BATH

Though Bath is known as “The City of Ships,” the city has a history that runs deeper than you might think. Join the Lady in the Red Cloak for a jaunt through Bath’s past this summer, and you might just witness a touch of the supernatural.

“I’ve always been really interested in history,” said Sally Lobkowicz, who moonlights as The Lady in the Red Cloak tour guide every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30 p.m. “I realized I had the knowledge and ability at one point to combine Bath’s history with my love of ghost stories.”

The walking tour covers about 1.5 miles of flat streets as groups of between two and 30 people are led through Bath’s early residential area, including captains’ homes and other intriguing 19th Century architecture.

The tour begins at Winter Street Center, where — according to Lobkowicz — there’s a “huge history and a huge haunt.” Here the “Spectre of Bath,” a young woman who was said to have died in childbirth, was known to appear to the townsfolk and sing bible hymns during the early 1800s. Baptist pastor Abraham Cummings approached her one day, and she was never seen again.

Then it’s on to one of the oldest funeral homes in town, where opera star Emma Ames was laid to rest and later said to haunt. There are special side tours starting in September which focus strictly on Ames’ history and Bath roots.

“There’s a lot of history in this part of town,” said Lobkowicz. “I had a group of girls on a tour recently who’ve lived in Bath their whole lives, and said they’d learned things on this tour that they never knew before. They were thrilled to see their home town in a whole new light.”

Lobkowcz stresses that the Red Cloak Haunted History Tours are meant for the whole family.

“They’re not even that scary,” she admitted. “Kids love them, and sometimes they don’t even realize that they’re learning something, too.”

It’s still light out during the beginning of the tours — which may not add to the ‘haunted’ feel, but there’s a reason for that.

“The light gives you a chance to see all the amazing architecture around town,” Lobkowicz said.

Architectural wonders that are highlighted on the tour include the William Drummond House, the white chimneys and homes that sit perpendicular to the street with their front doors on the side.

“We have a lot of theories as to why the houses are like that, but nothing’s been proven,” said Lobkowicz. The house’s mysterious design adds all the more intrigue to the tour.

She also touches on the 19th Century Bath shipyards, as well as the Seguin Island Lighthouse — which is said to have gone through many hauntings over the years. However, Lobkowicz doesn’t venture to those spots unless during a private tour, which can be set up by anybody who is interested and make use of the Maine Martime Museum’s trolley and cruise boat.

Tours run through Oct. 30, but begin at 7 p.m. after Sept. 1. Other cities that take part in the Red Cloak Haunted History Tour program are Damariscotta, Wiscaset, Boothbay, Rockland, Camden and Bar Harbor. To learn more visit redcloakhauntedhistorytours.com.

bgoodridge@timesrecord.com