Parking Lot Cemeteries

Posted by Miss Cellania in Travel & Places on October 22, 2008 at 8:32 am


When urban sprawl meets sacred ground, unusual things happen. Here are seven instances of preserved cemeteries surrounded by parking lots! Imagine seeing the final resting place of your area’s early settlers in front of your local Home Depot. Shown is the grave of Mary Ellis, who died in 1826.

Mary, who came to New Brunswick in the 1790s to live with her sister, fell in love with a sea captain who promised to marry her once he returned from his next voyage. The captain then left Mary his horse and sailed off down the Raritan River.

Every day, Mary rode her lover’s steed down to the river, hoping to meet him at the water’s edge. For years, she gazed at the river, waiting for his return. In 1813, she purchased a plot of land overlooking the river, where she maintained her vigil until her death in 1826. And there she was buried, forever waiting for her captain.

The grave is now surrounded by a movie theater parking lot in New Jersey. Read more at Wesley Treat’s Roadside Blog. Link -Thanks, Bethany Nelson!


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COMMENT

11 comments to "Parking Lot Cemeteries"

  1. Dianne
    October 22nd, 2008 at 8:39 am

    See…..cremation is the only way!! Just be careful where you decide to scatter the ashes or you may become part of a Sears.

  2. Bret
    October 22nd, 2008 at 9:34 am

    Mary Ellis was the inspiration for the song, “Brandy” by Looking Glass. There’s also a geocache (virtual) located at that site: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=52c86ed9-5ee8-4 47a-b7c6-902923ffccad

  3. Justin
    October 22nd, 2008 at 11:02 am

    Didn’t the people of Tallahassee know? You don’t mess around with sacred Indian burial grounds!

  4. Gail Pink
    October 22nd, 2008 at 11:12 am

    What a sad story.

  5. renderanything
    October 22nd, 2008 at 12:11 pm

    Who wouldn’t want to be buried right behind the NAPA Auto Parts store?

  6. Mr. Jones
    October 22nd, 2008 at 2:43 pm

    “The grave is now surrounded by a movie theater parking lot”

    It’s bad enough that her captain never showed up, but now she has to watch “Beverly Hills Chiuaua”.

    God hates us.

  7. Cap. Tom
    October 22nd, 2008 at 3:48 pm

    Well damn. If i would have known that she was actually going to wait that long…
    now i feel guilty.

  8. andiscandis
    October 22nd, 2008 at 6:40 pm

    There’s a tiny cemetery (4 graves or so) in the parking lot of the Regal Cinemas in Middleburg Heights, OH. I didn’t know this was such a common practice/problem.

  9. ted
    October 22nd, 2008 at 7:58 pm

    Kinda weird.

  10. Ali S.
    October 22nd, 2008 at 9:03 pm

    Space funerals are the new thing. Shoot a ship full of cadavers into space towards the sun. :)

  11. Christophe
    October 22nd, 2008 at 9:59 pm

    - Hey! wassup?
    - I’m going to Target
    - Cool
    - Sort of. I’m going to pray my deceased mother.


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