MONTGOMERY — For more than 50 years, people have delighted in the ghost stories of Alabama writer and storyteller Kathryn Tucker Windham.
Now, Alabama Public Television is bringing these literary treasures to life in a new way with “Jeffrey’s Southern Ghosts,” a digital video series premiering Monday on APT’s YouTube channel.
The premiere episode, “The Phantom Steamboat of the Tombigbee,” features the final resting place of the ghost ship Eliza Battle near the town of Pennington.
Through a combination of new interviews, archival footage featuring Windham, and a dramatic reading of the ghost story by Alabama actress Virginia Newcomb, viewers embark on a journey through time and place. The narrative intertwines a classic ghost story with elements of investigation and historical insight, while fully embracing the spooky atmosphere.
“I’m delighted that APT recognizes the importance of bringing these ghost stories to a new audience,” said Windham’s daughter, Dilcy Windham Hilley. “The stories are an important part of our southern folklore, preserving tales that have been passed down through generations. The history woven into these eerie stories is well researched and adds a factual groundwork to each one.
“I expect my mother would be wholly delighted by APT’s approach to her ghost tales.”
Known as “Alabama’s favorite storyteller,” Kathryn Tucker Windham traveled throughout the South collecting folk tales, local legends, and ghost stories — sharing these tales, as well as her wisdom, in print and on the radio.
Beginning with her 1969 book, “13 Alabama Ghosts and Jeffrey,” her spooky tales covered five southern states, frightening and fascinating generations of Alabama schoolchildren.
In today’s landscape, horror-themed YouTube channels have garnered millions of subscribers, and ghost stories are a widely popular topic. “Jeffrey’s Southern Ghosts” fits seamlessly into this trend by introducing Windham’s ghost stories to a new generation primed to enjoy them.
The series will present Jeffrey’s ghost stories through a mix of striking illustrations, dreamy cinematography, mixed media, and both new and archival footage.
Each episode will blend Windham’s narratives with interjections and commentary from historians about the time and place of each tale.
“While the focus will be on the stories themselves and the history surrounding them, Windham will be a recurring presence in every episode, serving as a unifying element for the series,” according to an APT news release. “We will treat her as a semi-legendary figure — a collector who traveled the land gathering its stories. Her recordings will have an ethereal quality, suggesting she comes from an older, more mysterious world reminiscent of the gothic Old South genre, filled with legends and crumbling ruins.
Like ghost stories shared around a campfire, our guiding principle is to honor Ms. Windham by preserving the timeless tradition of storytelling.
“Jeffrey’s Southern Ghosts” is the latest project from the award-winning Multiplatform Content Team at Alabama Public Television, which also produces the ongoing series “Garden Party” with host Trace Barnett.
Further episodes of “Jeffrey’s Southern Ghosts” will premiere on Alabama Public Television’s YouTube channel. Subscribe and click the bell to be notified when new episodes are uploaded. Episodes will begin broadcasting on APT starting in 2026.
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