This Lee’s Summit Haunted and Historic Spaces Tour is ‘amping up the spookiness’

History will become ghostly when three local nonprofits join forces to present the annual Lee’s Summit Haunted and Historic Spaces Tour on Oct. 19.

The spooky tours, which have been offered since 2012, are made possible thanks to a partnership involving Downtown Lee’s Summit Main Street, the Lee’s Summit History Museum and Summit Theatre Group, with ReeceNichols of Lee’s Summit serving as the presenting sponsor.

Nine tours with no more than 30 people will be offered every 20 minutes from 6 to 9 p.m. Advance tickets are available for $30 (plus fees) here . Organizers recommend that attendees be 16 or older due to the scarier aspects of the stories shared.

“We will have seven stops on the tour,” said Jenny Gale, assistant director of Downtown Lee’s Summit Main Street. “Some buildings include Bel Fiore Co. — location of the 1885 fire in downtown — and the Dayton Hotel, which is currently an upper level residence and houses a couple of downtown businesses.”

The Dayton was the site of the Lee’s Summit Hospital in 1900.

Tales — ranging from oddly misplaced objects to the sound of footsteps in an empty portion of a building — will be shared by volunteer guides and costumed actors from Summit Theatre Group.

Tour-goers will also learn about devastating fires during the late 1800s that took many lives, said Ginger Driskell-Birch, Summit Theatre Group’s costumes and props coordinator, “some of which still haunt downtown to this day.”

Expect stories about the building where KD’s Books is located, and the Country Club Bank, once Schick Furniture Shop/Funeral Parlor.

“The Cole Younger history buffs will be pleased with one of our locations,” Gale said.

Many of the people attending the tours are unaware of downtown Lee’s Summit’s fascinating and sometimes spooky history, Gale said.

“Sue Hart at the Lee’s Summit History Museum has done a great job compiling little known history about Lee’s Summit and our downtown,” Gale said.

“There are some shocking stories and some spooky ones, too. Tour participants didn’t know we had a fire in downtown in 1885 that burned to the ground 25 buildings: the entire block on both sides of Southwest Third and even started down Market Street. The current buildings on that side of downtown are built on those old foundations.”

In addition to offering spine-tingling entertainment, the Haunted and Historic Spaces Tour helps build awareness of Lee’s Summit’s history.

“Many of these stories have been passed down from generation to generation and could only be found in old documents, newspapers or books/stories of old,” Driskell-Birch said.

“Putting them in writing as a script for our actors to tell audiences is another way to keep the history alive in an interesting and memorable way.”

A new story within the last couple of years has focused on Cole Younger and his time with the Confederate Bushwhackers, she added.

“If you join the tour this year though, a new story will be told on the last stop of the tour at the Lee’s Summit History Museum regarding something eerie that overtook Jackson County in 1874 and affected many people,” Driskell-Birch said. “We are amping up the spookiness this year with some special effects to set the mood and some subtle details that increase the creep factor — so watch out!”

Those attending the tours are always encouraged to visit the Lee’s Summit History Museum to learn even more, Gale said.

“The museum is part of our committee for this event and helps with historical facts for our actors to include in the tour,” she said.

Actors from Summit Theatre Group play an important role in keeping the tours entertaining and engaging.

“The actors are placed in each of the seven tour stop locations.” Gale said. “They are in historical costume and knock it out of the park every year.”

Tour attendees appreciate the haunted aspects, as well as the historical research.

“Many have enjoyed the attention to detail,” Driskell-Birch said, adding that the organizers work to keep the tours fresh by adding new characters every few years and upgrading how the actors tell their stories and engage the tour groups. Passers-by, she said, may not realize that a character is lurking around a downtown corner.

Proceeds from the Haunted and Historic Spaces Tour benefit Downtown Lee’s Summit Main Street, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the revitalization and preservation of historic downtown Lee’s Summit.