In the Activity Spotlight we highlight some of the many great activities available within a short drive from Ravenwood Castle.

Do you believe in ghosts? You just might after spending a night in the haunted Moonville Tunnel!

This weekend, October 15^th, check out the Midnight at Moonville event starting at 6:00 and ending at midnight. This free event will feature dramatic storytelling, wagon rides, regional craft vendors, souvenirs, historical presentations, acoustic music performances, and much more. Then to top the night off you will be part of an interactive demonstration of paranormal investigation techniques hosted by a respected research group.

What’s so special about Moonville Tunnel you might ask? According to local legend, the tunnel is haunted by the ghost of a railroad worker who was crushed by an oncoming train in the spring of 1859. The newspaper article from the McArthur Democrat dated March 31, 1859 reads “A brakesman. . .was fatally injured, when the wheels passing over and grinding to a shapeless mass the greater part of one of his legs.” Talk about graphic!

Most who claim to have sighted the ghost of Moonville Tunnel say that he carries a lantern and is sometimes seen as a hovering orb of light. At least four other people were reported to have been killed at Moonville Tunnel as well, although the details vary. Some legends claim that Moonville was struck by a plague and quarantined, and that the ghosts are of those killed by the epidemic. Others state that the ghost is that of a pregnant woman struck by a train, and still others claim that it was an 8 foot tall man who was struck! However, none of these legends are quite as popular as that of the railway worker.

To learn more about Moonville Tunnel, visit our earlier Legends and Lore post. And then be sure to check out the free Midnight at Moonville event on October 15^th from 6:00pm to midnight. Parking will be at Lake Hope State Park where you will catch a shuttle that will take you to and from the event.  For more information about the event check out https://www.moonvilletunnel.net/index.htm or contact Vinton County CVB at 1-800-596-4459.

Jim Reed

Jim Reed is a lifelong gamer who started with the original red box Dungeons & Dragons. After spending 20 years in the corporate world, he decided it was high time that work be fun and struck out on his own. Jim now owns and operates Ravenwood Castle, and spends his days ensuring his guests have as much fun as he does.