Witches, ghosts, and vampires – the chilly air and darker nights of autumn-time bring their stories to life in a way no other season can. Even cemeteries can’t escape the tendency toward the spooky and macabre this time of year; in fact, as quiet places to reflect on memories, mortality, and the meaning of death, they may be more prone to such tales than anywhere else.

Some cemetery legends are more sensational than others, but all seem to grow around the stories of regular people who, for one reason or another, became the targets of rumor and superstition.

In the case of Colonel Jonathan Buck, it’s because a mysterious outline of a leg appeared on his grave monument in Bucksport, Maine.

So, what’s the story? There are a few versions, but most of them go something like this: Colonel Buck once condemned a woman to die for witchcraft. Before her untimely demise, she cursed him to bear her mark on his tombstone forever. Not a very dire curse—but then again, the witch story has effectively overshadowed the true details of Colonel Buck’s life, so maybe she was on to something. Is there any truth to the tale? Probably not. Colonel Buck lived decades after the peak witch trial era, and Maine has no history of executions for witchcraft anyway. The legend almost certainly appeared after the outline of the foot did, a tall tale to explain the mysterious leg-shaped stain that keeps coming back, no matter how many times it’s removed.

The legend of Laura Fereday’s grave is due to the achingly beautiful weeping woman sculpture that grieves over her resting place in Spanish Fork City Cemetery, Utah. Laura’s husband, Horace, had the stone made to memorialize Laura after her early death at age 32. It perfectly captures the heartbreak of losing a wife, mother, and loved one too young. When he died 45 years later, he was buried beside Laura under the statue of the weeping woman. According to legend, if close your eyes while wandering the cemetery, you might hear the statue weeping.

Julia Legare was another young wife who died very young, only 22 years old. She was laid to rest in the J.B. Legare family crypt at the Edisto Island Presbyterian Church in South Carolina. The legend gives a grim fate to poor Julia. Allegedly, she was mistakenly buried alive, a fact that was only discovered years later when the family opened the tomb for another burial and discovered her collapsed remains behind the door. From then on, Julia’s spirit was said to push the door open whenever it was closed. In the end, the door was left permanently open to give Julia the freedom she sought in life and in death.

If you head toward Resurrection Cemetery in Chicago, you may meet “Resurrection Mary,” a young blonde woman in a party dress and dancing shoes who’s been said to hitch rides in the area. Just don’t be surprised if she disappears mid-drive—she tends to vanish when you get close to the cemetery. As with many ghosts, Resurrection Mary’s story is a sad one. A night out dancing, an argument with her boyfriend that led her to run outside, a tragic hit-and-run that ended her young life. Did it really happen? Who is the real Resurrection Mary? Some believe Mary Bregovy could be the famous ghost, though some details of her story don’t match the legend. Whatever the truth, keep an eye out for Mary if you’re near Resurrection Cemetery (and consider fulfilling some of the open photo requests while you’re there!).

The origins of some grave legends need little explanation, as in the case of George and Kitty Smith’s grave in Merseyside, England. Some say a vampire lies within, and with its eye-catching coffin shape and the skull, bat wing, and snake motifs, it’s easy to see why.

But each carefully carved image on this gravestone has symbolic meaning intended to communicate something to the viewer. The skull is a Memento Mori symbol, urging visitors to remember that they too will die someday. The wings, though batlike in appearance, represent the ascension of the soul from this earthly plane to a higher one. And the snake, formed in a circle and eating its own tail, is an ouroboros: a symbol of the continuous cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Harder to see is the faint curtain behind the skull, representing a veil between this life and the next. Come for the spooky vampire rumors, stay for the beautiful symbolism. 

Legends like these reflect some of the ways humans cope with life, and especially with death. After all, even the spookiest ghost stories still hint at some version of immortality.  Whether you spend some time in cemeteries this year for the chills and thrills or simply wish to pay your respects to the departed, dress warm, stay safe, and be mindful of the real lives memorialized beneath the stones. 

Do you know of similar legends in cemeteries you’ve visited? Gone on any deep dives to learn the history behind them? Let us know in the comments!