Big Bull Tunnel is a utilitarian fixture in Southwest Virginia. It’s never been an actual attraction, simply another train tunnel in Wise County. It’s difficult to believe the arched throughway has such a dark and mysterious history. Construction was so problematic, and so many mishaps followed, that many suspected theContinue Reading
“Timber Tree” is a folksy name for a relatively isolated road that bridges the Gate City/Bristol Highway, in Virginia, with the Bloomingdale area of Kingsport, Tennessee. Few were as notorious as the Powell sisters of Scott County, Virginia. Moonshiners feared them and outlaws avoided them. The Powell sisters weren’t justContinue Reading
The Bermuda Triangle has puzzled researchers for centuries. Many people are surprised to learn the Appalachians likewise have areas known for unexplained events, disappearances, and a plethora of oddities. The Black Mountain range, on the Virginia-Kentucky border, is one such area. No precise record for the Black Mountain events isContinue Reading
For almost a century, the Franklin House, also known as the Franklin Hotel, was a structural staple in Richmond, Virginia. The 100-room building was given such accolades as Richmond’s “largest boarding house” and “best furnished boarding house.” The establishment housed many guests during its history, but life wasn’t always successful.Continue Reading
Vampire lore is one of the most popular forms of folklore and its reach spans the globe. Here’s a tale of ghoulish proportions that was supposed to have taken place in the small town of Big Stone Gap. The Folklore: In the 1890s, a European named Rupp moved toContinue Reading
Alexandria was a bustling harbor for shipping and trading after the Revolutionary War. One day a large schooner sailed into this Virginia port, owned by an Alexandria merchant named John Dean. The ship carried rum and sugar as its cargo, as well as a handsome, wealthy couple when it enteredContinue Reading
Does it really have a “body chute?” Did 100,000 people die in this hospital? Questions are plentiful when it comes to the Waverley Hills Sanatorium, but the urban legends are more colorful than the history. Many paranormal shows on television have covered the infamous Waverly Hills. It has been featuredContinue Reading
The Bunny Man legend has made its way through many states in the nation, but most people still don’t know how it started. Who was the “Bunny Man?” This staple of urban myth is a common tale in my state of Virginia. As a matter of fact, the Bunny ManContinue Reading
The phantom hitchhiker is a familiar guest on countless American roads (not even counting the global reports). This is a growing collection of ghostly hitchhikers and the lore surrounding them. The Phantom Hitchhiker of Gap Creek, Tennessee The legend of the traveler goes back years ago on that bleak stretchContinue Reading