Hundreds attend Tales of the Crypt

Tuesday night, Parkview High School students took hundreds of Arkansans back in time for the "Tales of the Crypt" cemetery tour.

"Tales of the Crypt" takes you back in time to the 1800s when Arkansas was young, and Monday night, hundreds got to see several young actors portray important Arkansans in period costumes on a tour of Mount Holly Cemetery.

"This is my first time at a cemetery," says tour-taker Natalie Billingsley.

Every year, during the second week in October, hundreds wait in line eager to enter Mount Holly Cemetery.

"The earliest birthdate on a stone is 1750. It is the stone of Peter Lafare," said tour guide Tori Harris

Those who dare, step back in time.

"In 1860, my sons and I built a three story brick building. The first in Little Rock, I do believe," said Kagan Fletcher as he portrayed John Otto Kumpe.

"Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, you stop," said Billie Paters-Harmon who portrayed his wife, Lucinda Maples Kumpe.

The tour introduces these brave souls to some of Little Rock's most famous men and women.

"I can feel the eyes of those who know how wrong this is, but attempt to justify it by saying that this is what I deserve. As well as the eyes of those who truly believe with every stitch in their body that I deserve to die," said Owen Ostermueller as he stayed in character playing David O. Dodd.

"Act 151 was passed, and when I became a free man, I vowed to never become a slave again, so I packed up my bags and left," said Alex Cottrell as he played Nate Warren.

But, these vibrant young men and women are not ghosts, they are Fred Boosey's drama students at Parkview High.

"We start in March with giving them the character," says Boosey.

The proud theater arts teacher enjoys watching his students research their roles and make Little Rock's historic figures come back to life.

"Maybe something they're not going to find out in the history classroom or English classroom. They're getting the knowledge and especially if they can find a family member that will relay some of the things they know, the family history," he says.

If you did not check out the tour Tuesday night, you have to wait until next year.

Donations go to the cemetery to help with maintenance.