If you’re from the small village of Coolville, you have definitely heard of Murphy’s Field of Screams. This haunted corn maze event is a fun and local scary attraction where people from all over come to get scared. I was able to sit down with the owner John Murphy, a well known man across the community and bus driver for Federal Hocking. to get a look inside the infamous Field of Screams.
Murphy’s love for Halloween goes back to when he was a young child.
“I’ve always loved Halloween, I love the weather, the colors changing.”
The roots for his love of the Halloween season comes from his mother, who always loved everything spooky. He told me about how he used to watch the channel “chiller”.
When his parents passed, he knew he was going to have to step up. It began with him and his siblings buying the family farm off of an auction. When they needed money to support the farm, they decided to turn it into the haunted field it is today.
When asked about obstacles they have had to overcome, Murphy said the biggest obstacles have always been the weather since it is an outdoor event, and just getting people to come out. Since the few years were just him and his wife, one can imagine the challenges they had to overcome. But when asked about the success and most successful years he reported by far 2020 has been their best year.
In 2020? You might ask yourself, how was the world shutting down the best year for an event? Well, Murphy said since there were so many people tired of being cooped up in their homes they were just ready to get out. Even though it was his best year, it definitely wasn’t the easiest. He had to try and work around all the health codes and make it fun at the same time.
“I had to go out and measure those big fields and explain the whole operation.”
Getting people to work wasn’t a big obstacle for Murphy; many young college students come out to work as well as students from local high schools. Not to mention adults who just love to scare! A Federal Hocking student named Owen Black works at the field of screams and when talking to him he had nothing but good fun things to say.
“It’s just a good fun environment and I love going out and scaring people.”
Sophomore Autumn Beha has visited Field of Screams every year since she was in fourth grade.
“It’s a thrilling and scary experience in the woods and a cornfield. If you are bored with friends and want something to do, Field of Screams is the place to go,” Beha said.
This local event might be bigger and more popular than you think. Many people from different neighboring states come down to enjoy the scares. Our very own John Murphy has worked hard to make sure over the years the Field of Screams was as enjoyable as possible for everyone. So next year make sure you go on down to Coolville to check it out yourself!
