drives

Rumors of a ghost at Ascot House in Queensland, Australia, have been circulating as far back as the 1890s. It wasn’t until some one hundred years later, that the ghost could finally be put to rest. Ascot House was built for wealthy businessman and politician, Frederick Holberton, in 1876, and was originally named ‘Tor’. Situated in Newtown, a suburb of Toowoomba, it once stood on 13ha (32 acres) of land. It eventually changed hands, and the new owner renamed it Ascot House and undertook numerous renovations. Ascot House contained a gothic tower, sweeping staircase, and large high-ceilinged rooms. Many years later, the house would fall into a state of disrepair. During the 1940s, flats had been added, which housed people looking for cheap accommodation. It was not until the 1980s that the house was sold to a successful renovator, who proceeded to bring the house back to its former glory. No sooner had the new owner moved into Ascot House, that she would hear footsteps walking down the hallway at night but see no-one. Once, during the early hours of the morning, she felt fingertips brush her shoulders. One warm evening, she leaned against a wall where the surface was icy cold. The cold patch lasted for months and defied explanation. There have been numerous eye-witness accounts, including one man who saw the apparition of a young woman that looked as if her neck was broken. It had been rumored that a young servant girl had hung herself within the house. After many years of searching, the owner identified the young woman as Maggie Hume, who had worked at Ascot House as a housemaid under the employ of the original owner, Frederick Holberton. At 23 years of age, she committed suicide, not by hanging, but by taking strychnine. According to the police reports, it was believed she suicided after learning she was pregnant. At the inquest, a couple of male staff members confessed to having ‘connections’ with her. As a single woman committing suicide, Maggie was buried in an unmarked grave. Now, a headstone has been placed at the site, giving her the sympathy she never received in life. Source: debbie-johansson.com/2021/09/29/the-ghost-of-ascot-house/

Lovely photo!

One of my favorite places to visit! Darius Kinsey and his wife made some incredible photographs.

Probably Herbert E. Ives (1882-1953), scientist and engineer. If so, his Wikipedia article could use this photo.

whyaduck: Thanks for the tip! This does appear to be Herbert E. Ives, based on another image of a slightly older Ives in our collections, which is found within the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog and can be seen here.

In 1913, Ives 'invented' daylight, see e.g. Perrysburg journal., November 14, 1913, Image 5, col. 1, "Dayligth at All Hours" (chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87076843/1913-11-14/ed-...)

This photo ran in The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current, August 10, 1913, SECTION FIVE, Image 61 with the caption: "Dr. Herbert E. Ives, of Philadelphia, says he has invented a substitute for daylight on which he has been at work for a dozen years. He says his new light has passed the test and is in every way equal to sunshine and the light of day. He has designed a powerful incandescent lamp with a special mantle, which is so placed in the top of a specially made cabinet that its rays are immediately beneath a reflector. This is made of metal and the light is forced downward through a series delicately colored screens. This light will be useful for dental work, sorting cigars, paper manufacture, diamond buyers, color printing, textile manufacture, dyeing and similar arts in which no light has been found which can satisfactorily take the place of daylight." oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn83045782/1913-08-10/ed-1/se...