Bakersfield.com: Kern County news, events, classifieds, shopping, & search

Learn the ghostly history of the West

The Bakersfield Californian | Wednesday, Jun 22 2011 03:42 PM

Last Updated Wednesday, Jun 22 2011 03:44 PM

Want to boast of seeing a ghost? On a mission to view an apparition? The Silver City Ghost Town up the Kern River Canyon is where things go bump in the night, and the folks in charge there are hoping visitors are up for a little paranormal activity on July 1, when a Lantern Light Tour is scheduled.

The tour begins at 9 p.m. and will be guided by Silver City Ghost Town curator/director J. Paul Corlew, who will recount many eerie legends of the valley and focus on the controversial paranormal events and sightings that have reportedly occurred at Silver City. Over the last 40 years the ghost town has been the location of dozens of alleged sightings of ghostly apparitions by visitors and staff alike. In recent years Silver City has appeared on several television and web programs devoted to the paranormal, and profiles of the town have appeared in several publications.

"We have conducted many popular night tours of the site over the last 20 years or so," Corlew said. "Usually, these night tours are conducted during the Halloween season, but weather is so unpredictable then we thought we would offer some night tours over the warmer months as well this year. It's been great."

The July 1 event will feature Lake Isabella Paranormal Society. Founding member Kathy Owen and family will speak to the crowd and present a slide show from previous investigations, both on site and in the surrounding area. Her group was the first to investigate Silver City Ghost Town in 2006.

Attendees will also have the opportunity to meet members of the Old West re-enactor group Tombstone Law Dawgs, who will be dressed in 1880s-era attire. The group will also appear at Silver City during Independence Day weekend, on July 2 and 3, for Wild West shows at 11 a.m. and again at 2 p.m. They will re-enact the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, plus other skits.

Hundreds of photos taken over the years show balls of light, often called orbs, that many believe are evidence of spirits at the ghost. This phenomenon occurs most often inside of the old Isabella jail and occasionally the church (from Scovern Hot Springs) and the Appalatea-Burlando house, according to Corlew.

"I have taken many, many photos myself that show these luminosities, and visitors often report them as well. Some even appear to have faces in them. There are many theories about what they are, from angels to magnetic fields to spirits from a bygone era," he said.

All proceeds generated from the tour will be used in the continued preservation and renovation of the historic Kern Valley buildings at Silver City.

The most famous of the buildings is the circa 1860s Apalatea/Burlando house, where much of the reported poltergeist activity has occurred over the years. The tours are adult-oriented, though children are welcome when accompanied by an adult.

Information provided by a Silver City Ghost Town media release