The Most Haunted Graveyard On Earth

What is now Greenwood Cemetery, in Decatur, Illinois, was first used as sacred burial grounds by Native Americans of the Illiniwek Confederation hundreds of years before any Europeans lived there. It is one of the most haunted places on Earth. Its dark and sordid history has helped make it one of the most infamous burial sites on the planet. But what did this humble boneyard do to earn such a spooky reputation?

#GreenwoodCemetery #haunted #weirdhistory

[OldDeadeye.]

I spent my childhood, teenage years and part of my adult life(no longer living there)in Decatur, IL and have spent so much of my time in Greenwood. You left out so much!!! The forest around Greenwood is called Hell's Hallow and also plays a part in the hauntings. There are tunnels that run under the cemetery as well, old coal mines I believe. Many graves have sunken and fallen into these tunnels. There are even rumors of secret entrances to these tunnels. I spent many nights as a teen there looking for tunnels and ghosts. It truly is a spooky place.

While walking through some spots of the cemetery at night the hairs on your neck and body will stand on end in an instant. Decatur has a rich history until around the 1930's to 1940s. The city itself is in a sad, slow decline. Hell's Hallow has been gutted to make a road, park and room for more homes. There are many hauntings in this city, there are even some books written by a local author called Haunted Decatur by Troy Taylor. He has a series of Haunted books from around central IL.

On the far north edge of the city which is technically Forsyth, IL there is a neat place called the Old Book Barn. Check it out! If you do pass through, please be respectful. The people for the most part are nice, humble, friendly and will tell you all kinds of local stories. Thanks for the touch of home, I really needed this.

[vinnydaq]

FYI, there is a difference between graveyards and cemeteries, the difference being a graveyard, by law, is located solely on church property, while a cemetery can be located anywhere. The more you know…

[leslietarkin]

I like to tour old cemeteries and graveyards especially the ones from the colonial era-19th century. The things folks wrote on the gravestones of their loved ones is always sweet. Some epitaphs are really poetic. Plus, I find graveyards and cemeteries to be really quiet and peaceful.

[luckyeven]

One of my hobbies I picked up during Covid lockdowns was to get cleaners for common aggregate found in headstones and walk through, pick out a few from 1900 and older and just sit and chat while I clean the stones. It's a great stress relief and gives me a great sense of self worth. I've come to really enjoy cemeteries

[emilyhunter]

This reminds me of my encounter with a spirit. I was at boarding school for my high school years, didn't much enjoy the place but I wasn't allowed to drop out. One night, I saw a weird flash of light on my door, figured it was probably one of the night security guards making sure no one was prowling around. Every night it would be there, sometimes bigger and sometimes smaller. Over about a month, the random flickers developed into a human form.

A young looking man, with patched and ragged clothes. Every night, he'd appear and point out through the windows, towards the bushland that bordered the school grounds. Occasionally he'd appear with a bridle in his hand or a saddle at his feet, so I figured he was some old farmhand from back in the days when the school grounds were farmlands. I started exploring out in the bushlands, careful not to let the teachers or staff spot me since I wasn't meant to be out there.

It must have taken me three or four months before I found a broken headstone mostly buried in mud and leaves. Turned out he wasn't a local farmhand, but a drover from the far north who had gotten ill on a long ride and died at an overnight camp right near where he'd been buried. Over time, he'd been forgotten by locals and his final resting place was left abandoned by everyone. The next chance I had to get into town, I went straight to the local historical society with my information and the sketches I'd done of the stone and surrounds.

Last time I was back there, his final resting place had been completely repaired, replanted and rededicated to his memory. The school went to the expense of having a proper access road put in so local history buffs and anyone else who wanted to could get out and see his grave without having to scramble through untamed bushlands.

[Crystal-ecjg]

I was born/raised in Decatur and I still live there. I've spent many nights hanging out in that cemetery. I've never been on one but now every October they have Haunted Decatur tours that will take you to most of the locations like the cemetery and the Lincoln theater.

[tt]

Being born & raised my whole life not 5 minutes from the infamous Bachelors Grove, 15 minutes from Resurrection cemetery and 2 hours from Greenwood I can honestly say it’s all hype. I’m WAY more interested in the cemeteries of Europe. The cemeteries that have beautiful grave stones from 1440. The places that are so thick with history that you hear James Earl Jones narrating your journey through it! Those are the ones I want to explore respectfully.

[xXxCrazyPandaxXx]

When a haunting story starts with "this now stands on what used to be a Indian Burial Ground" is 100%, without a reasonable doubt totally f***ing haunted.

[botticellichick]

This is the only narrator that can discuss the macabre and still insert satire and ironic witt!

Happy Halloween Weird History!! 🎃

[kevinbartolomucci]

I''m from Decatur. I used to roam this cemetary when I was a teenager. Yeah, it's spooky. The stories we always heard were the bad people would murder their victims there (or elsewhere) and stuff the bodies in the slots in the mausoleums. Every now and then, we would find an unlocked mausoleum. That was always a fun time.
Also, regarding the pact with the devil thing. We always heard that could be done behind the cemetary on a road that ran through the woods bordering the property. The woods were called Hell's Hallow. Go to the road at midnight and the devil will show up.
Many fond memories of that place. I don't recall ever seeing a ghost or anything paranormal. However, many beers were killed tthere.

[bagder]

The women in white and the weeping women are quite common ghosts stories, every county seems to have one

[pattycake]

Your sassy humor just makes my day. This was a great video. Thank you.

[davidshaffer]

The little cemetery in Silvercliff Colorado is classic to visit. On the right nights you can see glowing lights around the tombstones. There was a story in an old national geographic magazine in the sixties.
It's true I used to live there. And I also saw the lights.

[lilwil-nsuo]

We have 3 graveyards by our house. The oldest is a civil war graveyard for union African American soldiers and sailors. It is 2 doors down from our house. I grew up in Florence, NE. It was winter headquarters for the Mormon pioneers on their way to Utah. The Mormon cemetery on the hill was/is quite famous.

[cheerjlf]

Wow, I grew up near Decatur, IL and had no idea...and love old graveyards. Too bad I moved away 20 years ago. Pretty cool though.

[ricardoaguirre]

In El paso Texas we have Concordia cemetery where infamous outlaw John Wesley Hardin is buried. It is said that you can hear the voices of children laughing and playing at night, the spirits of those who died during the Spanish flu epidemic.

[hoosierpatriot]

I used to live on Cemetery Rd. in a small town in Southern Indiana. There are small family cemeteries along it the largest of which has about 20 graves. Some of the dates are worn off but a few of them go all the way back to the earliest settlers of the area. And cemetery rd connects to s.r. 135 which was built along the Buffalo trace which is ALSO the route John Hunt Morgan and Morgan's raiders took after winning the battle of Corydon and headed for Salem. My house was extremely haunted and every couple that lives there ends up divorcing. I remember being a very very angry person living there and I can't explain why.

[fckmylife]

this is literally my favourite channel ever🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

[nikkirae]

This is so weird!! My mom was born and raised in Decatur Illinois, she recently passed a year ago and that’s where we sent her back to Decatur Illinois! I didn’t know they had a hunted cemetery 🤔

[spontaneous_kat]

Is it just me or does the story about the girl meeting up to get married and then being buried in her wedding dress AND haunting the area of her grave site in her wedding dress, sound alot like the plot of the corpse bride??