Seismic Activity at Hank Williams Grave Hits Low After Chris Stapleton Wins
A natural phenomenon that has been baffling scientists at the University of Alabama for years has taken yet another strange “turn” over the past few months and days. At the grave site of Hank Williams—the legendary country singer who is eternally entombed at the Oakwood Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama—unexplained seismic activity has been occurring for many years that has seismologists from all around the world scratching their heads at its origins. And for even more unexplained reasons, the activity has now hit record lows.
Though residents of the area around the Hank Williams grave site attest they’ve been experiencing the phenomenon for much longer, it was on November 11th, 2009 at about 9:55 p.m. local time that the first registered earthquake occurred. Its epicenter was designated as 1304 Upper Wetumpka Rd in Montgomery, AL where the Hank Williams grave sits. Houses in the area suffered only very minor damage, mostly dishes and trinkets falling off of shelves, but the unexplained seismic activity was still enough to spook locals, especially since no fault lines run through the area, and there’s no geological explanation for the events.
Other measurable seismic events occurred on January 13th, 2013, and on August 24th, 2013 emanating from the grave site, prompting scientists from the University of Alabama to monitor the location more closely, eventually revealing almost daily events where something was making the earth shake, and the grave of Hank Williams itself was the epicenter.
With no other leads on what might be causing the seismic events, University of Alabama researchers created a timeline of the earthquakes, and working with country music historians, lined the events up with important moments in country music over the last few years. And lo and behold, they found a parallel.
The first major event from November 11th, 2009 happened at the same time Taylor Swift received her very first CMA Award for Entertainer of the Year award. The second event on January 13th, 2013 lined up with the now notorious revelation that country star Blake Shelton called classic country music fans “Old Farts and Jackasses,” and the third major event on August 24th, 2013 occurred when Florida Georgia Line’s blockbuster song “Cruise” became the longest-charting #1 single in country music history.
“This led us to believe that the tremors might be the cause of Hank Williams being disturbed by current events in country music,” Alabama University seismic researcher Chad Frankenfurter says. “The more colloquial way of putting it is that these small earthquakes are being caused by Hank Williams, well … ‘rolling over in his grave.’ Though of course scientifically we have no way of proving this, it is pretty uncanny how the seismic activity parallels dubious moments on the country music calendar.”
But there’s good news for nearby neighbors who’ve had about enough of rattling dishes and unexplained shakes: Beginning on November 3rd, 2015 when country music artist Chris Stapleton had a massive night on the CMA Awards, winning over current artists like Luke Bryan, Jason Aldean, and Blake Shelton, the seismic activity has nearly ceased. And on Sunday, April 3rd, when Stapleton virtually swept the ACM Awards, the tremors hit all-time lows since record keeping was started in 2013.
Scientists say the seismic activity hasn’t completely ceased however. Working off of their theory that the tremors were being caused by bad country music, they took precise measurements during Sunday’s ACM Awards, and lo and behold, when Luke Bryan performed and flubbed one of the first notes, some movement was recorded. Same when former boy band member Nick Jonas took the stage and played one of the most terrible guitar solos in live music history.
“I guess Hank Williams is a Chris Stapleton fan,” Chad Frankenfurter of the University of Alabama says, “But it also seems like Hank thinks there’s still a lot of work left to do.”
ElectricOutcast
April 5, 2016 @ 10:03 am
Just the headline alone made me smell a gag, you’re losing your touch dude.
Devil Anse
April 5, 2016 @ 10:09 am
What about the Alan Jackson sightings at the gravesite?
Kale
April 5, 2016 @ 10:47 am
He shall be resurrected like Jesus. The Second Coming of Hank Williams is the event that will herald the Country Music Rapture, where we will all be taken to Country Music Heaven so we are spared from the Country Music Apocalypse. Country will be more horrific than ever, but Hank will destroy all the wickedness and leave nothing but good ol’ country music. Once the nightmare is over and country has been cleansed, Hank will bring us back to Earth, where country music has been saved. Hallelujah!
Tezca
April 5, 2016 @ 1:59 pm
What would be Waylon in all of this? Lol
Matt
April 5, 2016 @ 11:16 am
You probably just inspired David Allan Coe to write another song about the Ghost of Hank Williams
Moe Blandy
April 5, 2016 @ 4:09 pm
Needs more racial slurs.
martha
April 5, 2016 @ 11:50 am
That’s funny because I’ve been following hank’s ghost on twitter for quite a while now and he has been really quiet lately 🙂
Nadia Lockheart
April 5, 2016 @ 1:48 pm
…………then, upon hearing Cowboy Troy’s “Countdown to Vacation”, it is reported the ghost of Hank Williams repeatedly kicked the coffin so hard it caused Troy’s residence to pole-vault to the Sun on an estimated seismic read of 14.3. =P
MOreb
April 6, 2016 @ 5:58 pm
I am so glad I wasn’t taking a drink while reading this; my monitor would have been covered in Dr. Pepper.
Gena R.
April 5, 2016 @ 1:50 pm
LOL! Good to know. 🙂 Did they note any rumbles possibly related to the release of ‘I Saw the Light’?
Justin Chambers
April 5, 2016 @ 3:41 pm
Should’ve titled this article saving country music.com hits an all time low joking about someones grave shaking that’s fucking sick have some respect
Trigger
April 5, 2016 @ 3:54 pm
Really?
Matt
April 5, 2016 @ 7:28 pm
Did you eat paint chips as a child?
Andrew
April 5, 2016 @ 9:12 pm
You have got to be kidding me… this is hilarious. Keep it up Trigger. Pop country artists are the ones that need to start showing some respect.
Shane
April 6, 2016 @ 1:58 am
Good grief Andrew, the man’s been dead for 63 years. You act like you went fishing with him yesterday.
cloudeleven
April 5, 2016 @ 3:53 pm
You mean Hank ain’t spinnin’ in his grave anymore? I don’t know, I think as long as Sam Hunt keeps having top 10 country radio hits, the spinnin’ will continue.
Kari Ann
April 5, 2016 @ 11:51 pm
This is hilarious! Although I’m not sure he’d have liked Justin Timberlake performing with Chris last year…any activity then???
ReinstateHank
April 6, 2016 @ 9:18 am
That is freakin awesome!
Camie Jo
April 6, 2016 @ 10:25 am
Lurved it. I do experience all of the above. For real.
I want to look at the seismometers and start researching. It was very convincing and I actually believe it. I’m checking it out. 😀
dave
April 6, 2016 @ 5:10 pm
If its ok with Hank Jr, Shelton and holly Williams its ok with me…. But I doubt they think its to funny
Trigger
April 6, 2016 @ 6:01 pm
The idea that this article is in any way remotely offensive to Hank Williams or his family is absolutely ludicrous, and the only reason anyone is thinking this is because someone, likely with an agenda, said so on stupid-ass Facebook. It’s a fake news article for crying out loud. If you’re somehow offended by it and aren’t a fan of Blake Shelton, then the joke’s on you. If anything it’s honoring Hank by illustrating how he is the ultimate barometer to the integrity of country music. Goodness.
Tyler
April 6, 2016 @ 7:03 pm
Never took Hank fans for the sensitive type who would somehow find offense in an obvious homage to a country legend. You know, a wise man once said, “Don’t take life too serious. You can’t get out alive anyhow.” Preach on, Trigger!
dave
April 7, 2016 @ 2:49 pm
Ive always chose to leave the dead rest in piece
Woogeroo
April 20, 2016 @ 12:33 pm
Hilarious.
rolling over in his grave… ha ha ha.