Gloomy nights, vanishing ghosts and theories of cemeteries. Some have said that Bachelor’s Grove, a cemetery in Midlothian, IL, is haunted by an older woman who stands outside her white house and waits for a motorist to come by. Although this is a popular theory, there are more detailed events that happen within the cemetery itself. 

     There are memories that may or may not have been forgotten, spirits reaching out to our world as well as other paranormal activities that are trying to communicate or leave a message. These are all possible interactions that may occur in Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery when people have visited. 

     “In 2003, I snuck into Bachelor’s Grove on the night of a full moon, on Friday the 13th, as a skeptic. What I experienced was not just phenomena, but it eventually steered me in a direction of psychic ability, because I felt like every moment in time was overlapping at the same time when I sat in that cemetery in the moonlight,” psychic advisor Arvo Zylo said.

     Zylo explained his overnight experience in Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery where he saw many glowing lights in the shape of a person. He mentioned seeing a dancing couple, possibly at their wedding, as well as a yellowish figure walking around. The last thing he heard was a scream from what he describes as a dog. This sighting could very well be memories of souls that have been forgotten and are now roaming the cemetery.

     Leading back to the theory of the lady, some have said to have seen the woman standing in front of her white house, although it had been burned a long time ago. Zylo specifically describes the house as being brown or reddish in color. Could this have possibly changed because of the fire? The older man whom Zylo talked to in his story also confirmed that the house was brown or red. Sadly, neither of them has seen the house again since. 

     Jen LaRue, a freelance artist and a Parkinson’s patient, has had an experience with Bachelor’s Grove that is not quite like the others.

     “I love Bachelor’s Grove. It is one of my favorite haunts; it is one of my favorite places to walk and just go for my own piece of mind,” LaRue said.

     LaRue finds Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery to be more of a calming, quiet and spiritual place. ”I was very spiritually connected,” LaRue emphasizes.

     She also spoke about when she brought her nephews to the cemetery at night. As they walked to the “Bachelor’s Grove Haunt,” as they call it, her experience was quite peaceful. 

     Bachelor’s Grove has a reputation for being extremely haunted, yet from the perspectives of Zylo and LaRue, it’s more of a peaceful area where people go to connect with their spirituality. Given this, some may wonder if belief shapes vision or if vision shapes belief. 

     65-year-old Brian Danko works in transportation at his own Material Moving Company. Danko had first-hand experience at the cemetery. 

     “This one appeared as a quite large white glowing sphere,” Danko said. 

     He shared that he also had verbal contact with the apparition in the cemetery. Danko explained, “A ghost is an apparition or force trying to make itself known in our world.” 

     Danko believes that Bachelor’s Grove is home to various kinds of spirits, some peaceful, others perhaps not. Bachelor’s Grove may involve spirits that are wanting to interact or communicate with people in our world. In 1974, Danko ran into a situation where it wasn’t just visual, but also verbal. This supports the idea that spirits may have left and are leaving messages, this time for Danko. A teenager at the time, his terrifying visual and oral experience with an apparition in the cemetery left him with a memory he says he is not soon to forget and will not lead him to come back for a visit any time soon. 

     Most beliefs around Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery from these few individuals have been that ghosts or spirits are people who are trying to communicate or make themselves known in some way in our world. Danko’s, LaRue’s and Zylo’s beliefs have most likely been formed around their first-hand experiences visiting Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery and how they reacted to it. Furthermore, spirits may have tried to communicate in a different way that resulted in scary situations instead of an innocent message that they were trying to send. Danko’s verbal interaction and Zylo’s visual scenes as well as LaRue’s spiritually connected feelings towards the cemetery are all associated with the cemetery and are all different perspectives of it. Their views of the cemetery are impacted by the message they were sent at different times, and in different ways from the souls that call Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery their home. Whether it’s peaceful or scary or true or false, ghosts remain ghosts and spirits remain spirits. But most of all, theories still remain theories.