Dungarvon Whooper

The Dungarvon Whooper (pronounced "hooper") is a ghost story, immortalized in a song by Michael Whelan (poet), about the alleged murder along the Dungarvon River in central New Brunswick, Canada, in the late 19th century.

The story revolves around a young Irish cook, often referred to by the name Ryan. Ryan moves to a lumber camp located somewhere along, or very near to, the Dungarvon River, bringing all of his possessions with him, including a money belt. While the lumberjacks are out, Ryan is left alone with the boss of the camp, who decides to murder and rob the young cook. When the crew returns, the boss explains that the cook had taken sick and died suddenly. They then bury the body in the forest some distance from the camp. However, a terrible "whooping" sound keeps the group from falling asleep that night, presumably the ghost of Ryan crying out against the crime of which he was the victim. Scared, the men flee the camp the next morning.

The story, which was handed down to lumberers working in New Brunswick throughout the 20th century, is well known in local culture. It was taken seriously enough by the turn of the century that Rev. Edward Murdoch, a Roman Catholic priest from Renous, performed an exorcism at the professed gravesite at Whooper Spring.

There is a chainsaw carving of Ryan at the Municipal Park in Blackville, New Brunswick, Canada