Where a Halloween 1912 murder inside the State Convict Board office left a ghost story still told a century later
600 Dexter Ave, Montgomery, AL 36130
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free admission; tour reservations available through the Alabama Historical Commission
Access
Wheelchair OK
Flat, paved grounds with accessible interior
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1851 · First Confederate capital (February 1861) · Jefferson Davis inauguration site · 1912 Halloween murder of Convict Board chief P.A. Woods by Will Oakley
The Alabama State Capitol was completed in 1851 on Goat Hill in Montgomery, replacing an earlier statehouse. Its architectural centerpiece is a cast-iron dome modeled on the U.S. Capitol. In February 1861, the building served as the meeting place for the Provisional Confederate Congress, and Jefferson Davis was inaugurated on its portico — a moment marked by a brass star embedded in the front steps.
The building's history shifted on October 31, 1912. Eighteen-year-old Will Oakley walked into the office of P.A. Woods, chief of the State Convict Board, and shot him four times. Woods died of his wounds. Oakley was tried and convicted, but during his imprisonment he escaped and was never brought back into custody. The case, documented in detail by Yellowhammer News on the murder's 112th anniversary, left a permanent mark on Capitol lore.
Over the following decades, workers and staff began attributing unexplained events to Oakley's ghost. Restroom faucets were reported turning on without cause — interpreted in the local legend as Oakley trying to wash blood from his hands. A separate apparition, a woman in Civil War-era dress, has also been reported in the building's older wings. The Capitol is managed today by the Alabama Historical Commission and remains open to the public for tours.
Sources
The haunting legend attached to the Alabama State Capitol is unusually grounded: it ties to a documented historical event with names, a date, and a documented criminal outcome. Will Oakley shot P.A. Woods on Halloween 1912 and later escaped custody, leaving the case unresolved in the public record. That unresolved quality seems to have fueled the ghost story.
The most commonly reported phenomenon is faucets turning on without anyone touching them, especially in the restrooms near the old Convict Board offices. The folk interpretation — Oakley washing blood from his hands — appeared in Yellowhammer News coverage on the murder's 112th anniversary, suggesting the legend is still actively told by Capitol employees. A second apparition, an unnamed woman in period dress, has been reported separately and is not tied to the Oakley narrative.
The Capitol is on ghost tour routes operated by Montgomery-based tour companies, who cite it alongside the city's other documented dark-history sites.
Notable Entities
State-operated tours of the Capitol's historic interior including the Senate and House chambers, the dome, and the Secession Convention Hall. The Convict Board office where the 1912 murder occurred is in the building.
Walk the grounds of the 1851 Capitol, first capital of the Confederacy, at your own pace. The Star of the Confederacy marker and Jefferson Davis oath-of-office spot on the portico are key stops.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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