The Crenshaw House, known as the Old Slave House, atop Hickory Hill near Equality, Illinois Note: The Old Slave House outside of Equality, Illinois is a decaying symbol of a sordid time in Illinois history. Its own history has been clouded over the years by folklore, and some say the tales of a huckster. But […]
Eating Poe: Part One, Richmond and an Author’s Forward
Poe stands for every fucked up soul who wandered a graveyard on a dark and lonely night. For every person who has grieved to the point of madness, and who can draw a line between dread and fear with a sharp point pen. Poe is the beacon of darkness, the one who first reached the […]
On fairy tales, American kitsch, Bullwinkle, Rock City and where I found enchantment
Top: Fairy tale architecture at Rock City, atop Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee blended an enchanted style with the natural surroundings. + + + I grew up in a place, and currently live in a place, where the word enchanted is almost taboo. Saying something is enchanting here would get you weird looks, and people […]
Is it really the House of the Seven Gables? Perhaps, perhaps not. Either way the Turner-Ingersoll mansion in Salem breathes New England history
“Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house, with seven acutely peaked gables, facing towards various points of the compass, and a huge, clustered chimney in the midst. The street is Pyncheon Street; the house is the old Pyncheon House; and an elm-tree, of wide circumference, rooted […]
Yorktown Ghost Stories: Colonial era ghosts still haunt the streets of this landmark village of the American Revolution
The Nelson House is an imposing edifice by anyone’s standards. Three stories tall and on a hill overlooking the York River, the house was believed to be for a time, the headquarters of British General Cornwallis during the American Revolution, and was a frequent target of American and French cannon fire during the siege of Yorktown. […]
The Bell Witch Cave and Cabin: An American haunting in the hills of Tennessee turns up tales of Kate, Betsy and old John Bell
“When we were kids, Jerry used to make fun of Doug Bell, making different names up based on Bell. Mainly Buggy Dell, along with hell’s bells. Dougie’s belly, shit like that. Anyway, one day here comes Doug and his dad, who informs us that Doug is going to kick our asses for making fun of […]
