Old Craggy State Prison in Asheville, North Carolina, was built in 1924 as a medium-security facility. Conditions inside were rough, but most inmates were assigned labor-intensive jobs, such as laundry detail. The air inside was stale, with no air conditioning, and the heat was limited during the harsh winters of Western North Carolina.
It wouldn’t be long before the prison would earn a reputation as a punishing place to do time, and in 1945, 14 inmates sawed through a window and escaped. Violence, riots, and jailbreaks would become the common theme inside the Craggy Prison.
In 1964, an inmate escaped, but not before attacking a guard with a bush axe. A decade later, in 1973, 13 prisoners made a break for freedom, briefly taking hostages and stealing cars.
Two years later, in 1975, a full-scale riot broke out, a dorm was torched, and one inmate escaped with a handmade pistol.
By 1989, the old prison would close and be replaced by a newer one just down the road.
Some have reported seeing figures moving behind the broken windows, hearing footsteps, disembodied voices, and large cell doors slamming.
It is also reported that a ghostly Lady in White has been seen walking down the hillside from the church, and she vanishes near the rear fence of the old prison.
Written By: John G. Clark Jr.
Image Credit: “Old Craggy Prison, Woodfin, NC” by w_lemay is marked with CC0 1.0.
