Muhammad Ali, the Kentucky Derby, bourbon, and Kentucky Fried Chicken helped create the tapestry of Louisville. But the city’s lesser known, more mysterious marvels weave in stories that “keep Louisville weird.”
Here are 12 Louisville (mostly solved) mysteries, legends, and strange phenomena that give “Unsolved Mysteries” host Robert Stack a run for his money.
Plane crash at Headliners Music Hall
Covered in graffiti and set into the hillside of this Irish Hill music venue, the wreckage from the Cliffhangers plane crash is a 30+ year-old legend that keeps visitors guessing. Was there more to a bar’s elaborate marketing gimmick?
High-speed UFO chase
During a routine helicopter patrol in 1993, two Jefferson County police officers engaged in a two-minute chase with a pear-shaped object the size of a basketball moving at 100 mph.
Parking lot cemetery
Most people never notice the row of hedges in the middle of the Springs Shopping Center in St. Matthews — but behind the tall greenery lies a 19th-century graveyard.
Creepy caves
Gravely Brewing Co. isn’t just home to music-themed beer. It also has two grass-covered tunnels lurking in its backyard.
Monsters, goblins, and beasts, oh my
Meet the legendary cryptids of Derby City, including the Demon Leaper of Walnut Street Baptist Church.
Hotel ghosts
Some guests never leave the Seelbach Hilton Hotel.
World’s largest vampire bat
This 36-ft tall bat has been hanging upside down on the side of a 100-year-old novelty shop for over 20 years.
A wicked witch tree
A knotted and gnarly tree in Old Louisville conjures up a stormy tale of witchcraft.
An ancient Egyptian mummy
Having floated out of her coffin in 1937, Then-Hotep has made quite the journey to her final resting place inside the Kentucky Science Center.
The Chicken Steps
The Clifton neighborhood is home to a few scant remnants of a Civil War fort — along with this unusually named landmark.
A cryptic sign
You’ve probably seen this mysterious symbol around town on posters and stickers. Meet the LOU + Cincy-based artist collective behind this sigil and a number of murals around Derby City.
A missing painting
This painting went missing after being mistakenly donated to a Goodwill — it was found months later and returned to its rightful home.
