Urbex. Haunted

September 16, 2016

Urban Exploring: Erindale Ward Glenside Hospital

Amidst Adelaide’s high-rise apartment block developments, there are areas of Adelaide that remain neglected and forgotten.

Erindale formed part of the Parkside Lunatic Asylum which opened in 1870. The Asylum was renamed in 1913 to the Parkside Mental Hospital, and again in 1967 to Glenside Hospital. It long held the nickname The Bin; a home for the discarded — the dumping point for people that didn’t fit into society.

Erindale Disturbed Mens Ward, Glenside Hospital c2016.

Erindale housed the more mentally disturbed male patients. In 1941 Electro-convulsive shock treatment (ECT) began here as a treatment for those with mental disorders. This was the first place to introduce shock therapy to Australia. Patients were also put under the knife, with the first psychosurgery procedure performed at Glenside in 1945.

Male patient recieving Electro-convulsive shock therapy. — Male patient receiving Electro-Convulsive Shock Therapy. (Photo courtesy http://guardianlv.com/)

Is Erindale haunted? Even though approximately one-third of the souls admitted to Glenside would die here, we experienced no paranormal events. Could it be a perfect spot for an Allen Tiller investigation or a Haunted Horizons Ghost Tour?

By the mid-1970s, breakthroughs in modern drug treatments and falling patient numbers led to the site’s closure, and for the past ~40 years Erindale has sat empty and disused. Probably one the most neglected buildings of Glenside Hospital, there are currently no plans to re-use the building. It sits there decaying.

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June 4, 2016

Urban Exploring: The Port Morgue

Port Adelaide is said to be a city built on top of a city.

In the 19th century, reclamation of land and construction of wharves raised the street levels while the original buildings were buried. Roofs were removed so that the ceiling beams could be used to support the floorboards of the new building. What was at ground level, now became basements.

The basement of this particular building was once at ground level. The below-ground window frames, fireplaces, and entrances make this evidently clear.

The low temperatures of the basement made it ideal for use as a morgue. It’s darn cold down here! So cold that bodies could be kept for up to several weeks without decomposition. Corpses were often stored here temporarily while awaiting transport for autopsy or disposal.

Coffin in basement — Awesome Adelaide — Coffin in basement. (Photo courtesy Daria Grippo)

It’s also said to be haunted by the resident ghost. Reports of tools going missing only to be found at a later date — in plain sight — are not uncommon. In fact, several times while in the basement I’d walk to where I could hear my co-explorer Excel, only to find no-one there.

We’re not claiming this place is haunted,.. and it certainly isn’t without mystery, but strange things happen down here…