Ghost on the roof of the Rutherford County Historic Courthouse

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The Haunted Rutherford County Historic Courthouse

Have you ever been to Nashville? 

For many, it’s a beautiful town filled with delicious food, lovely locals, and a rich musical heritage. And all that is true, but if you’re in the know, Nashville is also a town filled with stories. All different kinds of stories, too- tragic stories, war stories, and, yes, even ghost stories. 

The Rutherford County Historic Courthouse certainly has more than a few stories behind it. It’s an old building that’s been around for decades. It saw action during the Civil War, and quite a few rumors and ghost stories surround it. While it might be a bit off the beaten track, it’s well worth the visit. 


You’ll have to keep reading to find out why exactly that is, but if you are interested in what you’re reading about, be sure to give our in-person Nashville Ghosts tour a try the next time you’re in town. It’s perfect for anyone from true believers to history buffs and more. See you there! 

Is the Rutherford County Historic Courthouse Haunted?

It’s an interesting question that locals have asked since the 19th century. While a firm answer has eluded people over the years, it can’t be denied that weird happenings keep occurring in and around this historic building. 

Perhaps it’s because of the blood that’s been shed at the Rutherford County Historic Courthouse. Experts in ghostly matters will point to places with a grim history as hotbeds for ghost activity. Evidently, those dearly departed spirits will flock towards places that have had a violent story behind them. 

The Rutherford County Historic Courthouse certainly has such a history, which might surprise people, given that courthouses are not usually at the top of people’s lists of places where interesting things happen.

But those people just haven’t heard about this courthouse in Murfreesboro. Fortunately, you have the opportunity to do so right here. 

Courthouse History

Buildings on fire
Copyright US Ghost Adventures

It’s an old adage often found in Western films and TV shows that you knew that a settlement had become a town when it had two things: a courthouse and a post office. That adage seemed to hold true for the city of Rutherford as establishing a courthouse was one of the first matters of business its residents got to. 

In the early 19th century, Rutherford authorized two acres of land in the town to be used for justice. A courthouse, a stockade, and a prison were to be built. The task of actually building all these structures was given to the lowest bidder, David Dickinson, Esquire. 

The building cost about four thousand dollars (around a hundred thousand dollars in today’s money), a steep cost, but the residents of Rutherford didn’t let that dissuade them from getting to work quickly. On September 1st, 1819, they convened the Tennessee General Assembly. 

Before another assembly could take place, a mysterious fire consumed the courthouse. The town quietly sought a culprit, and suspicion fell on a man named Harris. Harris, a stranger in town, had arrived shortly before the fire and seemed to be idling around with no apparent purpose. He was never apprehended. Some speculated it was an act of sabotage by a rival city, aiming to shift Tennessee’s legislative hosting responsibilities elsewhere.

The Civil War would spotlight the courthouse again, where it was used as both a hospital and as a makeshift prison by Confederate troops. Rumors of the ghosts of soldiers haunting the courthouse abound, but it’s not them who we’re here to talk about today.  

Hauntings of the Courthouse

The courthouse would later be rebuilt, but this fire (and possible act of sabotage) wasn’t the first tragedy to strike the Rutherford County Historic Courthouse. In fact, the fire caused the population of Murfreesboro to decline significantly, with people fleeing due to a perceived lack of structure in the town.

After the economic decline that resulted from this migration, it seemed that the town had stabilized somewhat when the courthouse was rebuilt. In fact, it had stabilized so much that it started welcoming travelers and tourists back into the city, too.

One of these travelers was the Human Fly. No, we’re not talking about the Cronenberg movie – this was a real stunt performer in the 1920s. His performance specialization was climbing. Back then, scaling buildings and tall structures had become somewhat of a fad and was a good and cheap way to get some entertainment for a town. 

The Human Fly rolled into Murfreesboro in 1923 and announced that he was going to climb up the historic courthouse. An eager crowd gathered to see him perform the stunt, with a local firetruck providing a makeshift spotlight. 

This was to be quite the spectacle. That Friday night at 8 p.m., the Human Fly started the climb, and he seemed to live up to his name. First, he scaled the walls, then the roof, and then the giant clock face itself. He even stood on top of the weather vane, waving his arms in triumph. 

The crowd of two hundred cheered, but for some reason, instead of returning to the ground, the Human Fly decided to climb up the clock face again. As he started his second climb, rain came in, causing him to lose his grip and fall to his death. 

And many say he never left the place…

Who Was the Human Fly? 

Ghost on rooftop
Copyright US Ghost Adventures

But just who was this mysterious climber? 

After his death, the crowd attempted to seek help, but it was too late – the Fly had passed on. It suddenly became important to find out who the man was and if he had any people looking for him. Asking around proved fruitless, as did hanging up flyers. Legend had it that the local funeral parlor even displayed his body in a glass coffin outside a window display, with a note asking if anyone passing by knew the corpse.

But no one did. 

Left with no other option, the town buried him in a pauper’s grave, unclaimed and unmourned. 

Eventually, however, some truths came to light. It was found out that the Human Fly was known to go by the name of Ray Royce. However, it turned out that was just his stunt name. His real name was actually James Dearing

Dearing was a World War I veteran whose time overseas had shaken him badly. He was unable to cope with life as a civilian and, after a tumultuous few years, eventually split up with his wife. Perhaps seeking a new purpose or escaping from it all, Dearing took up a career as a vaudeville performer and occasional steeplejack (a profession involving climbing up roofs to repair church steeples). Eventually, his family was located, and his grave was moved to his home of St. Louis. 

However, while his body might be there, some say his ghost still hangs around his last climb. On dark, stormy nights, a shadowy figure dressed in archaic clothing can be seen ascending the rooftop of the historic courthouse. Maybe it’s the ghost of Dearing, trying to complete his last rainy climb that eluded him in life. 

Haunted Nashville

Now that you’ve read all of the details, what do you think? Does the Human Fly truly haunt the Rutherford County Historic Courthouse? 

Be sure to let us know your thoughts—we’d love to hear from you. If you’re interested in more tales like this, book a ghost tour with Nashville Ghosts, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and keep reading our blog for more real Tennessee hauntings.

Sources:

  1. https://rutherfordsource.com/4-haunted-places-in-murfreesboro
  2. https://rutherfordtnhistory.org/rutherford-county-courthouse
  3. https://www.officialdata.org/us/inflation
  4. https://somethingtotallydifferent.com/haunted-places-rutherford-county-tennessee/2018/10/15
  5. http://southernghoststories.com/tennessee-ghost-stories-the-rutherford-county-courthouse

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