Granbury Opera House: The Ghost of John Wilkes Booth
Posted: 10.23.2024 | Updated: 10.23.2024
The recently restored Granbury Opera House in Granbury, Texas, is a testament to the character of this small town outside of Dallas-Fort Worth. Recently, the theatre made a booming comeback after permanently shutting its doors over one hundred years ago. But it has trouble forgetting a dark past—one that tore a nation asunder.
For over a century, a mystery has persisted in Granbury. Who was John St. Helen? This local bartender and occasional actor has a special seat in the heart of Texan theatergoers. Furthermore, many say that he still holds a special ethereal seat at the Granbury Opera House, one of the most haunted places in Granbury.
Is this mysterious man the rebel hero of the Confederacy, John Wilkes Booth? Many believe it to be so. It has brought the theater into the national spotlight. Television shows like “Unsolved Mysteries” and the Discovery Channel’s “Ghost Lab” have flocked to the 1886 theater to investigate what is believed to be the ghost of this murderous assassin.
Join Dallas Terrors as we investigate John St. Helen, his mysterious disappearance from Granbury, and the ghastly activities at the Granbury Opera House.
Take a Dallas walking ghost tour with Dallas Terrors the next time you are in the Big D for even more haunted mysteries in the heart of Texas.
Who Haunts The Granbury Opera House?
Locals say that a seat at the top of the Granbury Opera House is specially reserved for the ghost of John Wilkes Booth. Many actors have seen it fold on its own and the apparition of a man dressed in black on stage. Furthermore, a dark presence can be felt near the empty seat. Paranormal investigators have recorded an EVP saying “Yes” after being asked if it was Booth.
Theatre On The Texas Frontier
The magic of theatre made a slow trek across the Texas frontier during the 19th century. But, as the newly formed republic grew, the need for entertainment followed suit. Houston was among the first cities to receive this star treatment.
Early forms of vaudeville performed by professional actors in traveling troupes were among the first to make their way to the Lone Star Republic. Occasionally, Shakespearean troupes would brave the Wild West to entertain its scattered masses.
Consequentially, the need for an opera house in major cities like Dallas grew. Dallas received its first Opera House shortly after the railroads arrived in 1872. Fort Worth followed in 1876. However, small towns on the outskirts of these major cities, such as Granbury, still lacked resources.
Before The Granbury Opera House: Kerr Hall
Granbury finally received its first theater in 1886, Kerr’s Hall, or Kerr’s Opera House. Before this, Granbury’s entertainment options were slim to none. Only the most hardened theatrical groups would visit the frontier town. The theatre hall was placed at the center of the town square, as was common across West Texas.
Former city official David Kerr built the opera house with the most modern amenities. A series of gas lamps lined the theatre, lighting the hall's red velvet carpet. Cowboys and horse-riding gentlemen were asked to remove their spurs to not damage this luxurious decor. Beautiful scenery decorated the wall as Texans flooded the hall night after night to be entertained.
While bookings did not occur until 1891, the hall was always lively. The first floor held a saloon and a stable, while the second had the theatre and stage. Many believe it was here, or at a saloon right next door, that John Wilkes Booth, aka John St. Helen, was working. But his spirit would not come back into focus for many years.
The Granbury Opera House
Once Kerr Hall began booking acts, the theatre gained a reputation by some as a seedy and dangerous place. Live music, magicians, traveling minstrels, Shakespearean actors, vaudeville acts, magicians, sword swallowers, and any other form of turn-of-the-century entertainment dazzled the people of Granbury. But not everyone in Granbury was happy about this debaucherous mess.
Kerr Hall eventually folded in 1911 due to the strict onslaught of the temperance movement. It sat in shambles until 1970 when the town came together to restore the once-prestigious theater. In 1975, it reopened as The Granbury Opera House. Extensive renovations took place in 2012 to bring the theatre to its current grandeur.
But, no matter the dedicated upgrades and paint jobs, no one could deny that something eerie was hiding in the shadows of the Grandbury Opera House.
Who Was John St. Helen?
The old-timers in Granbury long spoke about one of the many interesting characters called Granbury home, John St. Helen. Granbury is home to many spirits, some more well-known than others. Jesse James, Billy the Kid, and John Wilkes Booth are suspected of haunting this tiny Texas town. However, no one offers more proof of their existence than John Wilkes Booth, or as he is better known around town, John St. Helen.
Legends speak of a man who came to Granbury in its earliest incarnation. The town was founded in 1866. Lincoln was assassinated on April 14th, 1865.
History teaches us that John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln’s assassin, was killed at Garret’s Farm in Port Royal, VA, 12 days after the president was killed. But many believe he faked his death, escaped, and went west.
St. Helen was a bartender at a saloon next door to the modern Granbury Opera House, where the Nutshell Eatery once was. Occasionally, this mystery man would perform theatre for his beloved patrons.
Before coming to Granbury, John St. Helen was recorded as living in Glen Rose, Texas, where he owned a successful store. But he left town as he was about to marry the daughter of a US Marshall.
In 1877, John St. Helen contracted a mysterious illness. He admitted to those closest to him, including lawyer FInis L. Bates, the grandfather of Kathy Bates, that he was John Wilkes Booth. Bates even wrote a book about this incident.
But, as fate may have it, he recovered his mysterious illness and fled town again. He then made his way to Enid, Oklahoma. Here, he took the moniker David George. Eventually, Booth fell ill yet again, but this time, he faded from this world.
The Ghost of John Wilkes Booth
While this story may be nothing but hearsay, albeit one that has been covered by “20/20” and “Unsolved Mysteries,” the truth is that someone haunts the Granbury Opera House. Many have seen a figure in black reciting Shakespeare on the stage. Others have seen a particular chair, which sits high above the lobby on the balcony, fold itself closed.
A bizarre event in the 1990s further cemented the belief of a spectral presence in the theatre. A painter was commissioned to create a mural depicting the 16th President's killer. Alongside the depiction of the once-revered actor was a mysterious woman in red. As the painter was making his masterpiece, his paintbrushes mysteriously vanished. He later found them bristle-side down in the ficus bush out front.
This enigmatic legend has attracted interest from ghost hunters worldwide. In 2009, Discovery Channel's “Ghost Lab” investigated the matter. The evidence they returned with was shocking. During an EVP session, the brave ghost hunters asked the spirit of the theatre if they were indeed John Wilkes Booth. It responded directly: “Yes, I am John Wikes Booth.” This was followed, in true rebel fashion, by a curse word.
Haunted Dallas
While Booth purportedly lived in Granbury before the theatre was built, his fake persona worked at a bar where the theatre stands today. Could his spirit be lingering in the afterlife so that he could continue his life's true passion, acting?
Dallas is full of great mysteries such as this one. If you want to learn them all, then take a ghost tour with Dallas Terrors. In the meantime, keep reading our blog and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for more spooky content!
Sources:
https://www.granbury.org/707/Granbury-Opera-House
https://www.weirdsouth.com/post/spirited-granbury
https://texashighways.com/travel-news/discover-granbury-s-haunted-history
https://www.granbury.org/705/John-Wilkes-Booth
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