George and Sean visit Oakland Cemetery

Sean and I  took a trip to Oakland Cemetery.  It is located on North Oakland Street in Carbondale.  The oldest recorded burial at Oakland Cemetery is that of James Roberts who was buried on March 31, 1863.  Until the 1940s, the cemetery was segregated.

There have been many supernatural happenings reported.  For example, there is a mausoleum whose doors mysteriously unlock from time to time to allow ghostly visitors to enter.  Wispy vapors and glowing balls of light have been reported along the north side of the cemetery where the railroad tracks used to run.  In 1888, there was a horrific train wreck near the cemetery.  The engineer of the train, John Chapman, was killed in the wreck and buried in Oakland Cemetery.  Also, when transients died on the train, the bodies were wrapped in a sheet or tarp and unceremoniously dumped at the cemetery to be buried the next morning.  People say that it is the engineer and the transients that account for the various earth lights and swirling mists throughout the north side.  It is for this reason that Sean and I visited during the daytime!

37º 44’ 01” N

89º 13’ 45” W

3 miles