York is an old settlement town located about one hundred kilometers (sixty-two miles) east of Perth in West Australia. The town is full of old stone buildings, but it is the former hospital that is known to be haunted, even while it was in operation.
A former matron (who worked at the hospital in the 1920s) said “There was always something terrifying about the upstairs rooms. The hospital staff refused to go up there alone, and even when the ward was full of patients, the nurses always made their rounds in pairs.”
The hospital is a large gray building surrounded by trees but wildlife seems to avoid the place, rarely coming close to the structure. In recent years, the building has been turned into a hostel and rented out. Many groups who have stayed in the old hospital now turned hostel have reported terrifying paranormal experiences.
In 1980, members of a children’s athletic club and their adult supervisors stayed for a week in the hostel. Late on the first night of their stay, sounds of moaning started to come from INSIDE the walls. The source was never found but repeated several nights in a row. The next morning, during breakfast, a large china jug levitated and smashed to the floor in front of two women.
Right after breakfast, two of the youngest children were attacked by unseen presence in the hallway. One of the girls started screaming “Hold me! Hold me! I can’t sit down! Stop them! STOP THEM!” She was then thrown against a glass paneled door at the end of the hall. The impact was so hard it totally shattered the thick glass, gashing her arm to the bone when she tried to protect her head with her hand. She was rushed to the hospital and stitched back together to stop the bleeding. The next day, a boy went into shock when he witnessed a partial human figure materialize out of thin air with its hand on the door knob of the now broken door.
The intensity of the haunting continued to escalate, usually in the afternoon. One of the supervisors was kicked in the back by an invisible force, doors would slam shut onto people, injuring the as they walked through doorways, invisible needles were felt to be injecting themselves into an adult woman’s flesh and the stench of rotting meat filled the building. By the end of the third day, both adults and children were sleeping in one room to protect themselves from their invisible attackers.
After that, the presence seemed to be focused in the downstairs area, near the stairway, in a room known as the Dying Room. The Dying Room had been bolted shut when the group arrived but had sense unlocked itself on the third day.
The caretaker of the building tried to downplay the group’s experiences but did admit that other groups who had rented the former hospital turned hostel had reported similar experiences and he had no explanation for how the Dying Room had unlocked itself. He did agree to provide a dog to help guard the group, but the dog refused to enter the structure. The group’s experiences were investigated by Miriam Howard-Wright, a local paranormal investigator who found the witnesses to be very credible.
The building was sold as recently as 2004 and is currently rumored to being renovated into a bed and breakfast.
SOURCES:
Hauck, W.D. (2000). The International Directory of Haunted Places: Ghostly abodes, sacred sites and other supernatural locations. (pg. 223-224). New York, NY: Penguin Books.
Castle of Spirits. (N.D.). York Hospital. Retrieved from http://www.castleofspirits.com/yorkhospital.html. Date: Monday, January 07, 2013.
Leach, Alex. (N.D.). OldYork Hospital. Retrieved from http://www.westghost.net/oyh.html Date: Monday, January 07, 2013.
The Haunted Spots Blog 
will you please tell me the history behind this hopital?
I am not quite sure of a specific event that could ever be tied down to the haunting or reports of paranormal activity. Many paranormal investigators theorize that hospitals, especially mental asylums, attract NHE’s or “Non Human Entities” that feed on the anguish and despair and mental energy inside these types of locations. I cannot say for sure if that is the case here, however,
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I stayed there in the early 1980’s with a school group. I saw a scary see through greyish apparition of a nurse/matron in the upstairs room. It was pacing hard towards me and yelling visibly (I could not hear it, but the face looked like it was yelling) I read it’s lips and it was saying “get out! get out!” and it pointed at me. It was very angry. I turned tail and tried to run down the stairs and I felt a presence try and push me down the stairs. It was very damn terrifying. I was very scared after that and wanted to go home. I also smelt a rotten smell there too. There seemed to be no birds around this building ever also.
hi reading comment, how believable is your report
Five years later, but her report is solid. She would swear to it with her hand on the Bible. I’m her sister, I’ve heard her tell this story in detail. Trust me, man – she saw what she saw. Not scientific proof, but it is compelling.
how true is this whats your surname
Thanks for sharing your story with us, Helen! We appreciate it!
After staying week as a child (now over 40) The building has changed. What I saw is still very vivid. The veranda has been closed in my self and another child spent time under that building. What I saw under there and what came home with me is still around me but I do not see them very often now as I guess I was more open as a child. My self and another child both saw and interacted with these er things we even gave it / them a name. Yes the hospital is alive and I can not explain what or how I know on here. Please don’t waste your time and mine telling me I’m a wako or some thing like that I know what I saw and some times still see. There is more than a building at that old hospital and what is around that hospital
It’s funny because I know the people who live there my nana also loved at the back of that place it’s not haunted the people live there all year round I think people see what they wanna see
my name is mark,i don’t know what to believe, either people are lying about being there,a friend of mine spoke to a man outside the hospital a few weeks ago and said know one lives there, so whats the truth
And also that picture on the top of this is not a actual picture of the inside there study /library is green
Renae: I never said the photo above was anything but the exterior of the building. As for it being haunted or not, what is a haunting but a set of experiences? To deny one person’s experience and dismiss it when you have not experienced it or talked to the person who has had it seems rather short sighted. Always keep an open mind! Have a great day!
what causes a place to be haunted,why York hospital? went to ask if a tour through the hospital was possible because of never having even been close apart from the road verge,was told it was now a private residence. if its so haunted,why and how could any one stay there.
Unfortunately, I do not know who currently owns the property. I highly discourage trespassing. As for why a place becomes haunted, that I cannot tell you. It could be one reason or it could be several or even none at all. We don’t know enough about paranormal experiences to give you a definitive answer. Always keep searching!
Hey Mark, just letting you know I’m a York local of 34yrs and honestly…yes mate this place is very much haunted. I know a bit about the Hospital, I’ve unfortunately experienced something there in 1999 to this day I cannot explain. There’s definitely bad energy still hanging around, I really wouldn’t say this otherwise!
And as for the new private owners 😡 all there big reno plans….well they’re living in the down stairs part only, as if the top story doesn’t exit! Why? Someone/something made it very clear to the old couple they’re not doing s#%t to that building lol 16yrs after they bought it, still no change, still no reno’s and no BnB. It’s the same old Hospital sitting sterile, never changing!
I must confess to having a fascination with the subject,seeking out supposed haunted buildings,i have never seen any apparition,but how would you know what you were looking for anyway. maybe some people are susceptible to the paranormal of what ever it is
Apparitions have been seen that are transparent and white like movie ghosts and other times they have been seen to be as seemingly as solid and real as living person to the point that the person who saw them didn’t know they were speaking to a dead person!
hi this all coll and stuff but last saturday it was halloween and i took a photo of it at 8:36 pm and i have been looking at it for a long time and i can see a dead persons face at the top of the balcony and its really freaky and i also saw a deformed face at the top left window and they are both just staring at me and it is really freaking me out. if you could get a photo of the inside that would be really good.
Are you saying that you have a photo that shows/has captured those faces? If you’d like me to look at it, I’d be happy to. You can email me it to me at ajmountainbear@gmail.com, Subject: Photo Analysis. Are you also requesting I take a photo of the inside of the hospital? That may be slightly difficult since I do not live in Australia. I live in the United States. It would be a bit of a walk.
my fiancée and I went for a drive to York again,had lunch near the river,then I was curiouse as usual to find the supposed haunted buildings. we spoke to a woman at the old town hall,who wreckons there is a ghost there. we both went in I had a walk around, apart from going back to the past, the atmosphere seemed friendly. she said the realestate office across the road was spooky because it was called spooky hall,why its called that I don’t know,but apparently it isn’t. the castle hotel and pub she said the up stairs rooms were odd,particularly room 19. we had a drink and I went up there to see what it looked like. two main corridoors, one very narrow with rooms on either side,and the other corridor which felt lonely,only because no one was up there I guess. I haven’t seen inside the rooms,once again felt old I guess nothing else. its possible things only happen at night. I would only be convinced if some thing actually happened that was obviouse. I did ask the two bar ladies,they wreckon they wont go up to the rooms. they certainly wont make any money from people staying there if its that bad,or maybe the rooms are just unpleasant. its very easy to say some thing is haunted,and that will stop people instantly. I am very skeptical at present but have an open mind, its very easy to not believe people when you haven’t personally experienced anything. York is a lovely old town
iv read the variouse comments,the comment regarding lack of bird life,that could be any reason, my dad lives in wundowie,virtually no bird life there,but birds I find usually need some thing to attract them, bread crumbs or some disgarded food scraps,and more often than not,water sourse, I wouldn’t think lack of wildlife is any indication.
Thanks, Mark for your commentary. You do make excellent points, both about the birds and the being a skeptic with an open mind. I hope to one day get to visit Australia and see the site myself, if nothing else than for the history of the area and to learn a bit more about what life was like in that time long ago when the hospital was still active and thriving.
I was in York today, a couple of houses down from the old hospital and there was a surprisingly large amount of birdlife around. 🙂
Legends have a way of outgrowing their originators and memories have a way of being bigger than life. Simple days become omens and portents and a new urban mythology is born onto this strange crazy landscape!
I stayed there a couple of times as a child in the 70s with a school camp etc. NOTHING!! Again.. NOTHING like that had happened. Only one door was ever locked and that was downstairs in the dining room. The caretaker was a kind older man and his dogs would often play with us. We roamed all over the building and no one had seen or heard anything. Of course, kids being kids we all told ghost stories etc. We played murder in the dark with torches, ran through the grounds even onto adjoining orchard/farms. Some of my fondest memories as a kid. The building never felt ominous or did we feel watched or any ‘paranormal’ going on’s. Also, who doesn’t take a camera on holiday, so they could have taken pictures etc ( from the so-called video story)
I’m glad you commented. Bear in mind, paranormal activity is not something that is repeatable and testable, hence why parapsychology is such a slowly progressing field of study. The events are often subjective, fleeting or occur once and never occur again. So because you had nothing happen to you, do not presume to write off someone else’s experience. I believe many factors and environmental elements much be correct in order for an experience to occur and for those things to align and produce an experience is extremely rare.
Just came across this, your story is very inventive but is utter bullshit.
The moaning was the caretaker winding them up as he’d told them the ghost story so decided to give them a ghost and the rest never happened. Though you did forget to mention he told them about the nurse who’s lover died in the war so drowned herself in the river nearby and the caretaker got a mop and left a wet trail up the front steps and down the hall for them to discover!
The dog was never afraid of going in either, he used to come in there with me all the time.
I grew up playing in that building in the early & mid 80’s and never saw anything but a dusty old building. It was never haunted.
Thanks for your feedback, however, this is not “my story” and it is not “inventive” on my part. This article is a collection of reports from different people who have been in the property had subjective experiences whilst there. As the blog’s purpose was stated, its main goal is to collect lore and legends from around the world with a smattering of my own experiences and occasionally a random side trip into my thoughts posted as well. When something is my personal experience or thoughts, I make it clear in the article. Legend and lore do not always conform to truth but there is usually a small nugget of truth in the depths of these stories somewhere and you know what they say about truth; often there is nothing so strange.
I stayed there, for a week or so, in 1986, with a group of student teachers – lovely old building but, during that week, nothing spooky to comment about.
True unexplained experiences and events are so rare that nothing happened does not surprise me. I think that conditions have to be just right. I just wish I knew what those conditions were so that we could recreate them!
I first heard about this place from one of my old babysitters in the early 90’s in South WA, he mentioned going there for a school camp sometime in the mid 80’s, She told us about her roommates and herself being freaked out the by the light turning on and off on their own, coat hangers in the wardrobes shaking about and, while they were all huddled on a single bed, another one would squeak as if someone was sitting on it on and off.
I remembered this for a long time before even finding out other people had intense stories of the place.
I’m not sure why but this post more than any other on my blog has gotten so much attention and so many emotional responses. Interesting! Thanks for sharing your story with me however!
Hi Anthony. FYI, the old hospital is privately owned these days by a lady who won’t allow tours at all. I’m writing a book, which involves the very first matron of the hospital when it opened in July1896, and even I couldn’t get to go inside for a look when I was there in April this year! I’ve long heard stories of people experiencing “activity” there, and this could well be due to the fact that it was a harsh land back then and only the poorer members of society were treated there, so they had lived a hard life. More affluent residents were treated in their own homes by the doctor. This also happened in Perth until the early 1900s.
Is this building still there and if so may i please have a address
I believe the building is still standing and has been renovated into a private residence. I would not suggest attempting to visit the property uninvited and as its most likely a private home, I would not feel comfortable giving out the address if I had it (which I do not). Thanks for coming by however!
I believe that they believe it!
I stayed there in 1984 for a school camp with St Jude’s PS. An entity breathed directly into my face even though no one was there, I heard disembodied voices moaning and my bed shook without another child shaking. Another kid a few bunks down had the same experience.
I stayed there for one night in the early 90s with maybe 100 others as part of an athletic group. I was showering later than the others and was therefore alone, and I remember the shower head next to me turning on by itself. After dinner a few kids tried to dare each other to go into one of the locked upstairs rooms. We tried a door that was locked, then gave up and went back downstairs. Then a few other kids went up and tried the same door and it was unlocked. I can’t remember if they went inside but I think one of the kids was very shaken and didn’t want to talk about it.
That’s about it, nothing crazy like getting thrown down the hallway, but very very creepy regardless. Knowing what I know now about ghosts, that they’re likely demons looking for souls to attach to and corrupt, I have no interest in going back there. We were mostly a positive and innocent group, perhaps that’s why the demons left us alone. But I wouldn’t advise anyone to go there, even if in a large group like I was. I am never going there as an adult. It’s good to be at least aware of the occult, but it’s another thing to willingly expose yourself to it. They can affect your life in negative ways, make you angry, corrupt the soul, drive you to suicide or some other kind of damaging act. The place should be torn down, there is no history worth keeping in that building.
I disagree with Mike about this old building not worth keeping and should be torn down, my great grandfather was an old york resident as was his 11 children, who is he to say there is no history there worth keeping,and what would he know without doing any sort of Research
We need to stop sheltering people from the darkness if it obvious it’s there , ie in school they still teach people about Hitler and world wars and they are horrible events but do we ever pull them out of the curriculum because as far as I’m cornered they still teach us about the darkness in the world not cut it out because 1 person thinks there’s not history in it ,dark things that happen are still history and still tell a story so no don’t take down the old hospital , there’s no guarantee it will even get rid of the spirits actually might make it worse by getting rid of the hospital as spirits latch on to physical and none physical beings and objects
The old york Hospital is privately owned. Its not a bed and breakfast. I lived in the matrons quarters for a few years
I loved reading this Anthony. I stayed at the Old York Hospital in 1978 on a school camp. We slept in the annex building, but had our meals in the main building. Not knowing anything about the haunted history, we weren’t expecting anything and didn’t go looking for ghosts. We did, however, go exploring the old building. Nothing fancy happened, but there were three things of note. We went up the stairs and the door at the top was locked. Heading back down, we passed another group of kids who went to the door and it opened easily. Down in the dining area, by the fireplace, there was a rocking chair that rocked on and off pretty much all the time. We re-positioned the chair but it kept doing its thing. The other thing I noticed was it got damn chilly inside for no reason, just for a few minutes at a time. I did notice a smell but I put that down to it being an old building. A week after the camp, a story aired on A Current Affair (Terry Willessee) telling of the matron ghost, the rocking chair, and blood oozing from the brickwork by the stairs we had been on. Freaked me out a little!
Is this the same place?? https://www.york.wa.gov.au/museum/york-museum-home.aspx
Sorry they used a picture of the Old Hospital and the sentence “During the early twentieth century it was used as part of the Old York Hospital, later being saved from disrepair by the efforts of the York Society.” and I jumped to conclusions 😦
I still simply don’t believe the stories about the hospital. Some one lives there now, so how could it be as bad as they say?
It is entirely within the realm of possibility, that whatever we call “paranormal phenomenon” may only respond or activate under certain conditions, one of which may be the humans specifically present for unknown reasons (refer to the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, meaning in essence you can never just be a passive observer, and will always interact in some way with reality around you), or perhaps, as with all things, “hauntings” have limited life spans and over time they may simply lose power, like a battery. Conversely, if the battery analogy holds, perhaps they can be “recharged” again in some way. There’s so many unknowns its really unwise to make assumptions either way without more data and for that we need more studies and since those are unlikely, especially given a transient phenomenon like hauntings, for now, all we have to go on is an anecdote, a story, a set of human experiences which I think we should not as evidence but rather as a valid part of being what we are and our environment.
Actually some people in York will move into a place because its cheaper My friend sky and her family lived there after they split it they were haunted to the point they boarded up rooms and certain parts of the hospital /home didn’t have the money for another house but had to move out because of how bad it was there they had no choice but to leave as it was a high safety risk because something was attacking them and wanted them out I stayed the night there and my mother who is a pagan saw spirits first hand and thought it was a nurse for sky’s mum but there was no nurse there … Then thought the night of our sleep over and hide and seek and karaoke shit was thrown my friends sister mocked the spirits the she was thrown into a glass at breakfast so answer me that please open your mind to what’s really out there
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Went there for our school excursion in the 80’s and don’t care what anyone says It’s not a place I will ever go again. Fucking school sent us there without us knowing, 2 teachers left mid way through the stay and I had 2 incidents one with a mate and teacher the other with a mate. I would flatten that place.
i had experiences at the old hospital as an apprentice in 1982, when running a cable under the staircase I had to get a rag to continually wipe what looked like blood from the timber underneath.
there was also an unearthly cold feel about the locked room upstairs at the end of the dormitory.
I’m getting chills just remembering it
Okay would it be possible to visit the hospital late at night on the 5th…. get alittle footage.
Hi to all , just read through the comments from everyone. Having lived in the town as a teenager , late 1979-1981 . As reckless kids the biggest dare was to sleep a night in the abandoned hospital but none of my mates including me were brave enough to give it a go / just too creepy, especially at night. 10 or so years later I ventured back to York with my wife and I had to show her the old hospital That I had told her about. There was a tall wire fence around the property but plenty of gaps . It was late afternoon as we slipped through in . The first thing my wife commented on was how quiet it was and why one top story window was open when all the others were shut . Didn’t really have an answer for that , well spotted girl ! Walked around the back but noticed straight away her demeanour changed pretty quickly as we started looking through some bottom story windows . She then told me she could smell a really bad smell coming from one of the rooms to the left . I had already scaled the staircase up to the back balcony at this stage, I told her it was probably a dead rat or bird , but she wouldn’t come up to join me and scampered back to the car quick smart. Had to try every door while I was on borrowed time. Finally one door wasn’t locked, opened it apprehensively and found an old steel bed in the corner, no mattress and a well used rocking chair behind the curtain,a feeling of uneasiness came over me at that stage as I noticed the window was slightly open and I didn’t want to be there anymore. Returned to the car ‘ pronto ‘ and we departed as it was starting to get dark and I had the hairs on back of my neck still up. I think it is a private residence now … Hope they’re o/k ..
When I was in year seven our class stayed there for several days, I remember waking up feeling really unwell on day, as well as 2 other girls who also felt unwell. We were all confined to bed rest, we heard foot steps in the dormitory but didn’t see anyone. I am now 56 years of age and still remember that school trip very well, back in 1979 which still makes me hair stand on edge.
I visited a few weeks ago to check out the museum next door, great lovely town and was amazing to see the old hospital – unfortunately could only look from the outside.
I do however have one unusual story to tell, I went with my parents, wife and our 3 kids, after looking at the museum 2 doors down it felt freezing and eerie when looking at the old matron statue in the back room, just felt presence..They show the old hospital floor which they uncovered using archaeologists. between the museum and I believe maids house? (middle building)
Apparently there is a grave yard out the back where they burred people who died in the hospital and are left unmarked.(according to museum expert)
once we left the museum we went to look at the hospital and this strange cat came walking over, my kids naturally went over and started stroking the cat it was a really fuzzy beige/green cat very scraggly.. Didn’t think nothing off it till we got home over 100km away and the next night we were on our way to bed and this cat was staring at me and my wife through the side door.
We looked at each other and said that looks EXACTLY the same as the one at the haunted hospital..
Probably nothing but thought id share 🙂
The building looks like a luxury home from the outside.
Hey my friend sky and her family use to live there they had the same experience when her little sister was thrown in to a door and her brother the next day saw a man standing there her sister was also sent to the hospital with the same injurys but that was after the renovation it was sold to 2 family’s after splitting it in half and then they boarded off certain rooms and parts of the house