Corinth National Cemetery

Corinth National Cemetery Corinth Ms, Alcorn Co.

1551 Horton Street
Corinth, MS 38834
Phone: (901) 386-8311
FAX: (901) 382-0750
Office Hours:
Monday thru Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Closed federal holidays except Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
Visitation Hours:
Open daily from 8:00 a.m. to sunset.
Burial Space: This cemetery has space available to accommodate casketed and cremated remains.
Acreage: 20.0
Number of Interments
Thru Fiscal Year 2008: 7,295

HISTORICAL INFORMATION

Corinth National Cemetery is located in Alcorn County, within the city limits of Corinth, Miss. In 1854, the citizens of Tishomingo County, Miss., invited both the Mobile & Ohio and the Memphis & Charleston rail companies to build track through their jurisdiction. The companies quickly accepted the offer and within a year the surveys were complete. The proposed routes for the new lines crossed at a right angle on a section of property owned by William Lasley. Lasley sold the land and a town quickly grew up around the pending railroad intersection. Originally, the town was pragmatically called Cross City, but the local newspaper editor decided it did not fit the growing community. The name was changed to Corinth with the stipulation that the citizens could change it back in a year should they not like it. The name stuck.

Corinth flourished throughout the remainder of the1850s until the election of Abraham Lincoln, Mississippi’s secession and the beginning of the Civil War. Many Tishomingo County men served in the Confederacy and as early as 1861 Corinth served as an assembly point for Confederate soldiers traveling by rail to various points in Florida, Alabama, Kentucky and Virginia. In spring 1862, Corinth became the focal point in the Civil War's Western Theatre, as both northern and southern leaders recognized the necessity of holding the city because of its valuable rail crossings. Corinth was also in proximity to ports on the Tennessee River, including Hamburg, Eastport and Pittsburg Landing. Whoever controlled Corinth held an important logistical key to the entire lower Mississippi Valley.

Photo by Angela L MSSPI 2008

The fall of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in Tennessee, in February 1862 initiated a series of events that led to Union and Confederate advances on Corinth. The Confederates, under the leadership of General Albert Sidney Johnston, saw their trans-Appalachian defense line broken with the capture of these forts by General Ulysses S. Grant. Subsequently, Corinth became the new anchor for a Confederate defense of the lower South.

In early April 1862, federal troops led by Grant camped at Pittsburg Landing, Tenn., 22 miles northeast of Corinth. The Confederate Army made a surprise attack upon the federal encampment, and although they had an initial measure of success, on the second day Grant received reinforcements and the Confederates fell back toward Corinth.

While the Confederates were caring for their sick and wounded in Corinth, the Union army began a march on the city. Aware that federal troops were closing in, Confederate commander General P.T. Beauregard made plans to abandon the city. The evacuation was carried out in utmost secrecy and on May 30, Union troops cautiously marched into an empty city. Corinth, once again, became the focal point of the war. On Oct. 4, Union and Confederate forces took part in one of the bloodiest battles in Mississippi. The Battle of Corinth was the last major Confederate offensive in North Mississippi and its failure opened the way to Vicksburg and Union control of the Mississippi River.

Corinth National Cemetery was established in 1866 as a central burial site for approximately 2,300 Union casualties of the Battle of Corinth and similar clashes in the surrounding area. By late 1870 there were more than 5,688 interments in the cemetery—1,793 known and 3,895 unknown soldiers. The dead represented 273 regiments from 15 states. In addition, there are three Confederate interments in the cemetery – one unknown and two known soldiers.

Photo by Angela L MSSPI 2008

The cemetery was originally enclosed with a wooden picket fence, which was replaced by a brick wall in 1872. The first lodge was a wooden cottage that was replaced in 1872 and again in 1934. Corinth National Cemetery was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1991 as part of several sites associated with the Battle of Corinth; it was later listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.


In the Summer of 2008 and again in 2009  my fiance Tony and I visited the Corinth National Cemetery. It is a beautiful cemetery with a sad , lonely feel. The trees are magnificent in the spring time with dogwood blooms. You could feel the sadness in the air here in spite of it's well kept lawn and quiet beauty. There are burials here representing more than just the Civil War, from World War Veterans to Vietnam and Korea as well as their wives. But, the number of unmarked Civil War stones was overwhelming.

We recorded 2 EVP clips here in 2008. We did not record in 2009 as it was raining that day and we were unable to stay. But, I will not forget the feelings I experienced here as if I could feel the homesick sadness of the Union Soldiers who were buried here so far from their homes and loved ones. If you ever get the chance to visit the Corinth Cemetery I would encourage you to do so.  CLICK HERE to listen to the EVP we recorded at the Corinth National Cemetery.

 
Source:

http://www.cem.va.gov/cems/nchp/corinth.asp

Strange Voices at Sardis Cemetery

Strange Voices at Sardis Cemetery
Holly Springs Ms.
Article and Photos by Angela L MSSPI

Marker inscribed TJC

b. Apr 1, 1811

d. Nov 17, 1862

In the fall of 2008, two of my brothers were deer hunting in North Central Mississippi a few miles east of Holly Springs, on what is a combination of Holly Springs National Forest and private owned lease land.

They had lost a deer and since it was getting close to dark, they set out on foot to look for it. One of my brothers tripped over a partially buried headstone and fell smack into the middle of a small overgrown cemetery. They of course had to tell me about it, knowing how much I love exploring historic, lost cemeteries.

So, my brother Daniel took Tony and I on about a half mile hiking trip, up some old 4wheeler trails, off a dirt road, that we had driven for at least a mile off the highway. I could not find it again without his guidance. Anyway, at the time we went, after the hunting season ended and before it was quite warm enough for snake activity, we set off into the woods to find it. There were numerous huge trees that had been layed down by recent tornado and straight line wind damage. After climbing through heavy brush and covered foot trails, we located the cemetery.

Daniel and Tony B. Survey the tree damage.

Photo by Angela L MSSPI

My brother, who is also a curious history lover, had inquired with the elderly African American woman who owned the property and was allowing them to hunt there, about the history of the cemetery.
This is his account to me.

 

From what he had learned from the woman, who's name is being kept confidential for privacy reasons, the story of the cemetery is that, at one time, the land was owned by her family. There was a small cabin to the north of the cemetery where her family lived, which no longer stands, except for a lonely chimney, out in the woods. They had a large apple orchard and set up a fruit stand near a main road every year to sell apples. Their small place was known simply as The Apple Orchard. There was also a small wood framed African American church that sat at the top of the hill near their home. It had long ago burned down and the only thing left of it now is an old well hole. The name of the original church was not remebered by the lady, however, I was informed by Mrs. Deb Haynes of the following information regarding the cemetery.

Your brothers stumbled upon the “Sardis Cemetery”. I checked the cemetery book for Sarah Ann Tomlinson, wife of HM, and the dates match from your picture to the cemetery book ( photo of stone at bottom of page) . It is located R 1 W, T 3 S, Section 30. There are 12 names in Bobby Mitchell's book, so there were at least 12 readable headstones located there back in the 1970s and 1980s.   submitted by deb haines

Mr Bobby Mitchell is a well known local historian and member of the Marshall Co. Genealogy Society in Holly Springs Ms. and he has documented and published many of the cemeteries listings located in Marshall County. His books can be found in the History Room at the Marshall Co.Public Library in Holly Springs Ms.

 

Photo by Angela L MSSPI

What is known, is that there are several children buried in the cemetery, who died in the yellow fever epidemics in the 1870's. The photo above is a row of small children who died during the times of the fever epedemic. This is also the location where we recorded  2 EVP. (Electronic Voice Phenomena)
EVP is an abbreviation for Electronic Voice Phenomena. It is basically a disembodied voice or sound of unknown origin captured on either tape or digital audio recorders that is normally not heard by the human ear at the time of recording .  EVPs are generally heard on playback.  There is no solid evidence that the sounds you here on playback are ghost or spirits . There is also no solid evidence that they arn't.

A Note About EVP's:

Though every effort is made to make our audio clips loud and clearly audible, the typical EVP is extremely low in volume and is often hard to hear without being in a QUIET room, using good headphones. If you take the time to listen to them in this type of environment, you will hear them! Enjoy.
 In the first EVP you will hear a voice that sounds like an African American girl.

Sardis Cemetery Female Voice EVP

you can also hear the clip by clicking here on the Archive Page.

In the second clip, which happened just a few seconds after Clip one, I felt a weird tingling sensation on my right arm. My voice trailed off as I searched to see if anything was on me or touching me which there wasnt anything there, Then you will hear what sounds like a child giggle.

Sardis Cemetery Webs and Giggles

you can also hear the clip by clicking here on the Archives Page:

Photo by Angela L MSSPI

We uncovered several readable stones and some that had no markings at all. The gravesites being marked by large heavy field stones.

Headstone of Sarah Ann Thomlinson -Photo by Angela L MSSPI

My brother stated that he avoided walking near this area while hunting because he always got the feeling he was being watched and on several occasions thought he had heard laughing and things moving in the shadows.

We have not been able to go back to investigate this cemetery further due to the State doing tree clearing work and the arrival of snake season. However, I would like to go back to try and do more research into this beautiful, lost cemetery. as of the time of this trip we counted approxamately 15 grave markers and I'm sure there were more that we did not discover due to the heavy brush and downed trees. However, this was a remarkable place and I appreciate Daniel taking the time to show it to us.

Recently I was told that the State had widened the trail that leads to the cemetery but 4 wheelers are no longer allowed on the trails. I was also told that many of the downed trees have been cleared and that the cemetery boundaries have been taped off. I hope to visit it again someday, I just haven't decided which to risk, an encounter with the summer snakes and numerous wild animals reported in the area or the deer and wild boar hunters. Neither season sounds very appealing.

Sources:

Bobby Mitchell Marshall Co Genealogy Society

Deb Haines

Unnamed property owner

Marshall Co Public Library History Room

Daniel and Jimmie Dalton- Local Game Hunters

Are Cemetaries Haunted ?

by Angela L Burke


This is a common question and a topic often debated among ghost hunters and paranormal researchers. Skeptics and critics will say that ghosts are figments of our imagination brought on by too much television and over active imaginations. But if you know anything at all about history or the Bible for that matter, you will find that there have been reports of ghosts and spirits in cemeteries for hundreds of years. Before there was such a thing as the syfy channel or scooby doo cartoons. Movie makers and screen play writers didn't invent the idea of ghosts, they borrowed those ideas from historical accounts, legends and stories,Biblical accounts and even works of great poetry from the likes of Poe and Dickens. Many would say, what reason would a ghost have for hanging out with his decaying bones? Why would a ghost want to stay in a cemetery?

Well, I can think of a few reasons right off the top of my head and while I don't believe that all cemeteries are haunted , I do believe that some of them are.

And I will tell you why.

First, cemeteries are filled with sad and lonely emotions that I personally believe can leave, as potent of an imprint on the surroundings, as the emotions that linger in homes, hospitals and other reported haunted places.
It is the place where the body is laid to rest or in some cases is laid in unrest. A place where family members come to visit and grieve, bring flowers and trinkets and spend time talking to their departed loved ones and friends.
I like the way author & paranormal investigator Kenneth Biddle of PIRA put it when he wrote "

" this is not a science with clear-cut rules. The habits and traits of ghosts can change with every case, with every sighting. Cases differ from residual haunting to interactive spirits, all the way to footsteps that go from the second floor to the third but then one night they are heard going from the third to the second. Who knows why that ghost changed its mind? My point here is that ghosts are absolutely the hardest things to predict. The cemetery is also the place we go to visit them, leave flowers or little reminders, to talk to them and to show kids and grandkids that this is where we remember them. We still follow our religious beliefs and say that they are in a better place, but we still associate that grave with the deceased. Well, while we're there, we're putting out emotional energy. Tons of it! Remembering the good times, wishing they could've been hear for some event, missing them. That's a lot of energy, and I would think that that might draw the spirits to us. It would be like a family reunion. Assuming that they can see each other, I would expect grandparents that have passed on to act just as they did while they were alive, showing off their grandkids to other spirits! "


I have to agree that these are valid reasons why a ghost or spirit might choose to hang around the cemetery. Another reason might be that the headstone is the only thing that the deceased has left to tie him to this realm, maybe he doesn't want to let go, out of fear, anger or some other unfinished business. They say that a spirit will likely act the same in death as they did in their earthly life, so is it so hard to fathom, that maybe the spirit just isn't ready to accept his fate and maybe doesn't have anywhere else to go? Or that he has his own reasons for hanging around, be it to protect the bodies of those he loves, possessions or material wealth he may have been interred with, or possibly he was sleeping and some noisy people just woke him up from his rest?

I also think, that it is possible, that spirits can move around wherever they prefer to be. So it is also a possibility that they come and go or appear to just stop in for a visit as some would say, when ever they feel like it. It is also a possibility that they don't understand or don't want to accept their death and by surrendering to the grave they have to admit defeat. I also have a theory that I have never heard anyone mention. Being from a religious upbringing, I have heard many stories about where the spirit supposedly goes after death, some say heaven, some say hell, some say purgatory, some say they sleep until Christ returns in the rapture. Well, I don't know about you , but if you look at my insomniac sleeping patterns, I do little sleeping here in this life and I think it is a possibility that some of them are just plain restless from waiting. Many are also buried near their loved ones, so who is to say they aren't visiting with them while they wait? Not to mention, if you really look at the whole picture, century after century of people have lived, and died on this planet and some have been buried century after century on top of each other. In reality, your house could be sitting on a lost cemetery and you don't even know it. Many of the places that we think of as big cities and subdivisions, were once, farmlands, wood lands, Native American homesteads as well as battlefields and places of skirmishes and places where people may have been buried while migrating to the west or pitching their cabin . So who is to say there aren't bodies buried in your backyard. It is possible. And could be the cause of why some houses are haunted in my opinion.

I have had many personal experiences in cemeteries. I have loved visiting them since I was a child. My grandparents use to take me to the family cemetery all the time when I was little, I would walk around and explore while I waited for them to put out the flowers and clean up the grave sites. I had one experience there when I was a child, I saw a small girl sitting alone under a huge tree, she appeared to be picking clover and humming. She looked up at me and smiled and then vanished into thin air. I have revisited this area of our family cemetery many times over the years and have recorded EVP of a little girl humming on at least two occasions under that same tree.

EVP stands for Electronic Voice Phenomena - the recording of a voice or sound  on a digital or tape recorder not heard by the human ear at the time of recording but is audible on playback. It is theorized that EVP are the disembodied voices of the dead. while there is no scientific proof that they are spirits of the dead, there is so much evidence to support the possibility, that it is widely accepted among many paranormal researchers as scientific data worth including.

I have seen and photographed images that appear to be apparitions, and recorded over 100 EVP or Electronic Voice Phenomena in cemeteries. So I believe that as paranormal investigators, if we are going to include evp as possible evidence of hauntings in homes and other places, why would we exclude those EVP recorded in cemeteries?

Yes, sometimes they are harder to record due to external noises and audio contaminates, which is why cemetery recordings are excellent training for EVP techs and investigators, after many hours of listening to them, you become familiar with the sounds that natural things make, such as leaves crunching, wind,walking in grass, birds, passing cars, airplanes and voices that carry, but when a voice speaks into your recorder clear and plain, or answers your questions directly and you know that you were alone....well, then you might have a different opinion of the possibility of ghosts in cemeteries.The argument that there is too much daytime noise contamination might be true depending on the location, but if you have ever been on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere in the middle of a summer night at a cemetery, you will realize that the night time is not as quiet as you might think and comes with its own set of noises to be logged and identified. Exp, crickets, frogs, owls, critters, etc... I personally believe that if you are experienced with EVP and the documenting of sounds you do hear during the session, that you will be able to pick out what is natural and what is unexplainable. I have been on many home and indoor invewstigations where external traffic noise and voices from the outside have been audible. Working with recordings from cemeteries is an excellent way to train the ear to recognize external noise. A good , clear EVP is usually hard to discredit especially if you are a good note taker and are paying attention to your surroundings..

I have recorded voices telling me their names without my asking and then I stop and read their headstone, not knowing that they had whispered it to me, just prior. I have heard angry voices, telling me to leave, recorded voices asking me to take their picture and I have heard recordings of voices telling me how they died as well as asking for specific members of their families or items they are looking for. I have been told that I'm stepping on their grave as well as being told that they are standing right behind me and don't seem to understand why I can't see them.

I think it is important when investigating cemeteries or any other areas presumed to have spirit activity, that investigators show respect for the dead and speak to them as you would want to be spoken to. I am not very impressed by researchers who provoke in cemeteries, or any other places for that matter except maybe the jail house or a place where hard core spirits might loom such as pubs and saloons. I think that you catch more flies with honey than vinegar, but that is my own personal opinion, but, I do make it known to those who I investigate with, that I do not approve of provoking spirits for the sake of a reaction in the cemetery. I have the utmost respect for burial grounds and those who are interred there. Cemeteries are sacred , hallow ground in my opinion and should be treated as such.

I also do not discredit the theory that cemeteries could hold portals, where spirits can possibly enter and leave our realm at certain times. One Sunday morning several hours before church, at the family cemetery I spoke of earlier, my fiance' Tony and I  went to investigate on a beautiful sunny morning, no wind, no noise other than an occasional bird or cow from a nearby pasture and out of 2 hours of audio we recorded 19 minutes of the strangest sounding EVPs I had ever heard. Increasing weird static mixed with voices of men and women some talking, some crying, some screaming. the static escalated the farther into the old section we walked. The clip was taken apart and analyzed by a retired Navy Radio Specialist and he sent it back to me in disbelief, he claimed to have counted over 23 unexplained voices all recorded on decibel levels that cannot be heard by the human ear,so many in fact he could not separate them all. At this same time, Tony and I both had experiences of hearing footsteps, having cold chills, static charge on the hair of the neck,  feeling dizzy and nauseated, difficulty breathing and the general feeling of being rushed out of the cemetery. We never heard any of the sounds at the time. We ruled out external utility wires and radio contamination due to the decibel levels of the recordings, the lack of visible electrical lines, and the rural location and we have been back on numerous occasions to the same area and have not been successful in recreating this noise which ended as abruptly as it started as soon as we left the old section of the cemetery. the recording returned to normal for the remainder of our time there. we could find nothing wrong with our equipment.

One tip I would suggest to new investigators is that they don't limit themselves to doing just night time visits. The majority of paranormal activity I have experienced in cemeteries has occurred in the daytime.In fact I can probably count on both hands the EVP I have recorded at a night time investigation. I do not believe that ghosts only come out at night. Not to mention, it is a lot safer to go in the daytime. Cemeteries, especially rural ones are filled with sinking holes, uneven ground and obstacles that can be dangerous to your physical well being, even if there are no ghost, not to mention random sometimes deadly critters and creepy humans that like to come out at night. The last night time investigation I went on, was cut short, due to the very ,scary screeching/screaming sounds of what my dad describes as, a wild cat or a panther. So I would suggest that until you have been there several times in the daylight and know your way around the area very well, that you avoid concentrating on night time investigations. In fact, in some states, such as our Great State of Mississippi, it is illegal to be in the cemetery after dusk especially if gated, without specific permission from the cemetery owners. On daytime investigations, there usually, is not a problem with permissions, unless it is private owned. If you are unsure about the laws in your area, contact the local authorities who will be more than happy to tell you.

I would also recommend that if you are able to record an EVP in a cemetery, that you visit that area frequently, so that if there is a presence there, that it has a chance to get to know you. I have found it to be most helpful when visiting ethnic cemeteries or places where I have no personal family or friends interred. I can only imagine what the spirits present must think of a white girl they have never seen before,walking into their territoryand  asking them all sorts of questions. I frequently bring flowers and spend a great deal of time just sitting and talking at the headstones where I have recorded EVP on previous visits. One cemetery in particular that I visit often , I feel a strong attachment to several particular headstones and on the last visit, I recorded a woman's voice announcing my arrival by saying my name. It sounds very much like the same voice I have had the privilege of recording in that same area.

The study of the paranormal and the subject of ghost has no clear cut answers, only theories and questions, which is why I do not think cemeteries should be discounted. Just because it might not be our own first choice of places we think, we would haunt. There are many places I can't imagine being stuck in, that are presumed haunted. So what better place to start than at the sites that hold the dead. I think too many paranormal investigators think it is silly to pursue them, and that's fine with me, it just means it will be a little quieter in the places I record and investigate. So in closing, are cemeteries haunted? There is only one way to find out, and that is by investigating them with the same dedication we would give a house or any other place that has reported activity. Visit and investigate one yourself and draw your own conclusions.

If you are interested in hearing some of the cemetery EVP we have recorded, visit our paranormal web site at www.mississippi-spi.com there are numerous cemetery EVP posted on our cemetery pages.

If you have thoughts or comments or stories about cemetery hauntings, please feel free to share them with me in the form of a comment.

Until Next Time............