Peninsula, Ohio
Few cemeteries have the number of legends and ghost stories as Mater Dolorosa Cemetery. Here are just a few:
- Thomas Coady (1844-1865) is buried in the cemetery. Killed in the Steamship Sultana explosion while serving in Company C of the 115th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, his body was returned to his hometown of Boston Township. His spirit, some claim, haunts Mater Dolorosa Cemetery, ever restless due to dying at a young age.
- Rumors of Satanic activity in the cemetery stem from its association with the Mother of Sorrows church in Peninsula. While the church wound up owning the cemetery, it’s not satanic. It’s just a Catholic church and a member of the Cleveland diocese.
- Then there are the stories about Helltown, which is actually just the parts of Boston Township that wound up becoming part of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. The crumbling houses and abandoned buildings looked creepy as they decayed, before the park service fully knocked them down. This led to rumors about a witch buried in a nearby cemetery, a crybaby bridge, a giant cryptoid snake, and more. Mater Dolorosa Cemetery was caught up in these rumors because it’s located in the area.
The Truth About Mater Dolorosa Cemetery
The true history behind Mater Dolorosa Cemetery is much more mundane. The property started out as part of the Cassidy family farm. Patrick Cassidy and his wife Margaret immigrated to the United States from Ireland in the early 1800s. They bought several hundred acres of prime land right on the banks of the river and set up a farm.
At some point, the land containing the cemetery was deeded over the Mother of Sorrows church. It was renamed “Mater Dolorosa,” a Latin phrase that means “Sorrowful Mother.” The official date of the cemetery’s founding is 1869, even though the elder Cassidys didn’t pass away until 1885.
Although the cemetery is now closed, meaning that it’s not open to new burials, it holds the history of Irish settlers in the area, many of whom belonged to the local Catholic church.
Getting to Mater Dolorosa Cemetery in Peninsula, Ohio
If you want to visit Mater Dolorosa Cemetery, you’re in luck. It’s easy to access. The cemetery is right next to the Happy Days Lodge (the history of which will be in another article) on Route 303. You can park behind the lodge and walk over to the cemetery, or park across the street and take the tunnel under the road.
Although there aren’t many headstones, the cemetery is filled with trees and located along a hiking path through the national park. It’s beautiful and worthy of a visit, even though you may or may not see a ghost.
Found in Ohio 