The Ghosts of Old Geelong Gaol.

The Ghosts of Old Geelong Gaol.

Old Geelong Gaol - source: Geelong Gaol Museum

 The Old Geelong Gaol was decommissioned from service in July 1991. From its opening in 1853 until its closure the gaol saw hundreds, possibly thousands of deaths. Two of those deaths were executions, and some were murders, but there were also many suicides, accidental deaths and deaths from illness. (the Geelong Gaol was used as a hospital for Victorian criminals). I have chronicled some of those deaths in previous posts on this blog.

 Ghost stories were often told by the prisoners themselves inside the gaol. Prisoners often reported the sounds of young girls playing, whistling or singing. This coincides with the known history of the gaol. From 1865 until 1871 the East Wing was used as an Industrial School for girls. It was shut down after a royal commission revealed that its conditions were “many degrees worse than that of any other school”.

 You may remember on Haunting: Australia I captured an EVP of what sounds like a young girl saying “Spooky” after I played a prank on Rayleen near the kitchens in Geelong Gaol. That wasn’t the only odd occurrence. On the top level, there is a room that I can only describe as a double room. We were told that it was used as an exercise room for young girls. During Haunting: Australia I captured on a video a shadow person, about the height of an 11-year-old girl, on video. The image blocks the light coming into the room from outside. The footage wasn’t used in the episode as the executive producer didn’t think it was “strong enough evidence” (but some of the things I contested as evidence made it into the show – go figure!).

Cell 55: The condemned man cell, used for holding men due for executions seems to be the epicentre of this haunting, with many people reporting paranoia, cold spots, being touched, and seeing a black shadow move through this area.
 One spirit identified in this area is that of executed murderer James Murphy. Murphy has been seen in the condemned man's cell and on the hanging platform. He has also been reported as standing around the cardboard cuttings that depict his hanging.

Cell 45: This cell is considered one of the most haunted in the gaol. Past inmates claimed to have heard girls screaming from inside and outside this cell while being imprisoned there. Others have claimed being pushed by unseen forces, and even pinched while in this cell.

Cell 75: This cell is home to a spirit nicknamed “Ranga”. It is claimed Ranga is the ghost of a former paedophile. Often people report the overwhelming stench of fresh urine in this cell. One ghost hunter claimed that he was punched so hard by an invisible force in this cell, that others outside could hear the physical impact of the spectral thumping!
 It is claimed Ranga stalks people he considers weaker than himself. He preys on these people and physically attacks them. He has been seen in the cell sitting on his bed, sometimes as a forming apparition, sometimes as an imprint upon the bed.

 The Morgue is claimed to be haunted by a spirit named Mary. No one is exactly sure who Mary might be, whether she was one of the schoolgirls or a prisoner who died while giving birth in the gaol hospital above. Or even a female prisoner's suicide. Mary makes her presence known in the morgue, but she is not the only ghost haunting this section of the gaol. Another spirit in the morgue is a male, who presses his face against the glass room divider and stares at those near the autopsy table.
 there have also been reports of ghost hunters being physically pushed out of the morgue, and people leaving with bruises from un-felt altercations with spirit.

Rayleen Kable in the Geelong Gaol Kitch during Haunting: Australia 2013

The Kitchens: located on the ground floor, the kitchen is reported to be haunted by an aggressive male spirit who likes to grab women’s breasts and behinds. This spirit has been known to run its hands up women’s thighs and do a manoeuvre Donald Trump has made famous!
 This spirit also plays with women’s hair and has been known to become aggressive to males, often scratching them.

External Shower Block: This area is reported to be haunted by former prisoners that were shanked. Ian Lawman, during Haunting: Australia, claimed to have psychically picked up on one prisoner’s near-death shanking experience in this section of the gaol. Other people report feeling very uncomfortable in this section of the gaol.

Gaurav Tiwari's full-spectrum "Gaol Gaurd" photograph 2013

 Centre-Circle: This is the section of the gaol where the prisoner's guard box is located. It is designed to be able to see clearly down all four wings of the gaol. During a meeting before filming Haunting: Australia, I noticed a man on the third level looking over the railings down at the team. He was dressed in dark blue, but his facial features were indistinguishable. Later, during an interview, while I was on camera, I heard footsteps walking along the gangway above me. The footsteps caught on camera, come along a level above then walk down the stairs right where I was being interviewed.
 This is also the section of the gaol where Gaurav Tiwari caught his full-spectrum photograph of the ghost of a gaol guard. The guard appears to be standing near the staircase looking toward the moan entry of the gaol. What many sceptics of the photo don’t realise is that, on the night, Gaurav and I tried to recreate and debunk the image. I stood in the place where the image is in the photo, and we measured height, circumference etc, to conclude that the image would’ve been at least a foot taller than me (I’m 183 cm – 6 foot) and its appearance seemed ‘stretched out’.
 If you look really closely at Gaurav’s photo you might also notice something else a little odd. The knees of the spirit appear to bend backwards!

Visit the old Geelong Gaol Museum: https://www.facebook.com/geelonggaolmuseum/

Or Geelong Gaol Ghost Tours: https://twistedhistory.net.au/tour/geelong-gaol-ghost-tour/

Allen Tiller © 2019

Cite this article: 

Tiller, A, The Ghosts of Old Geelong Gaol, Eidolon Paranormal Blog, (2019), 

What is a ghost?

A ghost is thought to be the soul, ego, thoughts, residual energy, or personality left in our reality after a person has died. Many believe that ghosts are Souls that are trapped here, unable to move into the next realm or level of existence. Many paranormal researchers believe that ghosts are people who do not realise they are dead, but there is evidence with some spirits that this is not the case.
Ghosts can be sensed, seen, smelled (such as a persons favourite perfume or body odour), and sometimes have the power of touch and to move objects.

Types of Ghosts, Apparitions and Hauntings

There are many types of paranormal entities, from Religious to human, to animal, even cars! here is a list of just a few - a quick Google search and you can find everything you need to know about each topic...

Anniversary Ghost:

A haunting that appears on a specific day important in the person's life or death, always reoccurring at the same time every year...

Residual Haunting:

A haunting that is like a memory (or video stuck on loop) where the same entity appears, doing exactly the same thing every time it appears.

Spirit:

The Ego, or soul of a deceased individual that has a place and people recognition. It is freely able to interact with living or objects and has the power of thought.

Shadow People:

Not much is truly known about "shadow people". They appear as all black shadows with no real definition to facial features.

Rods:

Appear as a cylinder or twisted type of "rod" that moves freely around an area.

Orbs:

The easiest and most efficient way for energy to appear, orbs are the most frequently photographed phenomena. However, they can often be a camera effect caused by insects, rain, mist, or dust...

Ectoplasm/Mist/Vapour:

Residual energy that becomes solid in our reality, often caused by very powerful spirits.

Vortex:

A gateway into another reality perhaps? It is said they often appear in a cone-like shape, with a swirling mist inside, sometimes with lights that rise from the bottom of the cone to the top...

Poltergeist:

A very powerful entity that is able to move objects, bite, injure and maim people. Often very disturbing, they seem to be attracted to the energy of pre-teen girls. Some believe it to be the physical manifestation of the girl's inner mental turmoil at the beginning of puberty.

Angels:

Messengers of God, divine beings sent by God to help the living.

Demons, Fallen Angels:

and other beings of evil sent to corrupt humanity

- can be harmful, but are often repelled by the power of belief in God or Jesus

© 2007 - 2014 Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au

The Legend Of Robert Skelton: "The Cauld Lad of Hylton"

The Legend Of Robert Skelton

"The Cauld Lad of Hylton"

What happened in Hylton Castle in Sunderland England, will forever remain a mystery. The Castle is but a shadow of its former self, a ruin, attracting tourists and ghost hunters from across the globe.

There are rumours of a haunting by an elf, a barghest, a brownie, and a poltergeist. They all may exist, they all may exist in this location, but almost all the actions of the spirits in this location are attributed to one spectre “The Cauld Lad of Hylton”, Robert Skelton.

The origins and stories of the murdered stable boy are varied. It is thought he lived sometime in the 16th century, with the ghost story arising sometime soon afterwards.

One interpretation of the legend states that Robert, a stable boy, was caught by Baron Robert Hylton courting his precious daughter and that the Baron being so angered that a lowly stable-boy could ever think of offering his affections to his daughter, killed the boy.

Another of the legends has a different take on happenings, in this version it is stated that the boy overslept, and had not prepared the Baron's horse in time for him to leave for a very important engagement. The Baron, angered by the boy's insolence and neglect of his duties, killed the boy.

There are varying details on how Baron Hylton ended the life of Robert Skelton, depending on the storyteller. You may hear that the Baron decapitated the boy with his sword, or you may hear that Robert was hit repeatedly with a riding crop across his head, fatally wounding the boy. There is also the version, that, in his angered state, the Baron reached for whatever was near to strike the boy down, grabbing a pitchfork that was sitting nearby, and instead of hitting the young lad, impaled him upon the fork.

The rumours of ways in which Robert was murdered differ greatly, but the way in which the body was disposed of does not. It is said the Baron disposed of the remains of Robert Skelton by dropping his body down the shaft of a used well on the property.

It is here that the stories, of which the variations lead to legends, become facts. Several months after the boy died, his body was recovered. The Baron was tried for murder, but an old estate farmer, one of the Baron's workers, came forward telling the court that the boy had ordered the Baron to get some tools from a high shelf in a barn, the boy had slipped, fell and mortally wounded himself in doing so. The Baron, being the good man he was, tended to the boy's wounds, but the poor young chap died. Baron Robert Hylton was pardoned of the crime in 1609.

Was the court corrupt?

Was the farmer corrupted?

 It is hard to know in this day and age, as records are not going to state such things, but you can guess at what a local court would rule against a man in their village with such high standing, against a boy with such low standing.

After the trial of the Baron, strange events began to occur in his castle. Kitchen staff would tidy their kitchen, and ready it for the morning, only to find in the morning, the kitchen to be messy again, and, if they didn't clean it, the next morning it would be clean!

Other stories of an “unseen” person taking hot ashes from the stove fires, and placing them on the ground, then laying on them, and leaving a body imprint in the hot ashes are also told.

Chamber pots around the castle would be upturned, spilling their contents onto the floors.

Intrigued as to what was going on, legend has it that one of the kitchen staff stayed up one night in the kitchen, awaiting the phantom causing so much trouble. He saw the ghost of a young naked boy enter the room, crying to himself “I'm Cauld" (I am cold ).

The next night, the kitchen staff left an old cloak in the kitchen for the naked boy ghost. It is said a voice was heard through the castle,
“Here's a cloak and here's a hood, the Cauld Lad of Hylton will do no more good”.

It is said that after the voice was heard, the mysterious ghostly goings-on at the castle came to a halt.

Or did it?

To this day, people speak of hearing a young boy's hallowed cries within the castle walls, eerily coming from nowhere, but seemingly from everywhere....does Robert still haunt the old ruins, seeking the justice that was never served for his death?

What do you think?

Comment below!

Researched and Written by

Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au
© 2012

As a supplement to the above story, here is a little production out of England about 

"The Cauld Lad of Hylton"