Lynchburg is a portal for ghosts. Lynchburg, known for being the home of Jack Daniel Distillery, draws visitors from around the world with its history, charm and hospitality. The town’s history sparks the curiosity of guests. Not only have past Lynchburg residents left a mark in history books and in the collective memory of new generations but they have left a footprint that has transcended time. It’s not just a footprint – they are here, according to Ronnie Headley, lead investigator and founder of Tennessee Paranormal.
Tennessee Paranormal has offered ghost tours in Lynchburg since 2019. You can now experience interacting with ghosts.
“I’m a professional paranormal investigator,” Headley said. “I came to Tennessee in 2006 from Birmingham, Alabama. I had some experiences early in life and always had a curiosity about paranormal events. Later, I started studying more and more about the paranormal field and got a team together when we came to Tennessee in 2006. I have investigated many places throughout Tennessee, the country and other countries.”
Headley has worked with the Travel Channel as an advisor, making a special guest appearance on Kindred Spirits “Blood in the Water” episode, with Amy Bruni and Adam Berry.
“Lynchburg is one of the most active places I have been to,” Headley said. “There’s so much paranormal activity in Lynchburg, it’s amazing. And it’s not just on the square. I think there’s some sort of portal here because of all the limestone, caverns and underground springs, and that has caused the area to be more active.”
Most ghosts are good, said Headley.
“They are not there to harm you,” Headley said. “There are two types of hauntings. There’s a residual haunting and an intelligent haunting. Residual haunting is when the same thing happens over and over. We all leave a footprint of kinetic energy.”
Residual haunting happens when someone sees ghosts doing a repetitive activity. For example, you may see ghosts go through a wall and then disappear.
“In their time, (this activity) might have been something they did every day – walking to school or going to the barn to feed the animals, for example, and those walls were not there. So that kinetic energy is just passing through like it did every day, like a footprint, a timestamp.”
Intelligent haunting happens when the spirit is able to interact with you.
“Intelligent haunting is when we set up our meters and we start asking questions,” Headley said. “We ask the spirit to light up the green for yes and red for no. We ask questions we know the answers to from doing our research. And the spirit starts answering those questions correctly.”
Headley’s first paranormal experience happened in his childhood.
“When I was 11 years old, my grandmother’s sister passed away,” Headley said. “About 2 a.m., I got up to get a drink of water and saw her sitting in a chair in our living room, where she always sat. I said, ‘I didn’t know you were here.’ She said, ‘I just wanted to let you know I’m ok.’ The next morning, her daughter called to tell us she had died at 2 a.m. So that experience was always in the back of my mind.”
Since then, Headley has strived to learn and see beyond the normal. He wants to “look and see what’s on the other side of that veil.” And he shares this special experience with others.
“I can sit here all day and show you pictures and let you listen to clips, but that’s my experience,” Headley said. “The best thing for you to do is come out and take one of Tennessee Paranormal tours or one of the investigations. And when you start seeing images and you’re listening to the recordings, then it becomes your experience. It’s a lot better for you to experience it yourself. We’ve had people that say, ‘I don’t believe in that stuff.’ After the tour, they’ll tell me, “I can’t believe what I heard on my recorder.”
The ghosts are real. Nothing is staged, said Headley.
“It’s not set up,” he said. “It’s the real thing. We don’t stage anything. We’re right there with you during the investigation.”
The Moore County Jail Museum is home to many spirits, said Headley. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the old jail was in operation for nearly 100 years before it became a museum.
“Every sheriff lived on one side of the building and the other side was the jail,” Headley said, adding that many ghosts occupy the building today. While not harmful, some of them can be naughty. “In the jail for instance, we have a gentleman there – we call him Mr. Nasty – and he talks trash to the ladies.”
Tennessee Paranormal offers several tours: Lynchburg Historical Ghost Tours, Spirits and Spirits Tour, Moore County Jail Museum Paranormal Investigation, and Nathan Bedford Forrest Boyhood Home Private Investigation.
Visit Tennessee Paranormal to book a tour.