10/09/2026
PADUCAH AFTER DARK 👻
Six ghost stories. One town. A Halloween countdown.
Every town has stories people tell after dark. In Paducah, some of those stories have become attached to places we pass every day.
An old downtown bank. A memorial in Oak Grove Cemetery. The riverfront. The Cohen building, where Stella’s name still welcomes people through the door.
Last year, many of you joined us as we explored the stories of Stella and Della Barnes. This October, we’re returning to those familiar names and introducing more characters from Paducah’s ghost lore.
There’s a traveling fiddler whose music supposedly continued after his death. A mysterious reflection seen by a man working alone. A strange death in a room above a saloon. And an Island Creek tale that raises a question: how much of a ghost story can we actually trace to history?
Throughout the month, we’ll tell six stories, exploring the historical record and the folklore that grew around it.
Several of our tales come from published accounts of Market House Theatre’s River City Ghost Tours. We encourage you to hear Paducah’s stories from their guides in person.
Look for “Paducah After Dark” and the story number to follow along. We begin Tuesday, October 13, with the ghost fiddler and finish on Halloween with Stella.
Which Paducah ghost story did you grow up hearing?
👻 Explore the tours and book through Market House Theatre!
https://markethousetheatre.org/production/river-city-ghost-tours/
