Stories from the strange side of Chickamauga.
Green Eyes Festival is an annual cryptid and folklore festival in downtown Chickamauga, Georgia, inspired by the local legend of Old Green Eyes.
Since its beginning, the festival has brought together cryptid fans, artists, musicians, historians, storytellers and curious visitors from across the Southeast to celebrate the folklore, creativity and strange stories that make this region unique.
Explore interviews, articles, podcasts and other coverage of Green Eyes Festival below.
Cryptids of Georgia: Strange Creatures and Local Legends
From glowing eyes in Chickamauga to mysterious creatures said to inhabit Georgia’s rivers and forests, explore some of the state’s strangest legends.
The Legend of Old Green Eyes in Chickamauga, Georgia
Explore the legend of Old Green Eyes, the mysterious figure said to haunt the woods around Chickamauga Battlefield and the story that inspired Green Eyes Festival.
![[watch now] - Green Eyes Festival - Mysterious Ghoul That Stalks a Civil War Battlefield Chickamauga, GA](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/652436ab6ed4892c2a4350b2/1744744402157-TQ70M84RQPI0RF8GZZMG/Screenshot+2025-04-15+151309.png)
S04E15 The Green Eyes Festival
In the mountains of North Georgia on a spooky civil war battlefield there is a legend of a green eyed monster. This is not that story. This is the story of the new festival set up to commemorate the monster, but also bring people and revenue to this rural southern town. We'll be talking with Nate Tucker and Dillan Whisenant about their experience kicking off the first Green Eyes Festival of Chicamauga, Georgia.
Old Green Eyes: Chickamauga’s New Cryptid-Themed Festival
With a costume made with $40 worth of arts and crafts supplies, the Green Eyes Festival is tapping into Appalachian culture and folklore first experienced in childhood.
The festival’s founders, 24-year-olds Nate Tucker and Dillian Whisenant, posted an image to social media which started a discussion spanning generations. After the post reached over 700 engagements, 200 comments and 300 shares, their social media gained 400 followers overnight.