Paranormal tours – Willow Court Tasmania

APIU, DVC may approve tour of “Satan’s House”!

September 22, 2017 8 Comments

Last night the Derwent Valley Council (DVC) discussed a proposal for the (APIU) Australian Paranormal Investigation Unit (collection of friends) to conduct After Dark Tours (Paranormal Tours) of Frascati House. Previously the Group have referred to the house as Satan’s House in a podcast interview with Naked Zombie TV.

They also have told the interviewer about their experiences of “mild possession, unexplained scratches, evil presences, ghosts following people home”

While the group say they are not prone to over exaggeration or being disrespectful the above comments and naming of the place as “Satan’s House” would have to be questioned.

Frascati has a wonderful and long history starting with it’s construction in 1834, later it was the home of the many Medical Superintendents and then a Training Centre for some of the Residents.

“This request comes about as a result of the APIU recognising that Frascati House plays an important role in the history of the Willow Court precinct.
The APIU has indicated that they have had a discussion with a member of Friends of Frascati and at the time of writing was intending to attend a committee meeting of that group to discuss the After Dark Tours.

The APIU has advised that if the Council approves its request the use of Frascati House will not be advertised in its promotional material, rather it will be referred to as a ‘secret location’.

This will assist in preventing unwanted attempts to access the building prior to the tours. Further to this the APIU will ensure that the area will be patrolled during the tour operations to ensure that the site is kept secure.
All profits made from the tour will be donated to the Council for use in restoration activities on the site.

Should the APIU wish to conduct additional tours on any part of the Willow Court site a further report will be presented to the Council.”

Item 10.7 DVC agenda

Spirits at Willow Court

August 16, 2015 1 Comment

Kick start Arts Tasmania are completely aware of the building that they occupy and have sympathetically and culturally tackled the history. For those that believe in any remaining spirit activity within this old Hobart Orphanage can read about how this has been addressed.

At a healing ceremony, elder Jim Everett led a procession of fire sticks and garlands through the building.

“We needed to refresh the place, to say the spirits are not here, and the children’s spirits who were here can feel safe,” he said.

“We open up a new future for the diversity of cultures in Tasmania, and the collaborations that will come from it.”

Click here for full story or image above.

In complete contrast on the Pennhurst Memorial and Preservation Alliance Facebook Group a member responded to a question about Paranormal Tours within the old institution and any funds being returned for the upkeep and restoration of this historic place, that once housed people with intellectual disabilities.

“Yes, unless it’s just some kids trying to get beer money. The whole idea of running a “paranormal investigation” tour is not only exploitative, selfish, and a condition of emotional constipation, it’s completely juvenile. I’m not saying the belief in ghosts is juvenile, but to profit off of tragedy by twisting it into a more Hollywood version is wrong no matter what way you look at it. Rather than viewing the buildings with any sort of empathetic and meditative thought process that one would hopefully gain while looking at, say, a war memorial, people seem to have chosen a route that requires a much more shallow thought process when it comes to places like Pennhurst.”

Pennhurst haunted tours website

Both views are vastly different from each other but the contrast poses a question for Willow Court and how can this history be culturally and respectfully dealt with and how can healing begin? It has long been thought about and there has been suggestions from Committee’s, families and Advocates. Some of those suggestions have included memorial gardens and places of peace and sculptures which tell the complex story of Willow Court’s mixed and diverse history.