The Haunted Monte Cristo Homestead
In the heart of Junee, nestled between Sydney and Melbourne, lies the Monte Cristo Homestead – a place that has earned the reputation of being Australia’s most haunted house.
The history of this eerie residence dates back to 1885 when Christopher William Crawley, a wealthy farmer and founder of Junee, built the homestead for his family. Despite the initial struggles, Crawley’s fortune changed when the Great Southern Railway Line opened in 1878, and he established a successful hotel along the rail line.
However, the Crawley family’s story took a dark turn following Christopher’s death in 1910. His wife, Elizabeth, became a recluse, confining herself to the attic chapel for the next 23 years.
After the last Crawley left in 1948, the house fell into disrepair until Reginald and Olivia Ryan purchased it in 1963, transforming it into a doll museum. It was then that the true extent of the homestead’s haunting became apparent.
The Ryans reported numerous supernatural occurrences, including ghostly lights, the inexplicable deaths of their animals, and the presence of at least ten ghosts.
Among these spirits are Christopher and Elizabeth Crawley, a pregnant maid who jumped to her death from the balcony, Harold – a disabled boy chained in the coach room, Morris – a stable boy who died in a fire, Ethel – an infant who died on the stairs, and Jack Simpson – a caretaker shot to death on the porch in 1960.
Visitors to the Monte Cristo Homestead have experienced a range of paranormal phenomena, from feeling icy hands on the stairs to hearing the screams of the deceased. The bloodstains of the pregnant maid are said to reappear on the steps, and children become inexplicably agitated when entering certain areas of the house.
The haunting of Monte Cristo Homestead has solidified its status as one of the most terrifying and intriguing paranormal locations in Australia, drawing in those brave enough to explore its dark history.
Is the most haunted house in Australia located in New South Wales?
Can a change of fortune change the soul of a person?
Does the ghost of a boy still scream for help as he did in life?
What is up, Bizarros?! This week, we dive into the haunted Monte Cristo Homestead, Australia’s most haunted house.
The Most Haunted House In Australia
In New South Wales sits what is allegedly the most haunted home in Australia.
The city of Junee lies between Sydney and Melbourne. It’s deeper into the continent of Australia. That city is the home of the Monte Christo Homestead.
Christopher William Crawley (1841 – 1910) was a farmer who bought two parcels of land in order to build his family’s home.
The first few years were hard on the family as the parcels and Junee were somewhat rural.
The family of 9 lived in a small stone cottage for years as they struggled to get by.
But the Crawley fortune changed when the Great Southern Railway Line opened in 1878 and cut through Junee.
Christopher Crawley opened a hotel on the rail line.
Because of the success of his hotel, Crawley became very wealthy and was named a founder of Junee. Christopher was beloved by the town and was known as a generous individual who gave to his community.
After his success, Christopher tore down his old stone shed and replaced it with a brick stable for his prize horse
Christopher died in 1910 of heart failure and an infected carbuncle on his neck, inflamed hairs that were filled with pus, which led to blood poisoning.
His wife, Elizabeth Crawley, lost it after he died. She became a bit of an agoraphobe and spent most of the next 23 years of her life in her makeshift chapel in the attic.
She only left the house twice in that time. She died at the age of 92 of a ruptured appendix.
The last of the Crawleys left in 1948, and the house sat abandoned for a decade. Caretakers did their best to prevent vandalism, but it still occurred.
The Homestead Gets New Owners
The house needed some attention and the homestead was caught by Reginald and Olivia Ryan in 1963.
The Ryan’s turned the house into a doll museum after restoring the hotel back to its former glory.
The Ghosts And Stories Of The Ryan’s
Ryan noted that as soon as they bought the home, strange things started happening. They brought their cat and dog up to the home, but both refused to even enter the property and would flee when the Ryans tried to force them in.
The Ryans also noticed that when they would leave, they would find the homestead would have all the lights on when they approached, but as soon as they opened the door, it would be pitch black.
According to the Ryan’s there are about 10 ghosts that live in the homestead. Some are more active than others. None of them, however, like animals.
Animal Abuse At The Monte Cristo
The Ryan’s came home one night to the homestead to find all the chickens on the property choked to death, the pet parrot strangled, and a few other animals were killed.
The Ryans believe that Christopher and Elizabeth’s ghosts haunt the home. Christopher is said to be kind in death, but Elizabeth is judgmental, and if she doesn’t like you, she will target you.
Christopher was said to be unfaithful to his wife. He reportedly got two maids pregnant.
The first pregnant maid jumped to her death from the balcony. She hit the stairs and was killed on impact.
She is still said to haunt the veranda. And her ghostly bloodstains are said to still appear on the steps.
The Ghosts Of The Monte Cristo Homestead
Harold, The Illegitimate Son Of Christopher Crawley
The other maid that got pregnant gave birth to a boy named Harold. Harold, unfortunately, when he was young, was hit by a coach, leaving him permanently disabled.
Treatment at that time was very poor. They chained Harold in the Carriage House. He would scream constantly. Eventually, he was sent to an asylum after he was found chained to his mother’s bed, where she had been dead for some time.
It’s said Harold’s spirit still haunts the grounds.
Morris
“The coach house is haunted by a young stable boy named Morris. He didn’t feel well one day and decided to stay in bed at the Carriage house. His master didn’t approve of the fact the boy slept in, so he decided to teach him a lesson. He put the boy’s straw mattress on fire, thinking he would jump up and get to work. But Morris was too ill, and he couldn’t get up. He died in his bed. People hear his screams up until today. “
Ethel Crawley
“Crawley’s infant granddaughter Ethel died in 1917 because the nursemaid dropped her on the stairs. She claimed she was pushed by an unseen force, but she wasn’t believed. Today, children who visit the museum become irritable and upset when they enter the stairs. Some guests say they feel as if they are being pushed on their backs. Some claim to feel an ice-cold tiny hand slip into theirs when they go to the upstairs rooms. “
Jack Simpson
“A more recent ghost is that of Jack Simpson. He was one of the home’s caretakers, and at some point, he was shot to death in 1960 on the porch in front of the house by a young man. The words “Die Jack, ha ha” were carved into the shed door, where they can still be seen today. “
Experiences At Australia’s Most Haunted House
There have been multiple ghost experiences at Monte Cristo Homestead Junee.
I was recently a skeptic about the paranormal until I visited Monte Cristo Homestead (New South Wales, Australia) in July this year. It is supposedly Australia’s most haunted house.
This was for my birthday as I wanted the adrenaline rush and I stupidly booked to stay overnight (mind you I only got around 3 hours sleep). We arrived at the house at about 3 and we were the first there, so we were told to wander around and get settled in for the next hour or so.
This is where it got creepy. Standing at the front of the Homestead, to the left, there is the gift shop (nowhere as old as the house). After taking a few pics of the mansion, I wandered over to the left of the verandah and took a pic of the gift shop (when we arrived, the tour guide said to take pics of windows because “that’s where they like to show up”;
I didn’t believe this but did it anyway). So, I zoomed into the gift shops window and just as my finger touched the camera button a little girls head popped up in the window; this gave me a mini heart attack.
I jokingly told my dad that I thought she was a ghost for a second, but later found out from the tour guides that her name was Molly (one of the previous young maids), who died around 100 years ago.
She haunts the property among many other ghosts. And that was before even scarier stuff started happening later in the night especially staying overnight. I just wanted to share any thoughts.
More Paranormal Experiences At The Homestead
After I was told it was indeed a young Irish maid (around 8 or 10), I was already to get out of there, and I hadn’t even had dinner yet! They said it was one of the best photos they’d ever had.
Later on in the tour, we walked through the very large house and grounds, and the whole place had a weird aura about it; I could breathe smoke in every room, although I found it much colder in the rooms where people had died.
Another experience I had was when I was touched on the back of my neck. Before I went to Monte Cristo, I made sure to wear a cross and carry rosary beads with me, to make me feel safer I guess. Obviously, as I moved my neck around throughout the night, my cross slid up and down and rubbed against my neck.
However, in one of the more haunted rooms, I was standing in the corner completely still, and the chain slid all the way across my neck. It just felt so unnatural. Weirdly, out of instinct, I looked behind me even though I knew there was no one behind me but a bookshelf and chair.
My face would’ve been as white as a ghost! I have got plenty more stories just from that night if you’re more interested.
Third Experience Of Activity At The Monte Cristo Homestead
“Throughout the tour, it was pretty creepy, as expected, but things got quite tense when an old lady in our tour group was pushed into her husband by something we couldn’t see.
At the time, we were in the girl’s room, where the girls often tug at people’s clothes and give little pushes, so nothing serious. However, this did give the old lady a fright as she was so surprised. Lawrence, our tour guide, had to stop halfway through the tour and hand it to his wife (who also does tours) as two of the ghosts kept appearing and scaring him.
I can safely say that this wasn’t an act, as we could all see the fear in his eyes. He later deeply apologized, but he’d lately been seeing the ghosts on the property more and more. It was only until we went to bed that things got real!
The whole tour group (around 20 people) was informed that the whole house was obviously haunted…which included each of our rooms. They also said that it was common for people to leave during the night. About an hour after we all went to bed (around 11), all the people I was with and I heard walking around upstairs directly above, which would’ve put it in the room occupied by an elderly couple from the tour.
It sounded like hard-soled shoes walking on the wooden floor. It went on for around 30 seconds…and it continued like that for the rest of the night, with about half an hour to an hour in between!
By the second to third time we heard it, we knew that the elderly couple could only get up so many times. I never thought I would get used to paranormal things, but by 2:00 in the morning (remember, I hardly slept), I was pretty sick of it. In the entrance to our room, you have to ste down onto a wooden step which ironically creaked.
Well, this step creaked about twice during the night, and because I was wide awake already, I was practically crapping myself! You have no idea how happy I was to finally see daylight; it was the longest night of my life. I asked my dad if he’d experienced anything last night and he claimed that a while after the door had creaked, his shoulder was hugged by a smaller person. He said the hug felt sad and cold and only lasted about 3 seconds.
I could tell this shook my dad to the core; mind you, he’s not scared of many things. During breakfast, I made sure to ask the elderly couple above us if they’d gotten up during the night, but they, of course, said no, not even once; they said they hadn’t even heard anything. That info really baffled me and my family members as we all clearly heard walking all night. Below is our room, which we were later informed was the maid’s room (the most haunted room a guest can stay in).
The Homestead Now
Lawrence Ryan still runs ghost tours at the homestead today. Many believe that they are seeing ghosts.
Is The Monte Cristo Homestead Haunted?
What do you think, Bizarros?
Has the dark history of the historic homestead caused the house to be filled with ghosts?
Should ghost hunters put this on their bucket list of homes to investigate?
Do you think that the Monte Cristo Homestead is the most haunted home in Australia?
Sources used for this article:
littlehouseofhorrors.com
Paranormal.com.au