The Greenpark Inn

Hi, I'm Holly and I'm Hailey. Welcome to Mountain Mysteries Tales from Appalachia. Welcome back. Well hello.

Hello. We came back after the craptshow that was last week. Yeah, well, just in shooting lunch, I was like, I thought you were going to say the craptshow that was our lunch, but it was good. No, it was good.

They just don't know how to put a pizza. No, not at all. Breadsticks. Right.

So pizza had to take note. It was a poor job of cutting. The sizes were strange. They were like, like baby pieces, skinny baby pieces, and then they were like massive pieces.

Giant pieces. Yes. So, you know, maybe just a lesson in cutting. Maybe they were new.

Maybe they should give them the benefit of the doubt. We should. Yeah. I mean, fed is best.

Yeah. We're fed. So, I mean, it got from box to our mouth. So it's a win, but still, you know, directly from that box directly from the pot.

Well, we put it on a paper paper. Paper blade. We're classy. Yeah.

I don't want to be dishes. No, I don't blame you. 100%. There have been many times Hailey's come to my house and I'm like, well, here's your paper plate.

Here's your paper plate. Exactly. I love it. Exactly.

I love a paper plate. Me too. You know, it's been chilly here lately. Yeah.

Like I'm in sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Me too. And like comfortable. Yeah.

I'm in jeans, which by the way, Hailey's eyes got big like what you say. Yes. I bought these from the Amazon. So they are okay.

So I love the like, pull on jeans. I don't have to worry about zippers and buttons and all those things. Yeah. I have been wearing these types of jeans for probably 10 years.

I don't care. Come at me, whatever. Right. They're comfortable.

So, I found these recently, these flare leg jeans on the Amazon and they are so comfortable and amazing that I want every color of them. Right. So just a blog. However, the reviews were like amazing, amazing, amazing.

And somebody wrote amazing. However, they have this weird like formaldehyde sent to it. And it's true. Like I opened the package and they're like, Oh my gosh, I washed them twice in Borax, vinegar.

Oh my gosh. Yeah. Like everything. And they they're not bad anymore, but they still have that like sort of, I can still smell it.

I got a jacket, like a jean jacket from a little navy one time and it smelled like mothballs. Oh, and it's just sitting in someone's attic. Yeah. Or like, or they'd had it like in the back and they put mothballs out like if they had, you know, mice or snakes or something back there.

So yeah, but it's still does smell like mothballs. Interesting. I just never wear it. Could you try and like wash it somewhere, maybe?

I mean, I have washed it like 30 times. Oh, well, that's a rumor. It was a real bummer. I know.

I hate that. Makes me sad too. That's unfortunate. But yeah, so that's my plug and now I want to get them in every color, but I'm going to have to just like really soak the crap out of them.

Yeah. That's always the, you know, kind of rub if you're staying with online or in ordering. I know I've got a she in order that I want to place. You may not get that for a decade.

It may not happen for like a decade. Yeah. But I just, so here, I tried their clothing. Yeah.

And some things are like, okay. Yeah. Some things are not like you don't really want to wash them and put them in the dryer because they are definitely a shrink. Right.

But I just haven't found like my wind. Like I don't know. I've tried. I just rather pay a little more.

I think getting, I just like almost swimsuits from there. Yeah. Because I only wear them like once or twice a season. So it's not really anything major.

Well, when I buy my string bikinis, I like to do it from Walmart. Oh, yeah. Clearly. Those are the best.

Clearly. And I mean, if the string's not going up my booty crack, what's the point? Right. You know.

So I usually get those. No, honestly, I like the old lady like, you know, either shorts or granny skirt. I'm looking for the shorts. Yes.

I want that. So I have a top. It's a, you know, straps go around your neck. Yeah.

And it's black and white. It's really pretty. And it kind of comes down, but I have shorts with it too. And I love it.

Yeah. The only problem is sometimes in the water, like, you know, the, that's the only downside is I feel like you've got to either tuck it in or, or like have it one piece that's a that or a short, right? Which I'm in the market. Yeah.

So I'll wear like a, like a cropped, like a bikini top or something like that. But I just want shorts. I've seen you. I've seen you on from Shannen.

No, no, no, no, no, we went to the beach together. So I had, you know, seen what you'd wear. Very cute. Yeah.

Very cute. And you saw that I was dressed like a handmade handmade. I actually did have a bathing suit when I was thin. I remember it because it was a size eight.

I was very excited about that. But I called it my handmade tail bathing suit because it was the same color as like, you know, yeah, it wasn't oppressive in any way. Right. Right.

Yeah, I can't wear it anymore. A child life, all the things. Well, we have a story today. I'm excited.

This story was given to me by my friend, Brunette Megan. She actually said, yes, she's a listener. She follows our podcast. So thank you for this story.

We are going to talk about the green park in. Have you ever heard of it? No. No, me neither.

So we're going to blowing rock, North Carolina. Blowing rock is about 40 minutes west of Winston Salem and has its own history to share. But today, yes, we are specifically going to talk about this in do not be confused with the Grove Park in in Asheville, which has its own sense of ghost and story history. And if you want to hear an episode about that that I did, it's called the Pink Lady and it aired August 12, 2021.

I know, it seems like a hundred years ago. Way back in the day. Way back in the day. So let's talk about this green park in.

So a little history on the building. The hotel was built in an area known as Green Park. Imagine that. Shocking.

It's the name. The Green Park. And the owners were, get this, the greens. Wow.

I know. Again, shocking. It first opened in 1891 and was 73,000 square feet. Like big three stories had over 60 rooms along with electricity and indoor plumbing, which was a huge deal for this time.

Very fancy. No place that you or I would get invited to, even in our past lives. Of course. Not today.

Nope. So in 1891, we weren't good enough for indoor plumbing or electricity. We were on straw mattresses in the dark and use the outdoor facilities to relieve ourselves. Yeah.

That house. We did. And I was like, you know, hey, there was no bidets out there. That would have come in handy.

Yeah, for sure. Really would have come in handy. And another thing, I'm really sick of that straw mattress. I mean, I think we could probably upgrade.

I could be afforded. I don't know. I can't. Well, you're over there with a sieve.

Right. I mean, how? Oh, well, I know how you got it. You were working.

Working to help really get us off strong mattress. Help your friend get off the strong mattress. Like poor Holly. What am I?

Do you feel like maybe I've got like a gimp? Maybe you're your syphilis is progressed to the point where you do it now. I haven't even have it to. Never share a strong mattress.

Never share a strong mattress. Maybe I have a gimpy leg now. We don't know. Maybe.

Well, I'm like that last episode. Yeah. The one armed syphalyphics. Siful.

Yeah. One who has sFox. Yes. Yes.

But she may have one arm, but boy does she have a good time. She does. But the hand that she has. Yep.

And her motto is I'll give you a hand. Only one though. Only one though. Thumbs up.

Thumbs up. Thumbs up. That has to be thumb up. You only have one.

Thumb up. Yeah. Yeah. I like that.

I like that. Well, now to know that if either one of us ever does lose an arm, we've got some good jokes. Absolutley. Is it ready to roll?

I want you to call me Stumpy. I will. Don't worry. You don't even have to ask.

Don't worry. Stumpy on the strong mattress. What do you want your nickname to be in case you lose an arm? Oh.

I don't know. Stumpy's pretty good. Stumpy's pretty good. Stumpy's revenge.

Like, you know, if I get angry and I, you know, take out my engra on somebody, these like, Stumpy's revenge. There's a guy on my dance team and Carl had two only had one arm and we called him Nemo. Because he couldn't find his arm. Nemo.

Nemo. We'll think about it. Something that just like really sticks with you. We'll get there.

We'll think about it. It'll, it'll come to us and then we'll just shout it out and that'll be the name. That'll be it. I'll be Stumpy.

Okay. So Stumpy Holly would have been using the outdoor party. Yes. The Green Park is one of the oldest hotels still in operation.

They are currently remodeling it. It had a lot of acreage to it as well. Okay. Located in Blowing Rock which at the time was a small village tucked away within the bosom of the Appalachian Mountains.

The bosom. It isn't that warm and comforting when you are clutched in the bosom of the Appalachian Mountains. We're both touching. Both touching our bosom.

Because we're shocked. They're still there. They're there. What are we dudes all of a sudden?

They're all there. It is considered one of the most revered getaways in North Carolina since its conception. Okay. Businessmen from the city of Lenoir had developed this magnificent hotel through their development firm, the Green Park Company.

Okay. So they selected this area of the region for its tranquil beauty and they were thinking, huh, that we can make a ton of money off of people who wouldn't come here. Because there was a lot of stuff going around essentially that like a lot of feedback of, hey listen, if you have an illness and you go take in the mountain air, like it'll heal you. Yeah.

So you can use it as that. Like, you know, there's different ways to advertise this. Right. So they chose the Bergulosus come here.

Exactly. Yeah. Exactly. So they decided to create this retreat out in the woods and they called it American chestnut.

Wait a minute. No, sorry. It had the rarest wood. American chestwood and heart pine.

Yes. All of this wood, they cut down and they turned into flooring for the hotel. So it's like this beautiful, rich flooring. Yeah.

So it says that in April of 1891, Lenoir News let the public in on the construction of the inn that it would have all these fancy rooms that it would be furnished with fireplaces, electrical alarms, running water, all the things that, you know, people didn't have back then. Yeah. A restaurant, a bar, a bowling alley, shooting gallery, post office, billiard room. So like this was a town in itself almost.

Yeah. And hospitality. Of course. I mean, if you wanted to come and enjoy the modern amenities, you wanted to have someone at your beck and call.

Yeah. Absolutely. Hey, are coming to you here. Stumpy.

Stumpy. Get over here. Help me carry my bags. It's like, well, I can only help you on the left side.

So powerful and wealthy statesmen, you know, industrialists, they all came to Green Park and stayed the entire summer. It became like their summer home. They would sit around talking about business, contemplating life and smoking. Very expensive cigars.

Wow. I want to be in there. It's not a small cigar. I don't particularly want to smoke a cigar.

I do. I want to sit down there with the men and with my one arm. I'll drink a glass of whiskey. Brandi.

Brandi is, you know, classy. Yeah, it does. That's classy. Whiskey.

I'm like, what's the word I'm drinking? I'm like, what's the word I'm drinking? I'm a straw madress. Oh, you said it up a straw.

I'm like, wow. Yeah. I really love my whiskey out of a straw. You know, if you want to get in with the classy folks, you need to have Brandi.

Brandi? Yeah. Whiskey is what you just like shoot. Brandi is what you nurse and you just hold it and you walk around with it in your fancy glass and you dig a little sip and then you talk about politics and then you dig a little sip and you talk about this and you'll have a little stumpy.

Get over here and bring me another Brandi. Yes. I'm on the way. Touch back on the other day.

Yes. I will teach you another brand. That sounds ugly with everybody. The look on your face and the weird hunched over with a new brand.

I come back to the straw madress. Move over. How would kick your house through that dress? Hayley.

Oh my god. Listen, you were working as, you know, the business. You were working in the past life and I was apparently a... Touch back on the other day.

...gound of my tailtail work. You know? Yeah, never seen that maybe. I haven't either but that's just the...

That's just the image in my head. Thank you. Thank you. That's beautiful.

Yeah. I should be locked in a belt tower. That's the damn true. Alright, so the Green Park Inn continued to house their post office for many, many years.

They had a whole sorting system. Wow. Yeah, isn't that crazy? Like it was its own entity.

That's crazy. That many visitors in colluding President Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, the wife of President Roosevelt, Eleanor, she came to stay. Margaret Mitchell, who had written Gone with a Wind. Nice.

She stayed there. John Rockefeller. Yes, Annie Oakley. Oh.

You know Annie Oakley? Yeah. Annie Get Your Gun. Yeah.

Yep, she came. Actually, I didn't see her as like a fancy pants. I kind of like that for her though. I do too.

I do too. She can do both. Stumpy. Yes, Annie.

I hate that voice. So bad. Oh. Why?

This is freaking weird. It is weird. Alright. So in the 1800s, during the latter part of the Civil War, a small fort was built on the Green Park site by federal troops, so this was prior to the Green Park being built.

So it is thought that some of the ghostly hauntings that we'll talk about in a minute may have to do with this. Gotcha. And the side of the Civil War. Did they look like this?

No. Why do you think I look like this? That's not what the voice is. Listen.

I just showed her a picture of Quasimodo. Okay, Percy. I'm just saying. Sorry.

Listen, I can still look hot. Like this. What I like crinkles up when he does this. It's so bad.

Hayley. Ew. I hate it. Annie's trying not to read anything since from she in and I'm like, Hayley.

Picking one made out of ice cream. Whatever you get from she. Oh my God. Alright.

I don't even know what's happening right now. Okay, so the inn, right? Let's get further. Family people stay there.

Stumpy works there half the time. Right. So does, you know. Annie Oakley.

Annie Oakley. We're doing all the things. We're smoking cigars, having fun. So it's said to be super haunted.

Let's talk about the ghost. Yeah, please. Alright. So a lot of spirits have been seen by both guests and employees alike.

Okay. It was featured in a list of the 13 most haunted American hotels by the Washington Post in 2017. Who are the ghosts? The first and most notable is the daughter of the original owners, the greens.

Laura Green was engaged to be married, but on the day of her wedding, the groom never showed up at the altar. She was left alone. Yeah. There's a new movie, The Runaway Room.

Wow. Yeah. That's really sad. And embarrassing.

Yeah. I mean, she's humiliated because she plans this, you know, nice wedding with high society and attendance, and not to mention the fact that she did truly love him. Yeah. Kind of play in the future with him and he doesn't show.

That would be, that would be so hurtful. Yeah. That's sad. Laura, I'll help you back to your room.

Oh, my God. Okay. So after the wedding, Laura, still in her wedding gown, went into room 318. And this was the room that she and her husband were to have spent their first night as a newly wedding couple.

Right. It was there that she took her own life by hanging. And a lot of honeymooners have continued to stay in room 318. It's known as the Victorian Room.

Yeah. It just saw the lady like an ominous, like, I mean, like, that's a bad omen. Yeah. I mean, I don't feel like your marriage can go well if it starts, you know, in a room that's haunted by a woman who hangers.

Yeah. I'm not really sure that that's where I want to, you know, start my married life. Yeah, I don't think so. Maybe more like the Akano Lodge on Route 9.

Yeah, that sounds better. That sounds appropriate for you. Yeah. I agree.

So guests have reported seeing a woman in a wedding dress walking up and down the halls of the third floor and in the Victorian Room. So I mean, she's not hurting anything. She's just wondering. It's kind of sad for me.

Yeah. Yeah. But they also have seen this woman in a wedding dress with a man. Maybe she's found a ghostly lover.

Well, people presume, you know, they think like this is maybe her husband. That left her fiance. Like maybe it's him or maybe she did find another ghost. They say that the man is dressed in like old timey, like nice duds.

So either she hooked up with another ghost and doesn't happen. Like are you wondering and you find another ghostly spirit and you're like, oh, he looks hot. I think so. All right.

I'm going with yes. You are not a loyal ghost is what it is. Right. You're a love of them and leave them kind of girl.

I feel it. Yeah. I mean, there's not a lot of rules. No, no rules.

Yeah. So ironically enough, the green park in is a popular wedding reception menu. Okay. People don't stop.

It's like how how many people have to die? How many people have to die here? Right. Before we say enough is enough.

Yeah. So some of the couples have visited the hotel. They've hosted events there, but they've reported seen a woman peering out from the window of the Victorian suite wearing a white wedding dress. There it is.

Yeah. So down that hall on the third floor, there have been other ghosts who have been seen. There's also ghostly children that you can hear running through the hall screaming and laughing. None of this sounds like a somewhere I want to be.

So again, I know we've mentioned this before, but if I'm on my honeymoon and I'm trying to, you know, consummate my marriage and a creepy-ass bride ghost is watching me, I don't think I could perform. And then you hear screaming ghost children? Like do you have a minute where you look at your spouse and you ask like, did you invite somebody else to this party? Because I'm not down for that.

Right. Like this is not Minajaju'a. This is not what I'm looking for. Maybe that's a haly thing, but that is not a haly thing.

No thank you. Yes, no. Like what they're watching. Like do they know that this is like, you know, that they're ghosts or like what are they just perverts?

I'm going perverts. If you were a ghost, would you be a pervert? Yes. Oh no.

Probably. Even ghosts have to get their jollies. I guess. There's pretty some Randy ghosts.

I guess so. I mean that movie ghost, she had sex with a ghost. That's true. So like are the claw marks on his back from me or the ghost you ask?

Is my husband cheating on me with the ghost bride? Maybe there's so many questions. There's so many other questions. So many questions that are needless.

I think it's just better to say it the holiday and I'm just going to say it. Yeah. You know? I don't think so.

We don't have to worry about such things. So guess if also reported like I said the sounds of children laughing through the halls and land sakes. It's not enough to have the sad bride but now we got to add creepy noisy children. Listen, if I'm going to say a hotel to have a second honeymoon and get some time away from my kids, the last thing I want is to hear ghosts children running down the hall.

Absolutely not. No. I don't need to be disciplining other people's children, especially dead ones. How do you discipline the dead?

I don't think you do. I don't think you can. I think they just get to do what they want. I can't say things like Fred, if you don't stop your dead meat, he's already dead meat.

It's true. Just what do you do? So I can't relax with all that nonsense. Right.

But the hotel is well aware apparently of the ghost situation and they have a ghost log. Fine. So they encourage their guests to know their experiences in the ghost log. So if you've experienced one, you come, you documented in the ghost log and you know, it continues on.

Fun. But what's interesting is they have this motto, right? According to the manager, Larry Mulhern, their motto is, we respect the privacy of all of our guests, whether they've checked in or not checked out. Oh.

Yep. Wow. Yes. So they also think that there is some ghostly activity, as I mentioned, from some of the Civil War soldiers who set up camp there.

They've heard different sounds of heavy footprints and men. There's also been situations where the dining room tables have been set for dinner and then the waiter waitress comes back in the room and the place settings are gone. That's fine. And then they leave again and the place settings are back.

Clearly, ghosts who are not wishing to hurt you. Right. They're just having a little fun. They just want you to know that they're there.

Yeah. You know, and the claw marks on my man's back. Yeah. They just want you to know like, Hey, he's mine.

You can't have it. Oh, because there's ghosts, there's ghosts investigators who have come to this place. They have all concluded. Yep.

Super haunted. Super haunted. Yep. They've seen shyly figures that disappear into the walls, disembodied voices and using their own little electronics, they've been able to hear voices and sounds of, you know, the dead.

Fun. Yeah. Oh, right. So I also have noted here that the hotel has this bar known as the divide tavern, which some employees report hearing a bustling party going on at.

But when they entered back into the bar area, there's like one guy just sitting there having a drink. So either he was super rowdy or there's some festivities going on. Room 313, that Victorian room where she hangs herself isn't always rented out because staff worry about it being a paranormal investigator's dream and drawing like more attention to it. Right.

I mean, I do want to say though, you have a ghostly log. Right. You have a ghost book. I do this a little bit.

Right. Exactly. And I'm sure our podcast isn't doing anything to help them. Right.

But I mean, that's fair. I wouldn't want the world to know about my ghost. At least it affect my business. I mean, I do get that.

But if you have a ghost log, you're just kind of asking for it. Yeah, a little bit. Yeah. Like, how did we do?

Tell us about our ghost. Yeah. I'm a five stars. I'm a trip advisor.

Yeah, it's like your exit survey. And what are you right to? Like, how did great time but didn't get to see the ghost hashtag bummed? Right.

I mean, I don't know. Or left with scratch marks. Not for my wife. Maybe getting divorced.

She didn't believe it was the ghost. Yeah. Yeah, that could be tough. Yeah.

That is tough. Yeah. I found a bite mark on my booty. Was it from a man?

It wasn't from a man. I saw a creepy stump of a woman coming towards me asking about Brandy and a bell tower. I can't bear a lot of you. Zero out of five stars.

Zero out of five stars, said Haley. That's my weird story about the green part. That was wild. That took some turns.

That felt really enjoyed that. Thank you. I, what they all say. I like to give it to you when I bring it.

Yeah. That was good. Thank you. Thank you.

How do they contact us? Well, you can do so by emailing us at mountainistories.appelachian at gmail.com. Find us on our Facebook, facebook.com. That's a nice series.

Tells me about Appalachia. That's a great one. Wow. Mount Mysteries.appelachia.

And check us out on our Patreon Patreon.com.com. This was a wild ride. So I'm going to shout out to Lenore, North Carolina. That was a bone that in.

Okay. Do you want to go out back because Stumpy feels dangerous? Stumpy's revenge is about to take place. I don't know.

We might get attacked by cicadas if we go outside. Oh my gosh. There's so many of them. And you know what?

Next time we record I'll be back here again. Yeah. So I'm just flying around outside right now. I don't actually see them.

There goes one. I think you're seeing things. There's one. I still, I think you're trying to gaslight me.

Yeah. Get back in your box, Haley. Oh, we better go before this hunchback. Yeah.

Okay. Okay. Let's go. We'll see you next week.

Bye.