Historical Ghost Walk

The Johnston County Heritage Center's annual “Ghost Walk” through Smithfield's historic Riverside Cemetery is scheduled for Thursday evening, Oct. 25.

Guided tours with small groups will begin at 7 p.m. at the corner of South Second and Church streets – beside St. Paul's Episcopal Church. No tickets to the event will be sold in advance. Admission fees will be collected at the Ghost Walk’s starting point: $3 for adults and $2 for students in grades K-12 (pre-school children are admitted free of charge). Tours will depart every five minutes or so until everyone has been “served.”

Stationed throughout the cemetery, volunteer re-enactors will portray half a dozen departed Johnstonians with interesting stories to tell from various decades of local history:

C.S. Powell, Confederate veteran and 19th Century sheriff – portrayed by present-day Sheriff Steve Bizzell.
Benjamin Williams, an early Governor of North Carolina – portrayed by Tom Howerton.

Nancy Coates, mother of Albert Coates, founder of the UNC Institute of Government – portrayed by Myra Wallace.

Sefton Stevens, World War II fighter pilot who perished in action – portrayed by Jonathan Gaskins.

Mr. and Mrs. Nixon Canaday, long-time African-American educators in the Clayton community – portrayed by Edward and Pearl Blackmon.

Lunette Barber, conservationist and wildlife educator – portrayed by Judy Daniels..

At the end of the course, refreshments will be offered by the Downtown Smithfield Development Corporation inside the historic Hastings House on Front Street.

For more information, call the Heritage Center at 919-934-2836 or e-mail heritagecenter@johnstonnc.com.