(You might wanna grab you a slice of Pumpkin Pie and a cup of coffee because this one is so good you can’t stop reading until the end, and it’s a long one)
Roan Mountain straddles the state line of Tennessee and North Carolina. For centuries, the compact group of mountains with high peaks and deep valleys covered by bald crests has been a celebrated place of legend, mystery, and history. From great Indian battles to ghost choirs singing to stories of a charging ghost bull. Here are some of her stories . . .
Native Americans were the first human visitors to Roan Mountain. A Catawba legend tells of a great battle with the Cherokee atop the mountain that left the rhododendrons crimson and parts of the mountain treeless.
While there is no evidence that such a battle ever occurred, numerous Native American settlements have been found around the base of the mountain, and the Cherokee settlement of Old Fields stood near modern-day Elizabethton, Tennessee.
Before white settlers, the area was inhabited by two native tribes, the Cherokee, who lived among the foothills of the Unaka Mountains, and the Catawba, who were to the east beyond the Blue Ridge. Legend has it that there was a beautiful daughter of the Catawba chief. Her name was Estatoe, and among her talents, she was a crafter of beaded jewelry.
One day, when the beautiful princess was alone by the river admiring her beadwork in the reflection of a small pool, she was surprised by a Cherokee warrior who had gotten separated from his hunting party.
It didn’t take very long before the two enemies had fallen into a forbidden love affair. When the Catawba chief learned of a Cherokee warrior trespassing on Catawba land, he set in motion a plan to catch and kill him.
When the princess learned of the plot, she found her lover to warn him and run away with him to a neutral land where they could be together. Before they could escape, the warriors from the Catawba tribe found the couple and chased them to the edge of a high cliff over a rushing river. Her lover tried to save her, but the princess took his hand, and together they plunged into the raging waters below.
When her father, the chief, walked to where his daughter had been and looked at the river below, he raised his hands to the heavens and committed her soul to the Great Spirit.
He then proclaimed that the river that had clasped his daughter in death would forever be called the Estatoe. Centuries have passed and the name of the river has been shortened to the Toe, and now it is further labeled as the North Toe and the South Toe.
The Cherokee spoke of a massive wasp, Ulagu, which once inhabited an inaccessible cave. He moved through the air like no other insect or animal, darting, ducking, weaving, and hovering. He moved so quickly could be in one place one second and half a mile away in another. Ulagu developed a taste for children.
For many years, the yellow jacket terrorized the Cherokee by swooping down out of the sky to carry off children who were shocked into immobility by the suddenness of its attack. The giant wasp was hunted and eventually killed by warriors with help from the Great Spirit.
Could it be that the choir who sings on the winds is singing for the spirits of the warriors and the lovers?
For centuries there have been tales of strange noises on top of Roan Mountain. Some reported hearing a choir of fairies, angels or ghosts singing. Some thought the mountain music came from the spirits of Cherokee and Catawba Indians. Some people felt that what they were hearing was the mountain actually talking to them.
Some thought it was the Devil himself. Of course, one might expect the wind at the top of a 6,000-foot peak (with no trees as a buffer) to be a cause of discussion. But some say this wind carries more than an autumn chill or summer storm. Are the people hearing an otherworldly song that travels on this “devil wind?”
Most often heard after one of the violent thunderstorms this area is known for, some say it is a beautiful song while others describe it as a thousand tormented screams. Is it the voices of the Catawba and Cherokee Indians who fought a bloody battle and died on Roan? Or is it, as some believe, an angelic choir practicing their song for the judgment day?
Down the mountain a bit is a run-down cemetery along a place called Dark Hollow Road. The cemetery is small and unkempt, the majority of its graves overgrown, unmarked, and occupied by the unknown bodies of the forgotten, but one that is known is the grave of a man named Jankins.
The story goes that sometime around the turn of the century Jankins was having a rather hot affair with a local woman named Delinda, who was known for sleeping around with pretty much anything that moved.
According to the legend, Jankins was killed one day after being shot, some say by his jealous wife who had uncovered the affair, and right after he was buried at the cemetery Delinda disappeared without a trace.
Rumors spread that she had actually been in love with Jankins and had crawled into his coffin to be with him, allowing herself to be buried alive in order to stay with her lover even in death.
Whether this is true or not, it has been reported ever since then that cars that drive by or park here will be rocked or bumped by an unseen force, said to be the restless spirit of Delinda.
There is also a stone in the same cemetery that curses pregnant women.
If you are pregnant or think you might be, do not enter this graveyard! It is said that if a woman is expecting and she passes that certain stone, her pregnancy will end in miscarriage or stillbirth!
The next story takes us back to the early settler days of the mountain. On the North Carolina side of the mountain, is the Rhododendron Gardens, considered the world’s largest grove of rhododendron, which sits below the grassy balds of the mountain. These balds have provided places for early settlers to leave livestock to roam, particularly cattle.
A wealthy rancher moved into the area who was only known as “The Baron.” With him came a huge herd of cattle, that quickly took to hogging up all of the best grazing lands, much to the dismay of the other ranchers in the area.
Making it even worse was that one of the Baron’s herd was said to be an enormous, very aggressive bull that would ferociously chase anyone or anything away, sometimes even causing injury or death.
It was believed that the Baron had intentionally purchased this bull in order to keep other ranchers away, and his herd grew to an alarming size, threatening to put the local ranchers out of business.
This would have likely happened if it wasn’t for one mysterious individual who took things into his own hands and shot and killed the bull one day as the herd was grazing near the top of Roan Mountain. Considering that the bull was so large and heavy, the Baron opted to just leave the carcass to the elements, abandoning it right where it was.
From then on, it has been said that the disembodied sounds of a bull can be heard in the area, or that the full apparition of a ghostly bull will appear, sometimes charging at people only to vanish into thin air just before impact. Since that fateful day, the mountains still echo with the animal’s bellow and the ring of its cowbell.
After the Civil War in 1870 in Mitchell County, there lived a lady by the name of Judges Cook. Ever since she was a little girl it was said that Judy had a special gift.
She had the ability to sense when danger was present through premonitions. One morning, Judy’s two sisters were planning on taking a trip by foot across Roan Mountain to visit relatives in Carter County Tennessee.
One of the sisters, Harriet would experience spells where she would fall dreadfully ill for days especially when she was physically exerted. She had just recovered from such a malady. The sisters, fearing bad weather and another bout of sickness from Harriet, did not want to postpone their trip any longer.
As Jane and Harriet started to depart when Judy had a premonition. She saw something so bad that she refused to talk about it. She tried to warn her sisters not to go on the trip, but they would not listen, saying that Harriet felt fine, and they did not want to cancel. After her sisters left, Judy was tormented by a nagging feeling.
There was nothing she could do. The trip across Roan Mountain into Tennessee was uneventful and went smoothly. After two days, the sisters began to walk back. In just a few hours into the trek, Harriet began to run a high fever and started to shake and vomit. They were at the bottom of the tallest peak between them and home.
Jane thought of what Judy had tried to tell them when they left. Clouds covered the skies and the weather grew ominous. They finally reached the summit of Roan Mountain at nightfall.
Harriet could go no further. She collapsed under a tree and was unconscious. Jane, unable to build a fire, tried to keep her warm during the night, and in the morning she hurried down the mountain for help. She told a farmer who hitched up his horses and went back up the mountain after Harriet with Jane in tow.
Meanwhile, Judy, who was worried sick, sent a search party out to find the two girls. They eventually ran into the farmer, Jane, and Harriet. They got Harriet home, but in a short time, she passed away. In memory of Jane’s plight on the mountain caring for her sister, one of the three tallest peaks of Roan Mountain is now called Jane’s Bald.
To me, every mountain remains steeped in mystery– dark ancient ground that still defies civilization. I will forever walk the mountain trails knowing there’s always a chance that I will meet something or someone unexpected.
As always feel free to Share some additional stories from the mountains either true or lore. I love to hear them all.
Thanks,
banjo
Photo Credit to Charles Hardin of Greenville, South Carolina
