As if Friday the 13th in October is not scary enough, Somerset Inc. will host a Living History/Ghost Tours on the same day.
The event is a mixture between a haunted tour and telling historic stories about buildings or sites in the uptown Somerset Historic District.
?We are trying to hook into the whole idea of Friday the 13th,? said executive director Stephanie Williams. ?People can also learn interesting facts about Somerset they may have not known before.?
The organization has hosted the tour in past years. The first time, about 250 people participated, according to Williams.
?It's a lot of fun,? she said. ?Some of the sites are different time periods because some of the buildings are a lot older. We try to recreate things that are no longer there.?
The tours start at 7 p.m. and will be held every 15 minutes after that. The entire tour lasts about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Williams said groups will be at each site for a 10- to 20-minute presentation.
?They get to hear stories they've never heard before,? she said. ?Some are ghost stories, but they are learning history as well. If (the community is) interested in the community they live in, this is a great way to learn about it and a great way to spend Friday the 13th.?
Some of the sites are the Old Somerset Trust Historic Building along North Center Avenue, the courthouse area, old jail, Ankeny Square Cemetery, First Christian Church, Glades Court building, the site of the former McKinley house and many indoor sites that could not be verified.
There may be more outdoor sites depending on the weather, but most of the sites are indoors.
The McKinley house was along East Main Street. The house belonged to President William McKinley's brother. The president frequently stayed in the house when he visited Somerset.
?We have someone whose grandparents used to live in the house,? Williams said. ?There are artifacts and photos.?
Tour guides will be available to help participants cross streets and take them to hosts at the different sites.
Williams said the tours could potentially be scary for younger children.
Somerset Inc. is able to host the historical tours because of a grant from the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies. The organization will fund special effects and costumes.
Williams said Huston's Haunted Hollow, in Rockwood, will loan some Revolutionary War costumes.
Doug Huston, Huston's organizer, said he is willing to help the organization by providing the costumes.
?We've helped them out several years ago,? he said. ?A few years ago, we provided some special effects and we are willing to help again this year.?
Huston said this year he will not be able to provide special effects for the ghost tours because they are needed for his own haunted house.
?We'll loan any costumes that wouldn't be needed in our production,? he said.
The Somerset Historical Center will loan lanterns.
Williams said she anticipated people will enjoy the evening.
?It's not like other ghost tours,? she said. ?Some places you never really go inside the site to talk about it. With this you get a mix of history, music and drama.?
Williams said reservations are necessary in order to limit group sizes.
For more information, or to make reservations, call Somerset Inc. at 443-1748.
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