AUSFIGURESPUBLIC-TEXT ARCHIVEARCHIVE INDEX MODE
PUBLIC SOURCE

State Library Victoria

State Library Victoria contributes public institutional history article context represented in the AusFigures archive. This page links source-grounded records to their original public URLs and preserves provenance without implying institutional endorsement.

Search-ready records
21
Public sources
1
States / territories
1
Dated span
2017–2025

The source collection is included for provenance and public-text discovery.

Public records

  1. brother's spirit in Iolanthe spirit contact in Port Phillip Bay#41332025 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Descriptive Belief RecordsState Library Victoria recounts that in 1883 two brothers went out on the boat Iolanthe into Port Phillip Bay and never returned. Their spiritualist parents employed the medium George Spriggs, who reportedly made contac…
  2. Crowther's Christmas ghost in Crowther's Christmas ghost at Spencer Street#41322024 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Retellings and AdaptationsState Library Victoria discusses Edward Dyson's Australian Christmas ghost-story setting and says Crowther's Christmas ghost begins with Crowther throwing his luggage at a porter at Spencer Street before embarking on a…
  3. supernatural in Spooky stories from the Library#27022021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accountswere of a female form. To this day I have not been able to find out who she was. Hellena Lozanovski, Senior Library Technician — ‘When I started at SLV in 1999 I worked in the Arts Library, now known as the Ian Potter Q…
  4. spooky in Spooky stories from the Library#27012021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accountsfloor in the La Trobe Reading Room with a resounding bang. I had to go all the way down and retrieve it. I may add this was prior to opening times. A startled staff member spotted me on the balcony and asked if it was m…
  5. ghosts in Spooky stories from the Library#27002021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsRoom would sometimes ‘flip’ by themselves. The unimaginative insisted it was simply because patrons had lent to far back and the spring loaded backs had jammed, then released some hours later. But he recalled that the M…
  6. ghosts in Spooky stories from the Library#26992021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accountsyou looking over your shoulder the next time you visit Australia’s oldest public library. Beware: only read ahead if you like your blood to run cold… or if you’d like a giggle. How much you believe is up to you… ‘I reca…
  7. ghost in Spooky stories from the Library#26982021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsI may have caused people to think there had been a ghost when a volume I was updating fell off the balcony and landed on the floor in the La Trobe Reading Room with a resounding bang. I had to go all the way down and re…
  8. ghost in Spooky stories from the Library#26972021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accounts‘Sadly, in 43 years at the Library I’ve never met a ghost or poltergeist. I have found things misfiled, but I assume humans not paying attention was the cause.
  9. ghosts in Spooky stories from the Library#26962021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsBut he recalled that the Melbourne Museum preparators used to strip whale carcasses in the space (when it was a courtyard open to the sky), and he felt sure the whale ghosts were flexing on us.’
  10. ghost in Spooky stories from the Library#26952021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsMy first night shift, I was told not to turn off all the lights before closing because some security guards were afraid of the ghost there.
  11. ghost in Spooky stories from the Library#26942021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsI felt hot all over and fell to my knees as she continued to stare at me. I didn’t feel anything but sadness from this figure. It is hard to explain. She walked off into the wall and disappeared. I will never forget her…
  12. ghosts in Spooky stories from the Library#26932021 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accounts‘I recall being told by several ex-staff who worked in the stacks of the Arts Library, today the new refurbished Ian Potter Queen’s Hall, that two ghosts occupied the area. A cold spot near the old piano was one area. A…
  13. tortured spirit in Black Rock House tortured spirit legend#41342020 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost LegendsState Library Victoria's Black Rock House article says the house was once known as the Haunted Castle. The page reports that school girls in 1910 asked to visit the Haunted Castle because they believed it was haunted by…
  14. Mephistopheles in Federici's ghost#27102017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition Accountsew books Painting Performing Arts Photography Popular music Television Theatre Visual arts Changing libraries SLV Website Federici’s ghost March 7, 2017 at 12:17 by Sarah Matthews in Arts & literature, Such was life Mel…
  15. ghost in Federici's ghost#27092017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsState Library Victoria – Federici’s ghost Monday 22nd June 2026 Blog Home News Family matters All posts Collections New to the collection Family history events Research guides Research tips & tricks Training Websites Ou…
  16. ghost in Federici's ghost#27082017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsEvery opening night, a seat in the Dress Circle at the Princess Theatre is left empty for Federici. It is a good luck sign if his ghost appears. [5]
  17. ghost in Federici's ghost#27072017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsIt is said that Federici appears at night. Usually, he sits around the centre of the second or third row of the theatre’s dress circle. Sometimes he changes seats to watch the faces of the critics. Some say they have ob…
  18. ghost in Federici's ghost#27062017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsIn the years that followed, actors, stagehands and even patrons began reporting strange happenings at the Princess Theatre. Audience members reported odd lights flashing on and off during theatre performances. Stagehand…
  19. Federici in Federici's ghost#27052017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Spirit-Person NarrativesIt was in the final scene that tragedy struck. Federici, as Satan, was to spirit Faust down to hell. Standing over the stage trapdoor in a mirage of smoke and fire, Federici wrapped his scarlet cloak around his victim.…
  20. Federici in Federici's ghost#27042017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Spirit-Person NarrativesIn 1887, British opera singer Frederick Baker (Signor ‘Federici’) arrived in Australia to perform with Messrs. Williamson, Garner and Musgrove’s Opera Company. He was to play in several operas, culminating with a star t…
  21. Federici in Federici's ghost#27032017 / State Library Victoria / VIC / Ghost and Apparition AccountsMelbourne’s Princess Theatre has been host to many fine performers over the years, but the most famous performance of all belongs to its ghost, Federici.