The Pollock Twins
The Pollock Twins are thought to be one of the strongest cases in support of reincarnation.
In 1957, Jacqueline and Joanna Pollock lost their lives in a car accident. Their parents believe they were reincarnated the following year as their twin sisters.
The Tragic Death of Jacqueline and Joanna Pollock
In May 1957, in a small town called Hexham in England, two sisters, Joanna (11 years old) and Jacqueline (6 years old), along with their friend Anthony (9 years old), were going to church when a driver who was on drugs hit them. Sadly, the two sisters and Anthony died almost immediately.
The driver, a local woman, deliberately hit the children because she had been separated from her own kids. This incident became widely known in Britain, and the woman was later sent to a psychiatric hospital.
The Pollock Twins and Hints of Reincarnation
After Joanna and Jacqueline died, their mom and dad, Florence and John Pollock, were devastated. But when Florence got pregnant again, John had an unshakable belief the two girls would come back as twins.
Florence and John were Catholics and often fought about the idea of being born again. Florence didn't agree with John's thoughts, and it caused a lot of problems. It was even said that their whole marriage was in danger, and Florence almost wanted a divorce.
Neither parent's family had a history of twins, and the doctor thought Florence would have only one baby. But surprisingly, on October 4, 1958, Florence gave birth to twin girls named Gillian and Jennifer.
Even though the twins looked the same, they had different marks on their bodies, which is uncommon. Jennifer had a small mark on her left hip, just like Jacqueline, and a mark on her forehead, similar to a scar Jacqueline had.
When the twins were three months old, the family moved to Whitley Bay, near Hexham. But as the girls grew up, they seemed to remember Hexham well, even though they didn't grow up there.
When the family returned to Hexham when the twins were four, Gillian and Jennifer recognized and named places they had never seen, like the school Joanna and Jacqueline went to, the Hexham Abbey, and a playground their sisters used to love. They even seemed to know the way to the playground without ever having seen it before.
The twins could also recognize their late sisters' toys and asked for them by name. Even though Florence had put away the toys, the twins remembered them as if they were their own. They knew the toys' names, divided them exactly like their sisters did, and even mentioned that Santa Claus gave them the toys, which was true.
Florence and John noticed that the twins had similar personalities to their older sisters. Just like Joanna was protective of Jacqueline, Gillian took care of Jennifer and seemed more grown-up. The parents also observed that the twins liked the same games and foods as their sisters.
In the first few years, Florence didn't believe John's idea that the twins were "reincarnated." But when she overheard them talking about the car accident that took their sisters' lives, she changed her mind. Once, she heard the girls playing a game where they reenacted their sisters' accident. Gillian was holding Jennifer's head, saying, "The blood's coming out of your eyes. That's where the car hit you."
Once, Gillian pointed to Jennifer's forehead birthmark and said, "That's the mark Jennifer got when she fell on a bucket." It's interesting that the twins also seemed scared of cars. When they were younger, they had bad dreams about getting hit by a car. Gillian and Jennifer would get scared and nervous around cars. When a car started in an alley, John remembered the girls holding onto each other, shouting, "The car is coming to get us!"
Around their fifth birthday, the memories of their 'past lives' slowly went away, and they started living normal lives. Even though they forgot about the accident, Gillian later remembered seeing herself playing in a sandbox at a house in Whickham. She had never been to Whickham, but she perfectly described the house and garden that matched where Joanna lived when she was four.
People often say the Pollock twins are "proof" of reincarnation, but some argue that their memories could have come from their four older brothers. John and Florence say they didn't talk to the twins about their dead sisters until they were older, but it's possible the twins heard about it from their brothers.
Do you think the case of the Pollock sisters is proof of reincarnation? Tell us your theories in the comments.
If you enjoyed this article you might also be interested in doppelgängers or the immortal Count of Saint Germain.
