Witch Trials, Ghost Hunts & Vampires: Last Spooky Weekend In CT

CONNECTICUT — Horror and history intertwine throughout Connecticut this weekend before Halloween, as event organizers continue to revel in the Spooky Season, while leaning hard into New England's often-freaky Colonial days.

Exhibit 'A:' At "Accused! Fairfield's Witchcraft Trials Tour," guests will visit the remnants of a pond where women accused of witchcraft were interrogated by "ducking," and experience a live performance about the women who endured the accusations. The production by the Fairfield Museum and History Center runs Oct. 24-26, and tours step off at 6 p.m. from the museum lobby. Tickets are available online here.

Stanley-Whitman House in Farmington will present "Halloween Tales of New England" on Friday, Oct. 25. Guests will join historian Dennis Picard for "a blend of history and mystery, wrapped in the charm of authentic 18th and 19th-century storytelling." The "riveting tales of murder and mayhem" and "eerie narratives of witches, vampires, and uncanny occurrences" will be spun fireside in the Whitman Tavern from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Tickets are available online here.

On Oct. 25-26, join paranormal sleuths Arrowhead Investigations on a case at the Leffingwell House Museum in Norwich. Guests will learn how to use the equipment and discover the techniques used by the team, and do their own paranormal hunt in the museum with the guidance of the Arrowhead team of investigators. (Pro tip: Don't cross the beams!) There are three time slots each day, 6-7:30 p.m., 8-9:30 p.m., and 10-11:30 p.m. For reservations, contact redlakenation24@gmail.com with name, number in group, date, time of choice.

Expect more ectoplasmic antics in Mystic on Saturday and Sunday for a paranormal investigation of a historic colonial burial ground, reputedly haunted by specters from the 17th-19th centuries. Guests will again use real ghost hunting gear in their search for the restless dead. Tickets and more information are available online here.

The Noah Webster House & West Hartford Historical Society promise "history as you've never heard it before." The 45-minute lantern-lit tours of Old North Cemetery take place Oct. 24, 25, and 26 and leave every 15 minutes starting at 6 p.m. Tickets are available online here.

The Nightfair is huge in Salem, MA, and Norwalk is looking to capture its own lightning in a bottle. For the second year, the city will transform Washington Street into an autumnal extravaganza, with Halloween-themed family activities, a Trick or Treat Trail, food trucks, and most importantly, glow sticks. Music will be provided by Similar Kind, Edisun, Goodboys and Maahez. Saturday, Oct. 26, from 2 to 10 p.m. More details here.

If your young ones want to get a little more mileage out of those cute costumes, bring them to Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington on Sunday for Halloween on the Hill, 3-6 p.m., rain date the next day. Another opportunity to grab some treats may be had at the Downtown Boo Bash in Storrs, on Saturday, from 4 to 5 p.m.

Organizers at the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks call their Halloween in the Hangars Brew Fest "the boozy version of your middle school museum field trip" and it's easy to see why. Your admission grants you after-hours access to the museum, unlimited beer samples, and live music. Food trucks will be on-site, and it all goes down inside a massive hangar housing a collection of 80 historic aircraft, each one way better than a broomstick. Tickets are available online here.