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(This experience was generously sponsored by US Ghost Adventures, who provided two tickets and EVP detector rental in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and chills are my own.)

We found our way to Printer’s Alley, tucked just off the main downtown strip of Nashville. The lights of the bars and restaurants were bright and inviting, casting a festive glow. Already, crowds were gathering for a typical night on the town.

But we weren’t here for that kind of nightlife.

Tonight, we would be going beyond the lights- peeling back the veil of history to reveal Nashville’s darker side. From hidden tunnels and speakeasy hideaways, to mob bosses and Civil War horrors, this tour promised an entirely different look at Music City.

After tonight, we’d never see Nashville the same way again.

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Tour Information

For this adventure we would be joining US Ghost Adventures for a ghost tour through Nashville. US Ghost Adventures offers tours throughout the country, with tours in 170 different cities. If ghost tours are not your thing, they also have a variety of food tours, walking tours, and cultural tours.

We decided on the Nashville Ghosts: Haunting of Music City tour. This is Nashville’s best rated ghost tour.

• TICKETS: Tour tickets need to be purchased in advance. Tours are offered every day of the week, a couple times a night.
  • $26/adult, $17/child
  • if you would like the optional EMF activity detector, it is $7/detector
  • additional locations after the tour for an extra cost
• DURATION & DISTANCE: The tour goes for about an hour, walking close to a mile down along streets of Nashville. The tour is outside, not in the buildings, so it is accessible for everyone.
• WHAT TO BRING: Because tours go everyday, no matter the weather, you want to dress for what will be comfortable. They say to bring comfy shoes and your adventurous attitude. (which I just think is good life advice all around)
• TIPPING: Tips for your tour guide are appreciated.

If you are really brave, then you can go and spend the night in the famous haunted Lizzie Borden House. And for other ghost tours around Nashville, check out Nashville Ghosts. You are in a fun and spooky time no matter the tour you choose.

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Nashville Ghosts: Haunting of Music City

Content Note: This post contains references to historical violence, death, and ghost stories

Our tour started outside Skulls Rainbow Room where we met Alex who would be taking us around. You know you’re in for a great tour when the guide is excited about it. This was the case with Alex. His energy, knowledge, and excitement for the tour was obvious.

He handed us the EMF activity detector to use during the tour. The different lights would signal the amount of supernatural happenings around us. I clicked it on and it started pulsing slowly on the low level. It was as if it too were anticipating what we would find on the tour.

Before becoming Printers Alley, as it is known today, this was the Gentleman’s Quarters. This was where men came to gamble, drink, and partake in some of more risqué activities. But when prohibition came to Nashville, this area took their bootlegging underground. Speakeasies, hidden passages, and tight lipped barmen made this a central point in the underground.

One of the most notable business men and bootleggers of that time was Ike Johnson. Johnson was the owner of the Southern Turf Saloon on the ground floor. Despite being in the questionable area of town, the saloon was richly decorated catering to a more high-end clientele.

Now this is where Johnson’s story gets a little fuzzy. Some say that when prohibition came he thought he would be ruined. Instead of facing the shame he killed himself on the balcony of his office upstairs. But for a powerful saloon owner, and not one known to go down without a fight, this seems unlikely.

A more accepted idea is that a competing saloon owner arranged a coop with the police. They wanted to frame Johnson, have him arrested, and then his saloon taken over. When the police came to take him Johnson pulled out his gun and shot himself. Here too, it’s a little fuzzy about whether he shot himself or was shot by the police.

Either way, the saloon was claimed by the other owner. But that was not the end of Ike Johnson. Many people have claimed to see him wandering those upper floors, still wearing his brown suit. Weird bumps and bangs can be heard throughout the rooms.

Years later in 1948, David “Skull” Schulman established Skull’s Rainbow Room in the bottom floor. This bar was a hot spot for rising music stars and old favorite artists. It saw Elvis, Johnny Cash, and many others over the years. When Skull first started setting up, Ike Johnson kept coming down with his spooks and haunting. But Skull wouldn’t be run off and told the spirit of Ike to move out because this was his bar. Skull’s would be the place to be for many years.

That is until one night when he had hired a couple of drifters to work. Late one night, when everyone had left, these drifters went to Skull’s office. They were looking for the money that they were sure was there. When they couldn’t find the money, they turned their anger towards Skull. Skull was brutally murdered and it would be years later that the culprits were caught.

After that, it became a tradition in the bar that someone would leave a glass or shot on the table. Soon there would be a pile of full glasses, all left for Skull. But in the morning, the glasses would be empty and an imprint of someone sitting there on the stool.

These days people believe that Skull haunts the bottom floor and Ike haunts the top floors of the building.

We moved down the street to Bankers Alley. On the corner buildings have been left empty, with a growing belief that they are cursed. These buildings never are occupied for very long.

What makes this street so interesting though is its ties to mobs and mafia. Under this street is one of the oldest and longest tunnels through the city. The tunnel reaches from the river all through the city. It was just wide enough for a small boat to fit through.

This tunnel was perfectly situated for illegal whiskey runs during Prohibition. It also served as a disposal place for mob bosses to bring those who crossed them. For the mob, this was the best set up. They had banks above ground for their money. There was a tunnel to transport liquor. In addition, they had apartments to stay in while they were in town. This was kind of their one stop shop for all business in Nashville.

We were standing there listening about this hidden city tunnel, imagining all the people who never left it. Some were victims of the mob, others were victims of the Civil War. Still others were sent in the tunnel on a dare or as part of initiations. They would be dropped off the back corner of the tunnel, left to find their way out in the dark.

Along the street were lights and tables, like they had tried to create a place to gather. My friend started tapped my arm and pointed down to the EMF detector. It was flickering between yellow and red. We each shivered with the thought of what was buried beneath our feet.

We turned down an old alley that had all the feel of a horror movie. Old pipes, dim lights, and the faint squeaking sound of hinges. We had reached the oldest part of Nashville, seemingly forgotten and pushed aside from the rest of the city.

As we turned the corner we saw what was left of an entire block of these old city buildings. The windows were boarded up and barriers set up along the block. This was the scene of a terrible bombing incident on Christmas 2020. So much of the city block was destroyed in that event.

An RV motorhome had pulled in and parked the early hours of the morning. There is sat for hours. Then out of nowhere shots were heard and then a computerized voice rang through the streets. There were a series of messages telling people to evacuate, to not approach the vehicle, and to clear the area.

The RV bomb was detonated at 6:30 in the morning, causing a massive explosion. While some were injured, the only person who died was the bomber. There is a lot of talk and debate about motive, terrorism, and aftermath. But no one really knows what was behind this kind of destruction.

Our guide said though, that the bomber was probably met by a whole lot of angry ghosts. This is considered one of the most densely haunted areas of the city. The sightings and whispering of these buildings have been documented for hundreds of years.

There are stories of caught pirates being hung from the windows on the top floor. There are stories of house maids and service workers who met tragic ends. There are stories of gun fights and murder throughout the rooms. These buildings had seen the city built up around them and saw many darker scenes through the years.

At this point, my EMF detector was going wildly between orange and red. It was no longer flickering, but solidly stating all the presences it picked up from this block of buildings.

If you thought that these spooky tales would only be in the side streets of Nashville you would be wrong. Even the center of Music City, the icons of Nashville, come with some gruesome tales and ghosts of their own.

The Ryman Auditorium is what made Nashville what it is. A local captain and business owner was brought to Jesus by the preaching religious group. As a show of faith and devotion he set about to build a great church where pastors could preach from.

But when the captain died, and bills had to be paid, the church became a stage for entertainment. The spirit of the captain did not want to share the space. Stories abound of people hearing the captain or feeling strange presences around them.

But if you didn’t follow the religious rules, you were in real danger. It became common for artists and workers to all meet outside to drink, smoke, and swear. Stories had spread of suspicious deaths throughout the auditorium of those who had not abided by the rules.

The Ryman would later become the place of final breaths during the Civil War. If a solider wasn’t going to make it, they were moved to the Ryman. Here they would spend the last few days of their life. After that they would go to one of the many morgues that lined what is now Broadway.

People would come from across the country and wander from morgue to morgue. They were looking for lost family members. Many people today don’t realize that the bar on Broadway they’re listening to music in once held a different purpose. It was either a morgue or a coffin maker shop.

Our last stop of the evening was to an old church, just up the street from Printers Alley. When the Civil War began, this church moved from serving souls to serving as a war hospital. Many came and could not be treated, so were sent to die at the Ryman.

Those that could be treated were. But in such a thing as war there was a lot of blood and amputations. The steps of the church would be lined with buckets of body parts, cut away in hope they would survive. The surgeon at this church hospital can still be seen wandering though holding his silver pocket watch.

With that, we said goodbye to our guide Alex and went back towards Printers Alley. What a weird and somewhat gory side of Nashville we had learned. Before the music history, there was an entirely different kind of history that had taken place here. Hidden tunnels, bootlegger saloon owners, mob bosses, and Civil War soldiers- all within these streets of downtown.

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As a natural scaredy-cat when it comes to ghosts and haunted places, I was definitely a little nervous about this tour. But what I discovered is that it’s a great experience no matter where you fall on the scaredy scale. It was spooky enough to give me goosebumps, but not so intense that I lost sleep over it.

This tour is perfect for anyone who loves history and wants to see a different, darker side of the city. I absolutely loved it and would recommend it to anyone looking for something unique to do in Nashville.

There are so many hidden layers of history in this city I thought I knew- and I loved how this tour revealed them in such a surprising and unforgettable way.

This spooky adventure exploring the haunted side of Nashville was made possible by US Ghost Adventures, who covered our tour and EMF rental. While this post is sponsored, all thoughts, experiences, and chills are my own.

Thanks for coming along on Nashville Ghosts tour with me. May you remember in all things to bring your comfy shoes and adventurous attitude.

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Follow along for more adventures near and far!

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