall used Fellows as his real estate and investment broker. Henry put all of the investments into Isabella’s name, and also had Fellows draw up a deed of trust in her name for the lakeshore property he purchased from Fellows. It was on this property that Henry erected a residence, the Hermitage, close to where the castle stands today. As the months went by, Henry’s behavior became more bizarre and reclusive. For example, he had the Hermitage windows boarded up, and he saw no one other than his acquaintance from the ship, James Simons. Henry’s isolation deepened and neighborly goodwill faded. In 1834, Henry drew up a will “in which his estate is devised to Joseph Fellows in trust for Isabella Robinson and his son, William Nathaniel Hall share and share alike.” Not long afterwards, creditors from England showed up looking for him. But Henry’s crafty move to create a trust for Isabella and his son meant there was little left the creditors could collect. A settlement was reached. The debt hunters left. Henry Hall stayed, but his reputation went into the outhouse. Geneva was a small town. Word leaked out about the British creditors. “This gave rise to misgivings and a ready acceptance thereafter of mystery…those who had been duped were ready to believe and probably to start anything—even stretch it a little,” David Sackmyster wrote. One of the rumors that circulated was that Hall had constructed a tunnel from the Hermitage to the lake, a precaution for when Scotland Yard paid a visit. It wasn’t true, but it made for more good gossip. Controvery continued to swirl around the Hall household, but not for long. In a fit of ugly rage, to which Henry was prone, he went after his son in the summer of 1835, chasing the boy around the property trying to cane him. The childhood gods intervened. Henry took a tumble and broke his leg. By now, daft and paranoid, he refused to send for a doctor. Blood poisoning took hold and, within days, Henry Hall née William Bucke died. Enter James Simons. After a suitable period, Isabella sent William Nathaniel to fetch him—he lived about ten miles distant. James arrived and together he and Isabella sold the Hermitage back to Fellows for