Are You Brave Enough to Drive Kentucky's Sleepy Hollow Road?

I've heard the phrase "Washington slept here" my whole life. I don't know why, though. It means nothing other than the completion of the 1942 movie titled George Washington Slept Here.

THE OTHER SLEEPY HOLLOW...AND IT'S JUST AS SCARY

In Kentucky, however, "Washington slept here" is an accurate description of Bardstown's Talbott Inn...except that the "Washington" in question was Washington Irving, author of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", among others. Ironically, there IS a Sleepy Hollow in Kentucky, and it's just as spooky as Irving's iconic setting. And maybe it inspired him; he was a guest at the Talbott before he wrote his masterpiece.

But if Irving had lived in another era, he could've made hay with the legend surrounding what many have called the scariest road in Kentucky. No headless horsemen here...just a creepy old hearse and bone-chilling chanting and screaming in the night. Tonya Klaes, the administrator for a public Facebook group known as Haunted History of Kentucky explains:

There are a few stories and urban legends attached to the area. Among them is that of the black hearse, it is said to begin to follow you as you travel along the road, it appears suddenly from out of nowhere. The hearse will continuously increase its speed, thereby causing many drivers to run off the side of the road and plunge into the thirty-foot ravine that borders Sleepy Hollow Road.

TAKE ONE CREEPY OLD HEARSE AND SPRINKLE IN SOME RITUALS

There are actually multiple legends attached to Sleepy Hollow Road--stories of satanic rituals, for example:

Another of the lesser known of the three stories of Sleepy Hollow is the “Devil's Point” which in the 1970's and early 80s was rumored to be the area where satanic rituals were held. Many residents that live in the area have claimed to have heard chanting and screaming coming from nearby. The area is also rumored to have been populated by bonfires and figures in dark robes.

Peggy Carter is from the area and said this:

LET'S NOT DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN

Additionally, drivers have described a phenomenon they can only attribute to "time warps":

There have also been reports of drivers going through this stretch of road and having experienced what they described as time warps. For example, someone driving into the hollow at 11:00 p.m. might find themselves exiting the stretch several hours later.

There's also an incredibly disturbing story about why you can hear the cries of children at night. But it seems Sleepy Hollow Road is LOADED with disturbing tales. It's in Oldham County just to the northeast of Louisville, in case you decide to do a little ghost hunting of your own.

You should make sure your camera is fully charged. This has "Blair Witch reboot" written all over it

Scariest Ghost Town In KY Has A Truly Terrifying Past And Can’t Be Found On A Map

The month of October fills me with even more passion for abandoned and haunted places and things. I love to research legends, folklore, and stories from all over the world, but especially right here in Kentucky. Some of the stories are pure legend with no real facts to back them up. But, I’m a sucker for a good ghost story.

One such legend involves a small town, a murdering teacher, and mysterious disappearances that went on for decades. This is what I learned about the legend of Elsewhere, KY.

A construction worker and journalist, by the name of Seamus Coffey, was volunteering at a Senior Citizen’s center and he met a man named, Earl. The gentleman was about 80 years old and told him a story of something that happened in Elsewhere. KY.

"When I was a boy, my pa’ and I went to the Elsewhere General Store to get some rock candy and chicken feed. I stood outside while pa’ talked to Mrs. Ellison the shopkeep. Pa’ loaded the feed into the truck and handed me the candy. Right about then, there was this loud scream from the schoolhouse. I don’t know right well what happened ’cause pa” told me to stay in the truck, but after that we never went back to Elsewhere."

"When I was a few years older, I went back there with some friends. We were just dumb kids foolin’ around. My friend Jason went inside the schoolhouse and I never saw him again. We spent the rest of the day looking for him and later the police did a search but found nothing. Shortly after that the county disconnected Elsewhere road from HWY 280. It’s been about 60 years and you’re the first person to mention the place in half a century, son."

After that, Seamus started searching for any information he could find about Elsewhere. He found an article in the Louisville Courier-Journal. The article covered a story about Elsewhere being abandoned for health and safety reasons. It was dated April 2nd, 1953. The article also gave him a piece of the puzzle that was missing, the exact location of Elsewhere. The town was located two miles north of New Concord (KY) just off of HWY 280. So, of course, he had to go there for himself.

This is the terrifying story of what he found in Elsewhere.

Filed Under: Kentucky