By KARI BLURTON
Hays Post

Several icons  from the Wild West days of Hays will “resurrect” themselves at Boot Hill on Friday evening, as the the Ellis County Historical Society hosts Haunted Boot Hill.

The staged performance features Hays historical characters such as Kate Coffey, owner of Kate Coffey’s Saloon; Sheriff Pete Lanahan; dance-hall girl Mary Kidd; and Elizabeth Custer.

Cheryl Glassman, Hays, director of the event said some characters will talk about life in Hays during the 1860s, some about dying with their boots on and being buried at Boot Hill,  and some will stop by to express their disdain for the town.

“Elizabeth Custer was never fond of the people of Hays,” she laughed. “We were a wild community back then.

“There will be time afterwards to visit with the characters and get to them a little bit more,” Glassman said. “So it’s something I think is very entertaining and educational for all ages. We invite people to bring their lawn chairs, blankets … and just enjoy a huge  part of the history of the old west of Hays.”

About 80 people were buried at Boot Hill between 1867 and 1864, until the bodies were moved and reburied at another cemetery to make room for housing. However, Don Westfall of the Ellis County Historical Society, said there is no telling if all the bodies were removed and reburied.

The free event starts at 6:30 p.m. with refreshments.  The performance begins at 7 p.m. at the state’s original Boot Hill Cemetery on corner of Fort and West 18th.