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{{Short description|Ridge in North Carolina, United States}}
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{{Infobox Mountain
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}}
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| Name = Brown Mountain Ridge
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{{Infobox mountain
| Photo =
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| name = Brown Mountain Ridge
| Photo size =
| photo = Brown Mountain, North Carolina viewed from Beacon Heights, October 2016.jpg
| Caption =
| photo_caption = Brown Mountain viewed from Beacon Heights
| Elevation = 2,283 feet (696 m)
| elevation_ft = 2,283
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| Range = [[Blue Ridge Mountains]]
| elevation_ref =
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| Location = [[Burke County, North Carolina|Burke]] / [[Caldwell County, North Carolina|Caldwell]] counties, [[North Carolina|North Carolina, USA]]
| Prominence =
| prominence =
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| location = [[Burke County, North Carolina|Burke]] / [[Caldwell County, North Carolina|Caldwell]] counties, [[North Carolina|North Carolina, U.S.]]
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| Coordinates = {{coord|35|54|57|N|81|44|45|W|type:mountain_region:US}}
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| range = [[Blue Ridge Mountains]]
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| Topographic map = [[United States Geological Survey|USGS]] Collettsville
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| coordinates = {{coord|35|54|57|N|81|44|45|W|type:mountain_region:US}}
| First ascent =
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| topo = [[United States Geological Survey|USGS]] Collettsville
| Easiest route =
| first_ascent =
| easiest_route =
}}
}}
'''Brown Mountain'''<ref>{{gnis|1009664|Brown Mountain Ridge}}</ref> is a low-lying ridge, approximately 1.5 miles long, in the [[Pisgah National Forest]] near [[Morganton, North Carolina|Morganton]], [[North Carolina]], on the border of [[Burke County, North Carolina|Burke]] and [[Caldwell County, North Carolina|Caldwell]] Counties.


'''Brown Mountain'''<ref>{{gnis|1009664|Brown Mountain Ridge}}</ref> is a low-lying ridge, approximately {{convert|1.5|mi}} long, in the [[Pisgah National Forest]] near [[Morganton, North Carolina|Morganton]], in western [[North Carolina]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blueridgecountry.com/enwiki/api/content/606b1736-758c-11e8-b6d0-12408cbff2b0/|title=Brown Mountain Lights: The Mystery Continues (and Maybe Even Deepens)|last=Shockley|first=Linda|date=2018-06-21|website=Blue Ridge Country|language=en-us|access-date=2020-03-17}}</ref> on the border of [[Burke County, North Carolina|Burke]] and [[Caldwell County, North Carolina|Caldwell]] Counties.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blueridgecountry.com/enwiki/api/content/0d6a0cc2-70af-11e8-812d-12408cbff2b0/|title=Brown Mountain Lights|last=Shockley|first=Linda|date=2018-06-15|website=Blue Ridge Country|language=en-us|access-date=2020-03-17}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://blogs.lib.unc.edu/ncm/index.php/2009/03/13/race-to-witch-or-brown-mountain/|title=Race to Witch (or Brown) Mountain « North Carolina Miscellany|language=en-US|access-date=2020-03-17}}</ref>
For perhaps hundreds of years, and since at least the early 1900s, mysterious illuminations known as the [[Brown Mountain Lights]] have been seen there.


Since at least the early 20th century, mysterious illuminations known as the [[Brown Mountain lights]] have been seen there.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Speer|first=Wade Edward|title=The Brown Mountain Lights: History, Science, and Human Nature Explain an Appalachian Mystery|publisher=McFarland|year=2017|isbn=1476666768}}</ref>
The lights are small balls that appear irregularly over Brown Mountain; There are literally hundreds of eyewitness accounts of the lights, and they have merited two investigations by the United States Geological Society. It is known that they have been seen by residents of the surrounding area since at least the 19th century, but the Cherokee Indians of the area may have been seeing the lights as early as the 13th century.


==See also==
When present, the Brown Mountain lights can be seen from as far away as Blowing Rock, and have been reported to rise to a fair height above the ridge, before disappearing in a 'silent explosion', like a roman candle. The lights are best seen from Wisemans view or Linville Falls
*[[List of mountains in North Carolina]]

Official speculation as to the origin and cause of the lights ranges from 'reflections from moonshine stills' to marsh gases. However, in modern times, moonshining has become increasingly rare, and there are no marshes near the area where the lights appear.

Scientists are not the only ones who speculate as to where the lights come from. If one reads almost any book about North Carolina mountain folklore, you are likely to find some slightly more superstitious explanations for the lights. One story tells of a pregnant woman murdered by her husband after he falls in love with another woman. He buries her body under a pile of rocks on Brown Mountain, but the very next night mysterious lights appear over the ridge. Haunted by the ghostly lights, he confesses to the murder and leaves town, never to be seen again.

According to Cherokee folklore, the lights are the lanterns of the wives of brave warriors killed in battle. They wander the skies above the mountain, forever searching for the souls of their loved ones.

To this day, the lights continued appearance remains a mystery.

==Trivia==
{{Trivia|date=July 2009}}
*The book [[Escape to Witch Mountain]] by [[Alexander Key]], upon which the Disney movie was based, was inspired by the [[Brown Mountain Lights]], essentially making Brown Mountain the original "Witch Mountain."

*The 21st episode of the sixth season of the ''[[The X-Files]]'' takes place on Brown Mountain. The episode is called "Field Trip." However, the episode takes place in fictional Boone County, North Carolina.


==References==
==References==
{{commons category}}
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

{{Mountains of North Carolina}}
{{Morganton}}


[[Category:Mountains of North Carolina]]
[[Category:Mountains of North Carolina]]
[[Category:Burke County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:Mountains of Burke County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:Caldwell County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:Protected areas of Caldwell County, North Carolina]]
[[Category:Pisgah National Forest]]
[[Category:Mountains of Caldwell County, North Carolina]]

Latest revision as of 18:43, 5 January 2025

Brown Mountain Ridge
Brown Mountain viewed from Beacon Heights
Highest point
Elevation2,283 ft (696 m)
Coordinates35°54′57″N 81°44′45″W / 35.91583°N 81.74583°W / 35.91583; -81.74583
Geography
Map
LocationBurke / Caldwell counties, North Carolina, U.S.
Parent rangeBlue Ridge Mountains
Topo mapUSGS Collettsville

Brown Mountain[1] is a low-lying ridge, approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long, in the Pisgah National Forest near Morganton, in western North Carolina,[2] on the border of Burke and Caldwell Counties.[3][4]

Since at least the early 20th century, mysterious illuminations known as the Brown Mountain lights have been seen there.[5]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brown Mountain (North Carolina).
  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Brown Mountain Ridge
  2. ^ Shockley, Linda (June 21, 2018). "Brown Mountain Lights: The Mystery Continues (and Maybe Even Deepens)". Blue Ridge Country. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  3. ^ Shockley, Linda (June 15, 2018). "Brown Mountain Lights". Blue Ridge Country. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  4. ^ "Race to Witch (or Brown) Mountain « North Carolina Miscellany". Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  5. ^ Speer, Wade Edward (2017). The Brown Mountain Lights: History, Science, and Human Nature Explain an Appalachian Mystery. McFarland. ISBN 1476666768.
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