 |
| The Eastern Station Hotel |
The hotel is currently being restored to its original 1862 style, with added steampunk, or industrial-style, features to become Ballarat's latest tourist attraction.
New leasee Adam Wynne-Jenkins said the pub had several ghosts, including a two-year-old boy who drowned in a gold rush mining puddle and original owner Thomas Redshaw Hunt, who is usually preceded by a strong tobacco smell.
There are also English mother and daughter ghosts Maggie, 35, and Sarah, 12, who arrived in Ballarat by train straight off the boat, walked to the Eastern Station, went to their room and promptly died from yellow fever, along with an Irish man who was stabbed in the back in the hotel's kitchen in 1915 by a love rival.
The final two are indigenous caretakers.
"Mr Hunt has been particularly active lately but ghosts do become more active when you start doing renovations," Mr Wynne-Jenkins said.
"If you stay upstairs, there's lots of paranormal activity. We think this is Australia's most haunted hotel."
Manager Christine Crawshaw said she often went to serve a patron, only to discover it was Mr Hunt's ghost, and said she often found the kitchen's vibes particularly chilling due to the brutal murder of the former World War One soldier.
 |
| Staff and customers in the late 1930`s |
Mr Wynne-Jenkins said the Humffray Street hotel's renovations began a week ago."Ghosts do become more active when you start doing renovations" he added.
"We're putting the old front back on and restoring the dining room, ballroom, parlour, kitchen and accommodation areas.
"Parts of Ballarat's early history are also being incorporated into the renovations, along with original Beechworth Jail doors, including the one belonging to Ned Kelly's cell and the other from the death row cell."
It is hoped the renovations will be completed within 18 months.
The hotel is currently open Wednesday to Sunday, 5pm to 11pm, but will be open seven days shortly.
Meals will also soon be available, along with the haunted accommodation.
Source: TheCourierAus
