On Sunday, September 15, 2019, pianist Chad Lawson, took three pictures from the stage of The Paramount Theatre in Austin, in the Texas Hill Country. He was performing there, when he decided he would take a few quick photos after his soundcheck. It was only after his return to his hotel when he noticed something spooky in the mezzanine in one of his images.
His chilling discovery was that of a figure which appears as if it’s a woman floating in what would have been an empty stairwell of the equally empty venue. “These photos were taken as we had finished our soundcheck last night at Paramount. As we were exiting the stage, I stopped to take a picture of the hall as I do with every show. Nothing out of the norm. Three quick shots (as if you were counting out loud 1-2-3), put the phone in my pocket and then headed back to the hotel.,” Lawson told KVUE.com.
Photo: Facebook/Chad Lawson
He shared the images in a Facebook post, identifying the strange figure in the stairway, after having first done some research on potential ghosts stories for The Paramount. He Googled some spooky articles and stories about eerie sightings. One theme stood out to him, being a woman dressed in a white gown seen in the aisles on the theater’s mezzanine.
Photo: Max Pixel
In a 2014 report by local media, it was identified that many believe her to be the spirit of a wife from Civil War times, or a mother mourning the loss of her child. With respect to the former, the timing would reference 1861 through 1865, in which that part of Austin was home to the war office for Governor Sam Houston. The only hole in that theory is that The Paramount wasn’t officially opened until 1915, as the Majestic Theatre. Lawson determined to go directly to the building’s staff to see if they could shed any light on the matter. “They responded saying it could possibly be the venue manager, Shelley, but was unclear. After showing the pictures to various people including Shelley, no one was able to say ‘that’s definitely her.’ And while Shelley states she arrived at the venue and stayed downstairs for some time before going to the mezzanine, it is unclear as to when she did so,” he explained to KVUE. Whether The Paramount is, in fact, haunted has yet to be substantiated, although knowing this took place in Texas, the story isn’t exactly far fetched! What are your thoughts?
