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'Gelder relies heavily on Victorian and Edwardian writers, such as Marcus Clarke, Barbara Baynton and Hume Nisbet, as if unsure as to the nature of contemporary ghosts. It is interesting to see that Australia's science fiction writers, such as Lucy Sussex and Terry Dowling, provide the link between the past and the present. Dowling's "The Daeman Street Ghost-Trap" effectively uses traditional settings to link ghosts with a current horror, namely cancer. Several bunyip stories remind us of a particular Antipodean creature to stand against the assorted European manifestations.'
(Colin Steele, SF Commentary No 77, p.55).
Contents
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Fisher's Ghost
The Ghost upon the Rail,
single work
short story
crime
The tale of Fisher's Ghost's originally from John Lang's Botany Bay, or, True Stories of the Early Days of Australia . Penrith, NSW, was the scene of Edward Smith's murder of his neighbouring farmer John Fisher, both of them ex-convicts. Smith's plan is foiled by suspicions aroused by Fisher's apparition, the skills of a black tracker, and the sagacious magistrate, Mr Cox. Smith is hanged. (PB)
- The Illumined Grave, single work short story (p. 19-35)
- The Ghostly White Gate, single work short story crime (p. 36-62)
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Human Repetends,
single work
short story
crime
fantasy
This story was first published in the Australasian, 14 September, 1872, with the title 'Human Repetends'. This version of the story, which includes a character called Marston, has been republished several times in anthologies and selections. A second version of the story, with a different beginning and featuring a character called Hylton, was first published in the posthumous selection Sensational Tales with the title 'A Mysterious Coincidence'. This version has been republished under both titles.Note: With title: 'Human Repetends'
- Holiday Peak, single work short story adventure (p. 71-84)
- The Rubria Ghost, single work short story (p. 85-93)
- The Ghost of Wanganilla : Founded on Fact, single work short story (p. 94-101)
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The Bunyip,
single work
short story
A story about a group of men camping near a creek who begin telling ghost stories and get onto the topic of the bunyip - an uncanny creature said to live in lagoons and possess a supernatural influence over its victims. At hearing a strange cry from the bush, they become convinced it's the bunyip and set off to discover it. Instead they find the body of a young girl from a nearby town with a snake twined round her (supposedly it is this which killed her). However, the young girl has been dead for some hours and they don't believe she died from a snake bite, leading them to question whether the cry was the bunyip after all.
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The Haunted Station,
single work
short story
horror
mystery
"The narrator of his ghost story, a medical practitioner, becomes a convict after he is wrongly accused of his wife’s murder and transported to the Australian colonies to work in Fremantle building roads. After landing in Australia he seeks his liberty by fleeing into the bush with two fellow convicts. Taking advantage of the capture and shooting of his accomplices, the narrator makes his escape into the wilderness—travelling to a “far off and as yet unnamed portion of Western Australia” (Nisbet 116). Wandering delirious in a hostile environment, Nisbet’s narrator, who is “expectant of something ghoulish and unnatural” to come upon him from “the sepulchral gloom and mystery” (110), suddenly comes upon “a house of two storeys”.
Source: "National Hauntings: The Architecture of Australian Ghost Stories" by David Crouch.
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With Three Phantoms,
single work
short story
An explorer arrives in Darwin to look for traces of Leichhardt's expedition. His party are found dead months later on the edge of the Simpson Desert. Four years later the explorer is discovered and tells of an improbable story about ghost horsemen.
- The Trucker's Dream, single work short story (p. 135-138)
- The Red Lagoon, single work short story (p. 139-141)
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The Evil of Yelcomorn Creek
The Mystery of Yelcomorn Creek,
single work
short story
A strange old man tucked away in the bush tells an interesting tale of his opal-mining days in Queensland.
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A Ghost of the Australian Interior,
single work
short story
A guest on a sheep station in outback Queensland sees an apparition which he believes is an ill omen.
- A Dreamer, single work short story (p. 157-162)
- At Coomassie Gully, single work short story (p. 163-165)
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An Australian Rip Van Winkle,
single work
short story
An uncanny story wherein strange inexplicable events befall a stockman at an isolated location in the bush.
- Fourteen Fathoms by Quetta Rock, single work short story (p. 192-200)
- The Ghost That Came to Darwin, single work short story (p. 201-204)
- Vision in the Forest, single work short story (p. 205-210)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
Rough Justice and Buried Country : Australian Ghosts
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Postcolonial Ghosts 2010; (p. 113-124) 'This paper examines the cultural significance of Australian ghost stories, with particular reference to the nineteenth century. The paper considers the specific qualities of these stories in the context of the colonial experience of Australia. The foundation of the penal colony and the dispossession of the Aborigines are proposed as significant contributing factors to any specificity relating to Australian ghost stories. The narrative theme of 'buried country' coming to the surfaces is a feature of late nineteenth century ghost stories, told from the colonisers' perspective, concerning encounters with Aboriginal burial grounds or massacre sites. the uniqueness of the Australian landscape is also considered as a contributing factor to ghost stories or alleged hauntings occurring in the Australian interior.' (p. 469-470)
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Scanners
2001
single work
review
— Appears in: SF Commentary : The Independent Magazine About Science Fiction , November no. 77 2001; (p. 49-77)
— Review of Reading by Starlight: Postmodern Science Fiction 1995 single work criticism ; Metaworlds : Best Australian Science Fiction 1994 anthology short story ; Mortal Fire : Best Australian Science Fiction 1993 anthology short story ; The Destiny Makers 1993 single work novel ; Twilight Beach 1993 selected work short story ; Evolution Annie 1991 selected work short story ; The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy 1998 reference bibliography biography ; Beyond the Hanging Wall 1996 single work novel ; Distress 1995 single work novel ; Axiomatic 1995 selected work short story ; Permutation City 1994 single work novel ; Mirrorsun Rising 1995 single work novel ; Alien Shores : An Anthology of Australian Science Fiction 1994 anthology short story ; The Opoponax Invasion 1993 single work novel ; Envoy 1994 single work novel ; She's Fantastical : The First Anthology of Australian Women’s Speculative Fiction, Magical Realism And Fantasy 1995 anthology short story poetry extract ; The Year's Best Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy : Volume 1 1997 anthology short story ; Time Marches Off : 2000 Years from Now 1942 single work novel ; Dark House : Stories Compiled by Gary Crew 1995 anthology short story ; The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Untitled
1996
single work
review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , July vol. 11 no. 3 1996; (p. 35)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
The Older the Spook, the Better
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The Bulletin , 7 March vol. 116 no. 5960 1995; (p. 89)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Lorelei, Spooks and Pixies
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 21 January 1995; (p. 8)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story
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Untitled
1996
single work
review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , July vol. 11 no. 3 1996; (p. 35)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Scanners
2001
single work
review
— Appears in: SF Commentary : The Independent Magazine About Science Fiction , November no. 77 2001; (p. 49-77)
— Review of Reading by Starlight: Postmodern Science Fiction 1995 single work criticism ; Metaworlds : Best Australian Science Fiction 1994 anthology short story ; Mortal Fire : Best Australian Science Fiction 1993 anthology short story ; The Destiny Makers 1993 single work novel ; Twilight Beach 1993 selected work short story ; Evolution Annie 1991 selected work short story ; The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy 1998 reference bibliography biography ; Beyond the Hanging Wall 1996 single work novel ; Distress 1995 single work novel ; Axiomatic 1995 selected work short story ; Permutation City 1994 single work novel ; Mirrorsun Rising 1995 single work novel ; Alien Shores : An Anthology of Australian Science Fiction 1994 anthology short story ; The Opoponax Invasion 1993 single work novel ; Envoy 1994 single work novel ; She's Fantastical : The First Anthology of Australian Women’s Speculative Fiction, Magical Realism And Fantasy 1995 anthology short story poetry extract ; The Year's Best Australian Science Fiction and Fantasy : Volume 1 1997 anthology short story ; Time Marches Off : 2000 Years from Now 1942 single work novel ; Dark House : Stories Compiled by Gary Crew 1995 anthology short story ; The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Peel Me a Grape
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: Meanjin , vol. 54 no. 4 1995; (p. 672-676)
— Review of She's Fantastical : The First Anthology of Australian Women’s Speculative Fiction, Magical Realism And Fantasy 1995 anthology short story poetry extract ; The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story ; Strange Fruit : Tales of the Unexpected 1995 anthology short story -
Entering into the Spirit of Things Ghostly
1994
single work
review
— Appears in: The Australian , 21 December 1994; (p. 14)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Ghosts from the Past
1995
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 7 January 1995; (p. wkd 7)
— Review of The Oxford Book of Australian Ghost Stories 1994 anthology short story -
Rough Justice and Buried Country : Australian Ghosts
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Postcolonial Ghosts 2010; (p. 113-124) 'This paper examines the cultural significance of Australian ghost stories, with particular reference to the nineteenth century. The paper considers the specific qualities of these stories in the context of the colonial experience of Australia. The foundation of the penal colony and the dispossession of the Aborigines are proposed as significant contributing factors to any specificity relating to Australian ghost stories. The narrative theme of 'buried country' coming to the surfaces is a feature of late nineteenth century ghost stories, told from the colonisers' perspective, concerning encounters with Aboriginal burial grounds or massacre sites. the uniqueness of the Australian landscape is also considered as a contributing factor to ghost stories or alleged hauntings occurring in the Australian interior.' (p. 469-470)
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Night Terrors
1995
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The Age , 21 January 1995; (p. 8)