Monte Cristo Ghosts
Reg admits to quite often feeling the presence of others, especially in the Drawing Room, but has never gotten a bad feeling or had a bad experience with the ghosts of Monte Cristo himself. The ghosts certainly do like Reg and his family and have never caused them any distress or harm over the many years that they have lived at Monte Cristo.
Monte Cristo is in more recent years becoming a favourite location for ghost hunters from all over Australia. Over the years there have been countless reports of paranormal activity in the house and surrounding grounds.
Mrs. Crawley is said to be the most dominant ghost of Monte Cristo. It seems that she is very particular about what goes on in 'her' house and will make attempts to unsettle unwanted guests. She has been known to order people out of the Dining Room and has been seen several times in the Chapel, wearing black and carrying a large silver cross. Mr. Crawley is usually seen in the hallway but appears less often than his wife.
An apparition of a young woman in period dress has been seen gliding slowly along the front balcony. A pregnant maid jumped to her death from this very spot. The bloodstained steps below were cleaned with bleach, but to this day, you can still see the discolorations.
The second floor of the house has witnesses at least three deaths. A young woman died after a particularly long and tortuous labor, and Christopher Crawley himself died in what is now known as the boys' bedroom. Sad faces are often seen staring in through the second-story windows even though there is no balcony outside.
The atmosphere surrounding the staircase is one of the most disturbing in the whole house. This is less surprising when you learn that the Crawley's baby girl was dropped from her nanny's arms down the stairs to her death. The horrified nanny claimed that the baby had been pushed out of her arms by an unseen force. Today many young children become extremely frightened and agitated when in the vicinity of the stairs. Several children have suffered asthma attacks when on or near the stairs.
Outside the house, the forlorn figure of a vulnerable young boy is often seen loitering in the vicinity of the coach house. This was the scene of the tragic death of a stable hand named Morris, who slept in the stables but was too ill to get up for work one day. His boss did not believe him and set fire to his bedding. Poor Morris was too sick to escape and burned to death where he lay.
The most recent tragedy happened in 1961, after a local youth had watched repeated showings of the movie Psycho. Late at night he crept up to the grounds of the homestead carrying his rifle and shot dead the caretaker. To this day you can see the words "Die Jack Ha Ha" inscribed in a macabre scrawl on the wooden door of the caretakers cottage.
Monte Cristo is visited annually by well over 100 ghost hunters per year, it is one of the most popular Ghost Haunts in Australia today. Owners Reg Ryan, his wife and family welcome ghost hunters and those interested in Paranormal Research. They have a collection of ghostly photographs that have been taken at the house over the years and are always on the hunt for more.
Monte CristoMonte Cristo Ghosts
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