Description: n 1832, Sydney opened Australia’s first quarantine station at North Head, just south of Manly. Ships carrying immigrants from all over the world were made to anchor in Spring Cove and inspected for diseases such as Smallpox, Spanish Influenza, Tuberculosis, Bubonic Plague and Cholera.
If anyone was found to be infected the entire ship was quarantined for a minimum of 30 days, at the cost of the shipping company. Many of these people were subjected to miserable and overcrowded conditions and endured horrific and degrading treatment. Hundreds died and were buried under the cover of night in unmarked graves without their loved ones to say goodbye.
It’s not surprising that North Head Quarantine Station is reputed to be one of Australia’s most haunted locations. Its dark and depressing history has no doubt spurred plenty of imaginations. A man with a long moustache in a three-piece suit, a very stern matron and an old Asian man with a long plait are just some of the ghostly apparitions said to be wandering the station grounds. Both staff and visitors have reported waves of sudden nausea, putrid and inexplicable smells and a general feeling of uneasiness when entering certain buildings at the station. Some people claim to have been pushed by an unseen force.
All of these stories and more are told on the station’s ghost tours which are held on Wednesday, Friday Saturday and Sunday nights. The cost varies depending on which night you go and a light supper of tea or coffee and damper is included at the end of the tour. A children’s ghost tour is held every Friday night and there is also a daytime heritage tour on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons.
More info here |
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