The Hidden Cemetery That Will Make You Feel Like You've Discovered Montana's Most Haunted Secret
By Nikki Rhoades|Published December 31, 2019
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Nikki Rhoades
Author
Nikki is a lifelong Ohioan with a love for literature. She holds a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Akron and has enjoyed publishing her written work since 2007. She has a love of travel and does so frequently, though she believes that home is where the heart is — she continues to work in and around Cleveland as a digital content specialist to this day, working on everything from commercial scripts and social media posts to grassroots marketing initiatives.
The Treasure State boasts such a nickname for a good reason. This incredible landscape once beckoned to treasure hunters, and its rich landscape produced gold, silver, coal, and semi-precious stones like garnets. As mining became a pastime, once populated landscapes became ghost towns. Hiding in the Garnet Range is one of the quaintest abandoned cemeteries in Montana that dates back to the height of mining. Only a few headstones hint at its purpose, though the very road that rolls up to it may be paved on unmarked graves. If you find yourself in the area, this forgotten cemetery will captivate you with its enduring mystery.
Garnet is one of the most remarkable ghost towns in Montana... and it's said to be haunted.
At one point, more than 1,000 people hoped to strike riches in Garnet, Montana. A fire destroyed most of the town in 1912, and it was never rebuilt. Over time, the area became abandoned.
It is endlessly eerie to see the community frozen in time, but most tales of its residents have been lost to history.
Though the community is largely intact, we don't know a lot about its former residents. Some, according to lore, still linger in their beloved community, making Garnet one of the most haunted places in Montana.
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Some of the community's residents can be found roughly four miles northwest of the ghost town in Sand Park Cemetery.
According to local legend, this area was best for a cemetery thanks to its sandy soil. All soil in the surrounding area was too rocky to dig deep graves, leaving locals with few options for their dearly departed. Though this humble site seems small, it just might be a bit bigger than meets the eye.
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From the road, this modest plot doesn't look like much; however, it served both Garnet and Coloma.
One could easily drive by this tiny site without even noticing it. What most visitors do not realize, however, is that the land they're traveling on just might hold the remnants of several disturbed graves...
Five grave markers greet visitors, and archaeological analysis revealed evidence of a sixth undisturbed grave. The number of disturbed graves at this site remains a mystery.
Once upon a time, however, there were more graves at the site. In the midst of initiatives by the Work Projects Administration before World War II, a road was constructed through the site.... we still drive on it today to access the cemetery, actually. The bulldozer discovered skeletal debris and wooden planks from coffins, revealing that an unknown number of unmarked graves were disturbed during construction.
The first interment in the cemetery was made around 1896, and the most recent burial took place in 1914.
Little is known about the individuals buried here beyond their names and date of death. As many early fortune seekers flooded the area from all around the nation, it is possible that these people passed away far from their families. Even less is known about those whose graves were disturbed during the construction of the road. They are now buried in an unmarked pit hiding next to the official cemetery.
Most residents in the old Garnet Range chose to be buried in consecrated ground...
Throughout the two towns that Sand Park Cemetery served, many residents seem to have picked up and continued life elsewhere as mining in the mountains came to a standstill. Those that passed in the community often chose to be buried closer to more populated areas.
...But for some reason, a select handful decided to make the landscape of Granite County their eternal home.
Whether these individuals died unexpectedly or simply did not have family to make funeral arrangements in a bigger cemetery, they ended up in Sand Park Cemetery. Those known to be buried here include Tom Williams, William Ross, William Hamilton, William Scheehan, and Frank Holmes. The sixth grave at the site is thought to be occupied by a local woman married to a man by the name of Pete Shipler. The occupants of the disturbed unmarked graves are a mystery.
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History is hiding in this quaint Montana cemetery.
There are several abandoned cemeteries in Montana, but Sand Park Cemetery is one of its most surprising. Though it has only five visible graves, it is well worth a visit.
Want to learn more about Garnet, Montana? Check out our article on this incredible ghost town.
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