Hauntings and History of Mammoth Cave: Mammoth Cave National Park

This week’s episode features the haunted remains of Moonville, an abandoned railroad town hidden deep within Ohio’s Zaleski State Forest. Founded in the mid-1800s along the Marietta and Cincinnati Railroad, Moonville quickly became a dangerous place to live. Narrow tunnels, poor visibility, and trains that arrived without warning led to frequent and often fatal accidents involving railroad workers, locals, and passersby. By 1947, the town was completely abandoned, leaving behind a small cemetery with many unmarked graves and the infamous Moonville Tunnel.

Moonville is widely considered one of Ohio’s most active paranormal locations. Visitors regularly report unexplained footsteps, sudden temperature drops, disembodied voices, and floating lights that resemble lanterns moving through the tunnel and surrounding woods. Several recurring apparitions are tied to specific tragedies, including railroad workers still seen walking the tracks and a woman in white known as the Lavender Lady.

Another frequently reported presence is David “Baldie” Keeton, a volatile local whose death remains unsolved. Baldie is blamed for rocks thrown at visitors from impossible angles, especially when people mock the legends or linger too long in the tunnel. Now part of the Moonville Rail Trail and open to the public, the site continues to draw hikers, ghost hunters, and paranormal investigators. Many leave with the same unsettling feeling that Moonville is not as empty as it appears

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Resources

Backpack Ohio. (n.d.). Zaleski State Forest backpacking trail map. https://backpackohio.com/etrails/bpo_zaleski.pdf

Cincinnati Ghosts. (n.d.). The Moonville Tunnel. https://cincinnatighosts.com/the-moonville-tunnel/

Digging History. (2013, November 13). Ghost town Wednesday: Moonville, Ohio. https://digging-history.com/2013/11/13/ghost-town-wednesday-moonville-ohio/

Gottsacker, E. (2023, October 12). How the ghosts of Moonville are keeping the town’s history alive. ideastream. https://www.ideastream.org/2023-10-12/how-the-ghosts-of-moonville-are-keeping-the-towns-history-alive

Hocking Hills Tourism Association. (n.d.). About the Hocking Hills. https://www.hockinghills.com/about_hocking_hills.html

Hocking Hills Tourism Association. (n.d.). Zaleski State Forest. https://www.hockinghills.com/zaleski_state_forest.html

Ohio Department of Natural Resources. (n.d.). Moonville Tunnel. https://ohiodnr.gov/go-and-do/plan-a-visit/find-a-property/moonville-tunnel

Ohio Exploration. (n.d.). Moonville Tunnel. https://www.ohioexploration.com/structures/moonvilletunnel/

Ohio Woodland Stewards Program. (n.d.). Managing forest songbirds in southeast Ohio: A guide for land managers. Ohio State University Extension & Ohio Division of Wildlife. https://woodlandstewards.osu.edu/sites/woodlands/files/imce/Managing%20Forest%20Songbirds%20-%20Guide.pdf

The Athens Messenger. (n.d.). A book about Moonville chronicles the history of an abandoned town. https://www.athensmessenger.com/news/a-book-about-moonville-chronicles-the-history-of-an-abandoned-town/article_ada6af08-c26c-45cb-b439-4bfd99418364.html

Vinton County Visitors Bureau. (n.d.). Moonville Rail Trail Association. https://vintoncounty.com/moonville-rail-trail-association/