These paranormal stories from East Tennessee are on YouTube:

Or listen here:

About the Guests: Kristy of Soul Sisters Paranormal and Miranda the Ghost Biker

We first interviewed Kristy Sumner in 2020, in one of our best paranormal podcast episodes about haunted jailhouses in the South. Back then, she was doing paranormal investigations in and around Ocala, FL. While she is still a part of Soul Sisters Paranormal, she has relocated to East Tennessee. Follow Soul Sisters Paranormal on their Instagram or Facebook page, and don’t miss their YouTube coverage of investigations.

Kristy now works with with Ghost Biker Miranda, another paranormal investigator we previously interviewed about the phantom monk of East Tennessee. Visit her website at ghostbikerexplorations.com. Then follow her on YouTube for coverage of her investigations and interviews (she even interviewed us), and Facebook of Instagram for updates and events.

Since we last interviewed them, Kristy and Miranda have started leading public overnight paranormal investigations at the historic Scott County Jail in East Tennessee. They also do daytime tours, focused on historical preservation. Find more details on their collaborations through History, Highways, and Haunts, LLC here. Book a tour of the jail here, and don’t miss the escape room in a genuine maximum security prison wing!

They also host the nighttime ghost walks in Rugby together now. Check Facebook for Rugby ghost tour information and special events.

Paranormal Investigations in East Tennessee with History, Highways, and Haunts, LLC

Kristy and Miranda still do paranormal investigations all over East Tennessee and beyond, but nowadays they are focused on two specific locations. We can’t blame them, as some of their findings at these places are truly out of this world.

Historic Village of Rugby

In the 1880s, Thomas Hughes founded Rugby, Tennessee, as a groundbreaking experiment in community living. This agricultural commune aimed to create a class-free sanctuary for England’s “second sons,” e.g. the younger brothers of heirs. These backup heirs grew up in opulence, but inherited none of it, making their adult lives seem rather pointless.

Situated in the scenic Cumberland Plateau and leveraging the newly built Cincinnati-Southern Railroad, Rugby quickly attracted residents from both Britain and America. Hughes had a vision of a cooperative, cultured society. Soon after formation, when the town was still basically just tents, Rugby boasted a theater company and a literary society, Kristy tells us.

But winter was coming. One of the worst winters in the plateau’s history. The previously well-to-do new residents of Rugby began to think they may have made a mistake focusing on cultural activities instead of the realities and hardships of the fronteering life. The community’s growth stagnated, as the number of people leaving was roughly equivalent to those arriving. Still, Hughes continued to invest over the decade that the commune thrived, eventually creating a loveable little village, with 60 adorable Victorian buildings and several diverse residents.

When the Tabard Inn burned in 1889, it took with it one of the main economic drivers of the town. Many of the 500 settlers left. A few families stayed, however, and the town persisted. Today, it stands as a historic site, with some of the 14 original structures open to tourists.

The Paranormal Activity of Rugby Village in East Tennessee

Kristy and Miranda suspect that many Rugby residents loved the town so much, they never wanted to leave. They catch more photographs of ghosts here than anywhere they’ve ever investigated before.

And it’s not just ghosts haunting the village. Miranda and Kristy have seen some inexplicable oddities in Rugby, including:

• A distant, large, glowing rectangle, like a monolith, or perhaps a door?
• Slashes appeared 9 feet up a pole, just outside of the house they were investigating at the time…was it a bear, or a Bigfoot? Black bears in the region would typically scratch about 5 feet up, or 7 if reaching. Squatches, though…who’s to say?
• Mysterious healing waters.
• A glowing humanoid figure walking across a driveway, captured by a video doorbell. It certainly wasn’t any of the town’s residents. Could it be extraterrestrial?

Paranormal enthusiasts save the date: Rugby hosts an expanded haunted attraction called Ghostly Gathering the last 2 Saturdays of October.

Historic Scott County Jail

The haunted Old Scott County Jail is one of the oldest buildings in the area, dating back to 1904. Throughout most of its century-long history, the jail actively housed about 50 inmates. The jail closed in 2008, following the opening of the Scott County Justice Center.

In 2021, Kristy and Miranda re-opened the jail as a museum. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They are dedicated to preserving the history of this East Tennessee landmark, in addition to supporting paranormal investigations there.

The Hauntings of Scott County Jail

Since beginning restoration, a worrisome number of metal shivs and razors have been discovered, purportedly hidden in nooks and crannies by former inmates. Fascinatingly, upon putting these blades on a table and leaving for the night, the blades disappeared, never to be found again. According to Kristy, even laying your scissors on the table and leaving the room is a risky prospect. What are all these spectral inmates going to do with the real shivs they’re collecting?

Then again, Miranda tells us the spirits haunting the jail are overall jovial and friendly. The team believes its the way the living interact with the dead there. They advise visitors to have fun with the spirits, and to avoid interrogating or antagonizing them. Singing or playing a musical instrument will often generate a swell of interactive paranormal activity, which these East Tennessee investigators observe indirectly through various tools. One memorable investigation, someone brought a fart machine for the ghosts to interact with. While none of the spirits took them up on the offer to press the button, they did capture a flatulent EVP, indicating that the ghosts knew exactly what they were getting at. Did the call and response farting indicate the ghosts’ heartfelt approval? We’d like to think so.

Have you witnessed anything paranormal in East Tennessee?

Yet another mysterious tale in our series on East Tennessee legends and paranormal Appalachia! Could it get any weirder? You tell us! Submit your story here to be featured on the next episode of Homespun Haints Podcast…we look forward to sharing a spooky day with you!

The post Sasquatch Vandalism, Glowing Monoliths, and Fart EVPs appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Watch this episode on YouTube:

Or listen right here:

Summary of this Strange Paranormal Podcast Episode

Do you believe in fairies? What do you think they look like? What do they sound like? If you saw one while you were driving down the road, would you stop to say hi?

Shane is obsessed with cryptids, fae, and UFOs because he has encountered so many strange unexplainable phenomena in his lifetime. He shares several stories of ghosts and fairies. It’s up to you to decide what it is he saw on Christmas Eve outside of Asheville, NC.

This is our last episode of Season 4! We’ll be back in February, 2023. If you miss us and want more content between now and then, we’d love it if you’d join our Patreon at patreon.com/homespunhaints.

A Strange Paranormal Podcast

About Our Guest Shane

Our guest today has become used to the high strange. In fact, he himself has a strange paranormal podcast devoted to the unexplainable happening around us all the time. Because he himself has seen some things that will give you pause. Shane co-hosts Dark Notes, a podcast about music, horror, and high strangeness, with his friend Lisa. Check out Shane’s podcast Dark Notes on Spotify and YouTube. You can also follow him on Instagram @ufobigfoot.

The 12 Orbs of Christmas

On Christmas Eve, 2014, Shane was in the process of moving to Asheville, North Carolina. Passing through the little town of Hickory, NC, he witnessed a mystical ballet of orbs by the side of the road. When he went online to report the event, he learned that he wasn’t the only one to witness the phenomenon.

What do you think these orbs could be? Were they really communicating with Shane? Also, why do sightings of inexplicable lights seem to correlate with sightings of Bigfoot?

Bigfoot sighting similarities

I guess the term “unidentified flying objects” applies to orbs, when speaking generally. But Shane definitely felt like the orbs he encountered were not extraterrestrial in origin. There are however plenty of accounts where Bigfoot sightings coincide with sightings of orbs and/or UFOs. And perhaps at least one sighting of Bigfoot wearing a belt?

Anomalous Music

Shane also mentions hearing music that “wasn’t there.” As a musician, he is usually pretty good about picking out individual instruments within a composition. But in this case, the tune was an un-replicable musical phenomenon that existed only within Shane’s mind, for only an hour, only once. Like Tartini‘s dream score, the magic of the tune may have existed within its inability to be heard with physical ears.

Hopefully you’re not stressed enough to be haunted!

It is interesting to note that the standout supernatural experiences in Shane’s life occurred during periods of intense emotional turmoil. And he isn’t our only guest to draw this correlation. If you’ve had a ghostly experience, do you feel like tension in your life may have had something to do with manifesting it? Are you more likely to see a ghost when you’re stressed? Join the conversation on our FB group and let us know your opinions and experiences.

And until next time, have a spooky day!

The post The Weirder The Better appeared first on Homespun Haints.