The Old Spot Hotel: The Ghosts of Gawler, Part Three

The Old Spot Hotel

The Ghosts of Gawler Part Three

Gawler's oldest hotel, The Old Spot Hotel was known as the “Golden Fleece Hotel” when it first opened its doors on April 1^st 1840 (and has now returned to its original name).

It originally consisted of a one-room hut, a bedroom and a tent, and was Gawler's very first building.

A drawing of the Hotel in 1845

It saw three distinct rebuilds over the years, from being two rooms and a tent into a single-story structure featuring a billiard room (which still stands today).
In 1903 the hotel was rebuilt as a two-story structure. In 2012, new building works began, where shops on the northern side of the hotel were demolished to make way for a reworking of the hotel and its surrounds.

The original publican was one David Scheibener, who eventually saw the inside of the Adelaide Gaol for money owing to Francis Dutton, the hotel was then sold on to its next proprietor.

In its early days, the back section of the hotel was also used as Gawler's first morgue until the construction of better facilities on Todd Street.

The Old Spot in 1890

The Hotel has seen a number of deaths inside its walls. In 1868, Charles Donaldson a 35-year-old local passed away in the hotel.

In 1889, a serious accident occurred directly in front of the hotel when an 8-year-old boy hitched a ride on the horse-drawn tram which ran the middle of Gawler's main street.
 The boy jumped on the back of the tram, but was spotted by the guard and told to get off.
 He jumped off without looking and landed under the hooves of horses pulling a cart. The wheels of the cart ran over his head, crushing it.
The boy's father, working just across the intersection witnessed the grisly accident. A pool of blood sat on the road, near the entrance of the hotel until late the next day.

A horse-drawn tram in 1915 - Old Spot Hotel in the background

The most notable of all ghost stories associated with the pub has been from much more recent times, in approximately 1993, Scott Pearson, a professional photographer took a photo in the hotel that showed three distinct images, thought to be spirits that were haunting the hotel.

The hotel had just had renovations completed and a number of patrons and staff had started to see apparitions of a small girl and older gentlemen. Noises were being heard, voices, and other strange phenomena.

Mr Pearson stayed overnight in the hotel, and set his camera up, taking many photos during the night, only one photo showed anything of interest. You can find the photograph at http://www.castleofspirits.com/website/old/Australianghosthunters/oldspothotel.html and decide for yourself if you think Mr Pearson did indeed capture something paranormal.

© 2013 Allen Tiller

 www.eidolonparanormal.com.au

Spring-Heeled Stephen - The Ghosts of Gawler: Part One

Spring-Heeled Stephen

The Ghosts of Gawler - Part 1

In 1941 Gawler, Angaston, and the Gawler River area were under the intimidation of a particularly violent ghost, who was making itself known to young women and children.

Making his first appearance at Gawler River in a lonely farmhouse, the ghost “played spooks” around the outhouses of the farm until he awoke a young farmhand who chased him down and threatened to hit him.

 The ghost duly melted away into the night, but he returned later and was found in the house after a number of children awoke screaming that they had seen a ghost in the room.

 The ghost jumped through a window to make his escape!

Spring-heeled Stephen's next haunting was at parkland's in Willaston, just north of Gawler, where he chose to attack more young ladies who were out enjoying the evening. Reports of his ghostly attacks grew, and soon the young ladies of Gawler and Willaston were too afraid to go out at night.

The ghost soon appeared at another well known haunted location, the Old Spot Hotel in Gawler's main street (now the Golden Fleece Hotel). 

A young lad, who was sleeping in his cot outside on the balcony, was seized by the ghost and violently dragged out of bed. The boy, yelling and fighting woke his father, who looked for the attacker but found nothing.

Don Liddy, then owner of the Old Spot, released his Alsatian dog.

  The dog tried to track the ghost, but to no avail, he seemed to have disappeared into the night. Later the same evening, the ghost returned once again and was seen peering in the bedroom windows of the Hotel.

Spring-heeled Stephen made many appearances around Gawler in 1941 but faded in oblivion not much later...

© 2013 Allen Tiller

www.eidolonparanormal.com.au