Graceland Cemetery

Graceland Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois is supposedly haunted by the ghost of a little girl and a menacing hooded statue.

One of the strangest stories reported at Graceland Cemetery is that of a life-sized statue memorializing a 6-year-old girl named Inez Clarke who was struck and killed by lightning while on a family picnic. Her parents, stunned by the tragic loss, commissioned a life-size statue of the girl to be placed on her grave. It was placed in a glass box to protect it from the elements.

The statue of Inez remains in nearly perfect condition today. Inez is perched on a small stool, wearing her favorite dress and carrying a tiny parasol. Locals say that the ghost of Inez is still haunting Graceland Cemetery.

There are stories of strange sounds of weeping coming from the statue, and some even claim they have seen the statue of Inez actually moving. It is said that, during violent thunderstorms, Inez sometimes vanishes from inside her glass box and goes roaming around in the graveyard until the storm is over.

Many years ago, a night watchman was making his rounds during a storm and discovered that the glass case was empty. He saw flashes of lightning that illuminated the figure of a young girl in the distance, playing in the rain. The night watchman fled from the cemetery that night, never to return. Other guards have also reported it missing, only to find it back in place when they pass by again, or the following morning.

Graceland Cemetery is also said to be haunted by an unusual bronze statue of a hooded figure called “Eternal Silence”. The brooding and menacing figure has become more commonly known as the “Statue of Death”.

The figure was once black in color but over the years, the black has mostly worn away, exposing the green, weathered metal beneath. It is said that anyone who looks into the face of the statue will get a vision of their own death.