Richmond's haunted history: Storytellers share the city's ghost tales

Watch the full report from WTVR CBS 6 Photojournalist Myles Black in the video player above.

RICHMOND, Va. — Richmond's long history has earned it a reputation as one of Virginia's most haunted cities — and a group of local storytellers is spending the Halloween season sharing the tales behind that reputation.

From unexplained shadows at the Byrd Park Pump House to a gust of wind on the staircase at Scott House, storytellers with Haunts of Richmond lead walking tours that pair the city's ghost stories with its past. Richmond was founded in 1737 and is approaching its 300th anniversary.

"Richmond's history is very, very haunted from one end of the city to another," said Chris Houlihan, a storyteller with the company. "You can't have spooky without history."

Houlihan said the ghost stories are a way to draw people into Richmond's history.

"Ghost stories are amazing, but they're also a fantastic vehicle for bringing Richmond's history to people that might otherwise not go looking for it," he said.

The storytellers point to several locations they describe as especially active.

At the Masons' Lodge on Franklin Street, storyteller Tiffany Jones said people have reported seeing the spirit of a former caretaker.

"Their old caretaker, Uncle Josh, he still haunts it," Jones said. "People have seen, while walking, it looks like a candle going back and forth in between a window."

Jones said the Byrd Park Pump House is another frequent stop.

"Byrd Park Pump House is a pretty active location. We've seen shadows," she said. "We've noticed playing music of that time period will get them going."

At Scott House, Houlihan said, visitors have described a strange experience on the main staircase.

"They go and come down the main staircase in the house, and as they're doing so, all of a sudden a great gust of wind comes through and basically almost pushes them back a step or two," he said.
Houlihan said the home may still have a watchful presence.

"Perhaps Mrs. Babcock is still here as the last permanent resident of Scott House, still looking out for the home that she loved so much," he said.

Jones said the stories and the city's history are inseparable.

"This whole area is just a piece of history with haunting," she said.

For Houlihan, that connection is the point.

"The way that we put it is that Richmond's spirits don't rest," he said, "so why should we?"