Could this be the most haunted house in Australia?

Time for a Halloween ghost story – are you feeling brave?

Let’s step inside a house that some say is haunted – though no-one knows what actually went on inside its four walls.

At first glance, Gerard Street, Gladesville, is just like any other Sydney street. Quiet. Lined with brick heritage* buildings. A normal Sydney street – if it weren’t for the ghosts.

Rumours of ghost stories have swirled around Gerard Street since April 1980, when the now-out-of-print Sydney newspaper The Sun ran an alarming front page headline. “FAMILY FLEE GHOST HOUSE.”

Paranormal* investigators Lorraine and Ed Warren had visited the house the night before. The owners had reached out to the investigators, convinced their home was haunted.

The Warrens and sceptical cadet* journalist Jacquie Thompson spent the night at the house – and compared it to a home in a horror film.

The Warrens told the young Sydney family to “Just leave now” – and the family promptly packed their bags and moved.

Author James Phelps recently revisited the home for his new book Australian Ghost Stories.

The former journalist investigated the house with a sceptical eye, determined to get to the bottom of things. What he found left him with goosebumps.

He spoke with a woman who once lived in the house for a short period of time. She said she knew nothing of the home’s haunted history, yet she had still felt something was not right.

“At first I heard things from the others (her roommates). They spoke about all these strange things happening,” she said.

Over time, she claimed to have seen things fly across the room, heard loud noises and felt a presence in front of her.

STONINGTON MANSION – MELBOURNE
If you thought Gerard St was scary, how about a visit to Stonington Mansion in the Melbourne suburb of Malvern?

A spirit has been rumoured to haunt its halls for almost a century – but this ghost is thought to be friendly.

The ghost is believed to be the son of then-Governor George Rous, the third Earl of Stradbroke, Christopher Rous, who sadly died of leukaemia at age nine, and was buried on the grounds of the mansion for about a year, before his remains were transported back to England with his family in 1926.

According to the Heritage Council of Victoria, Stonington Mansion was built in 1890 and served as the residence of Victoria’s Governors from 1901-1931. It sold in 2018 for $52.5 million, making it Melbourne’s most expensive property at the time.

NEWSTEAD HOUSE, BREAKFAST CREEK RD, BRISBANE
Brisbane’s oldest surviving house is also, unsurprisingly, home to some of the most legendary ghost stories in Queensland.

Though built in 1847 for Scottish settlers Patrick and Catherine Leslie, the house is better known for its connections to John Clements Wickham, an explorer, police magistrate and government resident.

Nothing particularly sinister* seemed to happen to the family, who were known for hosting fancy parties, but after their departure*, spooky stories emerged about the ghost of a young lady wearing a pink period* dress, thought to be the nanny of the children.

The woman is said to appear in the children’s former bedrooms, where she moves objects, plays chess and causes the curtains to blow about – even when all of the windows are closed.

There are also reports of “cold spots”, “feelings of being watched” and a man under the north veranda, at least according to online supernatural resource, Shadowlands.

KIPPAX STREET, SURRY HILLS
Did you know that Kids News HQ is just a few nervous footsteps from a Sydney terrace house featured in Lonely Planet’s Atlas of Monsters and Ghosts? The Surry Hills ghost is the home’s old owner, who plays tricks on those who cross the threshold.

According to her entry in the international collection of famous ghosts and ghouls, she enjoys “slamming windows, ruining the furniture and screeching” – hmmm, that sounds like most Halloween-loving kids we know too!

They say it’s just company she’s looking for – there is no reason to be afraid.

HISTORY OF HALLOWEEN
Next time your parents tell you Halloween is “such an American thing,” they may find it interesting to know the spooky celebration actually stems from Ireland.

University of Sydney School of Humanities Professor Carole Cusack said the modern celebration of Halloween dated back to the 1840s, when Irish immigrants fleeing the potato famine moved to America.

“The Irish brought folk customs including the creation of jack-o’-lanterns” Prof Cusack said. “Trick-or-treating, dressing up in costume (as witches, ghosts etc) and rapping at doors requesting gifts (usually lollies, what Americans call candy), is known from Scottish and Irish folklore.”

Halloween is also known as “All Hallows Eve, the night before the Christian festival of All Hallows’ Day or All Saints’ Day*,” she said.

Before Christianity was introduced to Ireland, Halloween stemmed from “the Irish Pagan* festival Samhain.” This celebrated “the dark half” of the year, or the coming of the colder months and was similar to New Year’s Eve.

“Cattle were slaughtered and eaten, as not all stock could be kept alive during the winter months,” she said. “This was in the form of sacrifices. Divination* and its auguries* for what would happen in the year to come was also an important part. Many strange tales are told of events that happen at Samhain.”

While trick or treating can be a fun way to celebrate Halloween, please remember to consider the environmental impact of fake spider webs (see the top story in Extra Reading below), which can entangle small birds and other native species – and try to limit yourself to eating just a few sweets for the sake of your teeth.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• heritage: buildings of historical importance that are maintained to keep their old fashioned character
• paranormal: beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding
• cadet: trainee
• sinister: nasty or evil
• departure: passing away
• period: old fashioned, belonging to a particular timeframe
• All Saints’ Day: a day commemorating all the saints of the Christian church who have attained heaven
• Pagan: a religion worshipping many gods, or one that existed before the main world religions such as Christianity
• Divination: the practice of seeking knowledge of the future or the unknown using supernatural means
• auguries: omens or signs of what will happen in the future

EXTRA READING
Sad reality of common Halloween decoration
Halloween fans ready for spooky spree
Halloween’s hidden history

QUICK QUIZ
1. In which Sydney suburb is the Gerard St “haunted house”?
2. Which strange paranormal phenomenon have been experienced in the Gerard St house?
3. How long has Stonington Mansion in Melbourne been rumoured to have been haunted?
4. Which country does Halloween originate from?
5. What is the name of the pagan festival it stems from?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Write a spooky story
“Let’s step inside a classroom that some say is haunted.”

Write a spooky story that starts with this sentence.

Time: allow at least 30 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

2. Extension
Can you think of any other explanations for the ghostly events that you have read about in the story? Write them down.

Time: allow at least 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Wow word recycle
There are plenty of wow words (ambitious pieces of vocabulary) being used in the article. Some are in the glossary, but there might be extra ones from the article that you think are exceptional as well.

Identify all the words in the article that you think are not common words, and particularly good choices for the writer to have chosen.

Select three words you have highlighted to recycle into your own sentences.

If any of the words you identified are not in the glossary, write up your own glossary for them.

Extension
Find a bland sentence from the article to up-level. Can you add more detail and description? Can you replace any base words with more specific synonyms?

Down-level for a younger audience. Find a sentence in the article that is high level. Now rewrite it for a younger audience so they can understand the words without using the glossary.