“[Perhaps] the most famous of all the Western North Carolina hills is up in Burke County, not far from Morganton [...] known as Brown Mountain. It isn’t, in truth much of a mountain as mountains go. [...] but its fame lies in certain mysterious lights that have long hovered over it during the night.” ”
Lights of Unknown Origin
Deep in the heart of the Linville Gorge Wilderness of North Carolina lies a mystery that has confounded and eluded scientists, government researchers, and locals for generations. Along the low-lying ridge of Brown Mountain, strange lights have been spotted, hovering in mid-air.
Some attribute the phenomenon to natural causes such as marsh gas or ball lightning, while others believe it could be related to ghost lights or even UFO activity. Yet despite numerous studies and investigations, the true cause of the Brown Mountain Lights remains a mystery.
ADDITIONAL LINKS FROM THIS EPISODE:
Hear the song The Brown Mountain Light performed by Lulu Belle and Scotty, who informed a generaion about the mysterious lights.
Sources:
“The Brown Mountain Lights.” North Carolina Ghosts. Accessed January 24, 2023. https://northcarolinaghosts.com/mountains/brown-mountain-lights/.
Carmichael, Sherman. Mysterious Tales of Western North Carolina. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2020.
Harden, John and Sue Harden. The Devil’s Tramping Ground and Other North Carolina Mystery Stories. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 2000.
Hardy, Michael. “Our Avery Country: Digging into the history of the Brown Mountain Lights.” The Avery Journal. Last Modified October 15, 2015. https://www.averyjournal.com/.
Jackson, Sherry. “The Mysterious Brown Mountain Lights.” Carolina Country (blog). Accessed January 24, 2023. https://www.carolinacountry.com/departments/feature-story/.
Mansfield, George Rogers. “Origin of the Brown Mountain Light in North Carolina.” Geological Survey Circular, no. 646. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1971. https://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1971/0646/report.pdf.
Nickell, Joe. “The Brown Mountain Lights: Solved! (Again!)” Skeptical Inquirer. January/February 2016. https://skepticalinquirer.org/2016/04/the-brown-mountain-lights-solved-again/.
Pitzer, Sara. North Carolina Myths and Legends. Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield, 2015.
Roberts, Nancy. Ghosts of the Carolinas. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 2019.
Speer, Wade Edward. The Brown Mountain Lights: History, Science and Human Nature Explain an Appalachian Mystery. Jefferson, NC: McFarland and Company, 2017
Wilson, Patty. Haunted North Carolina: Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Tar Heel State. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2009.
