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You’re not afraid of the dark, are you? All those things you feared as a child—the weird shape in the corner, the strange sounds at night, the stories you shared with your friends at sleepovers—they’re all just a result of a vivid imagination.

But what if they’re not? Today, we speak with podcaster Ella Catherine about the strange things she encountered in her small town childhood home. What do you think it was she was seeing? Listen and decide for yourself.

About our Guest: Ella Catherine

Ella grew up just a little hop away from Becky’s old stomping grounds in Eastern Tennessee, and grew up with the same love of listening to ghost stories and urban legends. We had the pleasure of meeting Ella on our recent trip to Nashville.

Ella is the creator and host of the podcast For Better Self and Net Worth, for which she interviewed Becky. Follow her on IG @evolvewithella and her TikTok at @kiddinthekitchen

Episode References

Urban legends about the haunted Sensabaugh Tunnel in Eastern Tennessee

Becky and Ella bonded over the creepy urban legends surrounding their small towns in Eastern Tennessee. One of the most popular East Tennessee legends has to do with the Sensabaugh Tunnel in Kingsport, TN. According to much of the internet, the Sensabaugh Tunnel is one of the most haunted tunnels in the world. There are various stories about why it is so haunted. Most of the stories have to do with a baby that was drowned in the creek, either by a kidnapper or his own father.

The urban legend goes as follows. If you drive your car into the tunnel and cut the engine, you’ll hear the quiet cries of a baby. Your car may not start again, and if you glance in your mirrors, you’ll see Mr. Sensabaugh approaching your car from behind. Not until he’s almost at your car will your engine start again, so you can peel out of the tunnel and get some clean pants.

Haunted Martha Washington Inn in Abingdon

While Kingsport is in East Tennessee, it is actually closer to the western point of Virginia (which has plenty of its own hauntings and urban legends) than it is to the bigger well-known cities in its own state. Seeing as it’s part of the Appalachian Mountain range, perhaps it shares more culturally as well. The Martha Washington Inn in Abingdon, VA might just be one of the most haunted places in Virginia. Read more about the phantom horse of a Civil War soldier, indelible blood stain, human remains bricked into the walls, and other ghost stories of the Martha Washington Inn here.

Haunted Allendale Mansion in East TN and the Urban Legend of Long Dog

Another spooky place in Kingsport, TN, is the Allendale Mansion. The owners gifted this property to the town in the 1960’s. Today you can visit the grounds for a picnic, or even go fishing there. Or you can wait until after the sun sets, and take a ghost tour of the historic home.

Hopefully you won’t encounter Long Dog; a not-exactly werewolf-like creature people have seen the area for over a century. Not that shocking, considering its proximity to the Rotherwood Mansion and that property’s own infamous hellhound. By the way, we recorded the legend of Long Dog, as told by Becky’s ancestors, complete with sound effects, courtesy of Diana. (Editor’s note: Long Dog is a nice guy whereas the hellhound of Rotherwood is not.)

Bonus Ghost Tour of San Diego

Ella talks about the spooky places she got to visit on this haunted tour of San Diego, CA. She toured the oldest pub in San Diego, the Davis Horton House, Hotel del Coronado, and even a haunted candy store. We hope to bring you a review of this and many other ghost tours soon in our Most Haunted series.

We love bringing you stories about the hauntings and urban legends of East Tennessee!

After all, it was the ghost stories of her hometown there that drove Becky to create the madness that is Homespun Haints. We are gradually collecting ghost stories from all over the world. But it’s nice when things come full circle back to this isolated, spooky region.

Until next time, have a spooky day!

The post Get Out, Satan! appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Listen to Hannah’s story here.

The H Files

It’s baaaaa-aaaaack! The H Files is a limited-run miniseries we do every so often to remind us that, just because someone isn’t personally haunted, doesn’t mean they don’t have a chilling story to tell, and the voice to give it life. This time around, we have storytellers from varied backgrounds, sharing memories and moments of their families, childhood, and the families and children that surround them. These tales are like the sweet cream in the bitter coffee of our darker regular episodes. Enjoy!

This particular mini-series began on April 19th, 2021, and will run every other Monday until May 31st. If you’ve always wanted to be a guest on our show, but don’t have a personal paranormal story, the H-Files is your chance to shine as a storyteller by re-telling a second-hand story! Please reach out to us to submit your story, or contact us in our Facebook Group or through Instagram.

Episode Show Notes

Where Becky grew up in East Tennessee, spooky ghost stories were a topic of conversation as popular as the weather. So naturally, the family history passed down to Hannah from the same region contained some spectral appearances. But Hannah feels that there’s a duality to every ghost story—the same spooky story that gives one person chills might give great comfort to someone else. Why judge? Let’s just enjoy the story together, in our own ways. Because sometimes…there’s just ghosts.

About Dr. Hannah Harvey

Hannah Harvey is a delightful, professional storyteller, folklorist, and occasional professor living in Kingsport, Tennessee. To learn more about Hannah and find upcoming performances, visit her site at covestory.com. You can also check out her storytelling courses at The Great Courses and The Great Courses Plus, and check out her latest Audible course on holiday traditions here.

References made by this Spooky Storyteller

Much like Diana, Hannah happens to live with some very old clocks in her haunted family homestead. Why is there so much magic in an antique clock? Is it just because we are amazed how a machine that has no purpose but to mark the passage of time can itself withstand the passage of time shockingly well?

Where on earth did the term “tootsie-wootsie” come from? Diana’s mom used to call her that as well.

Hannah mentions The Barter Theater in Abingdon, VA, a very haunted Tri-State theater, where they apparently started a trend called “ham for Hamlet,” which we won’t define here so as to keep the mystery alive.

In her time, Hannah’s great aunt Alberta was one of the lucky blue babies that made it. Nowadays, many more are lucky, thanks to the brilliance of one Tennessee man who was never recognized in his own time.

Until next time, have a spooky day!

The post Sometimes, There’s Just Ghosts appeared first on Homespun Haints.