It seems Americans love to be scared, as witness the popularity of such eerie attractions as Massachusetts’ Lizzie Borden House; voodoo queen Marie Laveau’s grave in New Orleans, and Colorado’s Stanley Hotel (which, if you saw “The Shining,” still gives you chills).
All scary spots to be sure, but there is no shortage of daunting destinations in Kentucky. As a result, it’s believed to be the first state to actively encourage tourists to visit “after dark.”
The “Kentucky After Dark” campaign, which kicked off in 2023, now has 21 participating destinations across the commonwealth. These destinations offer 42 attractions guaranteed to give you a good scare, or at least, a mild case of goosebumps.
When it comes to the fear factor, Frankfort is no slouch, and we’re not talking just about politics, although we did have a governor who got put out of office – permanently. At the Capital City Museum, learn the story of William Goebel, the only U.S. governor to be assassinated while in office.
However, Goebel is just one of Frankfort’s shadowy phantoms who are said to roam by night.
There’s Steven Frank, an early land surveyor who has the distinction of having the town named for him. He also has a more dubious distinction – of being among its first murder victims, having been killed by a band of Native Americans.
The Spanish opera singer is at the center of another intriguing tale. The melody lingers on at Liberty Hall Historic Site where her spirit is believed to stroll the gardens.
The story began in 1805 when a glittering ball was underway at the mansion. The diva, newly arrived from New Orleans, was enjoying the festivities when she wandered into the gardens for some cool evening air. She vanished and was never seen again.
Or was she? Over the years, visitors have reported seeing a beautiful woman in a red gown, her long black hair flowing behind her and her mouth open in a silent scream.
At the time of her vanishing, it was thought she might have been abducted by Indians, but whatever her fate, she joins Liberty Hall’s other ghost, the Gray Lady, in welcoming paranormal enthusiasts to Frankfort After Dark.
You’ve met the beauty – now it’s time to discover the beast(s) – in the form of a marauding band of werewolves and other Bluegrass Beasts said to roam Fort Hill.
Better known as the spot where in 1864 a local militia prevented Confederate cavalry raiders from attacking Frankfort, the Hill takes on a different feel after dark.
If you are over 12 years of age, you can set off in search of the bevy of beasties. Armed with lanterns to light the way, visitors follow their guide on the trail of Bigfoot and who knows what else. We can’t promise a sighting, but we do promise a haunting hike.
If you haven’t been scared enough from these encounters, just know that during the month of October Thursday nights in Frankfort can be murder.
That’s when the Capital City Museum offers its popular “Russ Hatter’s Murder and Mayhem Tour.” Led by museum director Dr. Eleanor Hasken-Wagner, the award-winning, two-hour tour is a veritable smorgasbord of misbehaving mobsters, pistol-wielding politicians, corrupt city officials……and murder.
You’ll need a scorecard to tell the good guys from the bad. Even Gov. Goebel was both a murder victim and a murderer, having dispatched one of his political rivals just a few years before his own bloody demise.
The tour takes visitors to the sites of shootings, stabbings, beatings and lynchings that took place during Frankfort’s wild and violent past.
Hasken-Wagner leads intrepid trekkers to stops such as the Old City Hall, Old Capitol Building, Singing Bridge and the Whitaker Bank (site of the former Capital Hotel). All places, says Hasken-Wagner “with a dark and disturbing past.” Those with courage enough to take our tours will receive proof of their bravery with a Kentucky After Dark passport showing stickers from each spot they have visited (or should that be survived?) So, come to Frankfort after dark and let us scare you silly.