Just in time for the Halloween season, a regional author has released a new book full of spine-tingling lore and legends from around the area and will be sharing some of those stories at a special event at the Elizabethton/Carter County Public Library.
On Thursday, Oct. 13, from 6:30-7:30 p.m., the library will host a special session with Joe Tennis, 47, of Bristol, Va., where he will speak about his newest book and share some of the ghostly tales he has collected.
“He’s coming in for his newest book, which is Haunted Highlands,” said Bernie Weese, Patron Services Supervisor at the library. “He will sign books both before and after.”
In Haunted Highlands: Ghosts & Legends of North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia, Tennis writes about some of the haunted lore and legends he has collected from those three states.
“He’s got stories from The Carter Mansion as well as legends and stories from Roan Mountain,” Weese said.
In addition to those local stories, Haunted Highlands also features tales about a fiddler who could make snakes dance on Stone Mountain at Trade; a ghostly figure at the Paramount Center for the Arts in Bristol; the “Marble Boy” of East Tennessee State University; the Rotherwood Mansion in Kingsport; and an inn atop Beech Mountain, N.C.
“These are tales from three states, including the Brown Mountain Lights in North Carolina, the Civil War in Virginia, and the spooky telephones of Tusculum College in Tennessee,” Tennis said.
Weese said the stories will be appropriate for all ages but “especially for anyone who has an interest in local history or ghost stories.”
To compile his stories, Tennis interviewed residents about the lore of their region. Among those interviewed by Tennis are Sycamore Shoals State Park Manager Jennifer Bauer and the park’s Historic Interpreter Chad Bogart.
Tennis has several other works on local legends already published, and Weese said the library has hosted him for book signings in the past. Tennis’ other works include Along Virginia’s Route 58: True Tales from Beach to Bluegrass; Haunts of Virginia’s Blue Ridge Highlands; Finding Franklin: Mystery of the Lost State Capital; and The Marble and Other Ghost Tales of Tennessee and Virginia. All of Tennis’ books are available online through www.amazon.com and will be available for purchase at the library on Oct. 13.
For more information, contact the library at 423-547-6360.