Chicago Haunted Handbook. Jeff Morris
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ghost story
During an investigation of illegal activity, it was discovered that one section of the cemetery experienced the most foul play. Thus, it was designated by the sheriff’s office as “Crime Scene A.” Most of the paranormal activity occurs in the area known as “Crime Scene A.” People feel uncomfortable in this area. They feel like they are being watched or experience other indescribable sensations.
There are often reports of people walking through the cemetery at night. Whenever these figures are investigated, no one is ever found. Some suggest that the figures who aimlessly roam the cemetery at night are those whose bodies were moved during the grave desecration scandal and who are looking for their original graves.
visiting
The cemetery is open every day of the week except Sunday. It is open 8 a.m.–4 p.m. daily. During these hours, you may roam the cemetery in an attempt to experience some of the paranormal feelings that are often reported. Because the cemetery closes at 4 p.m., you will be unable to enter the cemetery at night to look for the roaming figures. However, there are public roads encircling the cemetery that remain open throughout the night. You can drive along these roads at night and peer into the cemetery in an attempt to see the lost figures roaming aimlessly around.
CALVARY CEMETERY
301 Chicago Avenue, Evanston, Illinois 60202
directions
From the center of Chicago, take North Lake Shore Drive for about 6 miles, then turn right onto Sheridan Road. Follow Sheridan Road for a little more than 2.5 miles. Sheridan continues through a narrow stretch between Lake Michigan and Calvary Cemetery.
history
There are many historical figures from the Chicagoland area buried in this cemetery. White Sox founder and ballpark namesake Charles Comiskey is buried here, as well as a mayor and prominent businessmen from the area. Those who are buried at the cemetery have little, if anything, to do with the ghost who haunts the place.
There are a couple of different historical accounts that may explain the strange ghost that is seen here. The first account describes an aviator at the nearby naval base who was doing maneuvers over Lake Michigan during World War II. While flying, the plane experienced a mechanical failure and crashed into Lake Michigan. Eventually, wreckage from the plane washed ashore near Calvary Cemetery, but the body of the aviator was never recovered. The second account is more verifiable than the first. On May 4, 1951, a flight instructor at the nearby Naval Air Station Glenview was flying out over Lake Michigan on a calm day. Up until this point, all other flights from the base were uneventful. After the flight instructor lost radio contact with the base, search parties were sent to look for him, but no traces were found. Two days later, his body washed up on the North Shore of Lake Michigan across Sheridan from Calvary Cemetery.
ghost story
The ghost here near Calvary Cemetery is one of the most frequently sighted apparitions in all of Chicagoland. People who drive down Sheridan around midnight will sometimes see this apparition walking across the road between Lake Michigan and the cemetery. The apparition takes the form of a man in his late 20s or early 30s who is covered with seaweed. There will be a slight green glow coming from him as he drags himself across the street towards the cemetery. After he crosses the street, he vanishes into the cemetery.
The locals are well aware of the ghost who crosses the street into the cemetery. They have even given him a name, “Seaweed Charlie.”
visiting
This is one of Chicago’s easiest ghosts to go looking for for a couple of reasons. First, the ghost is not in the cemetery, which closes before dark every night. The ghost crosses Sheridan Road just outside the cemetery gates, and the road is open throughout the night. The ghost is most often seen by passing motorists, who are able to drive up and down Sheridan Road in this area all night without fear of legal ramifications. Second, this ghost appears often. There are literally hundreds of reports of people who have seen this ghost. Sometimes, the ghost has even been reported to have disrupted traffic in the area. Witnesses will see cars ahead of them swerving to avoid hitting something, which they soon discover is a green glowing man covered with seaweed.
COUNTY FARM CEMETERY
(JOLIET POTTER’S FIELD)
880 Mission Boulevard, Joliet, Illinois 60431
directions
From the center of Chicago, take I-55 South for 40 miles to Exit 253 toward Joliet. Turn left onto US-52 East and follow this road for 2 miles. Turn right onto Infantry Drive and then, after 0.5 mile, right again onto County Farm Road. Take a left onto Mission Boulevard. You will need to park by the soccer fields. Standing on Mission Boulevard facing the field, you proceed to your right until you come upon a thin line of trees adjacent to a residential area, then follow that line of trees away from Mission Boulevard until you hit another small grove of trees. The cemetery is inside this grove.
history
The cemetery was founded in 1850 and belonged to Will County Farm. Will County Farm was a home for the elderly and the homeless. It is likely that many of these people were buried in the cemetery. Other poor people who could not afford a plot in another cemetery were also buried here over the years. Historians think that there could be as many as 150 people buried in the cemetery.
Throughout the cemetery, there are 48 stones. Most of the stones are marked with numbers instead of names, which suggests that multiple people are buried in each of the areas marked by the stones. Only one stone currently bears a name in the cemetery. It says “George Miller.” He died in 1907.
In more recent years, the cemetery had fallen into complete disrepair. Broken headstones littered the ground. Bones from the deceased had surfaced and been taken by local wildlife. Local volunteers are working to fix up the cemetery, but its disrepair still echoes through the ghosts that haunt this potter’s field.
ghost story
The cemetery itself has an air of sadness and despair. People who enter it are sometimes overwhelmed by this feeling. As soon as they step out of the cemetery, they are no longer sad. It is almost as if the cemetery has its own atmosphere of depression that only affects people when they are within the cemetery grounds.
Inside the cemetery, trees and bushes often rustle and move by themselves on windless days. When investigated, no cause for the rustling can be determined. Other witnesses have reported seeing glowing orbs of light floating through the cemetery.
Perhaps the strangest thing to happen here is that many photographs of the cemetery are distorted. Many photographers state that on certain days it is impossible to get a clear picture of the cemetery. Certain elements are out of focus for no reason. Other parts seem stretched beyond recognition.
visiting
The cemetery is open from sunrise until sunset. This is not optimal for ghost hunting here, but there are still some things that visitors are able to experience. The distorted photographs can be taken during daylight hours. The oppressive feelings of despair are experienced during both day and night. Unfortunately, the glowing orbs of light are only seen at night and the cemetery is too far from