120 - Peoria State Hospital Cemetery
Peoria State Hospital Cemetery, home to approximately 4,000 to 4,500 graves and is supposedly haunted by the ghost of A. Bookbinder (sometimes referred to as Old Book).
The story of “Old Book” as told in detail by PrairieGhosts.com:
Dr. Zeller described the man as being strong and healthy, although completely uncommunicative. Soon, the attendants enlisted him to assist in the burial corps. Strangely, “Old Book” as he began to be called was especially suited to the work. Ordinarily, when the coffin was being lowered, the gravediggers would stand back out of the way and wait silently for the funeral to end. At that point, they would set to filling the grave. Nearly every single patient at the hospital was a stranger and unknown to the staff, so the funeral services were mainly done out of respect, rather than because of personal attachment to the deceased. Because of this, everyone was a little surprised when, at his first internment, Old Book proceeded to remove his cap, wipe his eyes and begin weeping loudly for the patient who had died. He would do the same thing at each service…. first his sleeve would be used to wipe away his tears and then he would walk over and lean against the old elm that stood in the center of the cemetery and begin sobbing loudly. This tree, where Book would give vent to his grief, was known as the “Graveyard Elm”. It was a massive old tree which had been standing for many years.
Time passed and eventually Old Book too passed away. Word spread among the employees and as Book was well-liked, and noted for his peculiarities, everyone decided they would attend his funeral. Dr. Zeller wrote that more than 100 uniformed nurses attended, along with the male staff members and several hundred of the patients. Dr. Zeller officiated the service. Old Book’s casket was placed on two cross beams above his empty grave and four men stood by to lower it into the ground at the end of the service. Dr. Zeller wrote, “Just as the choir finished the last lines of ‘Rock of Ages’, the men grasped the ropes, stooped forward, and with a powerful, muscular effort, prepared to lift the coffin, in order to permit the removal of the crossbeams and allow it to gently descend into the grave. “At a given signal, they heaved away the ropes and the next instant, all four lay on their backs. For the coffin, instead of offering resistance, bounded into the air like an eggshell, as if it were empty!”
Needless to say, the spectators were a little shocked at this turn of events and the nurses were to said to have shrieked, half of them running away and the other half coming closer to the grave to see what was going on.
“In the midst of the commotion,” Dr. Zeller continued, “a wailing voice was heard and every eye turned toward the Graveyard Elm whence it emanated. Every man and woman stood transfixed, for there, just as had always been the case, stood Old Book, weeping and moaning with an earnestness that outrivaled anything he had ever shown before.
After a few moments of this, Dr. Zeller summoned some men to remove the lid of the coffin, convinced that Old Book could not be inside of it. The lid was lifted and as soon as it was, the wailing sound completely stopped. Inside of the coffin lay the body of Old Book…. unquestionably dead. It was said that every eye looked upon the still corpse and then over to the Graveyard Elm. The apparition had vanished.
“It was awful, but it was real,” Dr. Zeller wrote. “I saw it; 100 nurses saw it and 300 spectators saw it.”
A few days later, the Graveyard Elm mysteriously began to wither and die. In spite of efforts to save it, the tree declined over the next year until it was completely dead. Later, after the dead limbs had dropped, workmen tried to remove the rest of the tree, but stopped working after the first cut of the ax caused the tree to emanate an “agonized, despairing cry of pain”. After that, Dr. Zeller suggested the tree be burned, however as soon as the flames started around the tree’s base, the workers quickly put them out. They later told Zeller that they heard a sobbing and crying sound coming from it.
“Today, Old Book’s grave remains without headstone or monument,” Dr. Zeller wrote about his shared experience. “But if anyone asks where he is, those of us in the know point with a shudder to the remains of the Graveyard Elm.”
The cemetery is shrouded in secrecy, according to one reference I found: “Since the closing of the State Hospital, all records have been (and remain) closed. The last body laid to rest was in 1973. The State of Illinois decreed that historians and genealogists can not record the names, birth & death dates of any grave. Over 1500 are identified and those are recorded. But the remaining graves bear only a number & the State of Illinois will not release information even under a Court Order to do so.”
I finally made it out there to snap some photos on my own. There are supposedly four grave sites. I’m told this is number two. I don’t know if this site is subdivided into four sections or if there are three other sites. Any insight would be appreciated. To get here, go up the bluff into the “Bartonville Industrial Park” near the Keystone Plant and take a left at the nurses houses. Approximately 1/4 mile down, pull down the unmarked dirt and gravel road on your left.
A big thank you to Angie Walker for the original photo and to “nursypoo62″ calling it.
January 17th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
Mt. Hawley Cemetery.
January 18th, 2007 at 9:28 am
Nope.
You can blame Angie for this one now, but you’ll thank her later.
January 18th, 2007 at 2:14 pm
Ok…..how about the Civil War section of Springdale Cemetery, way up on the hill on the east bluffs.
January 18th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
…next…
January 18th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
Hobbit Cemetery near the Shire?
January 18th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
Or perhaps Springdale’s pet cemetery?
January 18th, 2007 at 7:09 pm
Springdale has a pet cemetery?
January 18th, 2007 at 7:31 pm
Yes it does have a pet section. It’s called Whispering Wood or something.
And I have no idea where this picture is. The stones look like concrete but I’m guessing that’s just age. The huge white oaks amongst them testifies to that well enough.
January 18th, 2007 at 9:20 pm
ok last guess….Jubilee Park cemetery.
The pet cemetery in Springdale is at the end of Perry Street, just inside the “lower” gate.
January 19th, 2007 at 12:36 am
…except the “lower” gate is fenced off. I did make it down there some time ago and I swear I spent 20 minutes driving around in circles looking for the way out.
January 19th, 2007 at 11:32 am
A scene from the Blair Witch Project
January 19th, 2007 at 2:49 pm
ok, my very last and final guess, honest.
St. Joseph’s cemetery on Heading Ave.
January 20th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
Peoria State Hospital in Bartonville!
January 20th, 2007 at 6:44 pm
Old Book… one of my favorite legends…
BURL
January 20th, 2007 at 10:39 pm
I have been working on my family geneology for the past 4 months or so, and in doing research discovered 1930, 1920, 1910, 1900 and some 1880 US Census records for the Peoria State Hospital and Almshouse. The 1910-1930 records seem complete, with from 47-62 pages of names (about 50 names per page). Slightly different information is asked on each census, but basically they provide the full name, age, place of birth, places of birth of parents, marital status, sex, race and on some, if the person can read or write. All of this is available to anyone, so the state must only be guarding info on those buried in the cemetery. I’ve found 3 relatives who were patients, and 2 others who were in the Almshouse. They also list all employees who lived on the grounds.
On another note, the 1850, 1860 and 1870 census forms asks of each person if “Whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper or convict.” I bet they would get a 95% “yes” on that if asked today.
Since doing the geneology, I’ve discoverd I’m related to everybody, so I’m coming to each of your houses for a visit. Break out the futons.
January 21st, 2007 at 1:26 pm
A very historic place — and a location that made the career of at least one Journal Star columnist. This was great information and a great mystery. Kudos to Angie, nursy and of course NTPL.
m.
January 21st, 2007 at 11:59 pm
Oddly enough we visited Barnes & Noble today and in the ‘local’ section “Asylum Light: Stories From The Dr. George A. Zeller Era and Beyond” was staring me in the face. I’ve never seen this book before, or maybe I just never noticed, but I had to pick it up. I’ve only lightly flipped through it, but I think Angie’s picture is from graveyard #’s 1 and 2 (as she claimed) and mine are from #’s 3 & 4.
I’ve driven past Keystone literally hundreds of times, yet I did not know about the Asylum up the hill (always wondered what was up there). I’m surprised at how much info is available on this place, yet at the same time it’s mostly ametuer historians that are doing the documenting. Of all the books I have, it is rarely referenced.
After visiting and from a little research I see that most of what was there is gone, but there is enough left that I must return. I saw the sign that said no trespassing, and I later found a web site that said the police aggressivley watch the grounds and *will* arrest you at either the Bowen building OR the gravesites.
January 22nd, 2007 at 10:34 am
JW - I found some transcriptions of census records online, but how would one go about obtaining copies of the original documents?
January 22nd, 2007 at 2:31 pm
The best way is to subscribe to ancestry.com. They have 99% of all census records from 1790 to 1930 (last year the government has released them, minus the 1890 records which were destroyed in a fire). They also have zillions of other public records. You can subscribe for a month, or a year, which I have. Once you find the census page you want, you can save it as a .jpg or print it out using built-in software they provide. The original census pages are larger than 8×11, so when they print out, they can be hard to read. There are other web sites that offer census records, but most are not indexed and finding a particular person is nearly impossible. If you need any help, just ask.
February 24th, 2007 at 7:11 pm
So how would I go about finding about a grave there? My great-great aunt had a breakdown when she was young and lived out her life there. I’m sure she’s buried there as well. Great website, I found a lot of terrific info, and it was neat to see a pic of where she was.
October 3rd, 2007 at 9:55 am
LIKE TO SEE MORE PICTURES OF THE STATE HOSPITAL FOR THE YEAR 2007 THANKYOU VERY MUCH FOR ALL THE PICTURES OF THE STATE HOSPITAL HOPE TO SEE MORE.
October 3rd, 2007 at 7:49 pm
My husband and I love the old hospital site and have researched and taken alot of photos. We have not been out for about a year but when we were previously there were never bothered by the police, although now I do hear they are agressive. When we take photos we always make sure we have our huge notebook of notes, maps and such so we can show we are not out to vandalize.
If you are interested in finding a grave site, The Peoria County Genealogical society has an excellent book called The forgotten residents of Peoria State Hospital for $25.00 which lists alot of patients names, dob, death and the grave number. I have been contacted and have contacted people in other states looking for info on someone who was a patient and was able to find info in this book and went out to take a photo to email to them. In Cemetary 3, the majority of the grave markers are buried and we had to dig the ground off to take a photo. It’s shameful the way those markers have been buried over the years.
December 30th, 2007 at 2:57 pm
i’ve recently discovered this asylum and find it fasanating. where would be a good place to look for a complete history on the place?