GreenManTunnel

Green Man's Tunnel

Two of our investigators, along with a friend of ours, made a
trip to the famed Green Man's Tunnel in July 2005. It was hot,
and it became extremely humid as the night went on, but we
stuck around long enough to make sure our results were
solid. Supposedly, there are two Green Man Tunnels in
Allegheny County, Pa. The real one is located in South Park
Twp., the other we believe is just a misidentification.

The legend of the Green Man has many variations. The most
common element in the variations is that a man working on,
or above, the railroad that used to run through the area, was
electrocuted or struck by lightening. Some claim that he died
and his spirit now haunts the former train tunnel, yet another
says he lived, but was horribly disfigured and would rarely go
out in public. Another states he somehow began to glow
green. It is said that if you stop in the tunnel that you can
drive through, and yell "Green Man" out of your car window
with your headlights turned off, he will appear.

The tunnel that you can drive through, on the road below, is
actually known as Corvette Tunnel. The tunnel itself is a
dangerous place to stop, but we made several runs through
it to test the theory. Each time, a car would come along and
we'd have to move fast. The last time, however, we were
stopped for about a minute and nothing happened. This is a
dangerous place to try this, and we do not recommend
attempting it for yourself.

The majority of our investigation took place inside the upper
train tunnel, the Green Man's tunnel, which is not used
anymore. In fact, either the township, or county, now use it
to store rock salt. We recorded infrared video, took
numerous still pictures, and set up an audio recorder for
EVP. However, this did not get us any results. We
continuously scanned for temperature changes and EMF
spikes, but we encountered no anomalies. We did not obtain
any EVP, either.

We have concluded, to our satisfaction, that the Green Man,
as suspected, is another urban legend perpetuated by local
teens out for a thrill. Although, it may very well be possible
that it was haunted in the past. Since, it is believed by some
that salt can act as a spirit deterrent, it's previous inhabitant
(s) may have vacated. With the tunnel being used to store
rock salt now, it's possible that we may have just been to late.

** Update: March 2008 ***

At this time we believe that we have conclusively put to rest
any allegations of the "Green Man" haunting. Through
another investigation we were fortunate enough to meet a
man who, back in is younger days, KNEW the so-called
"Green Man". Our source, whose name we are omitting for
privacy reasons, provided quite a lot of details and first hand
accounts. First and foremost, a name. The "Green Man" was
actually Ray Robinson. His story is actually a tragic one.
Originally he was known to locals as “Charlie No Face”. Mr.
Robinson was horribly disfigured during an electrical
accident on June 18, 1919, when he was only 8 years old and
accidentally touched a high-voltage electrical trolley line.

He lived his life pretty much a recluse and wouldn't come out
during the day, because of his appearance. When he wanted
to go out, he would do so at night, walking along Route 351.
It became common for teenagers to stop and talk to him, and
to bring him beer and cigarettes. This became so popular
that just about every weekend there would be teenagers
going out in their cars, along with scared girlfriends in the
back seat, to go talk to Ray Robinson.

Another of Robinson's witnesses was quoted as saying that
his second nickname, “The Green Man” had nothing to do
with his skin tone, as the urban legend indicates. That
nickname can be traced to the green plaid shirts that he
wore. Although, some have a different account. Andy
Zelesnak, a 70-year-old Koppel man, told his stories about
seeing Robinson seven or eight times..."Robinson was called
the Green Man because his damaged face had a greenish
hue, especially when light shone on it,” Zelesnak said. “He
was wonderful guy".

He did what he could, making and selling doormats, belts and
wallets. Some say that they would see him mowing his family
lawn with a push mower. Most say that he was the kindest
man they had ever met. However, he wasn't always treated
with the same regard. People were either kind or mean to
Robinson. Often playing practical jokes on him for their own
amusement.

Even with the hardships he had to endure, Robinson lived to
the age of 74, passing away in 1985. More recently, it was
announced last fall that a Studio City, California movie team,
Ivory Seam Productions, is making a film about him.
Production was to take place locally, in and around Ellwood
City, PA, where Robinson was from. They even held auditions
back in October '07 to cast locals for the film.

Is it any wonder why "Green Man's Tunnel" isn't haunted?
Even if you ignore that fact that the tunnel is not even in the
same county where Robinson lived, it's clear that he doesn't
even have any association with it. He did not work on the
railroad there, he was not struck by lightening, nor did he die
there or "glow" green. So, let's not diminish the real story of
Ray Robinson and twist it into a tale that taints, or ignores,
the life of a man whom so many people once called a friend.