You Won’t Want To Visit This Notorious Texas Cemetery Alone Or After Dark
By Katie Lawrence|Published February 11, 2019
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Katie Lawrence
Author
Katie Lawrence is a Southeast Texas native who graduated 18th in her high school class with a GPA of 4.25. She attended college in the Houston area and began writing for OnlyInYourState in 2015.
Today, Katie writes, edits, and performs several other tasks for OnlyInYourState and has never been more passionate about a job before. Outside of work, you can likely find her curled up on with a hot cup of coffee, practicing yoga, baking, or exploring the beautiful Lone Star State (in particular, the vast and mystical West Texas desert).
The Lone Star State is full of haunted graveyards, but none have a history quite this extensive. Old City Cemetery in Galveston dates back almost two centuries, with three layers of burial plots holding over 12,000 bodies. Take a look:
Before we get into talking about the cemetery itself, let's review Galveston's grave history. In 1900, the deadliest natural disaster in United States history struck the island, leaving up to 12,000 people dead.
Old City Cemetery is actually seven graveyards consolidated into one. As you can imagine, many storm victims are buried here, their confused and restless spirits searching for answers about exactly what happened over a century ago.
There's much more to this place than meets the eye. You might be walking on solid ground, but three layers of graves hold far more bodies than what the surface would suggest - approximately 12,000, in fact.
One of the most unnerving gravesites you'll see is that of Elize Alberti. In 1894, she murdered her four children during a bout of postpartum depression before finally killing herself. They all share a burial plot, a sick and twisted example of blood being thicker than water.
Another malevolent entity is Nicaragua Smith, who was executed by a firing squad of Union soldiers in 1863. His resting place is unmarked, a lack of identity that's doomed his soul to wander the grounds for all eternity.
Not every spirit who haunts the cemetery was once a murderer or traitor. Valiant veterans, innocent infants, and thousands more genuinely good people lie beneath this intersection of life and death.
