Is Nashville the most haunted city in Tennessee? That’s what Nashville-based author Allen Sircy is trying to find out with his new book Southern Ghost Stories: Downtown Nashville.
After publishing Ghosts of Gallatin, Murfreesboro, Spirits of Stones River and Franklin, Tennessee, the Middle Tennessee-based author spent the last two years researching the history and alleged hauntings in Music City for his latest project.
“I have lived in Nashville for most of my life,” explained Sircy. “Not a lot of people know about it, but a battle took place in 1781 between early white settlers and Native Americans in what is now considered ‘downtown’. The area where those men fought and died has been lost to honky tonks and a sea of tourist traps. With the new book I spent a lot of time digging into historic events like the Civil War as well as some high-profile murders that took place in places like the Men’s Quarter and Printer’s Alley.”
From the State Capitol to the Ryman Auditorium, some of the most iconic places in Nashville are also the most haunted. History and hauntings are often intertwined. Restless spirits at Polk Place, the former home of the eleventh President of the United States, James K. Polk may or may not still be hanging around.
“James K. Polk was such a fascinating and underrated President,” explained Sircy. “Even though he tragically died from cholera a few months after leaving the White House, his heirs and the State couldn’t let the former Commander in Chief rest in peace. I really dug into the backstory of Polk and the issues that led to his remains being dug up three times as well as the strange ghost stories that seemed to have spun off from it.”
Southern Ghost Stories: Downtown Nashville is available for purchase at select retailers in Middle Tennessee as well as Pickled Treats and Antiques in Gallatin, Tennessee. You can find it online at Amazon.com and SouthernGhostStories.com.
