NEWS

CHAPEL HILL -- On a moonless, stormy night, can one see a ghost ship sailing off Cape Hatteras? Does a fierce giant armed with lightning bolts guard his lair in the Blue Ridge Mountains?

And just where, exactly, is the pirate Blackbeard's head?

These and other questions, posed in tall tales told for generations, will be explored in "North Carolina Mysteries, Myths and Legends," a free public exhibit from Sept. 5 to Jan. 19 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The North Carolina Collection Gallery in Wilson Library will present the exhibit of illustrations, books, museum objects, manuscripts, maps and recorded selections of folk songs inspired by the state's many myths and legends, said Neil Fulghum, gallery keeper and curator of the exhibit.

"Given the vast number of unusual stories and historic sites scattered throughout the state's 100 counties, a single exhibit can only present a small sampling of them," Fulghum said. "Therefore, a bulletin board will be included in the exhibit, and visitors will be encouraged to post and share their knowledge about mysteries, myths and legends in their own communities."

Besides revisiting such popular topics as the Lost Colony of Roanoke Island, the exhibit will feature numerous lesser-known stories, Fulghum said. Questions presented will include:

What happened to the crew that vanished without a trace from a five-masted schooner off the Outer Banks in 1921?

What are the lights that hover over Brown Mountain in Burke County?

Why is Room 545 at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville reportedly cooler than the other rooms?

Who is the phantom hitchhiker who wanders a section of highway between Greensboro and High Point?

Is lost Confederate gold buried somewhere on the UNC campus?

The gallery opens from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. Guided tours of the exhibit may be scheduled. At 2 p.m. Wednesdays, gallery staff offer an in-depth presentation about this exhibit and others in the gallery. For information, call 962-1172.

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Contacts: Neil Fulghum, Leah Hoyle and Anna Davis, (919) 962-1172