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The Ghostly Man of Netherland Inn Road

On November 19, 1923, Albert “Hugh” Hamblen learned that his son was involved in a tragic car accident in Kingsport, Tennessee. The elder Hamblen rushed to his side after hearing the news. Two of the boys were pronounced dead at the scene, but Hamblen’s son survived the ordeal. The following day, Hugh learned that the other boys who were in the vehicle had also succumbed to their injuries from the wreck.

Hugh decided to leave the hospital, still distraught over the accident, in hopes of rest. At the insistence of other family members, Hugh left at first light to make the journey.

The Holston River area can be unforgiving, where dense fog typically gathers. As Hugh was crossing the road to retrieve his vehicle, a young female driver barreled into the man, sending him down a steep embankment into the afterlife.

Several people, over a hundred separate accounts, have stated that a middle-aged man wearing a dark fedora and trench coat continues to step in front of oncoming traffic, frantically waving his arms. When the drivers plow through the man, his lifeless body is nowhere to be found.

Furthermore, when reports were phoned to local authorities regarding the appearance of the man involved, no one fitting the man’s description was ever reported missing.

Hugh Hamblen died on November 20, 1923.

Written By: John G. Clark Jr.
Source: Legends & Lore of East Tennessee (The Book shows the accident occurred on November 17, 1922, but Find-a-Grave shows November 1923)
Image Credit: Legends & Lore of East Tennessee