The Spooky Side of the Volunteer State Tennessee is steeped in legend. From strange sightings to odd and macabre crimes, the Volunteer State is no stranger to lore. Author Alan Brown details the haunts, troubling crimes and spooky past.

Author Shane Simmons explores tales of bravery, lore and bizarre customs within the East Tennessee region. The mountains of East Tennessee are chock full of unique folklore passed down through generations. Locals spin age-old yarns of legends like Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone and Dragging Canoe. Stories of snake-handling churches and the myths behind the death crown superstitions dot the landscape. The mysteries surrounding the Sensabaugh Tunnel still haunt residents.

From the Blue Ridge to the Cumberlands, from Pigeon Forge and Cades Cove to Warrior Path State Park and Roan Mountain, East Tennessee offers a plethora of stories about haints and spirits. Twenty-five tales, all based in historical fact or tied to an actual location and intertwined with regional folklore, are included in this collection.

Since 1934 the Tennessee Folklore Society Bulletin has been a respected source on the wonderfully diverse history and traditions of the Volunteer State, but until now that publication's wide-ranging articles have been largely restricted to the society's membership. With the appearance of A Tennessee Folklore Sampler, editors Ted Olson and Anthony P. Cavender provide a broad audience with a rich selection of the work published over the course of this acclaimed journal's seventy-five-year history. Packed with colorful descriptions and analysis of the state's folkways, A Tennessee Folklore Sampler covers all three of the grand divisions of Tennessee--East, Middle, and West-- and includes articles by some prominent students of folklore, among them Charles Wolfe, Charles Faulkner Bryan, Thomas Burton, Donald Davidson, Herbert Halpert, Mildred Haun, Michael Lofaro, Michael Montgomery, and Tom Rankin. Following an introductory section that places the book into historical, cultural, and socioeconomic contexts, A Tennessee Folklore Sampler is divided into ten parts covering material culture, medicine, beliefs and practices, customs, play and recreation lore, speech, legends, ballad and song, instrumental traditions and music collecting, and folk communities. Each part begins with an introduction that places the selections in context and concludes with suggestions for further reading. The appendix features an essay that explores the history of the Tennessee Folklore Society and the evolution of folklore studies of the state. The anthology will be a welcome resource for folklorists and scholars in many fields as well as a special treasure for general readers. With more than sixty illustrations complementing the text, A Tennessee Folklore Sampler presents a vivid overview of Tennessee folk culture that illuminates the very soul of the state. Ted Olson is the author of Blue Ridge Folklife and Breathing in Darkness: Poems, and the coeditor of The Bristol Sessions: Writings about the Big Bang of Country Music. He teaches at East Tennessee State University. Anthony P. Cavender is professor of anthropology in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at East Tennessee State University. He is the author of Folk Medicine in Southern Appalachia and has published articles in Social Science and Medicine, Journal of Folklore Research, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Human Organization, Appalachian Journal, and American Speech, among others.

This engaging, myth-busting series seeks new explanations for the ghost stories, outlaw tales, haunted places, and unsolved mysteries that shaped a state's identity.

Lesser known facts on the history, legends, and lore of Tennessee.

Tennessee is home to enough ghosts, haunts, and spirits to make your skin crawl.