It was ghosts and goblins galore this past weekend as the city of Ringgold kicked off the sixth season of its very popular “Haunted Depot” with its most successful opening night ever.

After spending the past few weeks turning one of the areas most historic sites into a spooky haunted labyrinth, the Haunted Depot welcomed its largest opening night crowd and kicked off the Halloween season in fine fashion, with more than 1,400 people attending the event over the weekend.

“This weekend was far better than any other opening weekend we've had since we started the event,” said city manager Dan Wright. “We had a great cast of new and returning actors that did a wonderful job in their roles.”

In addition to the “Fright Express”-themed Depot, citizens are also able to take part in an old-fashioned haunted hay ride and ghost walks through historic downtown.

“We really had a great turnout this past weekend,” said Daniel Shepherd, marketing and DDA coordinator for the city of Ringgold. “We had a lot of groups take part in the ghost walks, we had plenty of people for the hay rides, and there were people lined up all night to go into the Depot's haunted house. It was a great way to start this year’s event.”

As always, the large crowds created a buzz in the downtown area.

“We received a lot of good feedback from our downtown partners and business owners,” Wright said. “They were a lot busier than normal with all the people nearby at the Depot, and that's what we're shooting for. Our goal is to get more people to our downtown area. It helps everybody involved.”

The “Haunted Depot will run for the next two weekends and will begin each Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.

More information about the Ringgold “Haunted Depot” can be obtained via the city's website at cityofring-gold.com or by calling the Ringgold Depot at 706-935-5290.

Ringgold's Haunted Depot

Where: The historic Ringgold Depot at 155 Depot Street

When: October 19-20, 26-27

Time: 7 p.m.

Cost: Haunted Depot-$5, old-fashioned hay ride-$3, ghost walks-$5