M.A. Kleen

From ghost tours to time travel adventures, this Canadian tour company brings local history to life in an engaging and sometimes interactive experience.

Kingston is a city of over 130,000 in the province of Ontario, Canada. It grew up at the confluence of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River not far from the border with the United States and is home to Queen’s University, the Royal Military College of Canada, and Princess of Wales’ Own Regiment. If that all sounds very European to you, you’ll also appreciate its architecture, which, especially downtown, is like stepping into a charming British town.

As far as cities go, Kingston is not that old, having been first chartered in 1838, though French traders built Fort Frontenac there in the eighteenth century. It was briefly Canada’s first capital from 1841 to 1844 and home to its first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. There are uncomfortable reminders of a time when relations with the United States weren’t very friendly, like Fort Henry (now a museum). But today it has a thriving tourist industry, attracting Americans like myself to enjoy its old world charms.

When I was stationed at Fort Drum in nearby Watertown, New York, I had the opportunity to visit Kingston on several occasions, which was just an hour’s drive away. One of the funnest things to do there was Kingston’s Haunted Walk, which was a twilight lantern tour of downtown Kingston and its legendary locations and haunts.

Glen Shackleton was a history student at Queen’s University when he came up with the idea for the Haunted Walk. He took second place in an entrepreneurship competition and used the prize money to found his tour company. That was in 1996. Today, he runs tours in Ottawa, Toronto, and Kingston, has published several books, and sat on the board of directors for Ottawa Tourism.

Kingston’s ghost tours are a major draw, but the funnest tour put on by this company was the Time Travel Trail Adventure. Our guide took on the role of a time traveler à la Dr. Who, and with a magical dial, transported us back to moments in Kingston’s past, explaining the stories and history in vivid detail. I’ve taken a lot of tours in my lifetime, but this was the most creative and interesting, and even invited the audience into the act.

The office of Kingston’s Haunted Walk is located in the former Prince George Hotel building, which also happens to be among my favorite haunted places in the city. The Prince George Hotel anchors Kingston’s historic Market Square and is adjacent to Kingston’s City Hall on Ontario Street.

Ghostly activity in the hotel centered on the third floor, particularly Room 304. According to Glen Shackleton, staff reported electrical disturbances and doors opening or closing on their own. Guests spotted the shadowy specter of a woman and an adolescent girl. In Room 304, one elderly couple complained that the second bed in the room was floating three feet in the air!

The Tir Nan Og Pub, which occupies a space on the ground floor, has its own paranormal activity. Furniture and doors are said to move on their own, silverware and glasses fall to the floor, and patrons are touched by unseen hands. No one seems to mind very much, as it continues to be a very popular watering hole. Friends and I enjoyed a drink there more than once.

In Kingston, history is more than just something to learn about—it’s something to experience. Thanks to Glen Shackleton’s vision, visitors can find unique ways to connect the past with the present. From spine-tingling hauntings to captivating historical events and anecdotes, Kingston’s stories continue to live on, leaving visitors with memories that linger long after they’ve left its streets.