Historic Alpine Ghost Tours, a collaboration between the Alpine Historical Association and the Sul Ross State University Theater Department, is the winner of a Texas Travel Award, details a press release.
The winners were announced June 20 and are presented by the editors of Austin Monthly, San Antonio Magazine and Texas Music.
The ghost tour won for best “Under the Radar – Small Market.”
According to texastravelawards.com, the awards recognize and celebrate the “top travel destinations and attractions throughout the Lone Star State” along with “the best places, businesses and things to do that entice travelers to hit the road.” and explore this great state.
Categories include agritourism, swimming pools, places to dance, and “instagrammable” places, among others.
According to the website, “The tours begin at Reata Alpine with a ‘spooky drink’ from the Reata bar, and are led by Bret Scott, associate professor of Communications at SRSU, who spent a decade at Second City in Chicago. Stops at historic landmarks like the Brewster County Courthouse, the Alpine Avalanche Building, and the Ritchey Hotel come alive with occasional glimpses of restless spirits, some of whom gain courage as the tour progresses to share their memories of some of the dramatic historical events of Alpine and the region.”
The first ghost tour in November 2021 raised $1,500 for scholarships for theater students, and an additional $1,500 was earned last April.
“These funds help us bring theater to Alpine year-round, but especially in the summer months under our Theater of the Big Bend banner,” Marjie Scott, chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, stated in the press release. .
Abbey Branch, director of the AHA, said she began planning the event several years ago after participating in ghost tours in other cities.
“When I started AHA in January 2021, it was one of the first things on my agenda as it is a great way to share the history of Alpine’s historic buildings and families with our visitors,” he stated in the press release. “I was able to set up a meeting with Marjie, and she and I met last summer, and I pitched her the idea and she loved it.”
Scott credited the department for the success of the tour. “While I wrote, directed and produced the tour with Abbey, I couldn’t have done it without the talent and creativity of the cast and crew. They worked very hard and did a wonderful job,” he stated in the press release. “The actors who play ghosts are a mix of community members and SRSU faculty, students, and administrators. We also had some students involved. It was fun!”
Another ghost tour is planned for October, and Branch said he’s about to present a new idea to the SRSU Theater Department: Hispanic Heritage of Alpine, an interactive tour of South Side homes, businesses and families.
