ABSTRACT
The Ghost of Blithfield Hall is an immersive online mystery designed to engage participants in the deciphering of old handwriting and interpretation of historical documents. Developed by Julie A. Fisher, Sara F. Powell, and Heather Wolfe, this escape room-style game challenges players to navigate through virtual rooms of Blithfield Hall, encountering digitized copies of authentic historical manuscripts primarily written in English secretary hand. Drawing inspiration from both commercial escape rooms and educational gamification, The Ghost of Blithfield Hall offers a unique approach to paleographical instruction. With the guidance of Blithfield Hall’s caretaker and the unhappy ghost of Lewes Bagot (1587–1611), players work together to reveal clues about Lewes’s short life. Participants explore documents’ contents, paratextual clues, and historical context to piece together the narrative and free the titular ghost from his haunting. As the project continues to evolve, the authors envision expanding the scope of paleographical escape rooms to encompass diverse time periods and perspectives, increasing access to archival materials and engaging a broader audience in special collections and the production of historical knowledge.
