Ever wanted to experience the City of Frederick in a more entertaining way? Does taking a stroll through Carroll Creek’s brick promenade, or walking through Baker Park’s asphalt footpaths not provide enough information about the city? Maryland Heritage Tours offers various tours of Downtown Frederick. One of those is the Ghost Tours of Historic Frederick.
The Ghost Tours of Historic Frederick are a spooky but fun way to experience the history of the city in an entertaining, festive, and educational style.
Throughout the duration of the 90-minute tour, a guide leads the way to several of Downtown Frederick’s historic landmarks, including City Hall, The Barbara Fritchie House, and the National Museum of Civil War Medicine.
“I thought that it was really interesting. I appreciated that they told different stories than what I would hear on a traditional walking tour. I noticed it seemed like there were more stories about Frederick’s slave past, and about women. It was an interesting contrast to what they tell in the daytime, which are stories about the significant historical men,” said Professor Anne Hofmann.
At each stop, the guide, dressed in an appropriate period piece costume, explains the history of the specific landmark along with several scary stories from the past. The stories include anything from death, mysterious hauntings, and gruesome retellings of colonial torture methods.
The tour takes place at night, and the group is led through the dark streets of Downtown Frederick with a single lantern.
Gabrielle Trivelli, a student at Frederick Community College, said, “The tour definitely made me see Frederick in a more intimate way, and I feel like I know the city better. I didn’t particularly find it scary, but I did feel that it connected me to Frederick more so than I had been before.”
While Halloween might be over, these spooky tours are not. Public tours continue each Saturday in November through Nov. 30, from 7:15 to 8:45 p.m. Public tours continue each Saturday in December, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tours are Saturday, Dec. 7, and continue Saturdays through Dec. 28. Tickets cost $11 per adult, $7 per child, and can be purchased at Cakes To Die For, in Downtown Frederick. Here is a link to the event’s website for more information: http://www.marylandghosttours.com/Historic_District_Tour.html.
Private group tours are also available. Maryland Ghost Tours can be reached at [email protected], or by calling 301-668-8922.
