Story: It’s a real long-shot case to investigate because there isn’t much to the haunting activity; usually only the workers know of it: The “Lady in Red” at the old Alcyon Theater (now the Highland Park Theater). She walks down the right-hand balcony aisle and if anyone makes fun of her, she gets back at them by playing pranks; when I worked there, we heard a loud noise like the sound of a boiler pinging (the theater has no boiler) in the main theater. We found nothing when we walked the aisles and when we apologized for the disturbance to the moviegoers, no one had heard a sound!! The Alcyon was a Vaudeville theater so we felt that she had simply returned to happy memories after she died. Perhaps the owner might have more information, I don’t know. Might be worth looking into.
There’s also St. Mary’s Convent on St. Mary’s and Old Rockland Rd. in Mettawa (east Libertyville) that I’ve been investigating….a white figure has been seen in the south wing of the old building. The statue of St. Mary “entrances” people who stare into her eyes. The son who restored it is not the nicest of people, but his father, who lives in the main house off to the side of it, is afraid of the place, hardly ever taking his eyes off of it. — S. Frumin
Response from Scott Markus: Great stories! Thanks for your submissions. The tale about Alcyon Theater is a new one to me, but sounds very much like stories I’ve heard about the Woodstock Opera House in Woodstock, Il. Seems there are a few actresses out there waiting for one last curtain call. I’d be interested in hearing anything more you might find out about St. Mary’s Convent. Libertyville already has more than its fair share of hauntings (St. Sava’s Serbian Monastery, “The Gate,” plus several haunted houses), and I’m sure the best stories haven’t been told yet. Please do keep us posted!
Reply: Where’s St. Sava’s??
One quick question about the Gate…..when you did your research, did you find any concrete evidence of a school having been there (like an old map, church records, etc.) and if you found a diocese it belonged to, which one? Someone challenged me to find out about the REAL place (not the ghost story) and I’ve had bum luck finding any factual evidence.
I do plan to purchase your book and DVD this coming week (payday) to hear more of the ghost stories of The Gate!
Response from Scott Markus (2): First off, St. Sava’s is on Route 21 (Milwaukee Ave) near to the border of Gurnee. You can practically see Six Flags from the driveway. (it’s covered in the book – that story alone will be worth the pay day you have coming up! It’s one of my personal favorites…still gives me chills!)
Next, some of the research on “The Gate” came from Ursula Bielski’s “More Chicago Haunts.” When I lived in Mundelein I was in the unique position of giving speeches about haunted sites near to where the sites actually were. Often, after a speech people would come up to me telling me of their experiences. When giving one speech in Libertyville, a man came to me and told me that when he bought an older used car, a sign was left in the trunk. The sign was for the orphanage that was back in that area. It also helps that my family was among the first to settle in Lake County, so after all these years, the family has accumulated quite a bit of local historical knowledge. I also got testimony from a woman living next to “The Gate,” who could vouch for the hauntings from her own accounts. I have a lot of confidence in Ursula Bielski’s research, she is one of the best in the business at finding historical fact.
