In the spirit of Halloween, the Georgia Writers Museum (GWM) and the Arts Barn joined together to put on this year’s Haunted Eatonton ghost tours. Tours were held Oct. 27, 28, and 30, with multiple groups going out each night at sundown. Each tour walked through Eatonton’s historic downtown district, “haunted” by ghostly actors from the Arts Barn’s performing arts school.
The Arts Barn school emphasizes “building community through the arts” and director Lora Garcia-Carreras was enthusiastic about the event’s connection with both GWM and the historic district of Eatonton with its rich past. “I love the process. I love putting in the work and knowing the answers will come ... It’s a team effort and because of that a fantastic community is built, as well as self-confidence,” Garcia-Carreras said.
Haunted Eatonton promised that guests would hear “the scariest stories they’d never heard,” and that they were “all 100% true, except for the parts that were completely made up.”
The haunting tales were written by 2012 Georgia Author of the Year Ann Hite, who partnered with GWM for the events. Hite researched the “haints,” or ghosts, of Eatonton for the scripts that were performed by actors from the Arts Barn – perhaps best known for its annual two-week Broadway Intensive which produces a full Broadway show in only two weeks at The Plaza Arts Center each summer.
Ghost tour guests heard stories about classic Eatonton locations including Blackwell’s Adele Theater, the downtown courthouse, the Bronson House, and Panola Hall. The stories were dramatic and dynamic, leaving guests mystified as they stood in the low light of candles.
Each site on the tour had been investigated by the Southeastern Institute of Paranormal Research (SIPR) during previous Haunted Eatonton programs.
Some of their findings were reflected in this year’s tour, such as two ghost children played with SIPR members at Union Church cemetery last year, who were featured as schoolgirls at the historic Eatonton school now known as The Plaza. SIPR investigators also claimed to see Miss Fannie Lee Laverette haunting the Blackwell House on North Madison Avenue.
Perhaps Eatonton’s best-known ghost, though, is Sylvia, who supposedly looks out from her bedroom window at Panola Hall at the living passing by on the sidewalk below. Eatonton’s famous spirit was first spotted by Dr. Hunt and his wife, Panola Hall’s second owners. She was described as a beautiful, young woman in white with a rose in her hair. Mrs.
Hunt wrote a short poem about the ghost of Sylvia, which was read to guests of the Haunted Eatonton tour before entering the home. The actor playing Sylvia’s ghost went up and down the home’s staircase before returning to her post at the window, where guests got the chance to look inside.
More than 150 guests toured Haunted Eatonton over Halloween weekend.
Tourgoers were encouraged to take pictures, in hopes they might catch something otherworldly on camera. Groups moved throughout the different locations before ending back at the museum, where they could chat about their experiences.