Experiencing the Ura Shrine
Two Spooky Sisterhood Council members and two of our previously featured Spooky Sibs got to investigate Ura Shrine with their teams in April 2025. Below are some of their stories.
Photo from: Beth L. personal collection
Beth’s Experience:
When I was invited by the Sinister Sisters Paranormal group to investigate the Ura Shrine, I had never heard of it before. I made the decision not to look up much history on the location, like many of the other locations I’ve investigated in the past. I do this so I come in with no knowledge of certain hauntings. I love having a very natural experience. The only thing that I had heard of before was something about a haunted coconut.
The first thing that caught my attention about the location was the fact that the address was on a cemetery road and when we drove up to it, there was, in fact, a very small cemetery right across the street. When we parked, I was just in awe! The bamboo forest was so beautiful and was lined with fairy lights through the walkways.
Photo from: Beth L. personal collection
When we walked into the shrine itself, it was like walking into a new world. The energy of this place was magnetizing. I was just so excited and happy to be there and I could tell the spirits wanted us there, as well. We walked inside and I just couldn’t quit smiling. The owner explained several different rooms and objects to us. He also explained that the Ura Shrine is like yin and yang, where there was a balance to the place.
There have been several haunted items given to the owners to keep at the shrine because the location keeps them balanced. In fact, there is a room FULL of haunted objects where the famous haunted coconut resides. Another haunted object that we had the pleasure of meeting was Sally the doll, which is kept in a coffin in the grotto room.
Photo from: Beth L. personal collection
Not only were we given access to the shrine and objects to investigate, but we participated in a Beltane ceremony with the Ura Shrine witch. The charged energy during the ceremony was insane! I’ve never participated or experienced anything like it! I believe this ceremony helped open us up to the paranormal activity at the shrine.
During the investigation, we heard something running upstairs when nobody was there, several knocks, and what sounded like whispers. The cat balls went off in the grotto and the dead bell went off all night. It was one of the most active investigations that I’ve had in a really long time! Although it was so active, I never felt like anything was malicious. I honestly think the spirits enjoyed our company and loved being able to communicate. I absolutely loved my experience at the Ura Shrine and plan on taking a few other team members back in the future!
Photo from: Rachel D. personal collection
Rachel’s Experience:
Visiting Ura Shrine in Bristol, Tennessee, turned out to be one of the most surreal and spiritually charged experiences of my life. Nestled in a quiet, wooded area, the shrine carries an eerie stillness that presses in the moment you cross onto the grounds. I had heard whispers of strange happenings and rumors of witchcraft tied to the place, but I wasn’t prepared for what a feeling of home I felt.
The energy there felt almost like walking underwater. As I explored the shrine, I felt a strong pull toward a small, dimly lit corner where a collection of objects were displayed, including the infamous Sally Doll. At first glance, it looked like any other vintage doll—dusty, cracked porcelain, with a faint, unsettling smile. But then I saw it: her eyes moved. Not just a trick of the light or my imagination, but a slow, deliberate shift, as if she was watching me.
Photo from: Rachel D. personal collection
A deep chill crawled up my spine, and I instinctively took a step back. But the room felt charged, as if the air itself was holding its breath. I wasn’t alone. I couldn’t see anyone else, but I felt watched—intently. A soft, almost inaudible whisper brushed past my ear, though no one was nearby. It wasn’t just the doll. Something else lingered there.
Later, I found out that many have claimed to experience ghostly encounters at the shrine—some tied to old Appalachian witchcraft, others to spirits long attached to the land. Whatever it was I felt that day, it wasn’t fear—it was reverence. A powerful, undeniable sense that the veil between worlds had thinned, if only for a moment.
