Ghosts of the Little Theatre, Tulsa, Oklahoma

Tulsa Little Theatre in Tulsa, Oklahoma

The Tulsa Little Theatre, located in an unassuming brick building at 15th and Delaware Streets in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is not only steeped in history but is also said to be home to several unearthly guests.

Built in 1932 by the Tulsa Little Theatre group, in an extremely plain art nouveau design, the first show produced in their new building was the Cradle Song.

In the beginning, the Little Theatre troupe had no permanent location when it started offering productions in 1922.

However, they were undeterred, maintaining that “the show must go on,” in any place they could find – large canvas tents, movie theaters and even at the American Legion, before they finally found built their permanent home at 15th and Delaware.

Workshops were held in the storage room of Palace Clothiers, which later became the location of the Ritz Theater. By 1925, the Little Theatre group numbered over 300 members and began to perform at the Alhambra Theater at 15th and Peoria. In 1929, the Little Theatre purchased the property at 15th and Delaware, which would be its home for the next 60 years. East Lynne, the first production at their new location was performed in a tent.

Despite the depression, the Tulsa Little Theatre continued its performances and in 1932 completed its permanent building. During the 1930s and ’40s, the Delaware Playhouse, as it became known, was the epicenter of Tulsa’s arts and entertainment scene. Over the years, the theater hosted hundreds of plays and entertainment events as it went through multiple directors and saw actors come and go.

In 1965, the theatre suffered a fire after its third performance of The Women, resulting in the destruction of stage props, furniture, and costumes. Just a year later, the theatre suffered yet another blaze during the production of South Pacific. Though the fire destroyed much of the upstairs property, the theatre persevered.

In 1974, the troupe changed its name to Theatre Tulsa, Inc. but remained in the art nouveau location. More than a decade later, in 1989, the group had outgrown their building and moved to the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, where it continues to be the resident company of the facility.

For the next two years, the old theatre building sat vacant until it finally sold. Over the next decade, the aging building changed hands several times and was utilized for several purposes, including a church, a nightclub, and a recording studio.

By 2004, the 10,000 square-foot building had fallen into serious disrepair and suffered from criminal neglect. It was at this time that attorney; Bryce A. Hill was looking for a midtown location for his law office. Though the site was ideal, near the historic Cherry Street district, Hill and his wife, Sunshine, thought long and hard before purchasing the dilapidated property.

When they did, the old building smelled of decay was filled with trash, and water seeped from the walls, floors, and ceilings.

For the next 14 months, the Hills renovated the building, restoring much of it to its original 1932 façade and revamping the front portion of the building to utilize as offices.

Tulsa Little Theatre trash

In addition to having a renovated new look and a brand new owner, the old theatre still retains a part of its past – most notably a couple of spirits that are said to have been hanging around the building for years.

Near the curtains on the old stage, a strange ball of light has often been seen bobbing around. Others on stage have reported seeing something standing behind them before mysteriously vanishing. Yet even more report having been touched by unseen hands and hearing strange noises coming from backstage when no one is there.

According to the legend, a one-time play director during the theatre’s heydays, died during a performance. Are these the signs of a director who has not yet finished his productions? Others allege that the spirit of a little girl is also said to lurk within the confines of the historic theatre. Employees of the law office also tell a number of odd occurrences within the building, including supplies that go missing and lights that turn on and off of their own accord.

The theatre portion of the building can be rented for events and performances.


Inside the Tulsa Littel Theatre

More Information:

Tulsa Little Theatre
Law Offices of Bryce Hill
1511 S. Delaware Ave.
Tulsa, Oklahoma 74104

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Ghostly Tales of Oklahoma 66

Historic Claremore, Oklahoma

Claremore, Oklahoma – Long ago a Native American student was attending the Military Academy at what would later become Rogers State University. Like we have unfortunately heard too many times in the past, the youth was accidentally killed during a hazing ritual. Obviously his spirit is not at peace as he is said to haunt the halls during the midnight hours. Baird Hall is where the Indian’s footsteps have often been heard in an otherwise empty building. Two janitors have reported hearing these odd footsteps as well as toilets flushing in empty bathrooms and other strange phenomena throughout the building.

El Reno, Oklahoma Vintage Postcard

El Reno, Oklahoma – If you are traveling the Mother Road between Weatherford and El Reno, Oklahoma at night, keep your eyes open because legend has it that this part of the old Mother Road is haunted by an elderly humped back man. Said to appear in a brown trench coat, wearing a Bogie style hat pulled down over his eyes, he has often been spotted walking along the old highway, especially on foggy or rainy nights. Reportedly, one person picked this old figure up one wet evening and the eerie little man wouldn’t talk to him. Soon, the vagabond tried to jump out of the moving car. The driver immediately pulled over to the side and let him out, only to spot the man walking again several miles ahead of the driver on down the road. Another person said that they thought they had hit the man with their vehicle but when they stopped to check on him, no one was there. Do you believe it? Keep your eyes peeled.

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Devil’s Promenade & the Hornet Spook Light

Hornet Spook Light near Joplin, Missouri.

Bobbing and bouncing along a dirt road in northeast Oklahoma is the Hornet Spook Light, a paranormal enigma for more than a century. Described most often as an orange ball of light, the orb travels from east to west along a four-mile gravel road, long called the Devil’s Promenade by area locals.

The Spook Light, often referred to as the Joplin Spook Light or the Tri-State Spook Light is actually in Oklahoma near the small town of Quapaw. However, it is most often seen from the east, which is why it has been “attached” to the tiny hamlet of Hornet, Missouri and the larger better-known town of Joplin.

According to the legend, the spook light was first seen by Indians along the infamous Trail of Tears in 1836; however, the first “official” report occurred in 1881 in a publication called the Ozark Spook Light.

The ball of fire, described as varying from the size of a baseball to a basketball, dances and spins down the center of the road at high speeds, rising and hovering above the treetops, before it retreats and disappears. Others have said it sways from side to side, like a lantern being carried by some invisible force. In any event, the orange fire-like ball has reportedly been appearing nightly for well over a 100 years. According to locals, the best time to view the spook light is between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and midnight and tends to shy away from large groups and loud sounds.

Though many paranormal and scientific investigators have studied the light, including the Army Corps of Engineers, no one has been able to provide a conclusive answer as to the origin of the light.

Many explanations have been presented over the years including escaping natural gas, reflecting car lights and billboards, and will-o’-the-wisps, a luminescence created by rotting organic matter. However, all of these explanations all fall short of being conclusive.

As to the theory of escaping natural gas, which is common in marshy areas, the Hornet Light is seemingly not affected by wind or by rain, and how would it self-ignite? The idea that it might be a will-o’-the-wisp is discounted, as this biological phenomenon does not display the intensity of the ball of light seen along the Devil’s Promenade. Explanations of headlights or billboards are easily discarded, as the light was seen years before automobiles or billboards were made, and before a road even existed in the area.

One possible explanation that is not as easily discounted, but not yet proven conclusive, is that the lights are electrical atmospheric charges. In areas where rocks, deep below the earth’s surface, are shifting and grinding, an electrical charge can be created. This area, lying on a fault line running east from New Madrid, Missouri, westward to Oklahoma was the site of four earthquakes during the eighteenth century. These types of electrical fields are most commonly associated with earthquakes.

Devil’s Promenade near Joplin, Missouri

Other interesting legends also abound about the light that provides a more ghostly explanation. The oldest is the story of a Quapaw Indian maiden who fell in love with a young brave. However, her father would not allow her to marry the man as he did not have a large enough dowry. The pair eloped but were soon pursued by a party of warriors. According to the legend, when the couple was close to being apprehended, they joined hands above the Spring River and leaped to their deaths. It was shortly after this event, that the light began to appear and was attributed to the spirits of the young lovers.

Another legend tells of a miner whose cabin was attacked by Indians while he was away. Upon his return, he found his wife and children missing and is said to continue looking for them along the old road, searching with his lantern.

Others say the Spook Light is the ghost of an Osage Indian chief who was decapitated in the area and continues to search for his lost head, with a lantern held high in his hand.

Sightings of the Spook Light are common, sometimes even reported to be seen inside vehicles. A few people, who have been walking along the road at night, have even claimed to have felt the heat of the ball as it passed near them.

Reportedly, the moving anomaly, growing brighter and dimmer, larger and smaller, can be seen approximately 12 miles southwest of Joplin, Missouri. To get to Devil’s Promenade Road, take Interstate 44 west from Joplin but before you reach the Oklahoma border, take the next to the last Missouri exit onto Star Route 43. Traveling south for about four miles, you will reach a crossroads which is Devil’s Promenade Road.

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Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia

Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is well known for several reasons. It was one of the most expensive prisons ever built in the world, it utilized a radical

philosophy, it housed some of America’s most notorious criminals, and it is said to be the most haunted prison in the country.

The idea of a new type of prison system came about in 1787, just four years after the American Revolution was over when important men were gathered at the home of Benjamin Franklin to discuss prison reform. At that time, the Walnut Street Jail was located directly behind Independence Hall and the conditions there were terrible.

Men, women, and children who had committed all manner of crimes, from petty theft to murder, were jailed together on what amounted to little more than dirty pens, which were overcrowded, disease-ridden, cold, dangerous, and generally unsupervised. Abuse by both jailers and fellow inmates was common and food, heat, clothing or protection was only provided if the inmate could afford the price. Rape, robbery, and beatings were common practices and it wasn’t unusual for prisoners to die from cold or starvation.

Walnut Street Jail in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1789

These abuses led to the formation of the Philadelphia Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons, which met at Benjamin Franklin’s house to discuss improvements and alternatives. One member, a prominent Philadelphia physician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, named Benjamin Rush called for “a house of repentance” rather than prisons, which is where the name “penitentiary” came from. Rush proclaimed that radical change was needed and believed that crime was a “moral disease.” Further, he suggested that a “house of repentance” would be a place where prisoners could meditate on their crimes, experience spiritual remorse, and undergo rehabilitation. The plan was built around the idea of solitary confinement that would allow criminals to meditate on their crimes and involved no corporal punishment. The other men agreed and the method, which became known as the Pennsylvania System, would be utilized at Eastern State Penitentiary and other facilities throughout the world.

The Philadelphia Society for Alleviating the Miseries of Public Prisons survives today, now called the Pennsylvania Prison Society, which promotes correctional reform and social justice.

Eastern State Penitentiary by the Duval and Company

The men soon convinced the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and started their work at the Walnut Street Jail. In 1790, a small “Penitentiary House” with 16 solitary cells was built. The inmates were segregated by sex and crime, vocational workshops were instituted to occupy the prisoners’ time, and much of the abusive behavior was abolished. But the facility was still overcrowded and as the population of the city increased, so did crime.

Though it would be decades before a new prison was built, ground was broken for the Eastern State Penitentiary in a cherry orchard outside the city in 1822. Designed by British-born architect John Haviland, the penitentiary would be unlike any seen before with seven single-level cell block wings radiating from a central surveillance hub, from which one guard could see down all of the cell blocks. Haviland was inspired by English prisons and asylums built beginning in the 1780s and gave it a neo-Gothic look. The building’s imposing facade was meant to be to be intimidating, although its battlements and windows were fake. Its interior was designed much like a church.

Hooded Inmate at Eastern State Penitentiary

Though it was seven years before it would be completed, the penitentiary opened in 1829. With an initial capacity for 250 inmates, every prisoner would have his own 8 x 12-foot cell which featured central heating, a flush toilet, running water, a shower/bath, a skylight, and a private exercise yard.

From the minute the inmates entered the facility they were kept isolated. They were escorted into the prison with an eyeless hood placed over their heads. Afterward, the isolation continued so they could contemplate their crimes and read the Bible, which would lead to penitence and reformation.

To accomplish this goal, inmates could not mingle with other prisoners or continue relations with friends and family on the outside. When they were outside their cells, they were required to wear masks to hide their faces in their private exercise yards, which they were allowed to use one hour per day, with minimized interactions with the guards. During their time in their cells, they worked on prison projects such as shoemaking or weaving. Their only contact was with the warden, who was required to visit every inmate every day, and the overseers who were mandated to see each inmate three times a day. But even this communication was made through a small portal where meals and work materials were passed.

But just two years later, in 1831, it was already clear that the penitentiary would have to hold more criminals. Soon, second floors were added to all of the wings. This same year, the first female prisoner was confined in the penitentiary.

In 1832, the first inmate made his escape from the prison. For some reason, this inmate was not entirely confined to solitude and served as the warden’s waiter. He made his escape by lowering himself from the roof of the front building. He was later captured and returned but escaped in the same way in 1837.

Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by Carol Highsmith.

By the time the original plan was completed in 1836, the building was the largest and most expensive public structure ever erected in the United States at a cost of $780,000, which would equate to more than $18 million today. At that time, its cost was believed to have been second only to that of the U.S. Capitol.

The Pennsylvania System was opposed to by the Auburn System, also known as the New York System, which held that prisoners should be forced to work together in silence, and could be subjected to physical punishment. This system was favored in the United States.

Eastern State Penitentiary Rotunda where guards could see down all the hallways.

Regardless of the cost and the disfavor by other systems, delegates from around the world came to study the radial floor plan and system of solitary confinement and it became the model for more than 300 prisons worldwide.

Some were not so convinced of the method. Charles Dickens, after a visit in 1842, wrote critically:

“I am persuaded that those who designed this system… do not know what it is they are doing… I hold the slow and daily tampering with the mysteries of the brain to be immeasurably worse than any torture of the body.”

By the 1870s, the prison needed more space and four new cell blocks were added in 1877 between the existing wings. Before long, the individual exercise yards were eliminated and inmates exercised together, but they were still required to wear masks and to be silent.

Though the reform plan of the Pennsylvania System called for no corporal punishment, this was not the case. Guards and councilors were known to have designed a variety of physical and psychological torture regimens for various infractions. One of these called the “water bath”, subjected inmates to being doused with water outside during winter months and then hung on a wall until ice formed on their skin. Another torture called the “mad chair”, in which prisoners were bound tightly for days until their circulation was cut off. The “iron gag” involved tying an inmate’s hands behind the back, with a chain trapped to an iron collar in the mouth, which caused the tongue to tear and bleed.

Under Block #14 was dug an underground cell that was called the “Hole.” Here, inmates would stay locked, sometimes for weeks, with no light, no human contact, with only bread and water to eat.

Due to overcrowding, the Eastern State Penitentiary eliminated the Pennsylvania System of isolation and penitence in 1913. Afterward, prisoners then shared cells, worked together, and even played in organized sports.

By the 1920s, the prison was housing some 2,000 prisoners and more cells were built including some below ground. The windowless cells then had nothing to do with penitence and everything to do with punishment. By this time, every cell was called home to 2-3 prisoners. In 1923, all female prisoners were removed and sent to the new prison at Muncy.

Cell at Eastern State Penitentiary 

In July 1923, Leo Callahan and five accomplices armed with pistols successfully used a ladder they had built to scale the east wall after holding up a group of unarmed guards. All of Callahan’s accomplices were eventually apprehended, including one that made it as far as Honolulu, Hawaii. However, Callahan was never recaptured.

By this time, the prison was also housing violent criminals, as well as those sentenced to be executed. In 1933, a riot occurred in the prison over insufficient recreational facilities, overcrowding, and idleness. During this event, inmates set fires in their cells and destroyed workshops. The very next year, another riot occurred, this time over low wages. The prisoners short-circuited electrical outlets, started fires and caused other disturbances.

In April 1945, 12 men escaped through a 97-foot long tunnel that had been built by Clarence Klinedinst, who worked as a prison plasterer. The men were quickly recaptured and returned to the prison.

In 1959, a new cellblock was opened to house violent criminals. The last cell block to be built, it was the only one with electric doors. Though the prison housed those who were on “death row”, no executions ever took place at the prison.

In 1961, an inmate named John Klausenberg tricked a guard into opening the cell of another inmate and he and the other prisoner overpowered the guard to begin the largest riot in the prison’s history. It took several hours for a large force of police, guards, and state troopers to reclaim the prison.

The riot fueled discussions to close the Eastern State Penitentiary, which had since been renamed the State Correctional Institution at Philadelphia. In addition to overcrowding, the prison was badly deteriorating.

Death Row Cell Block of the Eastern State Penitentiary, courtesy Wikipedia

In January 1970 the prison closed and the inmates were sent to the State Correctional Institution at Graterford. After a riot at a prison in Holmesburg, the prison again housed some of those inmates. In 1971 it was officially closed forever.

Over the course of its 142 years, the penitentiary held some 75,000 inmates, including Prohibition-era gangster, Al Capone, and notorious bank robber, Willie Sutton. During this time, more than 100 inmates escaped, but all were recaptured with the exception of Leo Callahan.

While the prison was operating, two guards and several inmates were murdered within the walls. Other prisoners committed suicide, and hundreds of others died from disease and old age.

Named a National Historic Landmark in 1965, the prison sat abandoned after it was closed during which time it was heavily vandalized and trees began to grow in the buildings.

Eastern State Penitentiary Administration Building

The City of Philadelphia purchased the property with the intention of redeveloping it. Proposals included demolishing the building to use the site as a criminal justice center, a mall, or a luxury apartment complex. But in 1988, a task force successfully petitioned the city to stop pursuing development, and in 1994, the Pennsylvania Prison Society opened the prison for historic tours.

Today, the Eastern State Penitentiary, kept in a state of “preserved ruin” continues to operate as a museum and historic site. It is open year-round for tours and special events are held throughout the year.

In addition to its long history, the penitentiary is said to be the most haunted prison in the United States and for years, has been investigated by paranormal groups and has been featured in several television shows. These investigators, as well as staff and visitors, have reported dozens of paranormal activities and numerous sightings of ghostly entities.

Al Capone’s Cell at Eastern State Penitentiary

One of the first stories told of ghostly activity was by famed Chicago gangster, Al Capone, who was housed in the prison for eight months in 1929-1930. Though he had the nicest cell in the prison, which included a desk, a lamp, paintings, and a radio, he said he was haunted by the ghost of James Clark, who was one of the victims of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in Chicago. Allegedly, Capone screamed every night in fright screaming at “Jimmy” to go away and leave him alone.

In the 1940s, both prisoners and guards began to have a number of unusual experiences and unexplained sightings. Many of these events involved spooky shadows and unexplained noises.

Today, many people have reported that Cellblock 12 is an area of high paranormal activity, where cackling and whispers are heard and the apparition of a prisoner is seen. In Cellblock 6, shadowy figures are often seen sliding along the walls and the sounds of whispers, screams, and laughter have been heard.

Cellblock 4 of Eastern State Penitentiary

In Cellblock 4, many have seen ghostly anguished faces and hearing loud whispers. On one occasion, a locksmith working in this area who was removing an old lock from a cell door had a vivid experience. He described having felt as if he was overcome by a massive force, and was unable to move or speak, while distorted forms swirled around the cellblock, one of which appearing to beckon to him.

Many people have reported seeing the silhouette of a guard in one of the watchtowers.

On the third floor of one cell block, numerous visitors say they’ve heard the sound of cell doors suddenly opening and then slamming shut.

The catwalk is an area where many paranormal events have occurred. Here, a shadow figure was caught on a video, people have felt extreme temperature fluctuations, and one visitor captured a male voice saying “I’m lonely” on an EVP.

Throughout the prison, visitors and staff report disembodied screams, cries of pain, sadistic laughter, and whispers. Others have reported the sounds cell door handles jiggling, furniture being dragged across floors, large objects rolling on the roof, and ghostly footsteps.

Many have seen sudden orbs or streaks of light appearing, felt unseen people tapping them on the shoulder, get overwhelming sensations of being watched, and in general have feelings of dread.

Watch Tower at Eastern State Penitentiary

More Information:

Eastern State Penitentiary
2027 Fairmount Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19130
215-236-3300

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