Tours of historic prison resume in Gladstone — ABC News Australia
In Gladstone, South Australia, the historic Gladstone Gaol has reopened to visitors after a four-year break. The site’s new custodians, Lantern Ghost Tours, have begun holding themed tours there with elements of mysticism, ABC News reports.
This year, Lantern Ghost Tours received a licence for the site from the Department for Environment and Water. Tours, which were open to the public until Halloween, sold out completely. Project coordinator Naomi Bailey said that due to high demand, the company added new tours and has a significant number of bookings for Saturday evenings.
A tourist attraction for the region
David Catford, president of the Gladstone Community Development and Tourism Association, called the prison an important tourist attraction for the Southern Flinders Ranges area. According to him, community residents realised the site’s significance after the previous operators ceased operations in 2022.
A one-off open day in 2025 was attended by around 1,300 people. In Catford’s view, this confirmed that interest in the former prison remains.
More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.
History of Gladstone Gaol
The decision to build a prison in Gladstone was made in 1879 to reduce pressure on the prisons in Port Augusta and Adelaide. The facility opened in 1881 and served its primary purpose for almost a century. At different times, it was a prison for inmates of both sexes, later became a men’s prison, and was used as a military prison during World War II.
In 1975, the government closed the facility, whose building still had no plumbing at that time. The community subsequently maintained public access to the site: tours, accommodation and events were organised there. The previous custodians left the site in 2022, citing a decline in the number of volunteers after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lantern Ghost Tours also plans to open a café on the grounds and carry out restoration work to expand opportunities for events and for visitors to learn about the prison’s history.
