BACHELOR'S GROVE CEMETERY

November 25, 2011
Midlothian, IL

HISTORY

Bachelor's Grove Cemetery is one of the most famous haunted sites in the Midwest.  It is one of the oldest cemeteries in Cook County located southwest of the Rubio Woods Forest Preserve entrance on 143rd Street, just east of Ridgeland Avenue in Midlothian, Illinois.  The site was named after four single men who settled in the area calling the grove "Bachelor's".  Another possibility of how the cemetery acquired it's name is from a family called Batchelder who resided in the area.  The first burial occurred in the early 1800s.


CLAIMS

Just about anything paranormal can show up at Bachelor's Grove.  Reports include UFOs, a two-headed monster, apparitions, spirits of robed men, glowing balls of intelligent blue lights, ghost cars, phantom farmhouse, mysterious black dog, and a lady in white (what paranormal place doesn't have a lady in white). 

There is a rumored story about a caretaker, who lived in a house near the cemetery.  He supposedly murdered his family then committed suicide in this house that was burnt to the ground with his remains inside.  The caretaker is still seen, sometimes carrying a lantern or shotgun, warning visitors to leave. 

The phantom farmhouse is an incredible and the most popular sighting at the cemetery.  This house is an 1800s, two story house with a front porch and a light shining in the second story window.  It is mostly seen outside of the cemetery itself.  The house reportedly appears as a ghostly image, then disappears.

The two-headed monster turns out to be a ghostly farmer and horse.  It is rumored the farmer and horse were plowing a field and fell into the pond and drown.  This farmer is sometimes seen with a cart and horse going down the road near the cemetery.  Sometimes people see a "two-headed" monster crawling out of the pond.

The Lady in White is also called the Madonna of Bachelor's Grove and is the subject of the most famous paranormal photo of the site with the lady sitting on a headstone.  She wanders around the grounds with a baby in her arms on a night with a full moon.  There are also stories of the lady looking for a missing baby.

There are claims of a big black dog being seen at the entrance of the cemetery.  This dog looks real but never barks, only disappears when approached.

Al Capone was rumored to have disposed of some unlucky people in the pond next to the cemetery.

The Hook, is an urban legend associated with not only Bachelor's Grove but many places around the country.  The legend entails a young man and woman "parking" near the cemetery.  An escaped patient of a lunatic asylum is roaming the woods.  Unable to start the vehicle, the boyfriend leaves in search of help.  The girlfriend hears a scraping sound on the roof of the car.  Finally a police car arrives.  The cop instructs the girlfriend to get out of the vehicle but not to look back.  She, of course does, and discovers her boyfriend hanging upside down from a tree, throat slit.  His nails clawing the roof of the car being the cause of the scraping noise.


THE INVESTIGATION

Joe and Cyndi arrived at the cemetery in the late evening.  It was a short hike from the forest preserve parking lot to the graveyard.  The cemetery was like grand central station.  I couldn't believe how many people came and went from the cemetery in the time we were there.  It made investigating a challenge, as did the busy road on the other side of the pond next to the cemetery.  You can actually see the cemetery from the road.  Not at all like the cemetery I pictured in the middle of the woods.

Right off the bat I noticed something missing.  In photos I had seen a huge old sign over the entrance that read Bachelor's Grove Cemetery.  I was looking forward to a great photo of it, but sadly, it's no longer there.  As a matter of fact, the entire cemetery is in pretty bad shape.  Vandalism was evident everywhere.

We started off in the main cemetery until it became too crowded for my liking so we went off in search of the old foundation of a house, possibly the caretaker or farmer whose spirits are sometimes still seen today.  We hopped from rock to rock to cross the creek and discovered the foundation.  There was not much left, only some rocks here and there and an old well.  We did an EVP session here.

Then we headed back to the gravestones in hopes the crowd had left.  We still had company as we took pictures and did an EVP session at the infant daughter grave.  This is a popular site.  People leave presents for the baby when they visit.  There was a couple trinkets, pennies, and a barbie with it's head popped off and laid to the side that was pretty disturbing.

Finally at dusk we were the only ones in the graveyard.  The mood definitely changed once the sun went down.  It was a New Moon so it was getting dark fast.  Unfortunately this place is known for police who patrol the area and will give you a ticket or tow your car if you are here after dark.  We stayed as long as we dared and made the trek back to the Jeep.


EVIDENCE

Zip, nada, nothing.  Didn't get a darn thing.  No hits at all on the MelMeter.  The noise from the road was unreal.  Slim to no chance we would get any EVPs.  That was disappointing but it was still a neat place to check out.


TIPS

You can purchase a downloadable map of the area from Bachelor's Grove Cemetery & Settlement for a small fee that funds the Grove Restoration Project.  It appears the fund is seriously lacking funds after seeing the condition of the cemetery.  This map shows various places to park, things to look for at the cemetery such as an old well and foundation, and shows all the hiking trails in the area.  Check out this link for specific directions.  We parked at the Rubio Woods forest preserve parking lot, crossed the four lane highway and hiked the short trail running parallel with the road.  If anyone knows of a more inconspicuous parking place, please let us know.


HAUNTED HUMOR

This clip is Cyndi asking questions with the Ghost Radar app.  We don't hold too much faith in this app but it's fun to play with.