Haunted Weekend in Talbot April 2010

We had yet another great weekend in Talbot with a group of lovely people from all over. A big thank you to everyone who joined us: Mario and Shona, Jenelle and Herb, Michelle and Bec, Victoria and Adele, Judy and Shane, Betty, Ama, Sylvia, Andrew and Kathy.

Friday Night

Was spent eating and touring the house. We were very lucky to have Ama Nazra http://ghosttouring.blogspot.com/ who was able to tune in immediately to some of the spirits of the house and Kathleen Higgins from BHPP Australia who joined us with her paranormal investigation equipment.

Ama and some of the members of group were able to pick up on quite a few spirits including a welcoming gentleman in the dining room from 1836 with the name of Talbot who wanted a glass of port, a young woman called Margaret who was still sitting in her fruit orchid (where the current loungeroom extension is), a dark male spirit who was harrassing Bec, a toddler and Mrs Chesterfield.

We were also able to pick up on a lot of orbs, changes in light and a large, black orb that hurled towards Kathy and me. Kathy also had some interesting EVP recordings of unexplained bangs and whispers.

A few of us could smell strong tobacco smoke wafting around us as if a person was walking around the room smoking an old pipe.

Some of the group also felt cold spots in the rooms and occassionally the cold spots went through us. The digital thermometer wasn't picking up any significant temperature drops.

Kathy and Betty witnessed a dark shadow move across Mrs Chesterfield's old downstairs bedroom three times.

I personally had a terrible night's sleep, I could hear quiet whispering all around me in the new loungeroom extension...was it the ghost of Margaret chatting to her friends?

Saturday Day

Maree, our local tour guide, showed us around Talbot with the usual highlight being the old lockup. Liz kindly gave us a wine tasting from her Amherst Vineyard at the end of the tour. After a short break at London House Cafe and browsing of the local shops, including Slightly Bent Books, we moved on to Ararat.

Marge from J Ward cooked us a delicious meal and we ate amongst the old cells, it was very eerie indeed. We were joined by Helga, Wanda, Julie and Daniel so had a pretty sizeable group. Doug was our guide for the night and showed us around the old cells, the old kitchen, J Ward, the West Wing and the Exercise Yards. We picked up a lot of activity in the old kitchen including some strange EVP recordings, a lot of orbs and a general sensation of being watched.

The main cells were no different, we felt that past prisoners were watching and mocking us. One of them, we think perhaps Vincent, was trying to pull Bec away from the rest of the group. Ama did a great job protecting us and Doug did a great job entertaining us, telling us about all the past inmates and their different personalities.

The West Wing was added later on and also had a lot of activity. A few members of the groups could sense prisoners mingling with us and described their thoughts towards us as being 'like a circus'.

We ended the tour at the old watch tower, well after midnight. Poor Doug was stuck with us for over 3 hours!

Sunday

Betty showed us around Amherst Cemetery where we visited Mrs Chesterfield's grave again. We still can't explain why Mr Chesterfield's inscription has eroded when both Mrs Chesterfield and her first husband's graves are perfectly legible. During the course of the weekend we discovered a few more things about Mrs Chesterfield thanks to the psychics in our group and insights from Betty and also Lee from the Visitor Centre.

*Mrs Chesterfield gave Ama a message to tell 'Chelsea' to put the gladiolus in the front room. Not sure who Chelsea is but we think she thought I was Chelsea. Perhaps she was a past helper?

*William was one of 12 children

*Mrs Chesterfield had 2 girls and a boy

*We think Mrs Chesterfield may also have had a daughter that was actually her daughter's child born out of wedlock.

*During the visit and on previous visits we have sensed the presence of a toddler in the upstairs kids room. We have had confirmation that a toddler died in the room but haven't confirmed the identity.

Please add your comments to the blog to complete the summary of the weekend

Thanks again everyone

Jacqui
www.lanternghosttours.com

Copyright Lantern Ghost Tours 2010

Roslyn and Annabel Haunt Prince of Wales Hotel

*Photo by Roni Price, Ghosts of the Old City Tour. Could the large white orb be Roslyn and the small green one Annabel?

Since writing about Annabel and Rosyln, our two ladies of the night haunting the old Prince of Wales Hotel, activity has increased. Rosyln has been stroking female guests as they walk down the lane and we smell their lavender perfume on almost every tour now. While living, these lovely ladies used to bath only a handful of times each year then smother themselves with lavendar fragrance to cover any body odour. We have had a few psychics through who have confirmed that Anna's real name is Annabel. Annabel has long, blonde hair and Roslyn is older, with long dark hair. Annabel is believed to have died by being thrown from the upstairs window after an argument with a customer about payment. Roslyn passed away from an STD. Both women are now aware that they have passed away and Roslyn has made it her business to protect those around her. She has followed a group of teenage boys down Nelson Place on our March tour. They felt they were being watched and felt as though they were being touched on their shoulders. I have felt Roslyn's arm around my waist on more than one occasion. Many mediums are able to tune into there lovely spirits who are very curious as to what the fuss is all about. Unlike our other hauntings, I cannot find records of Annabel and Roslyn. Unfortunately there were very few records of burials in Williamstown's unoffical cemetery at Point Gellibrand. We didn't even have grave diggers as they were all searching for gold. As a result, many people simply bought a spade, wrapped their loved ones in cloth and buried them. All the bodies were exhumed and moved to Williamstown Cemetery between 1899 and 1901. The lack of records for Roslyn and Annabel makes us believe they date to the late 19th century. All our clairvoyants and mediums are picking up on the same names and descriptions, our ladies want to be remembered.

*Copyright Lantern Ghost Tours 2010

Mayday Hills Lunatic Asylum Ghost Tour

We decided to have a break last weekend and sit back, relax and be taken on a guided ghost tour to the former Mayday Hills Lunatic Asylum, Beechworth. Mayday Hills was an Australian psychiatric hospital and its two sister asylums at Kew and Ararat were commissioned to accommodate the growing number of 'lunatics' in the colony of Victoria.

Mayday Hills now resembles a village, overlooking Beechworth- the best preserved historical gold town in Victoria.

The grounds are known as LaTrobe at Beechworth and consist of university buildings, self contained and hotel accommodation, a day spa, conference buildings, empty buildings and of course the original pschiatric wards.

The great thing about Latrobe is you can stay onsite. To our surprise, Adam of Beechworth Tours informed us that our hotel room was actually a converted ward.

Adam and Sharon, of Beechworth Ghost Tours, booked us on their midnight ghost tour of the former Mayday Hills Lunatic Asylum. Our guide, Jodie, was fantastically eccentric and took us on a guided tour of the old female and male wards pointing out the old operating theatre, autopsy room, isolation cells, ha ha walls and quick escape passages for the staff. La Trobe definitely has an atmosphere about it. In one of the male wards we heard an unexplained tapping sound behind a door which moved to the ceiling, then across the ceiling. Apparently it happens often.

The ghosts of former patients still linger, and it's no wonder why when many of them checked in and never left. One of the male wards also made a few of us feel naseous, Adam and Jodie explained that on the tours people sometimes have unexplained nose bleeds.

The Beechworth Lunatic Asylum was built during the height of Beechworth's gold rush period in 1867 and operated until it's closure in 1995.

Quite few relics can be seen at the Museum of Victoria, including straight jackets from 1900, pill trolleys and medical implements.

We had a fantastically creepy weekend thanks to Beechworth Ghost Tours and can't wait to visit again.

Happy Haunting

Lantern Ghost Tours

*Copyright Lantern Ghost Tours 2010
*Thank you Beechworth Ghost Tours for the tour and hospitality

Visit http://www.beechworthghosttours.com/ for the Beechworth Ghost Tour

Visit www.lanternghosttours.com for haunted weekends away to Beechworth
Visit www.lanternghosttours.com to visit Mayday Hills sister asylum in Ararat,as part of the haunted Talbot weekend away