Ghost Stories From Grove Street Cemetery

[Patricia B. Illingworth]

Cheers to One and All,

Well, this is the "season of the witch" as the song goes.....but I am writing to give a brief notation on Ghost Stories from the Victorian Age.

Actually, Charles Dickens, (who visited New Haven several times) was the master of the ghost story. From his own periodical paper "Household Words" taken from Shakespeare's Henry V  "Familiar in his mouth as household words." he developed the interest in ghost stories. As a matter of interest, ghost stories were told at Christmas time, not at Halloween. And this type of story telling had a huge presence in the English home and a very powerful influence and effect upon reading and the interest for reading in Victorian England.

What is interesting to note is women loved to read and write about ghost stores. These various tales brought excitement into their dull lives. The stories were full of detail into another woman's home and her influence upon her family through the tragedy of the tale.

Where we see an explosion of this genre in 1860. One so noted female writer was Mary Elizabeth Braddon and her tale entitled "Eveline's Visitant" published in the Belgravia from 1866 to 1867.  Other famous women writer from this era are: Amelia Edwards, Mrs. Riddel, Rhoda Broughton dating from 1860 through the 1870's to name a few.

And ghost stories have vigorously continued on through the 19th century with great zeal and so continues today with as much, or even more zeal for the macabre for some.

Well, Happy Halloween to All!!!!!!

Al the best,

Patricia Illingworth

Grove Street Cemetery