Graveyard in the median of a divided highway in New England?
February 5, 2014 3:01 PM
Somewhere in Vermont, I think, there's a graveyard in a wooded area between the north and south lanes of a divided highway. Where is it?
Some twenty or thirty years ago I was riding the bus and the driver told me to look up and to the left, into the woods next to us. There were gravestones among the trees. He told me it was the only graveyard in the US that was located between the two sets of lanes; it had been there before the highway was built, and rather than move the graves they built around them.
Has anyone else seen this? I was probably going between White River Junction, VT and either Boston or NYC, and probably on Vermont Transit, probably going north.
Some twenty or thirty years ago I was riding the bus and the driver told me to look up and to the left, into the woods next to us. There were gravestones among the trees. He told me it was the only graveyard in the US that was located between the two sets of lanes; it had been there before the highway was built, and rather than move the graves they built around them.
Has anyone else seen this? I was probably going between White River Junction, VT and either Boston or NYC, and probably on Vermont Transit, probably going north.
It was definitely in the Northeast. Possibly between White River Junction and Ithaca, but I think it was on the way to Boston.
posted by The corpse in the library at 3:34 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 3:34 PM on February 5, 2014
There's one with four graves near Meriden, Connecticut.... of course right now I'm blanking on the road's name. Merritt Parkway perhaps?
posted by easily confused at 4:03 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by easily confused at 4:03 PM on February 5, 2014
This one is between the highway and the railroad tracks. And there is one in Stockbridge VT between the river and the highway. This one is on a median strip between lanes on I-40 but it's in Missouri. Its not ringing any bells for me in VT but the state library would probably know if no one here does.
posted by jessamyn at 4:16 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by jessamyn at 4:16 PM on February 5, 2014
I'm going to try to check with a better authority tomorrow, but antiquarian friends of mine think there is one in Johnston, RI. There are certainly a ton of small cemeteries in the state, many of which are very close to roads....
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:23 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:23 PM on February 5, 2014
Any chance it was in Maine?
posted by waitingtoderail at 5:40 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by waitingtoderail at 5:40 PM on February 5, 2014
Here's the one in Maine I'm thinking of. Right off I-95.
posted by waitingtoderail at 6:17 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by waitingtoderail at 6:17 PM on February 5, 2014
I came here to say Maine. I've passed it many times. It's not in the median between the N and S lanes, but on the shoulder of the Northbound (I think) lane, as seen in the link Waitingtoderail posted.
For the past 17 or so years I've traveled at least once, sometimes twice, a year from Boston up through White River Junction and Burlington, VT (continuing over the lake, though NY state and on to Quebec) and I don't recall ever seeing a graveyard in the median. We've done the route so many times we've created a scavenger hunt for friends making the journey (1 point when you see the whales tales, etc) and something like this would certainly be on it.
posted by bondcliff at 6:26 PM on February 5, 2014
For the past 17 or so years I've traveled at least once, sometimes twice, a year from Boston up through White River Junction and Burlington, VT (continuing over the lake, though NY state and on to Quebec) and I don't recall ever seeing a graveyard in the median. We've done the route so many times we've created a scavenger hunt for friends making the journey (1 point when you see the whales tales, etc) and something like this would certainly be on it.
posted by bondcliff at 6:26 PM on February 5, 2014
That one in Maine is great, but it definitely wasn't in Maine. It was a bit further back, and had more trees around it.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:32 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:32 PM on February 5, 2014
New Hampshire is a possibility, I just realized -- it could have been on the route that passed through Hanover.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:32 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:32 PM on February 5, 2014
It wasn't something you would see unless you were looking for it, probably.
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:33 PM on February 5, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:33 PM on February 5, 2014
FYI... You would not pass between White River Junction and Ithaca on the way to Boston. They're different sides of the city.
If you were on Greyhound between Boston and Hanover/Burlington/Montreal, you'd have mostly likely been on I-93 to I-89, with a quick jaunt 1 exit north on I-91 to the White River layover. I have not noticed anything like this on that route and I drive it with some frequency...but then again, I'm usually driving it. (I used to bus it three or so times a year and never noticed anything then, but that could be something a local driver would know and I'd have never noticed) You could have take a different route, of course.
I've never noticed one in the middle of a federal highway, but New England (and presumably other parts of the older Northeast and South) has lots of old cemeteries tucked away at the edge of subdivisions, in the middle of cities, and largely abandoned on back roads. Thank you for making me think fondly of a few of them just now.
posted by maryr at 9:20 PM on February 5, 2014
If you were on Greyhound between Boston and Hanover/Burlington/Montreal, you'd have mostly likely been on I-93 to I-89, with a quick jaunt 1 exit north on I-91 to the White River layover. I have not noticed anything like this on that route and I drive it with some frequency...but then again, I'm usually driving it. (I used to bus it three or so times a year and never noticed anything then, but that could be something a local driver would know and I'd have never noticed) You could have take a different route, of course.
I've never noticed one in the middle of a federal highway, but New England (and presumably other parts of the older Northeast and South) has lots of old cemeteries tucked away at the edge of subdivisions, in the middle of cities, and largely abandoned on back roads. Thank you for making me think fondly of a few of them just now.
posted by maryr at 9:20 PM on February 5, 2014
You might have some luck contacting roadgeeks such as this guy, who's been collecting photos of highway oddities since forever. There are also people who do sites for individual states, like MA or CT. Do watch for linkrot, though.
posted by dhartung at 1:52 AM on February 6, 2014
posted by dhartung at 1:52 AM on February 6, 2014
maryr: this was at a time when I was riding the bus a lot, and I don't remember exactly which trip. I usually was traveling between Woodstock and Boston, but there were a few routes buses took (express, milk run, to Hanover, all the way to Woodstock, etc). I took one trip to Ithaca during this time, so I don't want to rule it out.
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:33 AM on February 6, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:33 AM on February 6, 2014
Don't discount the Maine one yet, unless you never went to Maine. The turnpike was expanded into 3 lanes about a decade ago, and there used to be more trees around it.
It's possible the landscape changed on you, as landscape is known to do. I grew up going by that graveyard on every trip, so I'm really familiar with it. It is definitely more noticeable now than it was 20 years ago.
posted by zizzle at 6:50 AM on February 6, 2014
It's possible the landscape changed on you, as landscape is known to do. I grew up going by that graveyard on every trip, so I'm really familiar with it. It is definitely more noticeable now than it was 20 years ago.
posted by zizzle at 6:50 AM on February 6, 2014
My librarian friend tells me it's in Warner NH (image, cite). I can not believe I have never seen this.
posted by jessamyn at 7:01 AM on February 6, 2014
posted by jessamyn at 7:01 AM on February 6, 2014
Yes! That must be it! It wasn't all a dream!
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:17 AM on February 6, 2014
posted by The corpse in the library at 7:17 AM on February 6, 2014
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posted by gyusan at 3:17 PM on February 5, 2014