A Haunting Near Pinery
Between the months of
June and September 1904, a ghostly apparition haunted the people of Pinery,
Balaklava and Owen on the Adelaide Plains. The ghost made its first appearance
near Pinery in June, when it appeared on the side of the road to a passing
cyclist.
A cyclist was riding
along a road into Pinery when he noticed a light in the distance. Thinking it
might be a vehicle, maybe a horse and cart with oil light, he slowed down and moved
to the side of the road to let it pass. He soon noticed the light had become
stationary.
The cyclist thought it peculiar, so
started cycling at a quicker rate. The light ahead did not seem to get any
nearer, so he pedalled as fast as he could, only to have the light keep the same
distance ahead of him. When he slowed down, the light slowed down too.
Curious and frightened, the cyclist
pushed forward towards Pinery. The light stayed at the same distance, but as the
cyclist rounded a bend, the light moved off to the side into a field, and he
safely passed it. The cyclist looked back once, to see the light was stationary
again, and then hastily road back to his home.
The ghosts second appearance occurred the same month, on the
same road to another cyclist.
Mr Bennett was riding his pushbike home
to Pinery from Balaklava one evening just after sunset. As he passed a derelict
old home that, at the time, was frequented by tramps. He heard a very sharp whistle. Alarmed, but curious he rode a little further
and came across a ghost. Startled by the apparition, Bennett fell from his bike
onto the pebbled side of the road. Keeping his senses after his fall, Bennett
picked up as many stones as he could, and got to his feet. He then bravely confronted
the ghost, throwing stones at its head.
Bennett pelted the ghost with stones,
then with all the strength he could muster, charged it and began punching at it...
The ghost let out a howl of pain. Bennett took the ghost to the ground, and
pulled its melon head, white sheets and lights from its body.
From a neighbouring house, people came
running to see what the commotion was, which distracted Bennett just long
enough for the ghost to break free, and run off into a wheat field, with its
identity intact as Bennett had not been able to see exactly who it was in the
dark.
In July, A gentleman and his wife were riding in their horse
and buggy when the ghost appeared on the side of the road. It ran at the buggy with
its white arms flailing in the air. The horses reared and the buggy turned sharply
sideways. The gentleman’s wife almost flew out the side of the buggy as it
threatened to capsize on the couple. The gentleman grabbed at his wife, and
only just saved her from death. He quickly pulled the reigns, calmed his
horses, and his wife, then turned his attention to the ghost, which was still
standing on the side of the road, taking in the spectacle of the near-death it
had just inspired.
As soon as the ghost realised that the gentleman was coming towards it, it swiftly turned, and with a flick of its
sheets and ran off into the shadow world of the scrub.
The community in the Adelaide Plains, at first were fearful
of the ghost, with many women and children afraid to go outside at night, lest
they should meet the ghost. That fear soon turned to anger and after three
months of terror, menfolk were willing to grab their guns and go shoot the
ghost. There were calls in the community for the ghost to be caught and given a
good horsewhipping… but the Pinery ghost soon vanished, whether it was afraid of
being shot or of being horsewhipped, no-one but the ghost knows, but it was never seen again and soon became a distant ghost of the past.
Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2019
Bibliography
1904 'CORRESPONDENCE.', The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA :
1889 - 1931), 15 June, p. 9. , viewed 22 Apr 2019,
http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article4978761
