Paranormal Activity Reported in Bridgewater Cemetery

Also known as Owens Cemetery; this cemetery is quite isolated and sits high on a hillside in Scott County, Indiana.  The following accounts have been reported by local residents and amateur paranormal investigators.   Before you continue, it is important to note, the Scott County Visitors Commission does not endorse nor support trespassing to visit this or any cemetery after dusk.  If you do decide to visit any local cemetery after hours make sure to acquire the appropriate permits and/or written permission before your visit from the Scott County Cemetery Board.

Above all be please be respectful of the cemetery grounds and private properties surrounding cemeteries.  In many cases, such as in the Bridgewater Cemetery, the grave site and the markers of the deceased are very old and quite fragile.  Please Do Not provoke the dead.  Remember you are disrupting and encroaching upon there plot with the intent to sightsee or for entertainment purposes.  Be open, let them know your purpose up front as you enter the grounds.  Tell them you mean them no harm.  Spirits are no different than human lifeforms, it is possible to catch them on a bad day.  If so, excuse yourself and apologize for disturbing them and return another night.  They will remember you…

The Legend of Bridgewater Cemetery

Back in the 1800’s there were a lot of civil war soldiers that were buried within these grounds.  It is also documented that there are many rough field stones in the ground outside of the cemetery that were place there to represent those less desirable or criminal who were buried on the outside of the cemetery grounds.  Bridgewater Cemetery is reported and known to have a glowing tombstone, which is believed to be the grave of a man who appears in a ghostly form at night.  The locals believe he is the guardian of the cemetery’s gates.  Appearing to those with ill intentions to scare them away.

As people have wondered through the cemetery grounds after midnight they say that this particular cemetery is haunted by something called red eyes that you can see glowing in the back of the cemetery in the brush just outside of the cleared cemetery grounds.  It is not unusual to feel the presence of others while standing alone.  Those who are astute to the paranormal have heard voices and shared brief conversations with the occupants of this cemetery.  Paranormal professionals have documented handprints, experienced cars that would not start, and in the devil’s hour from 3-4 AM even seen black objects moving around the visitor’s cars who are apparently looking for passage to new grounds.  A unique atmospheric condition in this area always makes the grounds inside the gate’s cooler than the area just outside of the grounds or a few yards away. 

Locals swear they have seen an arched shaped “thing” in the back of the woods, floating orbs of various colors and have received strange cold chills while standing near a tall tree. The voices of the dead are soft but can be heard as if from the distance and some visitors have even claimed to have heard the screams of others.  One couple heard the sound of a single baby crying and had a hand placed upon their shoulders with no one else in the cemetery.  There are times you can hear dogs barking off in the distance and in the next moment hear the sounds of those same dogs barking as if they are just a few feet away from you. Some locals even recall being chased out of the cemetery and through the woods by a white horse. 

While the accounts shared in this blog post are recounts from various paranormal websites and stories shared by locals either firsthand experiences or legends passed on to new generations.  Many of the accounts reported by amateur paranormal investigators do include recording with a specialized white noise box and/or video or still photographic evidence which may or may not be actual?   Our conclusion is this cemetery has a unique and, in most cases, negative energy that desires be left alone and kept at peace.  We wish them no harm in publishing this post but only wish to share some of the lore of Scott County with others.

History of the Cemetery

This old cemetery, occasionally still used today, is located in southwestern Lexington Township, in “Fractional Section” 11, Township 2 North, Range 7 East, which had been originally entered on Oct. 20, 1820, by Jabez Reeve (1781-1865). The triangular tract contained 251.42 acres and was a fraction of a full section since it bordered on Tract 295 of Clark’s Grant. The cemetery is entered by a lane (an abandoned county road which once continued on east to State Road 3) which passes alongside Kinderhook Lake. There are sunken spots (and several rough field stones) denoting unmarked graves.