MEGAscene • Issue 2 October 2015
SA PARANORMAL
Words and Photos by Allen Tiller This month we’re going to delve into a little of the history of Australia’s most haunted town, Kapunda, and talk about the origins of its title. Very soon in this column I will also delve into Adelaide’s haunted history. It is my aim though to cover this entire States paranormal, supernatural, cryptozoological and UFO history for you, avid reader, in this monthly MEGAscene column – SA Paranormal. South Australia officially became a British Province on December 28th 1836 when Governor John Hindmarsh read the proclamation at Glenelg at the old Gum Tree. Adelaide was a planned city, set to be the British colonies “Utopia” in the south. Coming from the UK, our first settlers brought all kinds of skills and talents with them to our southern shores, they also brought superstitions from many European countries. Kapunda, Australia’s first mining town, known to many as “Australia’s Most Haunted Town” had a population made of Irish Roman Catholics, Welsh and Cornish miners, German farmers and labourers, Afghan merchants, Chinese market Kapunda Copper Mines gardeners and just about every other culture upon earth. It was a melting pot of people with different beliefs, different religions and strange tapping sounds and sometimes were thought to warn the miners of an impending mine different superstitions. collapse or tragedy. Some of the Knockers were The Cornish miners had a couple of particularly grumpy creatures, and if shown disrespect, could interesting superstitions. Upon the birth of lead miners to their deaths. To appease these their first child, Cornish Miners would burn knockers, the miners would leave the hard pastry their hat, it was done to ensure a long healthy end of their pasty in the mine as a gift for the life for their child, and to show their family knockers, hence the “Cornish Pasty” with its extra and friends they had new responsibilities. pastry. Cornish Miners also would not allow women Other superstitions and supernatural beliefs near the mine opening, as it was considered followed from homelands, and east of Kapunda, bad luck, as were hares, which could be a sign the Irish community settling around St Johns, brought their strong belief of ghosts with them. of witchcraft happening in the area. Father Fallon built the Church and Presbytery in Cornish Miners also believed in dwarf-like the late 1840’s, and upon his death, he was buried creatures that lived under the ground known inside the Church under the Church Alter. His body as “Knockers” (Tommy-knockers in the USA). was removed to the lower cemetery many years later when the Church was due to be condemned. These little creatures were the cause of 38