Unsolved Mysteries
EloraM23 2011/02/20 13:41
EloraM23 2011/02/20 13:41
An elusive knot lies at the heart of any good mystery. What draws us in are the secrets and lies, the intrigue and talk of conspiracy. No matter how many times we tell the story, wonder what really happened, what might have been, questions remain. Not everything can be explained. The enigma, in the end, is something you feel.
EloraM23 2011/02/20 13:44
Granny Locke and the mystery of the Min Min light
Born 1918
The Min Min lights are one of Australia's greatest supernatural mysteries. A sign on the way into Boulia, Queensland reads:
For the next 120km towards Winton you are in the land of the Min Min Light. This unsolved modern mystery is a light that at times follows travellers for long distances – it has been approached but never identified.
These football or watermelon shaped glowing balls of light have been following travellers through the Queensland outback for over sixty years. No satisfactory scientific explanation exists to explain them.
The lights are named after the Min Min hotel in Boulia that burnt down in 1918. Soon after the fire a stockman was followed by a light on his journey to Boulia.
Other reports of the lights soon followed and they have become a local feature and legend. Thousands of sightings of the lights have now been reported. The lights have been known to follow people on horseback, in cars and on foot sometimes for hundreds of kilometres. The lights generally travel around three feet from the ground and are often mistaken for the headlights of another vehicle.
Granny Jean Locke has seen the lights herself on four occasions. A long-time resident of Boulia, Granny Locke is familiar with all of the stories of the lights and passes these stories on to visitors as they pass through Boulia.
Granny Locke and the mystery of the Min Min light
Born 1918
The Min Min lights are one of Australia's greatest supernatural mysteries. A sign on the way into Boulia, Queensland reads:
For the next 120km towards Winton you are in the land of the Min Min Light. This unsolved modern mystery is a light that at times follows travellers for long distances – it has been approached but never identified.
These football or watermelon shaped glowing balls of light have been following travellers through the Queensland outback for over sixty years. No satisfactory scientific explanation exists to explain them.
The lights are named after the Min Min hotel in Boulia that burnt down in 1918. Soon after the fire a stockman was followed by a light on his journey to Boulia.
Other reports of the lights soon followed and they have become a local feature and legend. Thousands of sightings of the lights have now been reported. The lights have been known to follow people on horseback, in cars and on foot sometimes for hundreds of kilometres. The lights generally travel around three feet from the ground and are often mistaken for the headlights of another vehicle.
Granny Jean Locke has seen the lights herself on four occasions. A long-time resident of Boulia, Granny Locke is familiar with all of the stories of the lights and passes these stories on to visitors as they pass through Boulia.
EloraM23 2011/02/20 13:47
Harold Holt and the mystery of his disappearance: 1908-1967
Was it the curse of the Cheviot? Many rumours abound to explain the disappearance of Australia's 18th Prime Minister in surf at Cheviot Beach, Portsea, Victoria, in December 1967. One of them is the curse of the Cheviot. Months before his disappearance, Holt went diving at Cheviot Beach with five companions, each retrieved relics from the Cheviot ship wreck, and then four of the six died in mysterious circumstances. In 1967 no one knew that the Cheviot still entombed the 28 souls who died when it sank in 1887. On display is the porthole that Holt himself retrieved.
Harold Holt and the mystery of his disappearance: 1908-1967
Was it the curse of the Cheviot? Many rumours abound to explain the disappearance of Australia's 18th Prime Minister in surf at Cheviot Beach, Portsea, Victoria, in December 1967. One of them is the curse of the Cheviot. Months before his disappearance, Holt went diving at Cheviot Beach with five companions, each retrieved relics from the Cheviot ship wreck, and then four of the six died in mysterious circumstances. In 1967 no one knew that the Cheviot still entombed the 28 souls who died when it sank in 1887. On display is the porthole that Holt himself retrieved.
EloraM23 2011/02/20 13:51
The Tichborne Claimant and the mystery of his identity: 1829 (1834)-1898
Was he Roger Tichborne, heir to the English Tichborne Family estates, or Tom Castro, a butcher from Wagga Wagga, New South Wales? Long lost heir or cunning imposter?
In 1866, Tom Castro claimed he was Sir Roger Tichborne, who was thought to have drowned at sea 11 years earlier. He and his family travelled to England to claim the family fortune, which had passed to a grandson when it was believed Roger had drowned.
Lady Tichborne was convinced this was her long lost son, but the rest of the family thought he was a fraud. The ensuing trial was the longest in English history (until recently beaten by the McLibel trial) and was closely followed by the public in England and Wagga Wagga.
Prior to DNA testing, many ingenious methods including face comparison were used to establish if Tom Castro was indeed Roger Tichborne. The claimant (Tichborne/Castro) lost the case and was imprisoned. His celebrity status enabled his supporters to raise £10,000 in bail.
Ceramic figurines of Tichborne/Castro and a glass plate were produced to commemorate the trial and one of these is on display.
When Tom Castro died in 1898, the family agreed to him being buried in the Tichborne vault. Was he the heir after all?
The Tichborne Claimant and the mystery of his identity: 1829 (1834)-1898
Was he Roger Tichborne, heir to the English Tichborne Family estates, or Tom Castro, a butcher from Wagga Wagga, New South Wales? Long lost heir or cunning imposter?
In 1866, Tom Castro claimed he was Sir Roger Tichborne, who was thought to have drowned at sea 11 years earlier. He and his family travelled to England to claim the family fortune, which had passed to a grandson when it was believed Roger had drowned.
Lady Tichborne was convinced this was her long lost son, but the rest of the family thought he was a fraud. The ensuing trial was the longest in English history (until recently beaten by the McLibel trial) and was closely followed by the public in England and Wagga Wagga.
Prior to DNA testing, many ingenious methods including face comparison were used to establish if Tom Castro was indeed Roger Tichborne. The claimant (Tichborne/Castro) lost the case and was imprisoned. His celebrity status enabled his supporters to raise £10,000 in bail.
Ceramic figurines of Tichborne/Castro and a glass plate were produced to commemorate the trial and one of these is on display.
When Tom Castro died in 1898, the family agreed to him being buried in the Tichborne vault. Was he the heir after all?
#34 Myth&Mystery
For discussion of mythologies, ancient cultures, the supernatural, mysticism and folklore. Explore the darker mysteries of life here.