Ballitore is unlike any other village in Ireland. Founded by Quakers in the late seventeenth century – the first and only planned Quaker settlement in Ireland, and the only surviving one in Europe – it was built around principles of simplicity, community, and quiet. The Meeting House at its southern end dates to around 1707, a plain Georgian building that served the Society of Friends for generations and now operates as a community hall and Quaker museum.

In 1933, on two separate occasions, villagers heard music coming from inside the Meeting House late at night. Not faint or ambiguous sounds – drums, brass instruments, and a cornet, playing at midnight. The building was locked. The windows were dark. There was nobody inside. It happened twice. Both times the music carried clearly enough to be heard outside. Both times the building was confirmed to be empty and secured.

The Meeting House was built on the principles of silence and plain worship. The Quakers did not use music in their religious practice – it was considered a distraction from inner reflection. Whatever was playing inside that locked building in 1933 was not something the Friends would have recognised as their own.

No explanation was ever established. The disturbances were recorded and then stopped. The Meeting House is open to visitors as part of the Ballitore Library and Quaker Museum.