Gold Country Ghost Tours give a peek into Auburn's haunted history

The hottest ticket in Auburn every fall is to the Gold Country Ghost Tours. The event is always growing and typically sells out in minutes, but the lucky few that can snag one get an inside look at the city's rich and haunted history. A crown jewel of the California Gold Rush, Auburn has had its fair share of outlaws, lawmen, miners, businessmen, fugitives and more, making the town a hot spot for history buffs and paranormal enthusiasts alike. Melany Hall is the founder of the tours and was inspired to bring something to Auburn after doing ghost tours in London and New Orleans. The tour has grown each year, adding new stops and characters to the mix. "We always have incredible support from the community. When I asked in the earlier show, I found out that not only are we getting people from Auburn but a ton of people outside of Auburn as well," Hall said. "We've been able to attract a lot of attention to our hometown while also preserving our haunted history as well, which is super exciting." This year, the ghost tours added a stage show at the beginning of the month which brings all of the same characters to the tour to one location, where they interact with each other rather than give a monologue about their lives. Hall said the stage show was a hit and she hopes it can continue. "I've always wanted a stage show for multiple reasons. Number one, this tour is a walking tour of Old Town so it's not necessarily friendly for all of our members that want to come see our show," Hall said. " It was really fun, and we're grateful for the Odd Fellows, who donated their space, which is a super haunted location as well, and it was really well received." During the night of their stage show, security cameras at the Odd Fellows captured an orb and what appears to be some sort of light floating through the room when nobody was around. The ghost tours captured the video and posted it on their Facebook page. Fan favorites every year on the ghost tours include famous outlaw Rattlesnake Dick, who was killed in Auburn in 1859 in an area of town now known as the Raley's parking lot, and Alma Bell, daughter of the namesake of Bell Road who famously gunned down her former fiance after he broke off her engagement. Hall said while they will never get rid of some characters that are staples of the tour, she hopes to bring new people into the mix soon. "We're always adding new events when we think they'll be relevant and worthwhile," Hall said. "Next year, we'll probably have four new characters at least, but there's just some characters that are so ingrained in Auburn. Auburn was the wild, wild west and there are definitely some significant characters that we're researching that are very spooky and we want to bring those stories back to life as well." Hall said all of the money gathered from the ghost tours gets donated back to local nonprofits. She added every year there is something that happens during the tours that lets the thrillseekers know some previous residents are still lurking around Auburn. "Every year, there's some spooky experience at least once. I really think that the spirits like that we were talking about them and remembering them," Hall said. "Sometimes, they like to just show that they are still here with us."