October has come and nearly gone and during the month I have gotten to share some of the most haunted places I have visited. (Read Part 1 & Part 2).
As I try to decide the best stories to wrap up my month-long journey, I come down to a toss-up.
In the end, I decided it is best to end close to home.
While the tale of Sally Carter and the Dead Children’s Playground are the most notable in Huntsville, Maple Hill Cemetery’s haunts should not be overlooked.
So, I end my Most Haunted series with a few ghostly tales of Huntsville’s oldest cemetery.
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The Bibb Family
No ghost story about Maple Hill would be complete without the tales of Thomas Bibb and Mary Bibb, two prominent residents you may have read about in 5 Huntsville Ghost Stories.
They are related to hauntings at the Bibb home in downtown Huntsville, as well as the plantation home known as Belle Mina.
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Phillip Flanagan
Phillip’s grave lies in the northwest corner of the cemetery (the oldest part), and it is said that Phillip’s spirit roams this section of the cemetery, not understanding why he is deceased.
Phillip was the second husband to Elizabeth Dale Gibbons Flannigan Jeffries High Brown Routt, also known as the Black Widow of Hazel Green. Routt is rumored to have killed six husbands, making her one of the first serial killers in the United States.
The ruins of the Routt homestead in Hazel Green are the site of many reported ghostly tales.
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Colonel William Hundley
The spirit of Colonel Hundley is said to stand at his grave near the Maple Hill office in a Confederate Army uniform. His spirit does not speak to those passing near him, but simply nods in acknowledgement of their presence.
Sightings of Colonel Hundley’s ghost have been numerous in the last 100 years, and on occasion, his spirit has company.
Many visitors to the cemetery have reported seeing Colonel Hundley, and his father standing behind him.
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The Erskine Mausoleum
This is the burial place of several members of the Erskine family.
The mausoleum was built by Albert Russell Erskine for his mother Sue Erskine after her death.
This would also end up being the final resting place for Albert, who killed himself in his mansion in South Bend, Indiana, after his company –The Studebaker Car Company – went bankrupt and cost him his fortune.
Albert’s ghost is rumored to reside at the mausoleum, but there are many reported hauntings at The Sue Erskine Home (Franklin Street in Huntsville), The Russell Erskine Hotel (Huntsville), and Tippecanoe Place (South Bend, Indiana) which was Albert’s mansion when he committed suicide.
