Sacramento History Museum is notorious for immersive tours all over Old Sacramento, and Halloween is the perfect excuse to learn all about what haunted history lies six feet under.
No — we aren’t talking graves, rather underground corridors that extend all over downtown. Discover the ins-and-outs of what’s underfoot in Old Sac with tours from the museum’s program coordinator, Aly Kowalski, and her historical cohorts.
The underground tour includes noteworthy historical landmarks (below and above ground). Here are some highlights:
- The National Historical Pony Express Trail , a mail route of over 1,800 miles to get from California to Missouri in just 10 days on horseback (poor horses)
- Eagle Theater , a reconstruction of California’s first permanent theater originally constructed in 1849
- The B.F. Hastings Building , the western terminus for the Pony Express, from which express mail for San Francisco would then continue via ferry
- A late-1900s archaeological excavation site , which unearthed some artifacts that are on display in the museum
Tour guides for the Sacramento History Museum get in full character of Old Sacramento’s own famous figures.
Photo by Dayna Wergedal, courtesy of Sacramento History Museum
Guided tours are led by local experts fully in character of significant figures in Sacramento’s history, including B.F. Hastings himself, or (City Editor Madeline’s personal favorite) Madame Johanna Hiegle, a woman of “ill repute.” This makes for a unique experience for each tour, said Kalowski.
With over 10 years of experience in the Sacramento History Museum, Kalowski has borne witness to some visitor accounts of the paranormal herself. If you consider yourself more sensitive to the other side, who knows? You just might pick up on something.
The Sacramento History Museum is open 7 days a week, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Photo by SACtoday staff
Underground tours run seven days a week, and can be booked online . If you want to throw some old school gaming into the mix, check out the Gold Fever! Game tour.
Thrill-seekers — mark your calendars for January 2024, when the Old Sac Paranormal Investigation tours will pick back up. Participants will be equipped with handheld monitors to pick up any EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenomenon) for the full experience.
We braved the underground last year
and met B.F. Hastings ourselves — pretty spirited for a 174-year-old.