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Writer's pictureHaunted Anthracite Tales

Pottsville's City of the Dead

Updated: Mar 19, 2023

Charles Baber Cemetery

Pottsville 1865 - current day


People yearn for serenity and comfort. Individuals use various methods to experience this type of necessary peace.

Reading a book.

Meditation.

Taking a walk.

Spending time with family or friends, perhaps with a picnic lunch in a cemetery.

Lunch in a cemetery!?!

Though shocking and slightly taboo to our culture now, the practice of enjoying a beautiful sunny afternoon surrounded by corpses six feet deep was commonplace and endorsed for many years. One location known for its beauty, and its paranormal activity, is the Charles Baber Cemetery. The large, peaceful cemetery is within walking distance of the heart of Pottsville’s business district.



Walking towards the cemetery, visitors enter beneath a gothic stone gateway welcoming both the living and deceased to Pottsville’s City of the Dead. Visitors will immediately recognize familiar names throughout. The Pott family, who the city took on its name from. The Yuengling family, whose name is obviously known far and near. And traversing towards a picturesque chapel is the Charles Baber burial plot, who the cemetery was named after.


A cemetery first originated on Market Street as far back as 1848. This cemetery was called the Mount Laurel Cemetery and burials were first noted to occur in October of that year. 

A businessman named Charles Baber began buying land near the cemetery during the 1860’s. Initially, Baber purchased about 40 acres of forest and a natural spring fed reservoir. However, over time, Baber purchased 100 acres of land in the area. 

Over a six-year period, a pristine chapel currently standing was erected. A slope behind it led to a placid reservoir supplied with water from underground natural springs. It was common practice for families to enjoy the reservoir’s frigid, refreshing water during the summer and ice skate during the winter months.



The location was strategically planned as a horticulture center displaying various trees, flowers, and plants. It was a beautiful and inviting retreat from the complexities of daily life.

Sadly, Charles Baber died on Easter Sunday of 1885. However, before passing, Baber willed the cemetery to the people of Pottsville. Known for his generosity, this commendable trait continued until his final breath. 


During the 1940s, a decision was made to drain the reservoir and fill it. The choice was unfortunately necessary due to flooding issues within the city. Over a series of several years, the reservoir was methodically filled. However, a small pond with vegetation exists to this day because of the running of the underground springs. The springs apparently refuse to be forgotten about.



The Charles Baber Cemetery apparently meets several key criteria to accommodate spirits from the other side. Natural flowing water has long been believed to be a conduit used by the otherworld to harnesses energy resulting in paranormal activity. Native American artifacts found on the land showed there was most likely a temporary settlement at one time on the grounds. Sadly, there have been several noted drownings and suicides within the cemetery’s confines, which bolster its macabre history. However, and perhaps most importantly, there has been and still is a strong emotional attachment to the hallowed ground. People have experienced the most elated happiness to the darkest despair within the grounds. Add these factors together and you have a perfect recipe for paranormal experiences.



For several weeks during November and December 1865, a rash of ghostly sightings captured the area’s attention. Reports began circulating throughout Pottsville about unexplainable experiences and visions. Witnesses claimed to see a white, flowing apparition slowly processing its way up Market St. The apparition walked slowly, but seemingly with a strong intent. Its head appeared bowed as if in a mourning. The entity continued on the predetermined path until making its way towards the entrance of a cemetery. Just as the apparition reached the main gates, it slowly dissipated into the night’s darkness. This cemetery is the current day Charles Baber Cemetery.

Word circulated through the close-knit coal region community. Eager town folks braved the cold, and their fears, hoping to see the mysterious mourning specter.


Some nights lucky gawkers caught a glance or even a prolonged look at the whitish apparition. Other nights, the eager citizens walked home after several hours, dejected witnessing nothing out of the ordinary. One detail was  consistent with all the claimed sightings. They all took place between the hours of 11:00pm and 1:00am.


As time passed, eager witnesses claimed to see the specter in other locations besides the procession path. Near the gates of the cemetery was a wooded hollow. Claims surfaced of witnessing the white apparition walking amongst the trees. 


One city man attempted to press his luck and hopefully see the entity firsthand late one night. After a short wait, the man claimed to catch a sight of the apparition walking slowly with its head bowed. The witness stood in awe, staring at the otherworldly figure. Slowly, the apparition faded into the night. 



The man breathed a sigh of relief. However, this feeling was short-lived. The surrounding area grew colder, and the man felt as though another thrill-seeker had walked up quietly behind him. Turning his head, shock encompassed the man. Standing just a few feet away was the apparition. It’s head bowed in mourning.

Mustering all his courage, the startled witness did the unthinkable - he thrust his hands towards the apparition, hoping to capture it. Unfortunately, his hands grasped nothing but freezing air as the apparition disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. 


Over the course of several weeks the sightings continued. People became so enamored with the spectacle of the apparition they attempted to interact with it. Stones were thrown and even pistol shots fired towards the otherworldly visitor. Yet, they had no effect as the projectiles traveled through the mourning apparition into the darkness.


Two workers employed at a coach shop on Market St became tired of the mourning specter talk. They had enough. The men waited until the sighting hours to disprove the claims once and for all. 


Both men filled their coal oil lamps and went off to tempt the specter. As they readied themselves, the air seemed to take on a more ominous feeling. 

Determined to disprove the claims, the men separated to cover more ground. Suddenly, although a distance apart, both men came to a dead halt. The bewildered coworkers looked at each other with a sense of sudden urgency. Their eyes focused upon their cohort’s candlelight. Without warning both coal oil lamps were simultaneously extinguished, almost as though blown out by some unseen force. The men, with panic in their eyes, decided the time had come to call off their quest. They hurriedly exited the area.


Over the years, people have periodically claimed to have unexplainable experiences within the stone fence of the Charles Baber Cemetery.

Close to fifty years ago, a group of boys were taking advantage of the below open field that had yet to be used as eternal resting locations. The boys were playing a spirited baseball game as the daylight methodically drowned away into night. As the game progressed, one boy caught sight of something odd within the old section of the cemetery. He stopped the game and pointed out the peculiarvision to the other boys. There, bobbing among the weathered headstones, appeared to be several people carrying candles as though processing.

The boys watched and attempted to figure out why a procession was taking place so late in the evening.

Just then, one boy’s mouth gaped open. He pointed towards the flickering candlelight bobbing in the distance. After a few seconds, the stunned boy mustered up the courage to speak. The bobbing, flickering candles were floating in mid-air as though being carried by an invisible source. The boys watched the candles continue to progress deeper into the cemetery until they were finally out of sight. Fearing an ominous ending, the boys hurriedly left the cemetery and made their way home.


These sightings of floating, flickering candlelight has been noted for hundreds of years in Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and apparently Pottsville.  The flickering lights are believed by some to be harbingers of death. The smaller the candlelight, the younger an individual the witness knows is soon to die. The larger the candlelight, the older the person is that will die. 



Various light colors have also been witnessed. A large red bobbing light is believed to represent an adult male. A larger white light represents an adult woman. Small blue lights signify the death of a young child. Sadly, an intense blue light is believed to represent the impending death of an infant. Last, two whitish orbs of varying sizes floating side by side represent a woman and her unborn child. Both are soon to perish. 


There have been more recent first-hand claims of odd occurrences on the grounds. One older gentleman claimed to be walking towards the chapel when he glanced off towards his right. There, several rows of gravestones away, he claimed to see what appeared to be two shadow-like figures standing near a grave, heads bowed, as if mourning a loved one. Surprised, the man continued to peer in the direction as the “mourners” slowly faded into thin air in front of his eyes. 


Another account took place just several years ago. A woman claimed she was taking a walk in the Baber Cemetery with the accompaniment of her dog. It was a quiet, pleasantly warm day. The perfect weather to take a stroll with a friend. The woman remembered she walked down the road and made the loop, coming back up towards the main entrance. While walking on the path, her dog suddenly began acting odd, as though sensing someone or something directly off to their left near burial sites. The woman looked long and hard in the direction the dog fixated upon, but she could see nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, the small dog continued to growl and act as though threatened. And then, just as suddenly as the dog began to growl, he stopped and acted as though nothing happened continuing on the walk. The woman continued to walk with her dog in the cemetery after this, never having an experience like that again.

Perhaps the small dog saw a small animal scurrying through the cemetery. This time, the little canine just reacted differently. Perhaps the dog sensed the 8 foot long black snake which called the cemetery home for a period. Fear not, the snake has since been relocated. Or perhaps the dog viewed and sensed something from another realm our human eyes cannot see.



The Charles Baber Cemetery is truly a beautiful location. Anyone seeking tranquility will surely find it within moments of traveling through the entrance’s stone archway. However, heed this warning: keep your eyes straight ahead. You do not want to bump into the mourning whitish specter. And if you believe you spot a small flicker of candlelight in the darkness, do not peer towards it. You may very well be saving a family member or friend’s life.


* Please keep in mind the Charles Baber Cemetery closes at dusk. Entering Pottsville’s City of the Dead after the sun dips below the horizon is prohibited.


Spooky Pennsylvania -  S. E. Schlosser

Pottsville Republican - October 31, 2000

Miners Journal - December 2, 1865

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shellycres
Sep 08, 2022

I grew up across the street from this cemetery. I rode my bike there. Played by small stream that was once there. I ice skated on the small pond. I have happy memories. If they don’t already, Pottsville should do tours of the cemetery for people in town visiting the brewery. It could be a great tour with lots of history.

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