For Raleigh natives, this might be a local urban legend that is common knowledge. While I’ve been in Raleigh for about six years now, I’m still learning about new things about this city. I’m always up to hearing interesting ghost stories, especially local stories. Majority of cities around the world has some sort of local myth or legend. Some of the most popular ones include the ghostly hitchhiker, a woman in white, and a crybaby bridge. Have you noticed that almost every town has a crybaby bridge legend? Well, in Raleigh’s case, it’s Crybaby Lane. I first read about it on Candid Slice, and thankfully the author, Heather Leah, had done a LOT of research and gave me a lot of resources to use when researching this legend.

The Legend

I’ve heard numerous opinions on Crybaby Lane. I’ve even had a local told me that the story was completely made up in order to create some sort of local ghost story. For those of you who are unfamiliar, here is the premise of the legend. A Catholic orphanage burned down in 1958 because some escapees from Dorthea Dix started lighting things on fire. According to legend, several children lost their lives either from the flames or the escaped mental patients. It’s a rather gory legend that puts mental health patients in a bad light. Today, if you visit the site, you’ll hear ghostly cries of the children as they scream to be saved. People who live near the orphanage claim to smell sulfur even though nothing is on fire. There is also a legend of a gatekeeper who protects the entrance to Crybaby Lane.

The first odd thing I noticed with Crybaby Lane is that no one could agree on the location. Besides Pattison’s information, the most common thing I hear is that it is near Dorthea Dix, it’s by Dix, it’s near Dix, it’s AT Dix…the list goes on. I’ve read countless stories of people who wandered around the area and couldn’t find the site. This was worrisome for the orphanage’s existence because usually there is some local who will know where the orphanage was. From my understanding, the buildings were torn down in the 1970s, which isn’t that long ago. Given that modern day record-keeping has improved tremendously for data from the past century, why was finding Crybaby Lane so confusing? Thankfully, I ran into Heather Leah’s article about Crybaby Lane, and all of her work gave me the shortcut I needed to really dive deep into this legend.

The History

The Catholic orphanage was founded by Father Thomas Price. He bought the land off of Western Boulevard in the 1890s and built a chapel there. After seeing children suffering because of their families’ poverty, he opened an orphanage in 1898/1899 with his sister, Sister Mary Agnes Price, called the Catholic Orphanage of Nazareth. As many as 250 children lived there during the Great Depression. Not all of the children there had deceased parents, most were there because their parents could no longer afford to take care of them. The orphanage closed in the 1970s. There are some discrepancies when it comes to the year. One website says that the orphanage was founded in 1898, and then the seminary followed in 1902. Apparently, there was a reunion in 1982 where 200 people gathered, and many were old enough to talk about the babies that were left at the orphanage during the Great Depression. I was really excited to find a blog where former residents of the orphanage shared their old photos and stories from living there. Sadly, it hasn’t been updated since 2014. But, I found a wealth of info, photos, and a glimpse of what life must have been like at the orphanage.

The Facts

I am currently still in the process of trying to find proof of the 1958 fire. I haven’t found it yet, and will update when I do. The location did have several fires that happened over the span of its existence. There was an article in the News & Observer that talked about a fire that broke out on October 29, 1905 at the orphanage. This is supported with newspaper clippings you’ll see here. The fire was so bad that a priest jumped out of windows to get to safety, and he ended up permanently crippled. There were three students who were sleeping on the fourth floor when the fire broke out, and they had no choice but to jump out the window as well. It was a 45 foot drop, enough to cause serious injuries and even death. The priests were spreading mattresses to cushion their fall. Timothy Wallace, who was 21 years old, and another student, jumped with injuries, but they survived. However, 16-year old John Gladish ended up missing the mattresses and died from his injuries the following Sunday. Gladish was the only casualty of the 1905 fire.

There was another fire in 1912 in the stables, but no one was injured or killed. There was a fire noted in 1961 after a priest was attempting to burn a wasps’ nest and burned the rectory to the ground. Unfortunately, some records of the graves at the orphanage graveyard burned with it. Father Price left Nazareth in 1911, and then died in 1919 China on an international mission trip after his appendix burst. There is a movement at the moment to get Father Price canonized and beatified, and he was inducted into the Raleigh Hall of Fame in 2018.

The Graveyard

John Gladish and others were buried at the cemetery at the orphanage. But, what is really disturbing, is that these graves are now unmarked and seemed to have totally disappeared. In the early eighties, an NCSU student by the name of Dean Ruedrich took walks through the graveyard. He found around 20 or 30 stones, with three people dying on Christmas Day. 30 years later, while Ruedrich was working on restoring and repairing Mount Hope after a tornado, visitors asked him about the Catholic orphanage graves.

Ruedrich had to compare aerial maps of Raleigh and traced the graveyard. According to him, he thinks the graveyard was at the corner of Main Campus Drive and Partners Way. Supposedly, the graves have been moved to St. Joseph’s Cemetery in New Bern, where there are 14 unmarked graves with crosses on them. For more information on these forgotten graves, check out the News & Observer article. It is a bit unsettling considered that these remains were entrusted to the Catholic Church and then forgotten.

The Land Today

The Catholic Diocese donated a portion of the land to Cardinal Gibbons High School in 1962. Then, a substantial portion of land near Dorthea Dix was bought by North Carolina State University in 1988. Today, the buildings are gone and replaced by modern buildings and the new cathedral. According to Kate Pattison of the Raleigh Public Record, the original orphanage building became the home for the Catholic Diocese of Raleigh and still stands to this day. Granted, her write up was dated back to 2009…but that is recent enough where a building could be remembered. From my understanding, the Catholic Diocese is now located in North Raleigh, about 10 minutes from where I live.

According to WRAL.com, the new Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral apparently sits on the former site. Again, first it was the office for the Catholic Diocese, now the new cathedral sits on the same site. From what I can see on Google Maps, it appears Crybaby Lane has been paved over in efforts to provide another entrance to the massive cathedral. This was later confirmed by Heather. According to Heather, there is a stone left of the orphanage, but that’s about it. Considering how much of an impact Father Price made on the area and how massive of a presence that the orphanage had, it would be ludicrous to allow this part of history to be paved over and forgotten. If you look at the satellite version of Google Maps, it hasn’t been updated yet and you can still see the old site. You can tell it’s outdated because the new cathedral isn’t on the satellite image.

Anyway, despite the confusing history about the Catholic Orphanage of Nazareth, Crybaby Lane, the haunted orphanage, whatever you want to call it, there is truly a diamond in the rough tucked away in South Raleigh that is worth researching.

Sources

Nazareth Stories: A blog run by former inhabitants of the orphanage where they shared personal stories and photos.

Candid Slice – Ghost Hunt! Crybaby Lane Sliced Open

Father Thomas Price Inducted into the Raleigh Hall of Fame

WRAL – Cathedral sits on the former site of the Catholic orphanage

News & Observer – Cemetery for Catholic orphanage, but no one knows where they are now

Legeros – Fire at the Catholic Orphanage – October 29, 1905

Raleigh Public Record – Nazareth: Orphans, Ghosts, and a Saint

The post The Mysterious Case of Raleigh’s Crybaby Lane appeared first on Association of Paranormal Study.

Here in this article, we will introduce to you ten haunted theatres in the United States. There are a few we have personal experience in, while others we have found through research and the testimony of others. What theatres do you know of that are haunted? Let us know in the comments!

10. Gershwin Theatre, New York, NY

via broadwayscene.com

Located in New York, NY, the Gershwin Theatre has been home to the show, “Wicked” for quite sometime. Opening in November 1972, it is one of the younger theatres on Broadway, but it doesn’t mean that the theatre is any less haunted! According to reports from “Wicked” cast members, there are three ghosts that haunt the theatre. One of them is known as “Drew” or “Dennis”, and the other two (though not named) ghosts are only known by their clothing. One wears a blue 19th century style suit and the other wears a white t-shirt. People have been tapped on the shoulder as well as unidentified actors being seen on stage and then disappearing behind a curtain. It seems the ghosts want their time on stage too!

9. Tenth Avenue Arts Center – San Diego, CA

via tenthavenuearts.com

The Tenth Avenue Arts Center started off as a 24-hour chapel for the First Baptist Church of San Diego in the early 1900’s, fast forward a century and the building was bought and turned into a performing arts facility. As soon as the doors opened as a theatre, whisperings of unexplained activity started including voices from a child running up and down the stairs to orders being barked in a British accent to uneasy feelings in parts of the building. The Tenth Avenue Arts Center, also known as the Tenth Avenue Theater, is known to be haunted by at least four ghosts including a girl named Missy who met her end from falling down the stairs, a pastor who committed suicide, a British lieutenant barking orders, a woman named Carol Laroc with OCD, and a young boy haunting the basement. For more information, check out the book, The Haunting of the Tenth Avenue Theater, as well as their website

8. Palace Theatre – New York, NY

via BroadwayWorld.com

If you’ve never had a chance to meet Judy Garland in person, rumor has it you can meet her in spirit at the Palace Theatre in New York City. The venue started off as a vaudeville house in 1913 and then became the hottest place to perform for touring singers, dancers, and comics. Singers like Judy Garland and Ethel Merman performed as well as Will Rogers and Harry Houdini. The Palace is said to be one of the most haunted theatres on Broadway and the spirits who haunt the building include a tightrope walker (who foretells the viewer’s death), a child in the mezzanine who plays “peek-a-boo”, a musician dressed in white in the orchestra pit, and a figure who passes through doorways late at night.

7. Carolina Theatre – Greensboro, NC

via appartments-world.info

The Carolina Theatre opened in Greensboro, North Carolina on Halloween night in 1927, and it was billed as “The Showplace of the Carolinas.” The theatre was originally built as a vaudeville theatre that could seat 2,200 people in the audience. However, as time passed, the theatre went through a period of decline before being saved from demolition and reconstructed to fit 1,200 people in 1977. But then, tragedy struck in 1981 when a fire started in the stairwell that once led to a segregated balcony. It is rumored that a woman, who was not supposed to be there, started the fire and it ended up killing her. She makes her presence known by moving the seats up and down. The theatre was closed for a year for repairs and reopened with seating at 1,075. Today, the Carolina Theatre is a fully functional performing arts facility!

6. Belasco Theatre – New York, NY

via TimeOut.com

The Belasco Theatre in New York City was originally built in 1906 and owned by a man named David Belasco, known as the “Bishop of Broadway.” He was such a lover of theatre that he spent pretty much all of his time at the theatre, and even converted the attic into a penthouse. Rumor has it that he even removed some of the floorboards so he could watch rehearsals. On May 14th, 1931, he passed away, but he is apparently far from gone. He is said to be one of the most active spirits at the Belasco Theatre, with descriptions of sightings including seeing a dark figure watching the actors on stage, congratulating actors on a good performance, and even pinching the bottoms of women. If you look on Google, or even read this fine write-up by Ryan Sprague, you too will be convinced that there is something paranormal going on at the Belasco!

5. Birdcage Theatre – Tombstone, AZ

via legendsofamerica.com

If you’re familiar with any sort of history of the “Wild, Wild West”, then you already known that the Birdcage Theatre was an iconic landmark of the era with a saloon, brothel, and a stage. At least 26 people died in the theatre and there are over 140 bullet holes that plague the wall. The Birdcage opened in 1881, and it is known as one of the most haunted buildings in Tombstone, Arizona. The theatre was open for 365 days a year and 24 hours a day, thanks to over 3,500 prostitutes that inhabited the town. Ghost sightings include men in cowboy hats as well as prostitutes, which makes sense and is contextual to the theatre’s existence.

4.  Richard Rodgers Theatre – New York, NY

The Richard Rodgers Theatre currently is home to the smash Broadway hit, “Hamilton”, and is known for having some ghostly cast members. The theatre was originally built in 1925 and originally named, “Chanin’s 46th Street Theatre”, and after going through different ownerships and names, it was eventually named the Richard Rodgers Theatre in 1990 in memory of the iconic composer by the new owners, the Nederlander Organization. Paranormal happenings in the theatre include lipstick smudges in the women’s dressing room, stall doors opening by themselves, sightings of redheaded women, a howling sound after hours, shaking chandeliers, sightings of a child offstage, and things falling off the shelves.

3. Orpheum Theatre – Memphis, TN

via hauntedhouses.com

The Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee was originally built in 1890 and then burnt down in 1923. The new building opened in 1928 and seats over 2,300 people and is listed on the National Registrar of Historic Places. According to rumors, the theatre is haunted by a little girl ghost named Mary. who was killed after being struck by a car nearby. Apparently she likes to play pranks on the living. People have reported hearing her giggle, walking up and down the aisles, and doors opening and closing on their own. A séance was also performed by the touring cast of “Fiddler on the Roof” in attempt to contact Mary and anyone else haunting the theatre.

2. New Amsterdam Theatre – New York, NY

Olive Thomas

The New Amsterdam Theatre in New York is reported haunted by a former Ziegfeld Follies dancer named Olive Thomas. She performed with the Follies on the New Amsterdam main stage before becoming a film actress in Hollywood and marrying Jack Pickford, the brother of Mary Pickford. Then, Jack revealed that he had contracted syphilis and that Olive most likely had it too. Mary was soon found dead after supposedly overdosing on Jack’s medicine, mercury bichloride, which is lethal in large doses. Mary’s body was buried in the Bronx. After her death, people started to report seeing Mary in the theatre, which was impossible since she was already dead. Today, ghostly reports at the theatre include lights flickering, knocking, objects moving, cold spots, orbs, colored mists, and disfigured face in mirrors and windows. The activity was so rampant that Disney Theatrical Productions placed photos of Olive at every theatre entrance so workers can greet her, which has apparently helped in decreasing activity.

1. Lincoln Square Theater – Decateur, IL

via cinematreasures.org

The Lincoln Square Theater in Decateur, IL is known as one of most haunted places in the area, and perhaps even one of the most haunted places in the country. The theatre was built on the same grounds where a hotel burnt down in 1915, and the new theatre opened in 1916. The fire claimed two lives, but there were also hotel guests that were never accounted for after the fire, so the death toll could be higher. Starting in the 1930’s, ghost stories began to circulate. One of the most popular ghost stories is of “One-Armed Red”, who was a stage hand with just one arm from a war injury. While the rumors say he fell off a catwalk 75 feet above ground and got snagged by a hook and torn to pieces, Red actually died after falling asleep for a nap and never woke up. Encounters at the movie theater and performance space include footsteps, cold chills, hooded figures, a woman in white, and being touched by someone.

Sources & Further Reading:

http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2012/10/25/10-theaters-with-frequent-ghost-sightings.html

http://www.prairieghosts.com/orpheum.html

http://www.hauntedhouses.com/states/tn/orpheum_theatre.htm

http://www.kpbs.org/news/2012/oct/31/are-our-local-theaters-haunted/

http://www.haunteddecatur.com/lincoln.html

http://www.travelchannel.com/shows/ghost-adventures/articles/bird-cage-theaters-haunted-history 

http://www.playbill.com/article/scandals-and-secrets-of-the-supernatural-the-stories-behind-broadways-haunted-theatres-com-334137

http://jimharold.com/haunted-theater-broadway-mr-belasco/

The post 10 Haunted Theatres in America appeared first on Association of Paranormal Study.