A guide to the spooky side of Ballarat's past

But history has a dark side, and these tours provide a peek on the eerie, uncanny and sometimes spooky side to Ballarat.

The Old Cemetery

Spend an evening exploring the dark side of Gold Rush history at Ballarat's Old Cemetery.

The tour goes for about 90 minutes, and is run at night by Nathaniel Buchanan's Eerie Ghost Tours, a company he started in Ballarat.

The experience is not for the faint of heart, as you will hear dark and gruesome tales that are a part of Ballarat's history.

Throughout the tour he will take you to visit a variety of Eureka soldiers and miners' graves, including a mass grave of over 10,000 gold rush miners.

You will also visit Chinese and Jewish sites, hearing tales such as the story of the Chinese caretaker's daughter who burnt to death in a smoking ceremony.

Mr Buchanan describes his tour at the Old Cemetery as a "death tour", rather than a ghost tour, but he said it often leaves visitors quite affected.

"I essentially remind people of their own mortality for one and a half hours," he said.

Tours are held each week on Friday and Saturday nights.

For those interested in more uncanny occurrences, Eerie Tours also offer a ghost tour beginning at the Ballarat railway station.

Ballaarat Mechanic's Institute

The Ballaarat Mechanic's Institute was first built as a dedicated learning space for skilled workers who came to Ballarat during the Gold Rush period.

As a part of the Heritage Festival Weekend, the institution is offering night tours that allow people to step back in time and explore the weird and supernatural.

Experienced guides Katrina Hill and Tim Harris will take you through rooms in the building that are generally closed to the public eye, quashing any of the myths surrounding underground secret passageways under central Ballarat

"Lots of people don't know about the Ballaarat Mechanics' Institute and I often hear people say, 'I've lived in Ballarat all my life and I've never been'," said Ms Hill.

"Just don't rock up wanting to argue with me about underground tunnels or I'll set our resident ghost on to you."

For those looking for a ghost experience thrill, part of the tour includes a visit to the basement, which is full of 1800s witch marks.

Witch marks, or apotropaic marks, have been found in houses, churches and historical places since the 16th century to the early 19th century.

It was believed that putting these marks on doorways or walls near entrance points to the home, as well as fireplaces, could ward off witches and evil spirits.

Tours will be on May 17 and May 21; tickets can be bought online.

Palais-Hepburn

Nestled in the picturesque Hepburn Springs, just a 45-minute drive from Ballarat, is the heritage-listed Palais-Hepburn.

The venue was built in 1926 and was originally a movie-projection theatre house, but it now serves as a live music and entertainment venue.

More recently, the Palais has become a site for paranormal investigations conducted by Kyneton Paranormal's Dolly Adamson.

The venue contains Victoria's oldest sprung dance floor, and is well known by staff, guests and its current owner, to be home to its own stage spirits.

The former owner of the Palais slept on the dancefloor while he was renovating the building, and sold the building because of his haunting experiences, according to Adamson.

There have been several different presences felt by many people over the years, and Ms Adamson said the group was able to make contact with a number of spirits on their first night of investigation.

"There was tapping, noises, curtains moving and great chatter on our spirit boxes," she said.

A spirit box is a radio that scans through stations in reverse; spirits are able to manipulate the radio waves to get their voices through.

They are just one of the pieces of equipment used by Adamson on the investigation.

Some of the spirits include a Chinese miner who has allegedly been sighted several times over the years, a young man that possibly died at the venue, and Miss Trouble, a child spirit from its former days as a projection house.

If you are interested in taking part in one of the investigations, you can book online.

The next tours are May 15 and June 16.

Ballarat Town Hall Trenchroom

The team from Tales from Rat City has banded together for an interactive theatrical play event, which will be a sequel to 2023 Victorian Community History Award winning adventure 'William Bailey's Haunted Mansion'.

The play is set in 1890, where a bounty has been offered for the capture of 'the person playing the ghost' in the dark corners of Ballarat city.

The story is based on true events; where in 1890 the Ballarat Ghost was terrorising people out late at night on the street.

The ghost was actually a man by the name of Herbert Patrick McLennan, in a glow-in-the-dark ghost costume.

The city of Ballarat put out a bounty of five pounds for the capture of anyone impersonating a ghost, which backfired and vigilante groups of young men went out trying to hunt ghosts, bringing chaos onto the streets.

Actors will take the audience on an interactive experience, using props and maps of Ballarat that people can use in their quest to discover the ghost.

Event creator, Dr David Waldron, encourages people of all ages to attend the "well-researched historical fiction".

The event is open to people of all ages, and Mr Waldron said the play has been particularly successful in youth outreach and has an element of humour.

"People should come because you get to explore lesser known aspects of Ballarat history and heritage," he said.

"You'll find out new things about the town you didn't previously know you'll enjoy."

In order to secure your spot, be sure to purchase a ticket online, the play will take place on May 23.