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There are more ghost stories and eerie
legends told about this small, abandoned cemetery than any other place in
the Chicago area. It is located on the edge of the Rubio Woods Forest
Preserve, near the suburb of Midlothian, Illinois. This ramshackle burial
ground is said to be infested with ghosts and more than 100 different
reports of strange phenomena have been collected about the place...
including actual apparitions, unexplained sights and sounds, and even
glowing balls of light.
There have been no burials here for years and as a place of rest for the
departed, it has been largely forgotten. But ask any ghost chaser where to
go to find a hauntings and chances are, this cemetery will be very high on
the list!
The haunted history of the place began in 1844 when the area was set aside
as a burial ground, first called "Everdon's". The cemetery saw its first
burial that year and it was in steady use until 1965, when things began to
drop off. It should be noted that the last actual burial here was in 1989,
when the ashes of a local resident were interred on the grounds. However,
before that time (and since) the place has been abandoned. In the middle
1800's, the cemetery became known as "Bachelor's Grove", although history
is a bit cloudy as to how this name came about. Some have suggested that
near the cemetery was a settlement of immigrants, mostly German, who had
helped to build the Illinois-Michigan Canal. The settlers lived on small
farms and most of the men were unmarried, so the place became known as
Bachelor's Grove. Others dispute this and say the name came from a family
who lived in the area named "Batchelder", although no real evidence exists
to back up these claims.
Trouble began for the cemetery in the 1960's, when the road leading back
to the cemetery became a popular "lover's lane". At some point, it was
also discovered by vandals, who left the cemetery itself is in terrible
condition, desecrated and forgotten. This became so bad that the graveyard
was officially closed in 1965. Since that time, especially in the 1970's,
things have gotten even worse. It is believed that satanic and occultist
groups perform ceremonies here, sometimes leaving the ghastly remains of
their rituals behind. Vandals have left few of the graves still standing
and many tombstones have been stolen, and sometimes returned to the
grounds, giving rise to legends that the grave stones sometimes move
by themselves. There have been over 100 paranormal incidents reported here
including ghost lights, inexplicable lights and voices, apparitions,
strange photos, anomalous recordings and
even sightings of unbelievable creatures.
There is no question that vandals have
not been kind to Bachelor's Grove, but then neither has time. The cemetery
could once be reached by the Midlothian Turnpike, but the track to the
cemetery was passed by with construction of 143rd Street. People soon
forgot about the place and it would have faded into memory if not for the
stories of the ghosts!
Access to the cemetery is gained by way of a narrow gravel trail. Along
this old road, many visitors to the area have reported seeing a phantom
farmhouse that seems to appear and disappear at random. The house is
always described in the same way, as a white house with porch pillars, a
swing and a soft light burning in the window, but it is never reported in
the same place. As witnesses approach the house, it always disappears. A
number of completely independent witnesses have reported the house, not
realizing that it was unnatural (until it vanished) and all of them have
pointed to different locations when they spotted it.
The house has been reported during both daylight hours and at night but
historical files show no record of a house ever existing here!
Just past the fence surrounding the cemetery is a small lagoon that
borders the nearby turnpike. The legends say this pond was once a favorite
dumping ground for Chicago gangsters during the years of Prohibition. A
number of bodies were said to have been found floating here in the past,
so it isn't surprising that the pond is reported to be haunted. Strangely,
one ghost linked to the lagoon, is said to be a two-headed creature that
has been reported on several occasions.
The most famous ghost of the lagoon is an old farmer who was pulled into
the water by his plow horse in the 1870's. The horse was drowned by the
weight of the plow, taking the farmer with it. Two forest rangers spotted
the farmer guiding the horse and plow more than 100 years later.
The cemetery itself has it's own ghosts, from the image of people dressed
in monk's robes to the spirit of a glowing yellow man seen in 1984. Many
of these ghosts have been captured on film, like the image of a woman
seated on a tombstone that was taken with infrared film a few years ago.
Could she be the most famous ghost of Bachelor's Grove? This spirit is
known as the "White Lady" or the "Madonna of Bachelor's Grove". She is
said to be the ghost of a woman buried in the cemetery next to her young
son. She has been seen on nights of the full moon, wandering the cemetery
with a baby in her arms.
The ghost lights of the cemetery, and the trail leading through the woods,
are also well known to researchers. The strange lights on the trail are
said to be red in color and move so fast that they leave a streak behind
them in the air. The blue balls of light in the cemetery itself seem to
have an intelligence, dancing just out of reach of those who pursue them.
Even the turnpike near Bachelor's Grove is said to be haunted. For a
number of years, witnesses have reported phantom cars that disappear along
this road. One couple even had an auto accident with a car that vanished
before their eyes, leaving their own vehicle untouched . . .despite the
sounds of bending metal and breaking glass.
Bachelor's Grove is west of
Midlothian. Take Cicero Avenue to the Midlothian
Turnpike and go west to the Rubio Woods. Parking can be located across the
road from
the trail entrance in a small park. The cemetery is heavily patrolled by
members of the police force and the rangers for the forest preserve. It is
closed after sundown and all visitors should proceed with caution. |
