Ghost Stories

You've heard of the movie Poltergeist, right? The fictional tale shows what could happen if you disturb a cemetery in the name of progress. The citizens of Pegram, Tennessee may have learned that lesson the hard way as well. The Pegram Family Cemetery sat deteriorating until the 1970s when a group of developers decided to raze the land running along a stretch of Harpeth River. The idea was the build small homes on concrete slabs. Good in theory but selling the soil from the cemetery as fill dirt possibly created a problem. Five years after the project began, the river rose 30 feet, unearthing the coffin of Miss Carrie Pegram Heath. She was probably reburied but could she be the only one not properly removed? The constant unusual flooding of the new homes was just one thing on a list of Pegram's bad luck. That cemetery fill dirt was used all over two Tennessee counties. The Town Hall has had it share of problems including large legal fees. The local supermarket burned down. ...

Long ago, in the woods, there was a woman named Spearfinger. This Cherokee witch was feared among her people along the eastern side of Tennessee and western part of North Carolina. She was described as being forty feet tall with skin like rock that no weapon could penetrate. With one long razor sharp finger, she would sneak up behind you, stab it through your back and yank out your liver, eating it in one gulp. More than anything, she loved the flesh of young children. Spearfinger could transform herself in to anything or anyone. You never knew if your friend or neighbor was actually them or the witch until it was too late. One day, an indian village knew Spearfinger was fast approaching them. They developed a plan to dig a huge pit, surrounding the village, and cover it with branches and leaves. When she fell in, they would strike and kill her. The whole village came together, putting the plan in to action. One particular boy had trouble pulling his weight. His clumsy nature hinde...

Over 70 years ago, Oliver Springs, TN was faced with the murder of two sisters and their 16 year old errand boy. Margaret Richards was a secretary for the Oliver Springs Brick Yard. Her sister Ann was a bank teller at Oliver Springs Bank. The two lived with their other sister Mary. On February 5, 1940, Mary, teacher and librarian at Oliver Springs High School, wrote a note to her sisters. She sent a couple of students to deliver the note, but they returned saying no one answered the door. After a second failed attempt to deliver the note and learning her sisters didn't show up to a scheduled meeting, Mary went to the house. Upon arrival, she witnessed a brutal scene. She found her sister Margaret,46, dead on the stairwell. She had been shot twice, once in the head and once in the throat. Her sister Ann, 48, was dead on the kitchen floor from being shot in the head. Their errand boy Leonard "Powder" Brown was discovered near the second floor banister with a .38 pisto...

Mistaken identity seems to be a common problem among the paranormal along with inaccurate information. There is a local legend in Elizabethton, Tennessee which falls in to this category. It is said Grannie February haunts the Highland Cemetery. She is seen, sometimes on Halloween, wandering the grounds or heard rocking in her rocking chair. Problem is Grannie February a.k.a. Nannie February is not buried in the mausoleum containing the rocking chair. However, this is not a common case of wrong gravesite. Let’s start at the beginning. Nannie was born in 1838 and married Isaac T. February in 1885. She became a widow at the turn of the century. Her reputation among her neighborhood ventured on a day and night scenario. Many described her as being generous. Nannie invited local kids to play her piano. Her fingers were often stained from breaking open walnuts and digging in her flower bed. She also possessed a fondness for Cadillacs even though it’s not known whether or not she ever dro...

The Alexander Inn, originally known as The Guest House, was built in 1943 in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. It began as a wood framed building, similar to many other war-period “H-plan” buildings, and most importantly served as guest quarters to a number of dignitaries during the top secret Manhattan Project, including Enrico Fermi, Robert Oppenheimer and General Leslie Groves. In 1949, a 44-room addition was completed and went through a name change a year later to The Alexander Inn. The hotel was sold by the government to Mr. W. W. Faw for $34,000 in 1958 and private bathrooms and a ballroom were added, as well as the kitchen was expanded. The Alexander Inn closed its doors in the mid 1990’s. Since that time it has been privately owned and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but sat empty. Vandals raided the infamous location, tearing up the walls and broke every light fixture in the building. Despite the decades of deterioration and being No. 1 on the East Tenness...

Long ago, in the woods, there was a woman named Spearfinger. This Cherokee witch was feared among her people along the eastern side of Tennessee and western part of North Carolina. She was described as being forty feet tall with skin like rock that no weapon could penetrate. With one long razor sharp finger, she would sneak up behind you, stab it through your back and yank out your liver, eating it in one gulp. More than anything, she loved the flesh of young children. Spearfinger could transform herself in to anything or anyone. You never knew if your friend or neighbor was actually them or the witch until it was too late. One day, an indian village knew Spearfinger was fast approaching them. They developed a plan to dig a huge pit, surrounding the village, and cover it with branches and leaves. When she fell in, they would strike and kill her. The whole village came together, putting the plan in to action. One particular boy had trouble pulling his weight. His clumsy nature hinde...

This is a post from the Ghost Stories' earlier days. Enjoy! One of the most well-known haunting in America took place in Adams, Tennessee, 1817. For nearly 200 years an entity known as "The Bell Witch" haunted the small farm community. Many say that "The Bell Witch" was a woman named Kate Batts. Kate was the mean neighbor of John Bell and is said she was wronged by him in a land purchase. On her deathbed, she vowed to haunt John Bell and all his descendents. For years, the Bells were tormented by the spirit, John Bell and his daughter Betsy being the primary targets. No one ever really saw her but you definitely heard and felt her torment. She would read sermons, sing hymns, as well as pulled their hair, poked needles in them, yell at all hours of the night, snatched food from their mouths at meal time and the list goes on. It is also said that this phenomena attracted a future president. General Andrew Jackson, of whom John Bell at one time served under,...

One of the most well-known haunting in America took place in Adams, Tennessee, 1817. For nearly 200 years an entity known as "The Bell Witch" haunted the small farm community. Many say that "The Bell Witch" was a woman named Kate Batts. Kate was the mean neighbor of John Bell and is said she was wronged by him in a land purchase. On her deathbed she vowed to haunt John Bell and all his descendents. For years, the Bells were tormented by the spirit, John Bell and his daughter, Betsy being the primary targets. No one ever really saw her but you definitely heard and felt her torment. She would read sermons, sang hymns, as well as pulled their hair, poked needles in them, yell at all hours of the night, snatched food from their mouths at mealtime and the list goes on. It is also said that this phenomena attracted a future president. General Andrew Jackson, of whom John Bell at one time served under, heard about the infamous spirit and decided to investigate the witc...