Beechworth Asylum · Those Kept Inside

Beechworth in Victoria once had an asylum built in the gold rush years. Besides the mentally ill it took in people society had thrown away: refugees, orphans, sick immigrants and old people who could not look after themselves.

The asylum closed in the 1990s, leaving red-brick buildings and long corridors on the slope; for years there have been accounts of “someone walking at night, lights on in the old wards” — many people have come, few can explain it.

Some of the buildings now hold exhibitions and “ghost night” events. Even so, the corridors at night are not walked without a guide.

Haunted Ruins / Victoria · Australia / 1867