Jodie McFarland will host public history walks this weekend at Providence Metropark in Providence, Ohio. The evening lantern events share local ghost stories tied to the regional canal era.
The events run from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 16 and Oct. 17. Tickets cost $15 each. McFarland said passes sell online only and are quickly running out.
McFarland serves as canal experience coordinator for Metroparks Toledo. He described the mood of the path.
“It’s eerie, it’s creepy. It’s not haunted house-y, but you might leave with maybe a couple jitters,” McFarland said.
McFarland called the walks a decades-old tradition. Visitors will hear accounts of people McFarland said died early deaths long ago. One story features a man named Mr. Bellinger.
“Mr. Bellinger met a very mysterious end, and he maintained the lock actually down the road that about a mile, mile and a half from where we are. And canalers even years later would say they would see him out on the lock as they were traveling,” McFarland said.
The site also features Ludwig Mill. McFarland said the mill holds separate ghost stories. He recalled smelling cigar smoke near the canal side on the first floor. Former mill owner Frank Heising was known to smoke cigars, according to McFarland.
Visitors can also take part in daytime canal activities at Providence Metropark. Guests can ride a mule-drawn canal boat through a working lock with original nineteenth-century stonework. The final day of the season for boat rides is Oct. 25.
Providence Metropark preserves historic structures along the Maumee River. The public park system maintains working heritage sites for education and public recreation in Northwest Ohio.
McFarland said sharing these local accounts helps guests understand the history of Providence. He said the canal experience offers an encounter people cannot find anywhere else in the country.
