When the historic gold mining town of Ravenswood was in its heyday in the late 1800s the town boasted 48 hotels and thousands of residents trying to make their fortune.
But as the gold dried up so too did the fortunes of the town, and today it’s largely deserted.
Now just a couple of hundred people live in Ravenswood, situated off the highway between Townsville and Charters Towers in north Queensland.
“It’s really good as long as you’re happy with the lifestyle and you don’t want to make a lot of money,” says the publican of The Imperial Hotel, Diane Slooter.
“The lifestyle is great.”
Her thoughts are echoed by the curator of the local Ravenswood museum Narelle Hancock, who rejects suggestions they’re living in a ghost town.
“We’re living people, we’re not ghosts,” she says.
“That’s what I think.”
A small gold mine still operates in Ravenswood, but locals are looking to a rise in the gold price to encourage new mines to open in the district.
The town also attracts passing tourists, the travellers keen to see buildings like The Imperial with its wrought iron veranda, high ceilings and stained glass windows.