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Clay Kilgore and Bryan Cunning, Bradford House historical consultant and member of the Board, respectively, and founding members of the Bassettown Paranormal Society (B.P.S.), have combined their interests in history and the paranormal to "tell history from the other side."

Haunted

 They, along with Pete Stefansky and Mark Hull, have researched and written the stories and will be two of the costumed narrators who will lead small groups around the Main and Maiden Streets vicinity while telling historic tales of the macabre and mysterious. The two are master storytellers.

The Bassettown Paranormal Society was founded in 2010 by Cunning, Kilgore and Stefansky. They were looking for a new way to bring the area's history to light, "some way that people might be more drawn to," Stefansky explained. "We wanted to explore other ways of telling history. Through paranormal investigations we can examine another side to historic places and events." Soon after forming, another member was added to the group. Local businessman Mark Hull explains his interest, stating, "Certain experiences in my past piqued my interest in the paranormal. That early belief in the unexplained led me to expand my interest and eventually to become an investigator." It wasn't long before the group was teaming up with the Bradford House to organize the Ghosts of Washington Haunted History Walking Tours.

According to Kilgore, "A lot of the stories come from articles in the newspaper. It's surprising how often local myths and legends were written up. We go back through papers from the '40s, '50s, and '60s looking for stories. Now that we do the tours, people are talking to us and telling us stories that we then research for historical background. We want to look at the paranormal and see if there is an historic event or person behind it and how we can tie it to the history of a location."

This is the fifth year for the popular Haunted History Walking Tours. Each year the routes and the stories change. Just to make people guess, the creative team always throws in one completely fictional story so that throughout the tour, people will listen and question what they're hearing. Sometimes they display artifacts from an incident that they are discussing.

This year's Haunted History Walking Tours will be held on Friday, October 24, and Saturday, October 25 from 6 – 9:40 p.m. Tours will leave from the garden of the David Bradford House, 175 South Main Street, Washington approximately every 20 minutes and last about an hour. Parking is available on the street or in nearby city lots. Cost is $5 per person. Hot beverages, snacks, and souvenirs will be available for purchase. Visit www.bradfordhouse.org for more information.

The Bradford House is open to the public by appointment. Please call 724-222-3604 to arrange your visit. Individuals, families, and large groups are welcome.

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