140 replies to this topic

[Amariel]

I'm very interested in visiting supposed haunted places, mostly to conduct my own investigations to see if I can't come up with anything to prove that the paranormal is real. I live within a 10 minute or so drive of Bundoora where haunted mental asylums La Rundel and Mont Park are. I've tried researching both of these places, mostly to get an address but also for any accounts of people who have visited so I know what to expect, but I've hit a few problems.

I think people are getting confused between the two places because the other night, a couple of friends and I went to have a look at them both. There is a mental asylum in the new estate being built across the road from Smorgies, which is down near La Trobe University. There is also a mental asylum behind University Hill, the new shopping centre that has been built across the road from RMIT University. Now, from all reports that I've read, the one across the road from Smorgies is in fact La Rundel. Which, by process of elimination, means that the other asylum is Mont Park. There are also reports that La Rundel mental asylum is currently being renovated for accommodation and is guarded almost around the clock by security. We went to the asylum across the road from Smorgies, and that place is hardly fenced off at all and has no renovations being done whatsoever. There was also no security. So we went the other asylum, and that one was essentially impossible to get into (high fences, security) and it was being renovated. One of my friends who was with me said his sister in law is actually being paid to paint La Rundel mental asylum as a part of the renovations. So, upon asking her which of these two buildings was La Rundel, we were told it was the one behind University Hill.

As this asylum is impossible to get into, my friends and I are interested in further investigating Mont Park mental asylum (which is situated across the road from Smorgies in the new estate). I haven't really been able to find out much about this asylum, so I was wondering if anyone could give me any information about it, as well as any experiences that have taken place there (such as visible apparitions, noises, etc) so that I may start a background log on it. I want this asylum across the road from Smorgies specifically, so whether you thought it was La Rundel or not is irrelevant. Any information is welcome!!

[MDeacon]

I wish I could help you with that particular location... but I can't...

But I will give you some advice... get PERMISSION for any location you want to investigate... the last thing you need is a trespassing ticket and possible jail time for some harmless curiosity...

[Purplepearl]

Hi - I'm not sure about going into the Larundel part but when they were developing the old Mont Park area to make the Springthorp estate about 8 years ago, my fiance and I went walking through there. My finace doesn't scare easily but we were both spooked on hearing a strange metallic swooshing sound - very mechanical which was defitnely not a bird, bat or owl etc. We could see absolutely nothing and yet the sound came from directly around us. The place just felt so eerie. A friend who was a police officer said that they used to hear about other police officers reporting stange things in that area.

University Hill opposite RMIT used to house the Janefield facility. Not sure if it was as much an asylum as much as a workshop for intellectually disabled.

Yes - be careful about trespassing. A lot of Larundel building seem from the outside to be fairly unsafe and Larundel and Mont Park were adjacent to each other and definitely opposite Smorgy's, not down at University Hill.

Let us know if you find out anything interesting.

[Somejerkontheweb]

Purplepearl, on 10 May 2010 - 05:34 AM, said:

Hi - I'm not sure about going into the Larundel part but when they were developing the old Mont Park area to make the Springthorp estate about 8 years ago, my fiance and I went walking through there. My finace doesn't scare easily but we were both spooked on hearing a strange metallic swooshing sound - very mechanical which was defitnely not a bird, bat or owl etc. We could see absolutely nothing and yet the sound came from directly around us. The place just felt so eerie. A friend who was a police officer said that they used to hear about other police officers reporting stange things in that area.

University Hill opposite RMIT used to house the Janefield facility. Not sure if it was as much an asylum as much as a workshop for intellectually disabled.

Yes - be careful about trespassing. A lot of Larundel building seem from the outside to be fairly unsafe and Larundel and Mont Park were adjacent to each other and definitely opposite Smorgy's, not down at University Hill.

Let us know if you find out anything interesting.

Agree - Larundel is/was further down Plenty Rd. towards the city, not up at University Hill (Janefield). I'm thinking it is/was in the vicinity of the "Lancaster Gate" development .

[a nice cup of tea]

i used to go to latrobe. larundel is on campus. if you get the campus circuit bus, the one that does laps of campus,  it'll take you right there, i believe there's a bus stop right outside larundel. a normal metcard is all you need.

my boyfriend used to squat the other building you were talking about. he told me he used to hear all sorts of noises at night, and would often feel he was being watched. he would only use a very small part of the building because he'd get so creeped out.

[Black Hound]

Can't beat those psych. hospitals for ghostly going-ons, whether the facility is open or not. Sounds interesting.

Edited by Graveyard Hound, 11 May 2010 - 03:45 PM.

[Amariel]

Thanks to everyone for their info!!

Since starting this topic I have done a lot more research and have found out that, back when the Bundoora area was still considered 'the sticks', it was actually a huge property that had 7 different psychiatric hospital facilities on it and that, as time wore on, the land inbetween was gradually divided up and used to build houses and estates and everything that is there now. I've been looking through council records and other papers like that and I'm pretty sure that the buildings across the road from Smorgies and near La Trobe University are what is left of La Rundel and that, as Purplepearl has said, the building behind University Hill is Janefield. I believe Mont Park, or what is left of it, is in an estate on the outskirts of Macleod and, as far as I know, most of that area has been demolished to make way for houses. As for the other four psychiatric facilities, well they've also probably been demolished by now.

A few friends and I returned to what I'm now going to call La Rundel a few weeks ago in the hopes of just checking out the area again (and quietly hoping that we might see something). I personally did not see anything there, but there is definitely a creepy feeling about the place that seems to settle on you after being there about 5 minutes. I also found it hard to shake the feeling for almost an hour after leaving (I had goosebumps, the hair on my arms and the back of my neck was standing up, and I found the air to be quite heavy to breathe). But while I did not see anything, I'm not sure, but I think I heard something. We had a quick look around the grounds before the 2 males I was with decided to walk all the way through the grounds and out the other side. I told them I would wait for them at the car because it was dark and the place really was creepy (a feeling which neither of them had). So they turned and headed off and I walked out of the grounds through a gap in the fence and started walking along the road. I then heard footsteps behind me on the dirt, like they were following me, but from the inside of the fence around the buildings. I thought it was my friends trying to scare me so I turned around and stopped. So did the footsteps. I called out to the boys, telling them it wasn't funny and that I wanted to go. I got no reply, so I called to them again that they were a whole lot of profanities and that they should cut it out. A few minutes later I was still standing there just watching the building in front of me when the boys came walking up the road looking for me. I asked them how they'd managed to creep away without me seeing or hearing them. They both looked genuinely puzzled and asked me what I was talking about. I explained, and both of them swear that they didn't try to scare me and that they just walked through the grounds and out of a gap in the fence on the other side. The timing pretty much matches with their story too. A few days later, one of the boys also told me that he thought he had heard something that same night too, but he was too freaked out at the time to tell us about it. He said that as he and our other friend were walking through the grounds they passed really close to one of the fences around one of the buildings. He said that he brushed his fingers along the fence and suddenly he could hear what sounded like music, but it was really faint and sounded old. I asked him if it sounded like a music box (as there are rumours you can hear music box music there) but he said no and didn't really no how to describe it. The guy with him says he didn't hear anything at all, even though they were standing right next to each other.

If anyone else has any information that they want to share, feel free, I'd love to hear it!

[Grey Britain]

sounds like you had a pretty scary time there, i wouldnt want to go anywhere like that at night.

there is an abandoned mental home quite close to where i live in england and i have looked around during the day its such a creepy place some of the rooms still have wheelchairs in them i wish i had a picture to show but i have not been there recently.

[a nice cup of tea]

amariel- my housemate came home today and showed me some photos she had taken at Janefield. There is a bright green orb that appears in the same place in a couple of photos. I asked her if she would mind putting her photos here and she agreed so i hope to get them here real soon. We only had time for a short conversation today, but she said the whole place was very creepy, particularly the administrators office, where the hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she had a really strong sense of not being welcome. She left when the cops turned up. Apparently its patrolled by security guards 24/7. She also mentioned that for days afterwards she dreamed of battered women in the most terrible situations

[Amariel]

a nice cup of tea, on 12 May 2010 - 11:46 AM, said:

amariel- my housemate came home today and showed me some photos she had taken at Janefield. There is a bright green orb that appears in the same place in a couple of photos. I asked her if she would mind putting her photos here and she agreed so i hope to get them here real soon. We only had time for a short conversation today, but she said the whole place was very creepy, particularly the administrators office, where the hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she had a really strong sense of not being welcome. She left when the cops turned up. Apparently its patrolled by security guards 24/7. She also mentioned that for days afterwards she dreamed of battered women in the most terrible situations

Photos would be amazing, thanks so much! Yeah, I do know of the security patrolling, but I think they only stop by every half hour or hour or so, but they're usually okay, we've spoken to them before. They just told us not to go into the buildings and not to make too much noise. I'll make a note to pay close attention to the administrative building next time I'm there. I'm hoping to take some photos as well, see if anything comes up, maybe something like the green orb your housemate got.

[PillowPants]

hi there

I think this might help..

Search in google maps for Terrace Way, Macleod, Victoria

There is a row of red brick buildings that were part of Mont Park Asylum..

The last building on the left of the screen has extremely high fences around it, it was like this during its operation and word has it housed the criminally insane..


I don't live too far away and I've been meaning to head down there to see if all the building as still standing (google is a bit old)
but i haven't had the chance to head down..

Too bad street view will only get you so far, but would be cool to suss out in real life..

[Amariel]

PillowPants, on 17 July 2010 - 03:23 AM, said:

Search in google maps for Terrace Way, Macleod, Victoria
There is a row of red brick buildings that were part of Mont Park Asylum..
The last building on the left of the screen has extremely high fences around it, it was like this during its operation and word has it housed the criminally insane..
I don't live too far away and I've been meaning to head down there to see if all the building as still standing (google is a bit old)
but i haven't had the chance to head down..
Too bad street view will only get you so far, but would be cool to suss out in real life..

Thanks, I'll make sure I check it out and see what I come up with. I have some friends who live in Macleod so I might ask them if they know whether the buildings are still standing or if they have been demolished by now. If it's still standing, it might be worth going down for a snoop around and possibly some photos me thinks =)

[cpjason]

Here is a interesting photo from Larundel.

[a nice cup of tea]

Amariel- my housies been in Malaysia for ages and finally emailed me the photo. I dont know how to get it from yahoo to here though. any ideas?

cpjason- cool photo

[Amariel]

a nice cup of tea - I actually don't have any idea how to get it here either =S I've never had to upload a photo before. Maybe someone else has an idea of what to do?
And cpjason, I have seen that photo before and it is pretty cool and interesting, although most people I know who have seen it reckon it's a fake, not sure what anyone on here thinks though?

a nice cup of tea - I actually don't have any idea how to get it here either =S I've never had to upload a photo before. Maybe someone else has an idea of what to do?
And cpjason, I have seen that photo before and it is pretty cool and interesting, although most people I know who have seen it reckon it's a fake, not sure what anyone on here thinks though?