Why the Heck are Cemeteries Haunted???
www.DIPstickMag.com
While working the other day, it occurred to me to wonder exactly why
ghosts
haunt graveyards. Of course, their bodies are buried there, but you would
think they could find a more interesting place to haunt. At least that's
my plan.
So as soon as I got home, I got out all my books on the paranormal and got
to work. I found hundreds of references to haunted graveyards; I was
even told
what kind of ghosts haunted the cemeteries. But in most instances, I
wasn't
given a reason for the haunting. So I got online and got to work
researching
the history of cemeteries, and I found some interesting things. In the
1600's, before embalming and other measures of sanitary practices
were used, the graveyards were often littered with bones. Shallow graves
allowed animals to dig up the bodies and scatter the remains along with
any
contagious diseases they might carry. Despite this, since early
graveyards were
located in the center of communities, the living used the cemeteries and
churchyards
as social centers, where they conducted markets, played games and had
picnics. In Scotland, it was common to prepare for war in cemeteries by
practicing
archery and other weapon drills. In 1665, English Parliament suspected
that
funeral and burial customs were playing a large role in spreading the
Black
Death. The English Parliament then legislated against making any
unnecessary
visits to the graveyards, against large funerals and most im****tant of
all, against
any grave less then six feet deep.
Then of course, there were many instances of premature burial. There were
so many instances of this, that means of alerting the living were being
patented. They include everything from escape hatches in the coffins to
bells rigged
up on pulley systems. The British inventor of the first signaling coffin
became very wealthy from his invention, but in the end of his life, he
burned
himself to death in order to avoid any possibility of being burned
alive. Today,
the modern practice of embalming makes certain that no one will be buried
before they are dead.
In the early 19th century, along came the concept of "rural park"
cemetery. The idea of behind this was to make cemeteries appear more
like parks
with winding paths, landscaped areas and benches, so that the living could
commune with the death in a more peaceful setting. On of the first of
this type of
cemetery is the Mount Auburn cemetery located in Cambridge, MA. As this
concept spread, more and more cemeteries were incor****ating the features
of parks.
In the late 1920's came the first Forest Lawn Memorial Park. Referred to
as
the "Disneyland of the Dead", Forest Lawn sought to recapture the many
uses
that cemeteries were once used for. Forest Lawn at one time had several
art
galleries, wedding chapels, souvenir stands, movie theaters, as well as
other
attractions.
So, now that we have some background history, I decided once again to get
online and see how it applied to some of the more haunted cemeteries in
America. First stop, Bachelor's Grove Cemetery, which is located in
Midlothian, IL
right outside of Chicago. Any type of ghost you could be looking for,
chances
are that Bachelor's Grove has it. According to their website, people use
to go
to the rock quarry that is located right next to it, to enjoy picnic
lunches
as well as to swim or fish at the rock quarry. Legend has it that a
farmer in
the area was dragged into the quarry by a horse that he was using to
plow with.
So once again, we find that the cemetery was used for more then burying
people.
Historic Oakland Cemetery located in Atlanta, GA has always intended for
people to use the cemetery grounds for recreational purposes as well for
the
burial of the loved ones. From the time of the first internment, Oakland
had set
aside an area for picnics. Even to this day, you can visit the cemetery
and
watch people job down the paths as well as enjoy games of Frisbee. There
have
been many murders in and around Oakland as well. It isn't that unusual for
someone to discover a dead body on the grounds.
There is an old cemetery in Doraville, GA. Before the cemetery was built,
there was a house there. The house burned down in the early part of this
century, killing all seven residents of the house. They were the first
that were
buried in the cemetery. I was out there taking pictures over a year ago.
When I got my pictures developed I was interested to find that in the
picture are
the heads of two people. The two heads I photographed are on fire.
It is my theory that the reason ghosts haunt cemeteries is not because
they
are buried there. In fact, the ghost haunting the cemetery might not even
in
fact be buried there. I think they reason they haunt the cemeteries is
because
of the time they spent there when they were alive. Even today, community
churches in the rural south still hold church functions on the edges of
or at
times inside the cemeteries themselves. Teenagers go into old cemeteries
at night
to party. And we, as ghosthunters can often be found in cemeteries taking
recordings and pictures. Who is to say that once we die, we might not
haunt the
cemeteries that we frequented most often?
TY Shannon Edwards..
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