Old Goolwa Police Station and Court House

The Goolwa Police Station was erected in 1859. It was designed by Colonial Architect E.A. Hamilton. The police station had its own water supply, via a well. In 1867 the courthouse was erected next door, and in 1874 a store for Aboriginals was built alongside it.[1]

The Goolwa Police Station was closed in 1993 when a new purpose-built police station was opened. At the time the Goolwa Police Station was the oldest operating police station in Australia.[2]

 

Goolwa Radio Alex FM run a local ghost tour every Halloween. That ghost tour takes in the old Goolwa Police Station and courthouse complex which is now the SA Coast Regional Arts Centre. During one of many tours, a person on the tour snapped a photograph of the front of the building which shows what looks to be a person looking out at them. It is claimed that no one was inside the building at the time the photograph was taken.

“The photo below was taken on a previous Ghost Tour outside the Old Police Station. Witnesses at the event insist there was no one in the doorway when the photo was taken! The figure is thought to be that of a Police Constable who drowned at the Murray Mouth in 1880.” – Radio Goolwa Alex FM[3]

Researched and written by Allen Tiller © 2023

[1] Department for Environment and Heritage, ‘Police Station & Courthouse and Outbuildings’, Government of South Australia, (2012), https://cdn.environment.sa.gov.au/environment/docs/goolwa_police.pdf.
[2] 'Force defends station', Times, (25 June 1993), p. 1.
[3] Goolwa Historic Ghost Walk’, Pet Let, (2021), https://petlet.net.au/goolwa-historic-ghost-walk/

The Adelaide Ghosts & Ghouls Walking Tour

The Adelaide Ghosts & Ghouls Walking Tour

The Adelaide Ghosts and Ghouls Walking Tour explores the stories behind Adelaide’s alleged hauntings and crimes, while shedding light on some our city’s more chilling history. The tour is a collaboration between paranormal investigator Allen Tiller, sound recordist Anthony Frith, and Adelaide City Libraries. It was designed and developed based on research from Allen’s history residency at the libraries in 2016, along with a range of ghost stories brought forward via public consultation sessions.

You can download the tour here, and guide yourself any time of the day or night!

https://www.cityofadelaide.com.au/explore-the-city/visit-adelaide/maps-trails-and-guides/adelaide-ghosts-and-ghouls-walking-tour/

Follow on facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/AdelaideGhosts/

Tour locations

A surprise stop on the tour launch night, when Allen Tiller threw in an extra talk about the ghost that allegedly haunts the former channel 9 studios on Tynte Street

The Adelaide Arcade

St Peter and Paul's Cathedral North Adelaide

Contagious Behaviour

Contagious Behaviour

When Karen and I led ghost tours through the North Kapunda Hotel, we set up the tour to be an experience for our guests, not just "another tour".
The idea was to slowly build anticipation for the finale of the tour, The Hallway to Hell. We did this by starting slowly with the history of the town, then some ghost stories, a short video from Haunting Australia, then a walk around the town telling ghost stories.

We were priming our audience intentionally (and sometimes unintentionally), getting them hyped for their experience and for the finale. We wanted everyone to have a good time, get value for money, learn some history about Kapunda and hopefully see a ghost, or at least have some kind of “Personal Experience”.

More often than not, people would come away with at least one personal experience, or an experience they personally attributed to the paranormal.

What we noticed during our two years as tour guides was that the smaller the group, the less likely a “paranormal experience” was to happen. The tour didn’t change, we delivered our information with the same passion and high standards we set for ourselves each week, but for some reason the fewer in the tour group, the less “paranormal activity” felt on the tour.

I now believe what we were experiencing was a form of contagious behaviour. Perhaps this explanation via anomalistic psychology accounts for the higher number of anomalies during tours, or public “ghost hunt” events that are actually personal experiences and NOT genuinely “paranormal” in origin?

What is contagious behaviour?

Contagious behaviour is a type of social influence. The most common form is yawning. See someone else yawn, and more often than not, you will do the same, some of you may even be yawning as you read the word 'yawn' or think about someone else yawning!

Other contagious behaviours can include: smiling, laughing, rudeness, happiness, shivering, fear, anxiety and even risk-taking!

Contagious behaviour is seen within the demographics of protests quite often, when one person begins to punch/kick/ or struggle against authority, their behaviour can lead to others doing the same, and before you know it, you have a riot on your hands!

 In a situation like a ghost tour, it is a little bit different. As the person leading the tour, you are seen as an authority on the subject, so when, as a paranormal investigator,  you tell your own ghost stories, it adds credibility to the experience. When you speak about others experiences and paranormal events that have happened on previous tours, you begin to prime the audience for their own paranormal experience.

 In some guests, you're installing fear, or bringing out subconscious fears. That fear is contagious, and the people around that person will begin to react to it, some will challenge the fear, (the fighters), others will embrace it and become fearful as well (the flee-ers) – their natural “fight or flight” instinct is working away deep in their subconscious. The more people you have on the tour (especially if they are known to each other), the more this fearful energy travels through the group – and as they are there to feel/see/hear a ghost, and are not aware of the many natural explanations (xenonormal) for sounds, smells, etc,  more often than not, they will come away with a ghost story or experience…

…This, of course, lends to the next tour, as they go tell their friends about their ghostly experience, so the friend is pre-primed before they’ve even done the tour!
 It also adds to the mystique of the location, and to the spreading of urban legend…and so, what was once just another pub like any other, becomes a legendary haunted location with portals to the ghost realm!

So, next time you are on a ghost tour, have a look around at the people you are with, and see who is scared the most, then watch to see if those around them begin to get frightened too.

Thanks for reading – want to comment or ask a question, do so in the box below, or visit the Haunts of Adelaide on Facebook and find this post.

Bibliography

Ogunlade, J. O. (1979). Personality characteristics related to susceptibility to behavioural contagion. Social Behavior and Personality: an International Journal, 7(2), 205.

Holt N & Simmonds-Moore C & Luke D & French C, 2012, Anomalistic Psychology (Palgrave Insights in Psychology). Palgrave Macmillan

Nicola Holt, Christine Simmonds-Moore, David Luke, Christopher French. (2012). Anomalistic Psychology (Palgrave Insights in Psychology). Palgrave Macmillan

Ghosts of the Port Walking Tour

  For some months now, my wife Karen and I have been working on a project for the City of Port Adelaide Enfield Council, a spooky ghost tour. The aim is get people back to the Port, hear some spooky stories, and learn some of the history of this amazing South Australian historical location.

 The following is from the  City of Port Adelaide Enfields Councils Website:

 Port Adelaide has a long and storied history, rich with intrigue, mystery and ghost stories.
The City of PAE has developed ‘Ghosts of the Port, a’ self-guided walking tour, researched and written by Australia’s most recognised paranormal investigator Allen Tiller.

Allen is the star of Syfy’s hit TV show, Haunting: Australia. He has been investigating the paranormal for over ten years right across Australia and is known for his unique and historically

factual approach to ghost hunting.
The guide includes a detailed history of 13 different haunted locations across the Port and their ghosts, including the Civic Precinct, local pubs, Lipson Street, the Lighthouse and more.
Allen has also created three short videos on key haunted locations in the Port which we will be sharing in the coming days. Today, learn all about the opera singing ghost in the old police cells which is now the Visitor Information Centre.

Why not head along to the haunted Visitor Information Centre during opening hours to pick up your free map and guide book, then go for a walk to investigate the ghosts of the Port for yourself! View the map here www.portenf.sa.gov.au/page.aspx?c=51325

So if you're into Spooky Things, the paranormal or just like to take a walk with a difference, this is the tour for you - and best of all, it's free!
 Just head on down to Port Adelaide during business hours and pick up a "ghosts of the Port Walking Tour booklet from the Port Adelaide Visitor Information Centre and go for a spooky walk about the Port, read about a Guardian Angel, A ghostly Madame, spirits of children...and learn what "crimping: is!!

See the first of three videos associate with the tour by clicking the link below.
https://web.facebook.com/CityOfPAE/videos/265696573828124/

I'd just like to take a moment to acknowledge all the people who assisted with the research of the tour, and with filming/photography and "being a ghost" for the Ghosts of the Port Walking Tour:

City of Port Adelaide Enfield Council
Port Adelaide Visitor Information Centre
The State Library of South Australia
The National Library of Australia
Port Adelaide Historical Society Incorporated
Lyon Paranormal
Paranormal Spectrum

Ed Garner, Anne Mitchell & Local History Officer at the Port Adelaide Library, Meredith Blundell

Karen Tiller for being my Camerawoman, sound lady, makeup and collaborator!
Marilyn Hicks for amazingly valuable information and stories!
James Levett Photography for the associated photo shoot :)

Lorena and Dave Lyon, Lyn Mallet, Pavle Tipic, Joanne French, James Levett. Darren Davies, Karina Eames, James Larsen and The Tea Tree Gully Heritage Museum.
A big thank you to each and every one of you.
(apologies if I've forgotten anyone)
Allen Tiller

The Legacy of Sir Sidney Kidman

The Legacy of Sir Sidney Kidman

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the death of Sir Sidney Kidman
(1857), once Australia's wealthiest man, and largest property owner, who conducted the worlds largest horse sale at the rear of the North Kapunda Hotel.
Kidman never swore, and instead would say "Jolly Tinkers" in the place of swears...

We thought it prudent to share some of the charities that Sir SIdney and Lady Isabel Kidman distributed their wealth too over their lifetimes, and after Sir Kidmans Death
May their legacy inspire and their memory live on....
The Will of Sir Sidney Kidman
Upon the anniversary of the death of Sir Sidney Kidman, here is a list of the benefactors of his generosity, in life, and also in death
During the First World War Sir Kidman donated 3 Ambulances, 2 Fighter Planes, 200 Horses, wool and meat for the Australian troops. He also promised all his workers who served, a job upon their return. His donations also extended to wives who lost their husband in war.
Donations were made to the Salvation Army and the Red Cross – and also the Royal Flying Doctors.
The Kidmans also donated their house and estate in Kapunda, “Eringa” to the education department in 1920 – to this day the grounds are still the Kapunda High School, with the old Manse the front office.
From Sir Kidmans Last Will and Testament:
£500 Salvation Army Adelaide
£500 Home for Incurables, Fullarton
(Adjusted for inflation this is equivalent to about $45,000 today)
£250 Minda Home
£250 Adelaide's Children Hospital
£250 The Institution for the Blind – Brighton
£250 The Protestant Children's Home
£250 The Royal Institute for the Blind at North Adelaide
£250 The Australian Inland Mission
£250 The Adelaide Benevolent and Strangers Fund
£250 The Queens Maternity Home
£250 The Adelaide Hospital
(Adjusted for inflation this is equivalent to about $22,792.68 today)
£150 Methodist Children’s Home at Magill
£150 The Angorichina Hospital for Tubercular Soldiers.
£150 The Adelaide Central Mission
(Adjusted for inflation this is equivalent to about 13,675.61 today)
£100 Kapunda Congregational Church
£100 The Kapunda Hospital
£100 The Orphan Home at Mitcham
£100 The Courthouse for Invalid children and Aged People
(Adjusted for inflation this is equivalent to about $9,117.07today)
£15,000 was distributed between old employees of Sir Kidman
(Adjusted for inflation this is equivalent to about $1,367,560.85 today)
Written by Allen Tiller
Calculations made via: http://www.rba.gov.au/calculator/annualPreDecimal.html

Subterranean Adelaide Part Three - The Treasury Building Tunnels

Subterranean Adelaide Part Three

The Treasury Building Tunnels

 The Treasury Building of Adelaide was first constructed in 1839, and small parts of the original building can still be seen in the edifice that stands today, although remodelling over the years has hidden much of it.

Over following decades, and especially from 1858 to 1876, construction took the building to new heights, and new lows, with long rumoured tunnels, which are now no longer a secret.

For more than 150 years the Old Treasury building provided offices and administration buildings for multiple Government agencies including The Governor, The Register General and the Land Office and the Colonial Secretary.

The building also features the treasury vaults, which during the gold rush in Victoria in 1852/1853, was where gold from interstate deposits was stored safely. Nearly 13 tonnes of gold was sheltered in the tunnels in 1853.

The tunnels underneath the building were actually a mishmash of various basements built during the buildings various remodelling and rebuilding periods over 150 years. The tunnels were interconnected with walkway tunnels to make it easier to move gold and important documents around between departments with more ease.

It has been a long-held belief within the Adelaide urbex explorer community that there were furnaces installed in the basement area to smelt gold, but this is, in fact, a myth. The two furnaces that are installed in the basement are not large enough to provide the required heat to smelt gold. It is thought they were installed to help with lithographic processing for the production of maps for the above survey office.

There is evidence that smelters were installed on a ground floor level to produce smelted gold, but these have long since been removed from the site.

The “newest” tunnel was built in around 1907 to join the eastern basement built in 1867 with the new northern printing rooms built under the north wing.

Presently the tunnels are used during various festivals to display artworks or for other social events. They can be accessed via tours held by the National Trust.

© 2015 Allen Tiller

Grisly Gawler - Part II - Fatal Tiger Attack

Grisly Gawler – Part II

FATAL TIGER ATTACK

On the 17th of June 1898, the Bunyip Newspaper in Gawler, South Australia reported a “sensational incident” that occurred at a circus event held in Gawler South, by travelling Circus “Harmston”.

The newspaper reported that on Saturday the 11th of June, the Harmston Circus had put on a great show, but at its closing act “Gomez” ( John Issac) the Tiger trainer, entered the tiger cage to put the Tigers through the finale escapades of the Circus event.

As Gomez finished the act and turned his back on the tiger to leave, it pounced on the South African trainer, and sunk its teeth into his neck just under the back of his head.
 The tiger carried Gomez over the division of the gate, possibly with the intention of pulling its prey to pieces and feasting on his meat.
The crowd, not knowing if this was part of the act or not, reacted slowly to the Tigers mauling, but soon blood was spotted by the crowd, they realised this was not part of the act.
Fear and confusion reigned, and the crows ran for the exits, some jumping over the wall surrounding the seating to make a hastier escape. Whilst this was happening, a group of circus attendants began to beat the tiger with sticks to try and free Gomez, who was still caught within the animal's jaws.

The attendants beat the tiger relentlessly to distract it to drop Gomez. The tiger gave in, dropping its prey on the ground and retreating from its attackers. Gomez, bleeding profusely, stood and walked out the door, but was soon overcome by his extensive injuries, and collapsed. He was immediately taken to Dr Dawes surgery where the good Doctor did all he could to stop the bleeding and ease the man's pain.
On Monday. Gomez had recovered enough to be taken to the Adelaide Hospital, but by Tuesday his condition worsened, and at 5pm on Tuesday the 14th of June 1898 he passed away.



Mr Love, the sole lessee of the show, offered his condolences for Gomez and talked of him being a man of excellent character and kindness.
However, when questioned upon the safety aspect of how the tiger act was run, he lay much of the blame on the head of the young, now dead, tiger trainer.
He stated that Gomez had not taken the necessary precautions which had been put in place by the circus, and had gone into the cage with only a small whip, which only antagonised the tiger. Staff outside had metal forks and a pistol if anything bad occurred, and they had seen to the tiger being beaten away from the trainer.

 Mr Love pointed out one thing, that above all other things took the blame away from himself and the Circus, Gomez had not lit the fire which sat above the gate – in his words “an unprecedented act”. He stated “ the animal was cunning enough to see that it had the advantage. The brute was well used to Isaac's attention, for he had been its regular warder for the past twenty months, and had performed with it as many as nine times a week”



An inquest was opened into the death of John “Gomez” Issacs, and it was noted by Dr Morris of Adelaide Hospital, that he entered the hospital on the Monday in a very fearful state, and also in a severe state of shock.
 His injuries included a two-inch puncture wound on the left side of his neck, with two smaller punctures also on that side. He also had two puncture wounds on the right side of his neck. He had lost all movement in his left arm. The wounds had already become inflamed, which the Doctor stated, was akin to being poisoned and his breathing was considerably affected by the strain.
A post-mortem examination was concluded. It found one of the wounds had penetrated his spine, breaking the vertebrates, and the base of his spine was inflamed as well as the membranes of his spinal cord.

The Tiger:

“Duke” was the tiger's name, an 8-year-old native of Japan, who was sired by “Bromo” and “Kitty”, two tigers that had found a home with the Mikado.
Duke was a twin, his brother remained with the Mikado in Japan and became an attraction at the Royal Gardens at Uno Park Tokyo.
Duke was five years old when he was trained to appear in public, and in his three years as a circus Tiger, he had had five trainers. His first a Mexican, second a Chinaman and his third an Australia. The second and third men were both mauled by two jungle tigers, and were subsequently replaced.
The fourth trainer, a Singapore native, was recently training Duke, when the Tiger attacked and broke his jaw, through a “sever crushing”. Gomez, the fifth trainer, had only just stepped into the job, and believe it or not, the previous trainer from Singapore, was one of the first to rush into the cage to try and save Gomez from Duke!


Duke was not euthanised, he continued on with the Circus...and another trainer...


Researched and written by Allen Tiller ©2014