Junee’s Monte Cristo Homestead (often referred to as Australia’s most haunted house), was put up for sale for the second time in its history in November 2025. It remains for sale, with prospective buyers sparse despite the killer deal.
Overlooking the railway town which made the former owner rich, the double-storey late-Victorian manor is currently listed for a price of $1.9 million.
Built in 1885 by local pioneer and entrepreneur, Christopher William Crawley, for his family (his wife Elizabeth and their seven children), the house was filled with noise and laughter until 1948 (38 years after Christopher’s death and 15 years after Elizabeth’s). The house stood vacant and deteriorating with occasional caretaking for 15 years.
The house’s contents (furniture and the like) were sold off in 1952, but it would take another 11 years until the abandoned and bat-infested manor was purchased for £1,000 by Reginald and Olive Ryan. The couple moved in with their young family and undertook extensive restoration work to rescue the derelict building from ruin. Living in the 18-bedroom house for more than six decades, the once abandoned building became a museum, antiques showcase, curio and souvenir shop, and supernatural hotspot.
Olive Ryan passed away in November 2024, at nearly 94 years old. It was then that the haunted house was closed to the public.
During the house’s visits, the only ‘people’ to live on the premise were a collection of dolls scattered throughout the rooms. Visitors could stay the night and left with a large manor of stories about things that went bump in the night…
10 ghosts are thought to regularly haunt the building. Established ideas as to their identity have been well documented and are as follows.
Christopher (who had died in the building), his wife Elizabeth (who grew so depressed upon his death that she spent majority of her time in her converted attic, eventually dying there with a ruptured appendix. She only left the house twice after Christopher’s death), their granddaughter Ethel (who was dropped by a nursemaid down some stairs. The nursemaid claims she was pushed), a maid who was pregnant with Christopher’s baby (she jumped off of the balcony and fell on the stairs), the child of another maid (whose father was Christopher. The boy had sustained a traumatic head injury after being hit by a carriage. Although he survived, he became disabled for life and was often mocked by other children. He was kept chained in the house), a stable boy (who had died in his bed after the straw mattress had been set on fire), a caretaker (who had been shot on the porch), another maid, the nursemaid who dropped Ethel and an unnamed servant often referred to as the ‘Hat Man’.
Now, these 10 ghosts may be welcoming a new owner.
Previously open to offers, the Homestead listing is now going for $1.9 million, with all furniture included.
For the first time in 60 years, a new owner will be written down in the homestead’s illustrious history as someone in possession of 6.1 acres of land (approximately 2.47 hectares), 18 bedrooms, five bathrooms, multiple kitchens, a ballroom, two reception halls, an indoor pool and the original brick cottage the Crawley’s had originally called home.
Ray White Junee agent, Jason Barrett, says they haven’t found the right person yet, but hope to settle soon.
“We are still looking for a buyer,” he says.
“Majority of the inquiries that come in hope to utilise the property the way it has previously been.”
Upon listing, the house had no definitive price and was instead listed as an Expression of Interest (EOI).
“It’s a one-of-a-kind property, and for the new owners, it would be a privilege to return it to its former glory,” says Jason.
Although several inquiries were placed from buyers across Australia, the house remains standing still.
With no sure end in sight, perhaps it’s the ghosts telling us to stay, stay away.
– Elizabeth Kovacs
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