Haints, Witches and Boogers | Ghosts of the Barter Theater (Abingdon, VA)
Ok, another leged from Abington, VA! I have personally been to the Barter Theater several times to see plays, however am unable to report any such paranormal presence :( Although I will say that the theater provides quite a unique atmosphere that is unmatched to my experience. The Barter Theater is located directly across the street from the infamous Martha Washington Inn (please see my previous post about the ghosts of the Martha Washington Inn).
Some folks think no less than two ghosts haunt the famous Barter Theater. One of them is identified as the shade of the theater's founder, Robert Porterfield. The other is a malevolent, unamed spirity that has chased no less a person than actor Ned beatty from his dressing room and clear out into the street.
The building that currently houses the Barter Theater was built in the 1830's as the Sinking Spring Presbyterian Church. The building also served as a theater. The great actor Edwin Booth was once said to have once trod its boards. And at the same time Booth performed upstairs, a male institute met in the basement.
The Great Depression hit Broadway late with a vengeance. Hundreds of actors were thrown out of work. Shows closed the same week they opened. Production money was scarce, and few successful showers were produced. Being from Southwestern Virginia, Porterfield knew that food was plentiful on the farms that dotted the countryside. So in the spring of 1933, Porterfield brought a total of 22 out-of-work New York actors to Abingdon, VA. There they would establish a theater and barter produce for admission to the plays.
The success of Porterfield and his Barter Theater is well-known. Barter alumni who have gone on to bigger and better things include Gregory Peck, Patricia Neal, Ernest Borgine, Frank Lovejoy, Ned Beatty, Claude Akins, and Hume Cronyn. Almost immediately after his death, sightings of the ghost of Porterfield began.
Porterfield has been seen almost everywhere in the theater building. He has been observed in almost every kind of dress, but most often in the gray sweater he was so fond of. Because of this his shade has been dubbed "The Gray Ghost." Actors performing on stage have also seen him sitting in the audience, wearing a white dinner jacket-- attire that he always wore on opening nights.
Sometimes the guests in the Martha Washington Inn, right across the street, look out their windows late at night to see the figure of a man inside the theater. The vison is always accompanied by a light, somewhat white, sometimes red, behind the figure.
As for the malevolent ghost in the Barter Theater.... or perhaps "presence" is a better word-- is that of a vindictive entity that strikes terror in the heart of anyone who encounters it. The presence has been felt by several actors at the Barter and even in some instences made chase at them even out into the alley behind the theater.
Some folks think no less than two ghosts haunt the famous Barter Theater. One of them is identified as the shade of the theater's founder, Robert Porterfield. The other is a malevolent, unamed spirity that has chased no less a person than actor Ned beatty from his dressing room and clear out into the street.
The building that currently houses the Barter Theater was built in the 1830's as the Sinking Spring Presbyterian Church. The building also served as a theater. The great actor Edwin Booth was once said to have once trod its boards. And at the same time Booth performed upstairs, a male institute met in the basement.
The Great Depression hit Broadway late with a vengeance. Hundreds of actors were thrown out of work. Shows closed the same week they opened. Production money was scarce, and few successful showers were produced. Being from Southwestern Virginia, Porterfield knew that food was plentiful on the farms that dotted the countryside. So in the spring of 1933, Porterfield brought a total of 22 out-of-work New York actors to Abingdon, VA. There they would establish a theater and barter produce for admission to the plays.
The success of Porterfield and his Barter Theater is well-known. Barter alumni who have gone on to bigger and better things include Gregory Peck, Patricia Neal, Ernest Borgine, Frank Lovejoy, Ned Beatty, Claude Akins, and Hume Cronyn. Almost immediately after his death, sightings of the ghost of Porterfield began.
Porterfield has been seen almost everywhere in the theater building. He has been observed in almost every kind of dress, but most often in the gray sweater he was so fond of. Because of this his shade has been dubbed "The Gray Ghost." Actors performing on stage have also seen him sitting in the audience, wearing a white dinner jacket-- attire that he always wore on opening nights.
Sometimes the guests in the Martha Washington Inn, right across the street, look out their windows late at night to see the figure of a man inside the theater. The vison is always accompanied by a light, somewhat white, sometimes red, behind the figure.
As for the malevolent ghost in the Barter Theater.... or perhaps "presence" is a better word-- is that of a vindictive entity that strikes terror in the heart of anyone who encounters it. The presence has been felt by several actors at the Barter and even in some instences made chase at them even out into the alley behind the theater.