Meeting of the Mortals

Last week we had the second annual meet-up for the Professional Ghost Tour Guides. It was just as amazing, helpful, fun, and meaningful as Orlando in 2023. Beth and Chris, owners of Haunts of Richmond spent a lot of time putting together a weekend jam-packed with all sorts of Richmond’s best taverns, museums, and ghost tours. We visited the Poe Museum, which was my own personal favorite- I wore my Edgar Allen Poe t-shirt for the occasion. I had been there to the museum once before, but there was construction at that time, so it was nice to see the full museum in its glory and to get some haunted highlights from Lee, one of the Haunts of Richmond tour guides and from Chris. Aside: I plan to visit the Baltimore Poe Museum and the Philadelphia Poe House, so I’ll write a separate blog at that time all about Edgar Allan Poe.

There were so many highlights. We visited three haunted pubs: Hanover Tavern, just north of Richmond, Rosie O’Connolly’s and Patrick Henry’s, both in the Shockoe Bottom area, and then a very cool haunted brewery with some great beers: Richbrau. We stayed at the Linden Row Inn, where Edgar Allan Poe himself used to woo his fiancée, Elmira right in the very courtyard where I sipped my morning coffee. The hotel was just beautifully appointed with gorgeous decor, historic accents, and a resident cat, Annabel, who was as sweet as can be, and spends most of her days curled up in a chair, gently purring and allowing guests to give her a quick pet. The Poe Museum has two cats, as well: Edgar and Pluto. On Friday evening we were treated to “Shadows of Shockoe”, one of the signature tours of our hosts. Beth did a fabulous job giving us the highlights of the dark and macabre corners of Shockoe bottom. It was an unseasonably warm 70 degree evening, so it seemed like the entire town of Richmond (and then some) came out to enjoy the warm January evening. Saturday night we wrapped things up with an investigation of the John Marshall house, which was very fun and many of us had some productive interactions with the resident spirits. The weekend concluded with an optional Sunday brunch at Hanover Tavern, where I enjoyed the most delicious Oyster Benedict I’ve ever had. Although there was a ghost tour of the historic tavern following brunch, we could not stay, as we had to get on the road for our seven hour drive ahead, as brunch had taken a little longer than we anticipated. I was sorry to have missed it and it just means I’ll have to come back.

Our business meetings were held in Chris and Beth’s suite, which was a very similar layout to the suite where I stayed. We discussed industry trends, ideas, and best business practices. We also exchanged small gifts from our hometowns. That is always one of my favorite parts of the weekend. I brought my usual buckeyes- Ohio’s favorite peanut butter confection and a sticker with my tour logo. I also brought Paczkis to share, which are commonly found in northeast Ohio during the Mardi Gras season. New Orleans has king cakes and Cleveland has Paczki (pronounced “pooonch-key”). They are like a doughy, yeasty Polish donut of sorts with various fillings. And of course I brought some locally roasted coffee from Cherry Blend Coffee Roasters, right here in Canton, Ohio. The kind I brought is called “Coffee Bill”, as a tribute to President William McKinley who spent a significant portion of his life living in Canton. During his service as a soldier he was in charge of provisioning, and his presidential opponent used “Coffee Bill” as a slur, implying that bringing coffee to the troops was all he was good for. It backfired, and worked in his favor, because he won the presidency. Anyhow, if you ever come on my ghost tour, you’ll learn little tidbits like this and more.

There was really only one small glitch and it had nothing to do with our conference itself. On the drive down, we had planned to stop at Michie Tavern in Charlottesville, because I have an antique sign that I purchased at a rummage shop and have hanging in my kitchen.

Much to our dismay, we were too late for lunch and they are not open for dinner. But I did get some photos outside of this beautiful historical site. And plan B was dinner at this absolutely DELICIOUS venue called Jimmy Madison’s, near the James Madison University Campus. The restaurant smokes their own meats and I think I had some of the best Brussels sprouts there that have ever graced my palate.

I am already counting down the days until our next rendezvous. Not only do we learn about local history and work on improving our tours, but we also have found lifelong friends in the other tour guides present. Next year will be in Memphis, hosted by our friends Emily and Stephen at Historical Haunts Memphis. I have my blue suede shoes ready to go.