Inaugural Tour Friday, August 29th, 2008!!!

******* The Haunted Historic Bristol Birthplace of Country Music GhostWalk is a Tennessee and Virginia History Ghost Walk Tour of the Bristol Tennessee and Virginia Historic District Ghosts and History. This is one of several haunted history tours presented by Appalachian GhostWalks and Ghost Tours which can be taken as part of a multiple day Haunted Vacation Package. Call (423) 743-WALK (9255) for reservations as tours tend to sell out quickly. You'll have a SPOOK-tacular good time!!!!! *******

The Birthplace of Country Music GhostWalk We would like to introduce you to the newest member of our family of tours entitled the "Birthplace of Country Music GhostWalk" of downtown Bristol, Tennessee and Virginia. Our Bristol Ghost Tour begins with the inaugural presentation on Friday, August 29th, 2008. Visit our partners at Fandango - Unique Art and Gifts and Java J's for further information and to pick up a brochure...

This tour will be a great addition to your visit to Bristol's historic downtown throughout the rolling year. Each of our guided tours are hosted by an extremely knowledgable and animated area Historian and Certified Ghost Hunter who will elaborate on the Haunted History of Bristol's Historic Downtown. Following the tour's introduction, our Bristol lantern-lit tours will then operate at sunset each night 365 days a year, 7 days a week by advance reservation; Choose the Northeast Tennessee Mountains, as well as the Southwest Virginia Highlands, as your next vacation destination!!!

While this tour is still under development at this time, during this guided tour of the downtown historic district of Bristol, Tennessee and Virginia guests will delight in the details of Country Music's history and origins presented in a fun and entertaining way in combination with the investigations of the downtown buildings currently underway. Please check back often for the latest updates...

January Through December The Birthplace of Country Music GhostWalk Energy / Difficulty Level - Low to Medium Please call (423) 743-WALK (9255) for reservations.

A Brief History of the Start of Country Music in Bristol Music of all kinds have been made for centuries throughout the Southern Appalachian Mountain region. The influences which are felt in the music come from many traditions. The ballads of the early Scotch-Irish and settlers of the British Isles are evident, as are their instruments, such as the fiddle. The blues and work songs of laborers of African heritage are evident, along with the instruments such as the banjo. The mountain dulcimer and the autoharp have connections to the zithers of European ancestry, while the ukulele and the guitar were popular parlor instruments. The guitar's folk influences come primarily from the Southwest and Deep South... In late July 1927, Ralph Sylvester Peer, a record producer and talent scout for the Victor Talking Machine Company of Camden, New Jersey, came to Bristol, Tennessee. His goal was to record musicians from the southern Appalachian region for commercial musical records. For a number of reasons, the world-wide influence of these recording sessions has been described as "the big bang of country music." During these sessions -- the Bristol location which was suggested to Peer by pioneer country recording artist Ernest V. Stoneman -- Jimmie Rodgers and the original Carter Family were first recorded, as well as Henry Whitter, Blind Alfred Reed, B.F. Shelton and many others over the course of ten days. "The Bristol Sessions," by virtue of the Rodgers and Carter discoveries, the business model initiated by Peer at Bristol wherein artists were paid on a percentage basis for record sales based on song publishing rights, and the national and international distribution of the Bristol recordings by the Victor Talking Machine Company -- the largest record company in the world at the time -laid the groundwork for what subsequently became the "country music industry" and disseminated rural music globally for the first time. At the same time, musicologists agree that the recordings made at Bristol in 1927 are the purest cross-section of traditional American music ever recorded in one session - recordings naively made with no attempt to influence the music or the performers delivery in search of a "hit"... From the 1930's through the 1950's, live radio broadcasts in the region nurtured the music and the artists. These shows included WOPI's "Jamboree", "Farm and Fun Time" on WCYB, and the "Barrel of Fun" on WJHL. Flatt and Scruggs, the Stanley Brothers, Jim and Jesse McReynolds, Mac Wiseman, Jimmy Martin and countless others, appeared on these programs, which led to the development of bluegrass and contemporary country music. To learn more about the historic 1927 recording sessions which gave Bristol the title of "Birthplace of Country Music." Learn about Ralph Peer's return trip to Bristol in 1928 to record Read the biographies of the recording artists and musicians who helped to form the musical heritage of this region.

P.O. Box 153, Unicoi, TN 37692 USA. Reservations and Info: (423) 743-WALK (9255) Email: Info@AppalachianGhostWalks.com Please come again soon and thank you for visiting www.AppalachianGhostWalks.com

Each GhostWalk, or Ghost Tour Package, can be arranged to fit your busy schedule whether you are native to the area, or just traveling through, but advance reservations are required. If you live locally, you can do just one tour on any night of our convenience, or if you, your family, or your tour group are looking for a fantastic weekend getaway, or a full haunted vacation you can do a multiple day itinerary combined with discounts on other area attractions and accommodations, some of which are haunted. We have three to nine day vacation packages and one call to (423) 743-WALK (9255) does it all! A more detailed and complete description of each of our ghost tours can be found following the links in each description, or by clicking on any of the tabs on the left column of this page. All tours are packaged close together geographically and we can put together a wonderful itinerary for you based on years of experience. If you have any other questions please call, or visit the Answers To Frequently Asked Questions page of our site...

You'll have a SPOOK-tacular good time!!!

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Appalachian GhostWalks' proudly presents our "Spook and Save" Haunted Vacation Packages in cooperation with many other area attractions, hotels, and bed and breakfasts throughout the Appalachian Mountain region. Visit our "Spook and Save" Vacation Planning Packages page for further information and details.

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