Haunted tours start Friday

Published 8:35 pm Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Each year, thousands of people come to Selma to learn more about its history. This weekend, they will have an opportunity to learn about Selma’s haunted history as well.

The annual Haunted History tours will begin Friday and Saturday at 5 p.m. and will include visits to Old Cahawba, Sturdivant Hall and Old Live Oak Cemetery.

Friday’s tour will feature a ghost wagon that will take tourists to two locations. The tour will give the history of the event and some ghost stories that happened there. Participants will get to go on a paranormal investigation while at Cahawba on the only night of the year the state park is open past dusk.

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The Saturday tours, which are expected to last about two hours, will begin at one of Selma’s most visited locations. Sturdivant Hall co-director Manera Searcy said visitors on the ghost tour will be greeted by the homes favorite haunt.

“While they are waiting, we will have Mr. (John) Parkman out on the front steps to tell his story,” she said. “Then we will tell them about some of the history of the house and the strange happenings. It won’t be like our usual tours because we will focus mostly on the ghosts.”

The Sturdivant Hall tour will last about 45 minutes, Searcy said, so everyone can get to the Old Live Oak Cemetery tour on time.

This tour, organizer Maggie Davies said, will include more ghosts and more stories than ever before.

“We are pulling out all the stops this year,” she said. “We will have eight different ghosts, some of them have never been seen before.”

Because this tour will be held outdoors, Davies said there are a few items participants should bring along.

“They need to bring a jacket because it is going to be cold,” she said. “And they should also bring a flashlight, because there are some trip hazards.”

The tours begin at 5, 6, 7 and 8 p.m.

The tours are for ages 12 and up and tickets are on sale for $15.

A Haunted History Tour getaway package will be offered to guests in partnership with the historic St. James Hotel.

The package for two includes overnight accommodations on Oct. 21 and 22, admission to Cahawba Spirit Investigation and Selma’s Haunted History Tour, breakfast each morning and a hotel tour for $225 plus tax.

For more information and to order tickets, call 875-7241 or 1-800-45-SELMA.
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