“Certain it is, the place still continues under the sway of some witching power, that holds a spell over the minds of the good people, causing them to walk in a continual reverie. They are given to all kinds of marvellous [sic] beliefs, are subject to trances and visions, and frequently see strange sights, and hear music and voices in the air.”
This quote from Washinton Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” describes the town at the heart of his story but could easily be a description of a creepy, haunted cemetery.
Picture it: leaves crunching under your feet as you carefully pick your way through gravestones old and new, some crumbling and some well-kept, both small and monumental, the cool breeze of autumn licking at your face, the hoot of an owl echoing behind you as the sun sets and darkness settles over the landscape. A chill runs up your spine, causing you to shiver and glance cautiously over your shoulder.
If this sounds like a scene you’d enjoy being in, we’ve got good news. Pennsylvania has no shortage of historic cemeteries, offering up a creepy factor that can’t be matched. Check out our list of four cemeteries to learn more about them. Best part: visiting a cemetery won’t cost you a dime. These places of reverence are public spaces and, as such, do not charge an entrance fee.
In the first half of the 19th century, attitudes about death and dying began to shift dramatically and many cities established large swaths of land to be used exclusively for burying the dead. Laurel Hill Cemetery, located along Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia, was one such cemetery. It was founded in 1836 and one thing that sets Laurel Hill apart from other large cemeteries of the time is that it was open to people of all incomes – both poor and rich are buried next to one another, representing a more egalitarian approach to mourning.
Additionally, it is both a “rural cemetery” (despite its very urban location today) and a “historic garden cemetery.” A rural cemetery is one that is set 1-5 miles outside of a city, and a historic garden cemetery denotes the cultivation of flora throughout the grounds, as well as accommodations for walking/driving paths. These cemeteries were typically seen as places for recreation and exposure to nature as much as they were a place for mourning.
Some notable figures buried at Laurel Hill include: Thomas McKean, a signer of the Declaration of Independence; Sarah Josepha Hale, the woman credited with establishing Thanksgiving as a national holiday and author of “Mary Had A Little Lamb”; Hub AKA Leonard Nelson Hubbard, bass player for The Roots; Henry Deringer, notorious gunsmith, Harry Kalas, Philadelphia Phillies Hall of Fame Broadcaster; George Meade, Union Army General; and Sara Yorke Stevenson, suffragist and archaeologist specializing in Egyptology & co-founder of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology.
Address: Laurel Hill Cemetery East, 3822 Ridge Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19132
On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln stood at the entrance to the newly established “Solider’s National Cemetery” and gave what became known as “The Gettysburg Address.” Consecrated just four-and-a-half months after the culmination of the Battle of Gettysburg, the cemetery (now The Gettysburg National Cemetery), is the final resting place for more than 3,500 United States soldiers who died during the battle (including nearly 1,000 unknown soldiers) and more than 3,000 additional military personnel from subsequent wars both domestic and international.
The cemetery sits atop a small hill along Taneytown Road in the quiet town of Gettysburg, which was besieged by the three-day battle, resulting in the highest death toll of the entire Civil War. Legends of haunting abound in this small Pennsylvania town at the foothills of the Appalachians, and the cemetery is rife with its own sets of stories.
In 1963, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who had his own farm residence just outside the town limits, re-dedicated the cemetery to mark the 100th anniversary of its original consecration. The cemetery features several large monuments dedicated to the fallen soldiers and to the battle at large.
Address: National Park Service Museum and Visitor Center, 1195 Baltimore Pike, Gettysburg, PA 17325
Established in 1878 from land donated by Pittsburgh resident William Wilkins, American judge and politician, this urban cemetery sits adjacent to Frick Park and is bordered by the Point Breeze and Squirrel Hill neighborhoods of the Steel City.
According to The Frick’s website, Homewood Cemetery is a “lawn park cemetery. Lawn park cemetery guidelines stipulated that family lots be denoted by a large central stone bearing the family name, with smaller identical markers for individual graves.” Also a designated arboretum – one of only 23 such cemetery arboretum hybrids in the country – it features the opportunity to see beautifully curated trees and plants both native and exotic.
Notable figures interred at Homewood include: Henry J. Heinz, founder of the Heinz Company; Malcom McCormick AKA Mac Miller, rapper, singer, and record producer; Anna Woodward, portrait and landscape painter; and Daisy Elizabeth Adams Lampkin, civil rights activist.
Address: Homewood Cemetery, 1599 South Dallas Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15217
Established in 1740 by Nathan Levy, originally as a place to bury his young son, the original Mikveh Israel Jewish Cemetery is located at 9th and Spruce Streets in Old City, Philadelphia. The land was granted to Levy by Thomas Penn, William Penn’s son. Congregation Mikveh Israel followed shortly after, meeting in various Jewish community leaders’ homes until a permanent site for their synagogue was identified. The cemetery is the oldest “tangible evidence of Jewish life in Philadelphia,” according the Mikveh Israel website.
Nathan Levy is buried there, the inscription on his tomb still legible. Many of the older, original burial site carvings are no longer discernible but add dimension to the story of early American life, nonetheless.
Jewish leader Haym Solomon is also buried there, as well as Aaron Levy, Rebecca Machado Phillips, Michael Gratz, and the Jewish soldiers of the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the Civil War.
The monuments, tombs, and headstones paint a picture of the rich Jewish history in Philadelphia. The Mikveh Israel Congregation has expanded to include two additional cemeteries located at: 11th and Federal Streets, and 55th and Market Streets, both inside Philadelphia city limits. The original cemetery is enshrined as a part of Independence National Historical Park.
Address: Mikveh Israel Cemetery, Independence Mall East, 44 N 4th St., Philadelphia, PA 19106
Located along Oleyline Road in Douglassville, not far from Reading, PA, The Reading Pet Cemetery exclusively features pet burial plots. Dedicated pet cemeteries gained notoriety after Stephen King’s horror novel “Pet Sematary” was published in 1983 but had existed long before that. America’s first pet cemetery was established in 1893.
No longer in operation, the Reading Pet Cemetery was founded by a veterinarian in the early 1920. By 1966, more than 2,800 animals were buried there. The graves range from simple – nothing more than a granite column marks the grave – to elaborate. One family built a mausoleum which houses five of their pets.
Address: Reading Pet Cemetery, 90 Oleyline Rd, Douglassville, PA 19518
Whether you visit one of these more famous PA cemeteries or you take a stroll through one more local to you, enter at your own risk during the Halloween season! No matter where you’re seeking out a spooky experience, you can take PSECU with you. We’re a digital-first credit union, which means via our mobile app and/or online banking, you have 24/7 access to managing your money. Not to mention our robust network of over 70,000 ATMs nationwide. Interested in learning more about how a PSECU membership can help you achieve more? Check out our perks.