The Kent Stage is inviting Kent residents to experience the city’s paranormal side during the Kent Stage Ghost Walk on Oct. 10 and 11.

The Kent Stage offers two tours: the Downtown Kent Ghost Walk, a guided tour in which participants will learn about the haunts and history of downtown Kent; and a Spirits of Cuyahoga Walk, which traces Kent’s darker history. Both guided walks depart from the Kent Stage, located at 175 East Main St., every half hour from 6:15 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Downtown Kent Ghost Walk 

The Downtown Kent Ghost Walk is scheduled to take about 1 hour and 30 minutes, with the first tour leaving from the Kent Stage at 6:30 p.m. 

The family-friendly Downtown Kent Ghost Walk appeals to a wide range of ages and interests, said Richele Charlton, Kent Stage assistant and Ghost Walk director.

“It’s really great because you’re going to get a lot of different stories and a lot of different information,” Charlton said.

Group guides will begin the tour with spooky stories at the Kent Stage. Then, the tour will visit The Empire of Magical Thought, where a psychic will share ghost stories and “tap into the paranormal.” The Ghost Walk will also enter a private residence above The Secret Cellar.

Other stops include Pufferbelly Restaurant, Noble Images and two new stops this year: Dale Adams Enterprises and the Kent Historical Society.

Spirits of the Cuyahoga Walk

The Spirits of the Cuyahoga Walk is scheduled to last about 75 minutes, with the first tour set to leave at 6:15 p.m.

“It’s probably a little spookier than the downtown walk because it’s a moonlit walk on the boardwalk in the evening, and it’s actually things that happened in Kent,” Charlton said.

Stories on this guided tour will be more historically based and include tales of Kent’s involvement in bootlegging during the rum-running era, Charlton said.

The tour will take guests to Crain Street Bridge, continue along the trail to the Silk Mill downtown and then onto River Road.

This is the seventh year the Kent Stage has organized the ghost walks, and even though some locations are revisited, the stories develop a little more each year, Charlton said.

“The Historical Society has been able to do some research and find some interesting things that have happened that we didn’t know about to begin with,” Charlton said. “So even though we may go back to a place, the story has evolved, and we find out more information.”

Guests can purchase tickets at the Kent Stage box office. Adult tickets cost $10, and tickets for students, children and seniors are $8.

The Kent Stage allows up to 25 people on each tour, and tickets are available on a first come, first serve basis. It is suggested that attendees dress for any weather because tours go out, rain or shine.

Contact Rachel Sluss at [email protected].