Cemetery Review #2

At last, a second installment of cemetery reviews! Last month, I had the good fortune to visit two very old and gorgeous cemeteries in Manchester, New Hampshire. I'll be reviewing them, and I'll be reviewing an old favorite from Windsor, Vermont. Enjoy!

1. Old South Church Cemetery, Windsor, Vermont
Old South Church Cemetery sits in the the churchyard of the Old South Church in downtown Windsor. It is a very simple and small graveyard, but it is quite pretty and attracts tourists in the fall. It seems to have been founded sometime in the mid-to-late 18th century, and is no longer active. The last burial seems to have taken place in the late 19th or early 20th century. The oldest gravestones are in the back, while the newest are in the front, a common layout with most graveyards, It has plenty of slate headstones dating from the late 18th and early 19th centuries, featuring soul effigies, urns and weeping willow trees. There are a few interesting epitaphs, including one that briefly describes the deceased cause of death: "Thrown from a Train,". Another describes "A Negro Servant who Died in Christ" and there are also a few beautiful poems, and even some Shakespeare quotes to be found.
The gravestone are in decent condition. Some of the them are damaged, especially the slate ones. Some of been repaired, but there are plenty of fallen stones, and even an old slate gravestone that has split, and is now coming apart in flakes. But most of the monuments are legible, except for a few cases where it has faded completely or where there the stone had broken off and gone missing, save for the base. A few broken and misplaced stone lean against the door of the cold storage crypt. My guess is that the damage is caused by a combination of vandalism and nature's wear and tear.
The grounds are fairly well kept. The grass is mowed, but there are lots of un-raked leaves and fallen branches. One grave stone is almost complete overgrown by brambles, which is a shame, as it is a beautiful old slate monument with a carving of a heart.
There is very little garbage in the cemetery, except for the odd bottle or drink container now and then. Overall, the cemetery is in rather good condition. Some family plots are cordoned off with ornate iron fences, but the cemetery itself only has fencing along the back and the sides of the property lines. The front of the cemetery is completely open, you can stroll into the cemetery at anytime, though I wouldn't recommend doing so after dark, as the police would most likely be patrolling the area.
The cemetery has a small population of squirrels and crows. The crows' cawing lends a rather eerie atmosphere to the cemetery.
I have never experienced anything outright paranormal in the cemetery. I have never seen or heard any ghosts in the Old South Church cemetery. But there are certain spots in the back corner and right behind the church itself that give off strange vibes. My favorite part of the cemetery is a small hill near the cold storage crypt. There is a grave on that hill belonging to a 13 year old girl named Sarah Millins, who died sometime in the 1810's. I feel oddly attached to this particular grave, for reasons I cannot explain. Every time I visit the Old South Church cemetery, I feel compelled to leave a flower at this young lady's grave and share a few kind words with her.
There appear to be a few graves belong to notable locals. I haven't seen this cemetery in over a year, but I would like to visit it again sometime soon. It is a Vermont cemetery worth visiting, especially if you enjoy slate headstones and interesting epitaphs.

2. Pine Grove Cemetery, Manchester, New Hampshire
This is without a single doubt, the biggest cemetery I have ever visited. It is so big, that you can't see all of it in one day. It is the largest cemetery in New Hampshire, according to a caretaker I talked to.
It appears to have been founded in the 1850's, when the Valley Cemetery ran out of room. It is still active, with lots of room to expand. It has a public mausoleum (which I did not visit), and even a pond with little stone bridges. There are thousands of gorgeous monuments, with lots of ornate statues, carvings and very opulent mausoleums belonging to the wealthy denizens of Manchester, featuring stained glass. There are gravestones, both modern and from the last century featuring photos of the deceased. There are two Civil War memorials. There is also a large chapel and a caretakers buildings. I could spend hours telling you about the individual mausoleums and graves I fell in love with, but not wanting to bore you anymore than I already am, I won't.
The monuments are in fantastic condition! I saw only a handful broken stones, most of them old marble ones from the 1850's.
The grounds are incredibly well kept, the grass mowed. There were fallen leaves, but that is to be expected. There were very few fallen branches. The newer sections are better kept than the old ones, and the section with the big Gilded Age mausoleums are better kept than the older part of the cemetery dating from the 1850's.
Is Pine Grove haunted? I did experience some strange activity at the Hill Mausoleum. Pictures I had taken of the inside of this particular mausoleum yielded strange phenomena, such as mist and orbs. I have also experienced freezing cold drafts coming from the mausoleum and feelings of utter terror. As a result, I avoid this monument. Otherwise, I do not think the cemetery is haunted. Overall, the place has some very comfortable, and almost familiar feelings for me.
Plenty of wealthy and notable people are buried there, but I couldn't tell you who the hell they are. Some of my favorite monuments consist of a statue of a woman and a little girl, a large sandstone monument (that's starting to crumble in places), a stone tree trunk featuring a life-sized lamb and dove and a pair of ceramic monuments shaped like open books.
This cemetery is definitely worth a trip to Manchester, and it's perhaps the most beautiful cemetery I've ever had the opportunity to visit.

3. Valley Cemetery, Manchester, New Hampshire
This is the most interesting cemetery I've ever visited. The cemetery was founded in the 1840's and was designed to be a garden cemetery. Most of the graves are located on a terraced ring of land, in the center is a valley which gives the cemetery it's name. There are very few graves in this valley. Valley Cemetery is no longer active.
The cemetery features a few slate stones from the 1840's, a couple of statues and a some mausoleums. There is also a lovely chapel, with a fountain, though that fountain appears to need repair. There are lots of beautiful carvings.
The cemetery is in sad condition, but thankfully, there has been an ongoing project to restore this beautiful, historic location to its former glory. A lot of gravestones are broken or damaged, and there are a few gravestones in the center valley of the cemetery that are overgrown and abandoned. The damage to various monuments appears to be a combination of the elements and vandalism. Some gravestones have been repaired, and some have not. There is some trash here and there, left by inconsiderate people. But like I already mentioned, there is a restoration project underway, and they're doing a wonderful job. The cemetery, even with its damage is still quite breathtaking.
While I did not experience anything outright paranormal in this cemetery, I did sense feelings of sadness and anger in areas where gravestones were broken or abandoned, especially in the center valley, where there were some isolated and overgrown stones. Otherwise, the areas that had been restored, felt peaceful. I also had overwhelming sensations of familiarity in certain parts of the cemetery, particularly near some damaged stones with ornate flower carvings, and near a mausoleum that overlooked the valley.
The cemetery contains several notable people, including several governors and mayors. There is also a website you can visit that contains information on the cemetery, you can find the link here: http://www.valley-cemetery.com/
Valley Cemetery is a gorgeous piece of history that shouldn't be left to abandon and ruin. I would definitely see this cemetery again and would recommend other to visit it, but as always I ask that people treat this beautiful place with respect.