Historic Dock Street Theater - Charleston, South Carolina - Ghosts and Hauntings on Waymarking.com

My Commentary:
This building has had as many lives as a cat. The building was destroyed in 1740 and rebuilt in 1809. It was a hotel and Junius Booth stayed here. The building fell into disrepair and was going to be demolished. The WPA remodeled it in 1935 turning it into a theater. The building was again in disrepair when the City remodeled it and took over management in 2010. It is now on the National Register. Two ghosts are said to haunt the theater - Ole Junius Booth and a "Lady in Red".

One of the ghosts here is said to be that of Nettie Dickerson. Nettie came to Charleston when she was about 25 years old. She loved the city and thought that it was exciting and sophisticated. She really was hoping to meet her future husband by moving here. Times have changed quite a bit since then. At this time, in 1840, the average age for a woman to marry was 17, so Nettie was considered very old in those terms. She was determined to find the love of her life though! Nettie had many men who wanted her because of her beauty and intelligence. There were not many that wanted to marry her though.

Nettie ended up finding a job at one of the local churches and enjoyed her work there, but she would always look over at Planter’s Hotel and see the men with their prostitutes and thought that she could be part of that scene too. She decided to quit her job at the church and try that life for herself. Prostitution would be her new job and she did well at it. Men liked her a lot! She still went to church and would watch as the women there would gossip about her and make horrible comments about her. This made her angry and soon she became very depressed when men no longer wanted her because of their wives’ comments about her.

She stopped going to church because of how she was being treated there. She enjoyed hanging out on her balcony at the hotel and one fatal night, her priest visited her and asked her to come back to church. He said her life could change and while he was talking to her, on her balcony, a storm came through the city. A lightning bolt hit the rail of her balcony and electrocuted her. Nettie died horribly from the shock and many people say that she has never left the hotel.

Since the hotel became the Dock Street Theatre, there has been quite a bit of paranormal activity. One of the first ghosts to be spotted her is the ghost of Nettie. Many actors in the shows here have said that they have seen a woman walking in a beautiful red dress. She glides across the floor, but those who have seen her say that she is not beautiful. Many described her face as zombie like and others have said it looks like something out of a haunted house. Some of the workers here said that they see her everyday, but others say she comes and goes for months at a time.

The theatre is haunted by more than just one ghost. In fact, many say that Junius Booth, father of John Wilkes Booth, also haunts the building. The interesting fact about these ghost stories is that Booth didn’t even die in Charleston. Many of the actors and workers here have seen the figure of a man walking around the stage. They have reported seeing him when the building just had a few lights on and they felt him breathing down their necks. Some of the workers here even felt him touching their neck! Visitors that have come to the theatre have seen his full figure walking around on the stage and in the hallways. No one is truly sure if it is his ghost, but those who have researched him, believe that it is. There are stories of how much he loved the theatre and some say that he never wanted to be anywhere else! Perhaps this is why he is sticking around.

- Charleston Terrors Website about the Dock Street Theater

Public access?: Tours are available - book through local companies cost will vary. Visting hours: Only available through a tour or when a show is being presented. Website about the location and/or story: [Web Link]

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