Goodleburg Cemetery

New York · United States · Execution site

A doctor in Wales, New York is said to have buried the results of his practice in shallow ground behind the cemetery, and to have hanged himself in a tree.

Goodleburg Cemetery at Wales, New York is one of the most reported sites in western New York, and the account behind it is grim enough that it deserves a caution before the retelling.

Local tradition holds that in the late 1800s a doctor who performed abortions buried the remains in shallow ground, about two feet down, and that some of the women who did not survive the procedure were buried there too. The evidence people cite is circumstantial and unpleasant: dogs bringing bones home around that period, and body parts caught on fishing lines in the nearby pond. None of it has been established from any record, and a correction filed in February 2007 disputes parts of the account.

What visitors describe is mist and fog hanging above the ground, a figure at the tree on top of the hill where the doctor is said to have hanged himself, and, at night, infants moving on the ground.

The cemetery has suffered badly from vandalism over the years. It is a burial ground with real families in it.

FAQ

Where is Goodleburg Cemetery located?

Goodleburg Cemetery is in New York, United States.