Roxbury has long prided itself on its storied history, and around Hallowe’en, that history will haunt the quiet hamlet as never before. The Saturday before All Hallow’s Eve, October 25, Roxbury’s ghosts will by summoned by the solemn echoing hooves of their “familiars,” the imposing, unspookable steeds pulling the elegant ghost coach through the hamlet’s moonlit Main Street. And you may board this journey to the great beyond!

And what ghouls may emerge from their otherworldly slumbers, re-enacting their tales of sorrow and passion? Climb aboard and learn from the spectral emanations that inhabit the storied gables and garrets of Roxbury’s elegant Main Street grand dames. … Over there, in the shadows, a hard-nosed businesswoman mourns the loss of her mate and six children to the slow ravages of consumption … on a lonely veranda, an inconsolable young wife paces, awaiting a soldier sweetheart who will never return … a brilliant all-star athlete and hero comes home, only to meet a mysterious and macabre fate, and yonder there in the cemetery he wanders, seeking his beloved ballfield in Kirkside Park. … And who is that young maiden in distress, glimpsed for a wisp of an instant from the windows of Kirkside Barn’s deserted loft?

In Roxbury, humble beginnings and great wealth lived together side by side for decades, and the silent, imposing Victorians lining Main Street are themselves telling skeletons of a past bustling with hotels and taverns, a natural breeding ground for melodrama and secrets. Even if you’re too shaky to face the shadows emerging from the dark, you’ll come away with a rich sense of Roxbury’s past and the most human elements dredged from the bottomless well of her history.

Visitors to the great beyond begin their Ghost Coach journey at the storied Public Lounge on Bridge Street, where libations and hearty fare (served by an appropriately ghoulish and quirky staff) prepare travellers for their unnerving journey. Snuggle tight as your ghoulish guide brings personalities of the past two centuries to life—with a little help from the beyond!

The Roxbury Victorian Ghost Tour departs this realm at 6 p.m. Saturday, October 25, and approximately every 45 minutes thereafter. Tours fill quickly so be sure to reserve your tour time in advance. Tickets are $15. The tour is not appropriate for children under 16. Call 607 326 3722 or visit www.roxburyny.com for more details — if you dare!