With Halloween approaching, there are a few spooky places for you and your friends to check out in Richmond:
1.The Byrd Theatre
Located in Carytown, everyone’s favorite five dollar movie spot is rumored to be housing more than film reels. Legend has it that the ghost of the former manager, Robert Coulter, who managed the theatre from 1928 to 1971, still can sometimes be seen in his favorite balcony spot.
Todd Schall-Vess, the general manager, said that Coulter adored this theatre and wouldn’t let a thing like mere death stop him from paying his theatre a visit.
It is also rumored that the ghost of a mysterious young girl can be heard in the downstairs women’s bathroom. According to Schall-Vess, they have little to no idea on the identity of the mysterious ghost girl.
2. Hollywood Cemetery
This one seems like a no brainer. Of course if there’s going to be anywhere that’s haunted, of course it’s the cemetery. But there’s more than just your average spooky specter in this tale. This cemetery has vampires. One vampire to be specific.
According to legend, the vampire is kept inside the mausoleum of American bookkeeper William W. Pool. It supposedly emerged from the rubble of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad’s Church Hill Tunnel, all jagged teeth and loose hanging flesh. Yikes.
3. Tuckahoe Plantation
The boyhood home of Thomas Jefferson is said to house numerous spirits due to the bloody history of the residents. Richard Randolph, a handsome 23-year-old cousin to Thomas Jefferson, was accused of murdering the illegitimate love child of his sister-in law. The child was rumored to be his. Another rumor is that a an unhappy bride can be seen walking down the garden path. The identity of this bride is currently unknown.
4. Julep’s
What? How can this place be haunted? They serve brunch for corn’s sake. Well before Julep’s was selling brunch, they were selling weapons in the 1820s. And it’s apparently haunted by the ghost of Daniel Denoon, who was shot and killed by James McNaught, the owner of the shop.
Paranormal activity allegedly started in the 2003 after renovations were done. The stairs where Denoon died were soon boarded off and turned into a closet. Ever since then, strange noises reportedly come from that closet.
5. Edgar Allen Poe
Of course the museum dedicated to everyone’s favorite emo boy has a ghost or two, including Poe himself. The Edgar Allan Poe is reported to have the ghost of two blonde children who roam the premises. They are thought to be the children of the former owners of the museum. The children are often seen in the photographs of tourists. Lastly, it is also rumored that the shadowy ghost of Poe himself can be seen on the premises. There was also an instance where a picture of Poe was captured, standing in the back of the tour group, looking as if he was taking the tour himself.
So, which haunted RVA spot will you be checking out this year?