When it comes to spooky travel destinations, graveyards supposedly haunted by vampires rank near the top of the list. From the Rocky Mountains to the historic streets of Glasgow, each site carries its own chilling tale of blood‑sucking specters and desperate townsfolk trying to keep the undead at bay.

Why These Graveyards Supposedly Attract Vampires

Folklore, disease, and a dash of imagination have turned ordinary burial grounds into hotbeds of vampire lore. Whether it’s a misplaced stake, a cursed crypt, or a tree that seems to bleed, the stories we’ll explore below prove that the line between history and horror is often just a few inches of earth.

10 Lafayette Municipal Cemetery Lafayette, Colorado

Some headstones seem magnetically drawn to legend. In Colorado’s Lafayette Municipal Cemetery, a modest stone bearing the name Theodore “Fodor” Glava—an immigrant laborer who died of influenza at 43—has sparked a vampire saga. According to local lore, Glava was a tall, thin Transylvanian with dark hair and unnaturally long fingernails. When townspeople caught wind of his supposed nocturnal habits, they drove a wooden spike into his heart, allegedly killing the vampire and birthing a solitary tree that still rises over his grave.

Today, curious teens and paranormal investigators still wander the cemetery, hoping to catch a glimpse of the lingering legend.

9 Resurrection Cemetery Justice, Illinois

Just south of Chicago, Resurrection Cemetery is famous for the phantom hitchhiker known as Resurrection Mary. But the ghostly activity doesn’t stop at a girl in a party dress—nightly scratching sounds echo from a hidden grave, leading some investigators to label the culprit an unnamed vampire clawing its way to the surface after sunset.

8 Southern Necropolis Glasgow, Scotland

The Gorbals district’s Southern Necropolis holds over a quarter‑million tombs, including notable figures like Sir Thomas Lipton. In September 1954, police officer Alex Deeprose responded to a frantic call: dozens of children patrolling the grounds with knives and wooden stakes, hunting a two‑meter‑tall vampire with metal teeth who allegedly ate two local boys. Though no murders were ever confirmed, the children’s nightly patrols sparked a brief panic and even forged an unlikely alliance between Christians, teachers, and Scottish communists, who blamed American horror media for the frenzy.

7 The Erie Cemetery Erie, Pennsylvania

When a town shares its name with a great lake, eerie stories tend to follow. Erie Cemetery houses the so‑called Vampire’s Crypt—a towering mausoleum of interlocking V‑shaped slabs. Legend claims the crypt exudes an oppressive, unnatural vibe. One daring teen scaled its walls on a dare, only to be terrified by a specter and later die in a freak accident. Another tale tells of a widow besieged by a pack of feral dogs guarding the crypt. Rumors also suggest the crypt and a nearby Witches’ Circle have hosted pagan rites that might have resurrected the vampire, echoing the plot of Dracula A.D. 1972.

6 St. Mary’s Churchyard Tarrant Gunville, Dorset

During the height of vampire superstition, suicide victims were often suspected of becoming undead. In Dorset’s St. Mary’s Churchyard, workers unearthed the corpse of “Old Doggett,” later identified as William Doggett, a steward who’d tried to profit from his employer’s estate. To prevent his return, they tied a yellow silk ribbon around his legs. Yet folklore insists his ghost still roams the nearby Eastbury House, waiting for a headless coach driver, and that his blood‑stained visage haunts the churchyard itself.

5 Dellwood Cemetery Manchester, Vermont

Captain Isaac Burton, a celebrated war hero turned deacon, faced a tragic series of tuberculosis deaths. After his first wife, Rachel Harris, succumbed, Burton married Hulda Powell, who also died of consumption. Convinced a vampire was draining his family, Burton and Judge John S. Pettibone exhumed Rachel’s body, removed her heart, liver, and lungs, burned the organs, and mixed the ashes with water—then drank the concoction. The public spectacle drew crowds from across Vermont, all eager to witness the vampire’s destruction. Today, Burton and his fourth wife rest in Dellwood Cemetery, while Rachel’s lost grave continues to intrigue ghost hunters.

4 Santa Paula Cemetery Guadalajara, Mexico

El Panteón de Belén, better known as Santa Paula Cemetery, is famed for a vampire tree. Legend says a vampire once terrorized Guadalajara, first preying on animals, then infants. Citizens formed a vigilante squad, drove a stake through the creature’s heart, and buried the body beneath massive concrete slabs. Over time, a mysterious tree cracked the slabs, growing from the staked heart. Folklore warns that cutting a limb from this tree will cause blood to appear, and if the tree ever lifts the coffin, the vampire will rise and hunt the living once more.

3 Culmen Kaldus, Poland

“Culmen,” the Latin name for a medieval burial ground in Kaldus, Poland, dates back to the 10th century. Archaeologists led by Prof. Wojciech Chudziak uncovered 14 skeletons from the 11th‑century layers that had been decapitated, crushed, and buried on their sides—clear evidence of anti‑vampire rites. At the time, Christianity had not fully permeated the region, allowing such superstitions to flourish. The remains of a man and a woman, both showing disease‑related trauma, illustrate how seriously medieval Poles took the threat of the undead.

2 Dummerston Center Cemetery Dummerston, Vermont

In 1859, Henry David Thoreau documented New Englanders blaming tuberculosis on vampires. Their remedy: exhume suspected bodies, remove vital organs, burn them, and mix the ashes with water for a curative drink. Lieutenant Spaulding, whose children died of consumption, followed this practice. He dug up a child’s grave, burned the heart, lungs, and stomach, and fed the mixture to a sick daughter—who recovered. Though Spaulding and his wife rest in unmarked graves, two of their children lie in Dummerston Center Cemetery, where visitors still hope to glimpse a vampire ghost.

1 Hollywood Cemetery Richmond, Virginia

William Wortham Pool, an unremarkable bookkeeper from Mississippi, was interred in Richmond’s Hollywood Cemetery in 1913. The legend of the Richmond Vampire began after the Church Hill Tunnel collapse in 1925, which killed several workers. Superstitious locals claimed the disaster awakened a blood‑soaked creature that fled the tunnel and vanished into Pool’s crypt. An alternate tale names Benjamin Mosby, a mutilated tunnel worker, who allegedly ran into the cemetery before dying. Though the stories lack concrete evidence, they have cemented Hollywood Cemetery’s reputation as one of America’s most intriguing vampire sites.

While still considered a strange destination on holiday, a growing number of people are seeking out cemeteries to visit. There is an inherent fascination in cemeteries that should be embraced. Whether you are interested in the architecture or artwork of the tombs, the history of the area, or simply seeking out the final resting place of a favorite personality, cemeteries are a worthwhile destination. Below I list a by‑no‑means definitive list of some of the most famous cemeteries in the world. The list is in no order, and the selections are based on what I am most familiar with personally. Please feel free to suggest further destinations in the comments. Note: in the interest of brevity, I have stuck strictly to cemeteries, omitting other places people may be laid to rest.

Why Explore 10 Fascinating Graveyards?

These burial grounds are more than just rows of stone; they are open‑air museums where art, politics, and culture intersect. From cat‑infested avenues in Buenos Aires to colorful wooden markers in Romania, each site offers a unique window into the lives and legacies of those who shaped our world.

10. La Recoleta Cemetery

Always topping lists of places to visit in Buenos Aires, the Cementerio de la Recoleta is a fascinating glimpse into Argentine history. The most famous tomb is undoubtedly that of Eva Perón’s, but there are many more Argentinean politicians, poets and personalities. The cemetery is designed much like a city, with wide avenues branching off into alleyways, all lined with “houses” for individuals and families. Many are exceptionally well maintained, but there are many more that no longer have family members to maintain them and have thus fallen into disrepair. There are stories of crypts being used as maintenance closets, with cleaning supplies stored on top of coffins. Among the tombs that have been maintained, you will find many sculptures that have been declared national historic monuments, as well as a myriad of styles, from Egyptian to Gothic to Art Deco. Another interesting note: among Argentina’s rich and famous deceased, you may also find a colony of feral cats that have made Cementerio de la Recoleta their home, and who are often fed by the locals.

9. Saint Louis Cemetery

This is actually three cemeteries. Each is worth visiting, though Saint Louis Cemetery #1 is, in my opinion, the most interesting, and the one I will be referring to. The tombs in Saint Louis are above ground, and the stone buildings are actually concealing bodies only a few feet away from the visitor. The reason for this is supposedly because the ground water level in New Orleans is impractical for burials, though there is some dispute of this. Saint Louis #1 is more than a little run down, and a tour guide is strongly recommended. Voodoo is alive and well in New Orleans and the tomb of Voodoo Queen Marie LaVeau is supposedly located in the Glapion family crypt in Louis #1. When I visited, graffiti made this particular tomb hard to miss, but that was a few years ago, and I can’t vouch for what it looks like now. As an aside, when I visited I did not go with a tour. Aimless wandering through the one square block cemetery found many tombs that had been broken into, and more than a few remains scattered. This cemetery is not for the faint‑hearted.

8. Forest Lawn Memorial Parks

Also: Hollywood Forever (Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.) Three places for the price of one! First, Forest Lawn: A unique entry… The creators of these parks wanted to approach the creation of a final resting place with a sunnier outlook. The result is practically a theme park for death. Traditional headstones are ditched in favor of markers set into the ground, and replicas of artwork –paintings and statuary- and famous buildings from all over the world, abound. If, for instance, you want to see the complete collection of Michelangelo’s sculptures but can’t afford to bounce around Europe, look no further. This cemetery contains the only complete collection in the world that is made from casts of the originals and marble from the same quarry Michelangelo used. Between Glendale and Hollywood Hills you can find the final resting place of what may seem like most of Hollywood (and you’ll find the rest at Hollywood Forever). Curiously, some of the graves are in a restricted section, among them Hollywood elite such as Humphrey Bogart, Nat King Cole and Mary Pickford, but most are available to the public. Some of the more visited markers are those of Walt Disney, L. Frank Baum, Errol Flynn, James Stewart, Spencer Tracy, Tex Avery, Scatman Crothers, Bette Davis, Marty Feldman, Buster Keaton, Fritz Lang, Liberace, Telly Savales (buried with a lollipop!), and many, many more. Hollywood Forever is located nearby, adjacent to the north wall of Paramount studios. It is less popular because it spent the latter part of the 20th century being run down and financially mismanaged. It was purchased by its current owners in 1998 and refurbished. Movies are screened there in the summertime, drawing hundreds of visitors. Famous occupants include Mel Blanc, Cecille B. DeMille, Douglas Fairbanks, Douglas Fairbanks Jr., George Harrison, Johnny and Dee Dee Ramone, Rudolph Valentino, and my all‑time favorite actor, Peter Lorre.

7. Green‑Wood Cemetery

Boasting 600,000 graves spread out over 478 acres, this site is a popular tourist attraction for those visiting New York City. Like Père‑Lachaise, there was a campaign to promote the cemetery involving moving famous bodies there and donating monuments. Unlike Père‑Lachaise, the plan didn’t really work, and from the time it was opened in 1838 until the building of the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883 made it easier to get there, the cemetery did not get that many permanent residents. Those that did come to stay had plenty of room to do so, however. There are hundreds of ornate tombs for famous and non‑famous residents alike, but the site still seems wide open. Most New Yorkers who made their name in the second half of the 19th century (a prolific chunk of time for famous New Yorkers) can be found here. There are also war memorials and monuments, including an Obelisk that serves as a grave marker for 103 of the nearly 300 victims of the Brooklyn Theater Fire.

6. Old Jewish Cemetery

Easily the oldest cemetery on this list, with the earliest discernable headstone dating back to 1439, the Old Jewish Cemetery operated until 1787, which means it closed before most of the entries on this list had opened. The headstones bear this out, jumbled at strange angles and deeply weatherworn. Ropes divide the walkway from the headstones, and tickets can be bought to see the cemetery individually or in addition to visiting the surrounding synagogues. Interestingly, while many Jewish cemeteries were destroyed during the Holocaust, Hitler specifically requested this one remain intact, as he apparently intended to build a museum here after his assumed victory.

5. Zentralfriedhof

At 2.4 square kilometers, it is the second largest cemetery (after Hamburg) in Europe. It also, at 3.3 million occupants, is the largest in Europe by number interred. Conveniently, the most famous occupants of Zentralfriedhof are located in a section called the Ehrengräber. Just as Vienna is the capital of classical music, so the Ehrengräber is the home of many classical musicians and composers, many of whom were moved from other cemeteries (to complete the collection, so to speak). Here you will find Ludwig Van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, Antonio Salieri, Franz Schubert, Johann Strauss (I & II), and, interestingly, Falco (of Der Kommissar fame).

4. Merry Cemetery

A strangely joyous cemetery, Merry Cemetery contains hundreds of wooden markers brightly painted with scenes from the lives (and sometimes the demise) of the deceased, as well as poems about their lives. There is little or no weather proofing on the markers, so that the paint fades with the memories of the dearly departed. You can find many pictures of markers here, with translations of some of the inscriptions.

3. Protestant Cemetery

Also known as the Englishman’s cemetery and the Non‑Catholic Cemetery, the latter moniker applies the best. This was the place to bury those who died in and around Rome but who were not Catholic. The most recognizable feature of the cemetery is probably the Pyramid of Cestius, a small‑scale Egyptian‑style pyramid built around 18 to 12 B.C. that is the tomb of a Gaius Cestius Epulo, making it the oldest tomb in the cemetery by over a century and a half. It was incorporated into the city fortification known as the Aurelian Walls, which were, in turn, later used as a partial border to the cemetery. The first modern burials date from the mid 1700’s. Its most famous residents include the poets John Keats and Percy Shelley, making it a pilgrimage site for fans of Romantic poetry. An interesting story surrounds the burial of Percy Shelley. Though he was cremated on the beach near where he drowned, his ashes (minus his heart, which would be buried with Mary Shelley years later) were to be interred here. The body of his son, William Shelley, also buried in the Protestant Cemetery, was exhumed to join his father. Unfortunately, the body exhumed was that of a 5 ½ foot man, not the body of a three‑year‑old boy. In the end, William Shelley’s body was never found, and Percy Shelley was buried without him.

2. Cimetière du Père‑Lachaise

Located east of Paris’ city center, Père‑Lachaise has become arguably the most famous cemetery in the world, boasting hundreds of thousands of visitors a year. It was not always this popular, though. When it was first opened in 1804, no one wanted to be buried there because it had no history. In a campaign to promote the cemetery, famous bodies were actually moved to Père‑Lachaise, among them Molière and the famed lovers, Héloïse and Abelard. This unusual attention grabber worked, and Père‑Lachaise became the place to go when you were done going places. There are so many famous buried in Père‑Lachaise, it could make up its own list. Off the top of my head: Marcel Proust, Gertrude Stein, Jim Morrison, Oscar Wilde, Isadora Duncan, Camille Pissarro, Édith Piaf, Marcel Marceau, Ticky Holgado, Max Ernst, Colette, Frédéric Chopin, Sarah Bernhardt, and Honoré de Balzac. If you won’t be finding yourself with a spare day in Paris in the near future, there is an excellent virtual tour found here.

1. Highgate Cemetery

The amazing thing about Highgate cemetery is its setting. Unusually, it is located in a fairly wooded area, so that the complex monuments and simple gravestones alike are surrounded by trees, ferns and wildflowers. While the Friends of Highgate Cemetery who took over maintenance of the decaying site in the late seventies‑early eighties have done much to improve conditions, the grounds, particularly in the west cemetery (available by tour only) are still rough terrain in some places, the vegetation constantly threatening to swallow the place whole. The most famous of its monuments is by far the tomb of Karl Marx, but various other Victorian celebrities boast fascinating monuments here.

Welcome to a tour of the 10 fascinating vehicle sites where machines meet their final resting place. Vehicle graveyards are exactly what they sound like—places where cars, trains, ships, and even aircraft go to rust, decay, and sometimes be rescued. The eerie silhouettes of abandoned metal against stark backdrops make for unforgettable sights, and each of these ten locations carries a story that’s as strange as it is captivating.

Exploring 10 Fascinating Vehicle Sites

10 Bolivia’s Train Graveyard

High in the Andes, in the southwest of Bolivia, lies the Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt plain. In 1888, as the local mining industry boomed, British engineers were invited to build a railway network that stretched down to the Pacific. Despite constant sabotage from the local Aymara indigenous people who saw the railway as a threat to their way of life, the lines were completed in 1892.

However, by the 1940s the mining economy had collapsed as mineral deposits became exhausted. As the railway fell into disuse, many of the steam trains were simply abandoned on the salt flats. Even today, it makes for a strange sight: lines of rusting steam engines, many of them manufactured in the UK, baking under the desert sun. Since there are no fences or guards, most of the trains have had metal components stolen from them—some of the gutted parts litter the surrounding area. There are plans to turn the graveyard into a museum, but until then the trains are at the mercy of the locals and the environment.

9 Chatillon Forest Car Graveyard

Until recently, the deep woods around the small Belgian town of Chatillon concealed four car graveyards, containing over 500 vehicles slowly being claimed by moss and rust. There is some disagreement over the origin of the vehicles. The most frequently repeated story is that the graveyards began at the end of World War II, when American soldiers unable to afford to ship their cars back home simply left them in the forest, with more being added over the years. Another, less interesting story holds that they were simply the remains of an abandoned junkyard.

Most of the cars were produced in the 1950s and ’60s, and many were highly collectible. As such, a large number were missing parts, either salvaged by collectors or taken by souvenir hunters looking for trinkets. The last of the graveyards was cleared in 2010 amid environmental concerns, but plenty of eerie photos remain.

8 Oranjemund Diamond Vehicle Scrapyard

Oranjemund, Namibia is a small town entirely owned by a company called Namdeb, a joint venture between the Namibian government and the De Beers diamond cartel. Located close to the mouth of the Orange River, it is home to large diamond reserves—the town was built to house the mineworkers. The area is incredibly restricted—armed guards patrol the perimeter and you’re not even allowed through the airport turnstiles without a permit. Anyone found in unauthorized possession of a diamond faces up to 15 years in prison and workers have been known to try and smuggle the gems out hidden up their noses or shoot them over the fences with homemade crossbows. On one occasion, a homing pigeon was discovered wearing a tiny jacket stuffed full of diamonds.

Oranjemund is also home to one of the world’s largest earth‑moving fleets, second only to the US Army. Once a vehicle enters the mine compound, it is never allowed to leave, apparently to stop them from being used to smuggle out diamonds. Some of the rusting machinery dates back to the 1920s and includes World War II tanks formerly used to bulldoze sand. Company executives used to proudly show off the collection, but now, conscious of their public image, have begun refusing to let photographs be taken of the graveyard.

7 Nouadhibou Ship Graveyard

With a population of almost 100,000, Nouadhibou is the second‑largest city in Mauritania—one of the poorest nations in the world. The city’s port, located on a wide bay, offers excellent protection for ships to shelter from the Atlantic and is the gateway to some of the best fishing grounds in the world. Iron ore extracted nearby is exported through the port, making it a minor trade hub.

In the 1980s, locals began abandoning outdated and unwanted vessels in the shallow waters of the bay. Before long, ships started to come from all over the world to be dumped in Nouadhibou, facilitated by local authorities only too happy to take a bribe to look the other way. From fishing trawlers to naval cruisers, a huge variety of ships now rust away in the shallow waters. One of the largest is the United Malika, which ran aground in 2003 while carrying a load of fish (the 17 crew members were rescued by the Mauritanian navy). Since then it hasn’t been moved.

Despite measures to prevent further dumping, the number of abandoned ships continues to rise, albeit at a slower pace than before. As a major iron ore exporter, there has been limited incentive for locals to cut the ships apart for scrap. It isn’t all bad however—the half‑sunk ships act as a breeding ground for fish and local fishermen often stretch nets between the boats. The government’s current plan is to use the ships to form an artificial reef in deeper waters, but little has been done since the plan was announced in 2001.

6 Soviet Submarines On The Kola Peninsula

In Nezametnaya Cove, located inside the Arctic Circle in the far north of Russia, lies a Soviet submarine graveyard. Starting in the ’70s, military submarines, many of them nuclear powered, were simply abandoned in the cove on the isolated Kola Peninsula. The Soviet shipyards were apparently too busy filling orders for new submarines to care about disassembling the old ones.

Access to the area is forbidden without a permit, so information on the graveyard remains limited. It is known that some of the subs were finally scrapped in the ’90s amid concerns over water pollution, but Google Earth images, pictured above, seem to indicate that there are at least seven remaining.

5 Barry Scrapyard

In 1955, the newly nationalized British Railways announced a plan to scrap a wide swath of its aging fleet. The newly redundant stock included around 650,000 wagons and 16,000 steam locomotives. Due to the large amount of rolling stock to scrap, British Railways’ yards were unable to cope and many of the trains were sold to private scrapyards. Among them was Woodham Brothers scrapyard in Barry, South Wales. At first, the steam locomotives were cut up shortly after arriving, but by the autumn of 1965 owner Dai Woodham had decided to concentrate on the easier job of scrapping the large numbers of wagons that were rolling into the yard.

The rusting steam locomotives were left out in the open, where they quickly became a popular tourist attraction in Barry. Enthusiasts of steam trains soon realized that Woodham Brothers offered a chance to obtain rare locomotives for the preserved lines that had started to open up around the country—many of the models in Dai’s yard were impossible to find elsewhere. In September 1968, the first “rescued” steam locomotive left the yard, and the pace increased throughout the ’70s. In the end, 213 steam engines were rescued for preservation, much to Dai’s surprise. The last one left Barry in March 2013.

Dai, who died in 1994, was said to have been immensely proud of his part in saving the engines for future generations. Today, many of the steam locomotives from his yard can be found running on preserved lines around Britain.

4 A Motorcycle Graveyard In Upstate New York

Beside the Erie Canal, in Lockport, New York, there was an aging warehouse that became legendary in the motorcycle community. The warehouse was once owned by a man named Kohl, who supposedly owned a number of motorbike dealerships over his lifetime. Buying cheap Japanese bikes and defunct dealers’ stock, he soon amassed a staggering number of the vehicles. He bought the building in the 1970s to store the vast collection before selling it off, contents included, in 1997. Mr. Kohl died in 2002, aged 80.

The buyer, known only as Frank, intended to use the warehouse to start a company selling motorcycle parts. However, the building had fallen into a state of disrepair and Frank was unable to justify the cost of fixing the damage. Eventually, the warehouse was condemned by the local authorities, barring anyone from viewing the collection. By November 2010, the bikes had all been cleared out, with many seemingly going to scrap.

Pictures of the graveyard first surfaced in April 2010 on Flickr, causing motorbike enthusiasts to seek out the graveyard, with some buying rare bikes and spare parts just in time. Photographer Chris Seward sums it up well: “It is definitely one of the most eerie, strangest places I have ever been.”

3 RAF Folkingham

RAF Folkingham, in Lincolnshire, UK, was originally opened in 1940 as a decoy airfield for RAF Spitalgate—complete with fake planes and personnel—before being handed over to US control in early 1944. Douglas C‑47 Dakotas stationed at the airfield were used during the D‑Day landings.

The base was handed back to RAF control in April 1945 and closed in 1947, after which British Racing Motors, a Formula One team, used the runways as a test track. It was re‑opened by the RAF in 1959 and used as a site for Thor thermonuclear missiles until its second closure in 1963, when it was sold off for agricultural land.

Today the site is owned by Nelson M. Green & Sons Ltd., which uses the old airfield to store hundreds of vehicles used to source spare parts. Among the vehicles are old Caterpillar bulldozers, fuel bowsers, cranes, and tractors, as well as ex‑military lorries and armored vehicles dating back to World War II. There is even a DUKW amphibious vehicle, pictured above, which was used in the D‑Day landings. Also on site are three pads that housed the aforementioned Thor missiles. Today, the vehicles are still lined up, awaiting their eventual fate.

2 Chernobyl Disaster Vehicles

After the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, it wasn’t just people and buildings that were affected by the radiation—so were the vast number of vehicles used in the firefighting and subsequent cleanup operation. Since the disaster, the majority of the vehicles have been sitting in huge graveyards, the largest being at Rassokha, awaiting their fate. However, not all of the vehicles are in the graveyards. The fire trucks that got to the disaster area first had to be buried deep underground.

In the middle of most of the graveyards are the firefighting helicopters whose pilots and crew were among the most badly affected by the radiation. Scarily, locals have been caught attempting to salvage metal from the vehicles, despite the huge risks. The Ukrainian police have arrested a number of people for attempting to salvage one of the Mi‑8 helicopters deployed in the operation, which they intended to use as a cafe.

1 Arizona Boneyard

Officially known as the Davis‑Monthan Air Force Base and home to the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG), the Boneyard is a huge aircraft storage ground located in the middle of the Arizona desert. The size of 1,430 soccer pitches, the Boneyard is home to more than 4,200 aircraft, worth around $35 billion, and is easily the world’s largest military aircraft cemetery.

The Boneyard’s aircraft are divided into four categories: Category 1000 refers to those preserved and able to fly again if needed, Category 2000 are used for spare parts, Category 3000 contains planes in good condition and likely to eventually be redeployed, and Category 4000 refers to outdated aircraft likely to become museum pieces or be scrapped. Among the fourth category were many of the iconic B‑52 bombers, scrapped after a 1991 arms reduction treaty with Russia.

Arizona is perfect for the facility since its dry climate helps prevent decay. Unsurprisingly, AMARG works hard to prove that, rather than wasting government money, it in fact earns money through the sale of parts. Such is the fame of the Boneyard that you can even take a guided tour around the site.

Industrial growth was the driving force behind modern civilization, and 10 world 8217 showcases how this progress leaves behind a staggering amount of waste. While economies thrive, the by‑products of industry pile up in places you’d never expect—massive graveyards of discarded junk that tell a haunting story of consumption and neglect.

10 world 8217: The Hidden Graveyards of Industrial Waste

10 Tire Graveyard, Sulabiya, Kuwait

The opening entry on our list is a rubber sea of black that can even be spotted from orbit, resembling a dark carpet stretched across the desert. This sprawling site in Sulabiya holds an eye‑popping tally of over 50 million tires, a sight that makes any first‑time visitor wonder how such a colossal pile could have been amassed.

The tires arrived from all corners of the globe, but the bulk came from Kuwait itself and from the United States and Europe. Between 1980 and 2001 Kuwait operated as a dumping hub for used tires, offering its desert as a convenient landfill for nations looking to off‑load their unwanted rubber.

Two decades later the mountain grew so massive that the government banned further imports in 2001. Today the country wrestles with the challenge of breaking down the 50 million‑tire behemoth. Recycling initiatives are in place, yet the sheer volume dwarfs any profit, and frequent fires—hard to control and costly to extinguish—continue to scar the landscape.

9 Car Graveyard, Old Car City, Georgia, USA

Our second stop is a nostalgic haven of steel and chrome, where more than 4,500 vintage automobiles rest in quiet repose. Founded in 1931, Old Car City initially served as a scrap‑metal collection point, especially during World War II, when every ounce of metal mattered.

Over time the site evolved into a living museum of classic American engineering, showcasing cars and trucks that date back to 1972 or earlier. Today visitors can wander among over 4,000 beautifully preserved classics, making the graveyard a magnet for automotive enthusiasts and tourists alike.

8 Waste Graveyard, Agbogbloshie, Ghana

Electronic waste—our modern relics of smartphones, laptops, and gadgets—has become the dominant industrial junk of the 21st century. Roughly 50 million tons of e‑waste are generated each year, and while a portion is recycled, the remainder ends up in places like Agbogbloshie, Ghana, the world’s largest e‑waste dump.

Approximately 10,000 locals work daily amidst the heaps, salvaging valuable metals by burning, acid‑soaking, and dismantling devices. This hazardous labor releases toxic fumes and chemicals, jeopardizing the health of workers and nearby residents, and the site’s relocation underground only brings the danger closer to homes.

Although the dump provides livelihoods for thousands, the Ghanaian government has razed the formal recycling centre, pushing the informal, perilous trade deeper into the community and leaving a lingering health crisis that only a committed global response can resolve.

7 Plastic Jungle Graveyard, Malaysia

Malaysia’s “plastic jungle” emerged when the nation positioned itself as a global hub for importing discarded plastics, intending to reprocess the material into marketable goods. The strategy worked at first, turning the country into a de facto landfill for the world’s plastic refuse.

However, the influx soon outpaced processing capacity. The mounting stockpiles became a logistical nightmare, prompting Malaysia to ship unwanted waste back to Europe. Today the country grapples with massive plastic stockpiles that threaten ecosystems and public health, illustrating the perils of a catch‑all waste‑import model.

6 WWII Bombs Graveyard, Beaufort’s Dyke Submarine Trench

Following the devastation of World II, the United Kingdom needed a discreet way to dispose of millions of unexploded ordnance. The solution was Beaufort’s Dyke, a 50‑kilometre submarine trench that slices through the North Channel between Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Since the 1920s, the trench has become a massive underwater tomb, holding roughly 1.15 million tons of conventional and chemical bombs—a record‑breaking bomb graveyard. The continual corrosion of these munitions raises the specter of accidental detonations, and the presence of the dump has repeatedly thwarted proposals for an Ireland‑Scotland bridge.

Occasionally, shells wash ashore, presenting a tangible reminder of the hidden danger beneath the waves. The sheer scale of this underwater arsenal makes it a ticking time bomb that could unleash catastrophic consequences if not responsibly addressed.

5 Alang Shipyard, Gujarat, India

Ships, the titans of the seas, meet their final curtain at Alang Shipyard in Gujarat, where 400‑500 vessels are beached each year for dismantling. The coastline becomes a sprawling scrapyard, with hulks at various stages of demolition, creating a scene that resembles a giant mechanical feast.

The relentless clang of cutting torches and the roar of waves are the soundtrack of this industrial funeral. While the metal is reclaimed for reuse, the process releases hazardous substances—oil, asbestos, and heavy metals—into the surrounding marine environment, decimating local ecosystems.

Despite generating an estimated $100 billion in economic activity, Alang’s legacy is a stark reminder that the end of a ship’s voyage can be both a lucrative business and an environmental tragedy.

4 Clothes Dumping Site, Atacama Desert, Chile

Deep within Chile’s arid Atacama Desert lies a bleak monument to fast fashion: a sprawling dump of discarded garments. Chile, the world’s biggest importer of used clothing, receives about 60,000 tons annually, with roughly 40 % sold to poorer Latin American nations.

The remainder—unwanted, unsellable apparel—gets trucked to the desert, forming towering piles of everything from high‑end couture to cheap, worn‑out tees. These ever‑growing mountains of textile waste starkly illustrate the excesses of a consumption‑driven culture that treats clothing as a disposable commodity.

3 Nuclear Waste Graveyard, Hanford Nuclear Site, Washington, USA

In Washington State’s Hanford Site, a legacy of Cold‑War plutonium production now hides beneath 1,517 square kilometres of desert. The facility, responsible for fueling two‑thirds of America’s nuclear arsenal, now stores roughly 56 million gallons of liquid radioactive waste in underground tanks.

While solid waste lies buried, the ever‑present risk of tank leaks has already manifested, exposing workers to elevated cancer rates and threatening a potential disaster on the scale of Chernobyl if containment fails.

2 Spacecraft Graveyard, Point Nemo, Pacific Ocean

Spacecraft, the crowning achievement of human ingenuity, also meet an inevitable end. Defunct satellites and spent rocket stages are steered toward Point Nemo, the most remote spot on Earth, farthest from any landmass.

This isolation makes it the ideal “celestial cemetery,” where re‑entering debris burns up over empty ocean, minimizing risk to populated areas. Divers daring enough to plunge to the seafloor would discover a quiet graveyard of historic spacecraft resting in perpetual peace.

1 Glass Beach, Ussuri Bay, Russia

Ussuri Bay’s 67‑kilometre shoreline once served as a dumping ground for glass bottles and industrial waste. Over decades, countless bottles were tossed into the waves, turning the coast into a jagged, hazardous mess.

Nature, however, proved resilient. The relentless rhythm of tides and waves smoothed the sharp shards into smooth, multicoloured pebbles, transforming the scarred shoreline into a dazzling mosaic of glass that now attracts tourists from around the globe.

What began as an eyesore has become a stunning natural artwork, reminding us that even the most careless human actions can, over time, be reclaimed by the planet’s own creative forces.

Cemeteries are spooky places. It doesn’t matter how old they are. There’s just something unsettling about the presence of dead bodies and ghostly gravestones. Of course, the United States is a young country, relatively speaking. Graveyards across Europe and Asia are often centuries older than those in America. Tales of the people buried on those sites are practically ancient. Stories about their rumored spirits have been handed down for generations.

While the U.S. doesn’t have quite as long of a history, it does boast its own ancient afterlife. And the burial grounds that go along with it are fascinating. Historians across America study old cemeteries to learn about the past. The stories they’ve unearthed are both unsettling and amazing. In this list, you’ll learn about ten of America’s oldest graveyards and the supposed spirits who stay within. These centuries-old cemeteries are seriously spooky!

10 NYC’s Old Gravesend Cemetery

New York City has a very long history. It’s also a modern-day travel destination and business hub. So you wouldn’t be wrong to think much of the historic Big Apple has been paved over and renovated. But not everything in NYC is moving forward. In fact, there are quite a few old cemeteries scattered across its boroughs. The city’s first Dutch settlers are buried in graveyards that date back to the 17th century.

The Old Gravesend Cemetery in Brooklyn is one of the oldest of those. The area around it was first established in 1643. The first mention of Old Gravesend itself was in a will dated 1658. So while the cemetery’s founding date isn’t precisely known, it likely came about in the 1640s. In total, there are 379 gravestones at the site. City officials have been working on renovating the stones. Upkeep is costly, but the history that comes with it is immeasurable.

The cemetery’s most famous resident is (probably) Lady Deborah Moody. She was the surrounding settlement’s founder and first settler. In fact, she was the first woman to establish a community of Dutch immigrants in all of New England. Well off during her life, Moody originally left Holland to settle in Massachusetts. But once there, she clashed with the Puritans. They didn’t like her belief in adult baptism. And her work to convert people was viewed as unseemly. So they cast her out, and she traveled down to New York.

At the time, the area was known as New Amsterdam and had a heavily Dutch population. Moody fit right in and settled in the Gravesend area of modern-day Brooklyn. But as well known as she was at the time, it’s unclear whether Moody is buried in the graveyard in her adopted home. It’s probable, but historians have no definitive proof of her burial there. Considering the age of the burial ground, it’s likely that the mystery will never be solved.^[1]

9 Boston’s Granary Burying Ground

Much like New York City, Boston’s bustle is forever moving forward. And much like New York City, Boston has its own incredible past. The Massachusetts city is full of old cemeteries, just like others up and down the Eastern Seaboard too. In Boston, one of the oldest is the Granary Burying Ground. That name was officially christened in 1737, but the cemetery site was around nearly a full century earlier. For over 200 years, until the 1880s, notable Bostonians were buried in the Granary Ground. In total, about 5,000 people were laid to rest on the site. Not all the grave markers have lasted the test of time, though. Today, officials estimate about 2,300 stones are still in order.

The disheveled history of those headstones took an interesting turn in the 1800s. In the middle of that century, Bostonians were frustrated with the disorder of the grounds. So, they set about a years-long project to rearrange and set right thousands of headstones. Some were moved and misplaced. Others were accidentally destroyed in the clean-up.

Today, the site is far more orderly. However, it’s unclear whether every headstone is actually in its original spot. Nevertheless, the Granary Burying Ground keeps on playing the hits. Paths inside the cemetery take scores of visitors on an incredible tour. Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere, and Crispus Attucks are all buried in the cemetery. American history truly rests in the Granary Burying Ground.^[2]

8 Texas’s Ernest Witte Site

New York and Boston hold historic cemeteries, but they aren’t the only ancient graveyards in America. In fact, there are far older burial grounds scattered elsewhere across the U.S. And the oldest of them all can be found in Texas, of all places! In the 1970s, historians found an ancient Brazos River burial ground. Today, it is known as the Ernest Witte Site.

Archaeological evidence suggests the area was first used as a cemetery nearly 5,000 years ago. Scientists believe the final burials there happened around AD 1500. Some of these fossils were buried with primitive stone tools. More recent burials came with the presence of shell jewelry, carved stone knives, and animal skulls. The site is now a treasure trove of archaeological information about life in pre-contact America.

The story behind the burial site’s name is its own fascinating tale. Ernest Witte was a young boy growing up in rural Texas in the 1930s. One day, in the middle of the Great Depression, Witte and his brother were rooting around an area near the Brazos River. Accidentally, they uncovered some fossils. Not knowing what they found, they kept digging. Slowly but surely, they uncovered more ancient artifacts. But here’s where it gets really crazy: The brothers never told anyone about it!

For decades, Ernest kept the site a secret. Finally, in 1974, he reached out to the Texas Archaeological Survey. Shocked scientists flocked to the site and began digging. They’ve since found the remains of roughly 250 people at the site. The historical value has been immense. But it was nearly lost to history forever!^[3]

7 West Virginia’s Grave Creek Mound

West Virginia boasts its own ancient burial site. Grave Creek Mound sits in the far north part of the state, close to the Ohio border. The nearby town of Moundsville is named for it. And if you haven’t already guessed by now, the burial site is one big mound. There’s more to it than that, though.

Archaeologists have determined the graves contained within date back to about 250 BC. They are the graves of members of the local Adena tribe. When the culture was thriving, the Adena buried their dead in these raised mounds. The sheer size of the Grave Creek Mound is stunning. Scientists believe tribe members moved nearly 57,000 tons of soil to create the hill. The Adena also built smaller mounds set near the large earthen dome. In those, they placed meaningful trinkets and mementos like jewelry and religious items. For centuries, the site was their solemn way to honor the dead.

Sadly, looters got to Grave Creek Mound before archaeologists did. While science has preserved many things from the dirt structure, many more have been lost to history. Through the 18th and 19th centuries, looters raided the smaller mounds. They took trinkets, sea shells, ivory beads, copper bracelets, and other things that had been left centuries before. Thankfully, some items remained. Plus, layers of burials within the mound itself gave archaeologists plenty to learn.

Today, historians have been able to piece together a lot about the Adena despite these setbacks. But much of the mound’s earthly items remain a mystery. Researchers wonder what they missed out on after decades of grave robberies.^[4]

6 New Orleans’ St. Louis Cemetery No. 1

St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 may be the most memorable graveyard on this list. It’s a striking sight to see. Rows of above-ground tombs dot the tightly-packed cemetery. It is full of historic New Orleans flavor and mystery. Stories of haunted spirits and rumors of ghastly ghosts abound. The cemetery isn’t the oldest in New Orleans, but it’s close. It was first built way back in 1789. A series of fires and a brutal epidemic had just ravaged the Big Easy. City officials were worried existing cemeteries couldn’t hold all the dead. So, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 was created.

At first, the dead were actually buried underground. But in 1803, New Orleans levied a law ordering all new burials must be done above ground. Since its founding, the low-lying city has been subjected to waves of flooding. Having a bunch of human remains wash up was fast becoming a public health nightmare. And so the tradition of the raised tombs began.

Just like Old Gravesend in NYC, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 has a notable soul inside. Marie Laveau was born in New Orleans in 1801 to a Creole mother. As an adult, she worked in town as a hairdresser. But she was far more famous in the region for her side gig as a voodoo priestess. People in New Orleans swore by the spells she cast and the mystical powers she supposedly held.

Before she died in 1881, Marie was a local legend. When she was buried in St. Louis Cemetery, locals still tried to seek favor from her spirit. For decades after, mourners came to the graveyard to visit her tomb. Once there, they would paint large Xs on the tomb door. The city made the practice illegal, but that didn’t stop the superstition. Even today, Laveau’s legend lives on.^[5]

5 Providence’s North Burial Ground

The North Burial Ground has been in Providence, Rhode Island, since about 1700. Long before America was a nation, settlers came to Rhode Island. On the north side of its historic urban center, planners set aside 45 acres for a cemetery. One of the first burials was that of a prominent settler named Samuel Whipple. Over the next few years, many more locals followed. Eventually, the North Burial Ground became the place to lay the city’s elite leaders and residents to rest.

Over the next century, Providence consolidated other burial grounds. Historically, well-to-do families buried their dead on their own plots of land. But as Providence grew, that custom became inefficient. So in 1785, the city’s elite residents exhumed the bodies of many of their ancestors and elders. All the remains were carefully carted away and re-buried in the North Burial Ground. In the decades after, many more prominent citizens were laid to rest in the cemetery. Since then, the graveyard has undergone many renovations. Further grave relocations have swept in too. In the 1980s, the city even (briefly) lost a headstone after a car accident ran aground in a corner of the cemetery.

Over the years, many high-profile people have been buried within. Veterans of both the Revolutionary War and the Civil War rest there. More recently, famous Americans like pioneering outdoorswoman Annie Smith Peck and early goth poet Sarah Helen Whitman are buried there too. And today, the North Burial Ground still accepts new burials. That is rare for a 300-year-old cemetery! But the site is still active. It takes in about 200 sets of remains every year. And every year, newly-deceased Providence residents add their own life stories to the hallowed ground.^[6]

4 Salem’s Charter Street Cemetery

Whenever one says “Salem,” the implication is clear: witchcraft. The Massachusetts town was famously the supposed center of witchcraft in the 17th century. But the city has ghost stories far older than that! In fact, Salem’s Charter Street Cemetery predates the witch trials by more than six decades. The burial ground, which is known to locals as Old Burying Point, was first mentioned in written documents in 1637. Historians now think the context of that reference indicates it was around long before that. So while its founding year is unclear, this analysis suggests Old Burying Point is the oldest European cemetery in America.

The oldest surviving headstone on site belongs to a woman named Doraty Cromwell. She died in Salem in 1673. That her gravestone has survived this long is a miracle. Early American memorials were usually made out of wood. Thus, most haven’t survived centuries of winter snow, spring rain, and summer sun. Before Cromwell, it’s impossible to know who else was laid to rest at Old Burying Point. Thankfully for genealogists, grave markers have long since switched to stone.

Historians do know one thing, though: Salem’s supposed witches were not buried at the Charter Street Cemetery. They were put on trial very close by in 1692. And Old Burying Point was already well-established as the city’s cemetery by then. But those found guilty of practicing witchcraft wouldn’t have been given a public burial in an esteemed location. It’s far more likely they were buried secretly by sympathetic family members. If no one stepped up, these accused witches were thrown into unmarked graves near their trial sites. For them, a well-regarded rest at Old Burying Point was never in the cards.^[7]

3 New Mexico’s San Esteban del Rey Mission Church

Decades before American colonists kicked off their anti-British rumblings back east, Spanish explorers were making their way through the southwest. In 1629, they founded the San Estévan del Rey Mission in what is now western New Mexico. Back then, the land belonged to the Acoma Pueblo people. The Spanish intended for the mission to bring Catholicism to the natives. Part of the Spaniards’ hopes centered on the afterlife: They wanted indigenous people to follow the church’s burial customs. For decades, the Spanish tried to attract the Acoma Pueblo to their lifestyle. The visitors had some success until the Pueblo Revolt of 1680. Then, for two decades, the natives took control of the mission and mostly shut down the Spanish incursion.

As for the cemetery on site, its creation is a story unto itself. The area sits on a mesa of bare rock with little topsoil. Opportunities for agriculture are sparse and limited. Even worse, in-ground burial is next to impossible. The Spanish solved this by forcing natives to carry tons of soil up the rocks to spread on top. Once the covered area was deep enough, it was packed down. Then, Spanish settlers could adequately bury their dead at the mission.

Today, the cemetery consists of five of these levels. Some reach 50 feet (15 meters) above what used to be the natural rocky ground. Different settlers and natives throughout history are buried there. The Acoma people got their way in the end too. Even though the mission is of Catholic origin, locals managed to sneak in a few of their traditions over the centuries.

Today, mission visitors can see sculpted faces inside the cemetery’s walls. These are guardians that carry native spirits safely into the afterlife. One section of the graveyard wall also has a large hole. There, spirits are said to freely leave the site to take on eternal existence after death.^[8]

2 NYC’s African Burial Ground

For nearly two centuries, New York City had a little-known cemetery meant for Black residents. Both enslaved and free Black people were buried there as early as the 1630s. The ground was active until about 1800. Then, the city stopped using it. Eventually, it was paved over and repurposed. For nearly 200 years, it was forgotten. Then, in 1991, construction began on a new officer tower along Broadway Avenue. As the ground underwent excavation, mass graves were found. Suddenly, the construction project became a critical preservation scene.

Archaeologists rushed in and supervised the work. Further excavations found the graveyard covered more than six acres of space. Shocked at the discovery, historians termed it the African Burial Ground. Notable Black people are thought to be buried there. That list likely includes Juan Rodrigues, the first free Black man in Manhattan, who arrived in the city in 1613.

Judging by the size of the area, historians estimate more than 15,000 people were laid to rest there. The remains include the first generations of slaves transported against their will to America. Today, it is the earliest known African cemetery in the United States. Thankfully, by 2003, all the excavated remains were placed in hand-carved coffins and properly reinterred.^[9]

1 Massachusetts’s Myles Standish Burial Ground

The Myles Standish Burial Ground calls itself the oldest “maintained” cemetery in the United States. As we’ve already seen with some dubious dates on this list, that may be up for debate. But there’s no question this cemetery is very old. It appears to have been first established as early as 1638. Its location in the Massachusetts city of Duxbury has historical meaning too. The area is close to where the Mayflower first made land from England early in the 17th century. So it should be no surprise to learn that many of the Mayflower’s notable pioneering passengers are buried there.

Other notable burials include he for whom the cemetery is named. Military commander Myles Standish was buried in it after he died near Duxbury in 1656. The man who played such a key role in protecting the Pilgrims during their early years in America is forever honored in the graveyard. In fact, his body has since been exhumed (twice!) to be honored with more significant memorials.

In addition to Standish, the site hosts many old Pilgrim grave markers. They include some fascinating examples of historic Puritan imagery. As a group, they were obsessed with mortality. And boy, do their gravestones show it. Gravestone designs of unsettling angels, smiling death’s heads, spooky skulls, and outlined coffins all confront modern visitors. Creepy!^[10]

+ Bonus: Cahokia

You didn’t think we forgot about Cahokia, did you? While grave mounds in West Virginia and New Mexico made this list, they don’t compare to the most iconic of all. Centuries ago, southern Illinois’s Cahokia was the largest settlement in America. The sprawling indigenous city had everything. At its peak from about 600 to 1350, more than 15,000 people lived there.

Cahokia had large residential neighborhoods, open spaces for events, large marketplaces, and even a permanent agricultural area. It also had a series of notable grave mounds. Today, historians believe the man-made hills were used for several purposes. Burying the dead was foremost among them, of course. But Cahokia residents also held religious ceremonies on the mounds and worshiped native gods from the top.

Today, the biggest of these hills is known as Mound 72. Archaeologists have been working on that site since the 1960s. Over the years, they have preserved the remains of more than 270 people. Some were interred in mass graves. Others were given more ornate burials. Those buried in the most shallow graves appear to show signs of violent death.

Interestingly, scientists believe those are also the most recent burials, dating to roughly 1300. Considering Cahokia was abandoned at some point in the 14th century, archaeologists think these burial mound findings point to a violent regional war that broke up the big city.^[11]

In 1972, Scottish biologist Ivan T. Sanderson described a new geography of the globe: an “energetic planetary grid” based on twelve ‘vile vortices’ or ‘devil’s graveyards’ where “funny things happen”. The Bermuda Triangle was the first on his list. According to Sanderson, hot and cold air and sea currents in this and other regions create electromagnetic anomalies that ultimately cause ships and planes to fail.

Numbering six in the northern hemisphere and six in the south, the vortices mostly lie in the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The only two that don’t are the North and South Poles, but Sanderson himself was dismissive of these. 

While the theory seems kooky, it didn’t come from nowhere. It was actually part of a wider parallel “science”. In fact, it seems to have elaborated on copies of two “ancient” maps – the Piri Reis and Buache – found in 1929 but dated (allegedly as copies of earlier versions) to 1523 and 1737 respectively. These featured similar geometry to Sanderson’s, as well as a detailed survey of Antarctica not possible until 1958. In turn, Sanderson’s theory inspired many others – like the three Soviet scientists who added 50 more sites to his list.

OK, so it is kooky. But as alternative science and history grow in popularity, you may hear a lot more about it. Agree with him or not, here’s a quick primer on his ten devil’s graveyards – listed in the order he found them.

10. 26.57 N 76.80 W (The Bermuda Triangle)

Known for its turbulent, unpredictable weather patterns and disappearing ships and aircraft, the Bermuda Triangle is the best studied site on this list. It’s the one that got Sanderson thinking. Although the official line – which refuses to even acknowledge the Bermuda Triangle – says there are no more disappearances here than anywhere else, there are many strange things about it. For example, true and magnetic north sometimes align in the region. It’s also the source of many hurricanes and, while much of it is shallow, parts around Puerto Rico are the deepest in the whole Atlantic. In any case, Sanderson had just one incident in mind: Flight 19. 

On December 5, 1945, five TBM Avenger torpedo bombers vanished without a trace shortly after taking off from Fort Lauderdale. Allegedly, the pilots were able to maintain radio contact with each other for a time – and could be heard wondering where they were and why the ocean looked wrong. A Martin PBM Mariner dispatched to find the missing aircraft also disappeared – according to Sanderson, within 15 minutes.

Although “debunked” by Larry Kusche, Flight 19 was almost two decades before the words “Bermuda Triangle” came into use. An even earlier incident in March 1918 saw the unexplained (to this day) disappearance of Navy collier USS Cyclops – the wreckage of which has never been found.

9. 26.57 N 139.2 E (The Devil’s Sea)

The next site to get Sanderson’s attention lies off the east coast of Japan. Also known as the Formosa or Dragon’s Triangle, the Devil’s Sea sits at the intersection of three ocean ridges. Like the Bermuda Triangle, it has – allegedly – been the site of numerous disappearances, attributed by Sanderson to hot and cold currents.

The most famous was the research vessel the No. 5 Kaiyo-Maru, which disappeared in September 1953 along with its 31 crew members. But, as Skeptoid points out, since it was in the vicinity of an erupting underwater volcano – and debris from the wreckage was found – this isn’t that much of a mystery.

That said, other ships – including military and fishing vessels – are also said to have vanished. For example, Sanderson was surprised when, appearing on The Dick Cavett Show to debate his theories with skeptic Arthur Godfrey, the latter had his own tales to share. Among them were firsthand reports of instrument failure while flying over the region.

8. 26.57 N 4.8 W (Algerian Sahara)

At Tindouf, Algeria – on the edge of a dune sea – lies the next devil’s graveyard on the list. Linked to “mysterious plane disappearances over the Sahara,” this oasis rich in minerals is where many birds spend the winter.

The specific location varies depending on the source, with El Eglab (300 kilometers southeast) and the mysterious Jedars – the Algerian pyramids or megaliths – (1400 kilometers northeast) being the most commonly mentioned. Considering the size of the Bermuda Triangle, though (at least 805,000 sq. km.), this actually does make sense. 

In fact, Sanderson’s interest in the region was originally piqued by reports of two submarines and four small vessels disappearing in the Mediterranean – not in the Sahara but off the north coast of the country.

7. 26.57 N 67.20 E (Pakistan)

Shortly after identifying the Algerian “vortex,” Sanderson got a letter saying planes carrying gold were disappearing over Afghanistan. Some of the gold had been found but there was still no trace of the planes. Of course, this being the Afghani-Pakistan border, it was hardly a case for The X-Files. But what was surprising was that the sender of the letter had no idea Sanderson was looking into this stuff. Needless to say, the coincidence led Sanderson to his next devil’s graveyard. 

Centered on the Sindh-Balochistan border north of Karachi, Pakistan, the area he settled on isn’t too far south (100 kilometers or so, as the crow flies) of Mohenjo-Daro – an ancient capital of the Indus Valley Civilization. Although he didn’t mention it in his article, the “lost city” – obviously once luxurious and powerful despite its absence of palaces or temples – remains a mystery to archaeologists. We still don’t know who lived there, or why, around 1900 BC, they seem to have disappeared. Allegedly, model aircraft have also been found in the city.

Proximity to Mohenjo-Daro aside, though, this site was chosen mainly because it fit the emerging pattern of Sanderson’s planetary grid. Interestingly, it’s also linked by a fault line to the Algerian devil’s graveyard.

6. 26.57 N 148.80 W (Hamakulia volcano, Hawaii)

References to “Hamakulia volcano” appear solely in articles about Sanderson. It doesn’t exist in the real world. In fact, there’s no known volcano by any name at the coordinates for this vile vortex. Nevertheless, having identified four sites along the 26.57°N line of longitude – each separated by 72° – the next one had to be here.

Allegedly planes have disappeared over this region. Arthur Godfrey from The Dick Cavett Show once told Sanderson that an experimental flight he was meant to be on but missed vanished while he followed by radar. And a pilot flying a plane full of passengers over the zone claimed to have lost comms for 560 kilometers. When contact finally returned, he was shocked to be told that no time had passed whatsoever.

Intriguing as these tales are, Hawaii’s volcanoes are mysterious enough as it is. We still don’t really know how they form. Being in the middle of the Pacific Plate, thousands of kilometers from any fault lines, they don’t fit with what we know about how volcanoes form.

5. 26.57 S 40.80 W (The South Atlantic Anomaly)

Turning his attention to the southern hemisphere, Sanderson placed his next vortex southeast of Rio de Janiero. The South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), the point where the Earth’s magnetic field is at its weakest, is – unlike the Bermuda Triangle and so on – officially recognized as a place where “funny things happen”. NASA has called it a “pothole in space”. It’s where charged particles from the Sun are able to penetrate closer to the surface and, as a result, cause problems for orbiting spacecraft.

Instruments aboard the International Space Station, Skylab, NASA space shuttles, and SpaceX’s Dragon craft are all prone to glitches and premature aging. The Hubble Space Telescope is also affected, spending nearly 15 percent of its orbit here. Even astronauts have issues – reporting weird ‘shooting stars’ in their vision.

Although the anomaly seems not to affect life on the surface, Sanderson claimed to know of “alarming disappearances” in the region. It also appears to be growing. According to NASA, the SAA is “expanding westward” and splitting into “two lobes, creating additional challenges for satellite missions.” 

4. 26.57 S 31.20 E (Eswatini, formerly Swaziland)

Though focused on the Eswatini town of Luyengo on the Maputo River, this devil’s graveyard has been linked to the ruins of Great Zimbabwe – 900 kilometers to the north. It’s unclear what “alarming disappearances … off the southeast coast of South Africa” Sanderson had in mind here, but the ancient city is a mystery in itself.

Built around 900 years ago, it was once a global center of trade and religion. Artefacts from as far as China have been found there, along with copper crosses thought to have been used as a currency. The ruins themselves have features that we still don’t understand. One of these – “the largest single prehistoric structure in sub-Saharan Africa” – is a 10-meter-high, 5-meter-wide conical tower, surrounded by a wall that’s 250 meters long and 11 meters high.

The city of Great Zimbabwe was thought so advanced by early (racist European) explorers that it could never have been constructed by Africans. Instead, they believed it was evidence of a “civilized” (i.e. white) African nation. In any case, for reasons unknown, it was abandoned in the 15th century.

3. 26.57 S 175.20 E (The Loyalty Islands)

The Loyalty Islands are an archipelago 1,600 kilometers east of Australia. Known for cyclones and earthquakes, it’s no surprise that a ship carrying 75 passengers once mysteriously disappeared here. Part of this has to do with the 1200-kilometer New Hebrides Trench, which reaches depths of more than 7,500 meters in places and remains largely unexplored. What we do know about it is that it’s ecologically very different from any other deep sea trench.

Taking these features together as one devil’s graveyard, it’s interesting that an entire landmass also “disappeared” here. Sandy Island, which has appeared on maps (including Google Earth) for many decades, has long been assumed to exist. Someone must have seen it at some point. But when scientists set out to visit in 2012, they found only open ocean – 1,400 kilometers deep.

2. 26.57 S 112.80 W (Easter Island Fracture Zone)

Sanderson found the next vortex by measuring 72 degrees from the South Atlantic Anomaly, which led him to Easter Island – and the ,5900 kilometer Easter Fracture Zone on which it sits.

There’s not a lot to be said about this one in the way of documented disappearances, except of course for the island civilization that built the mysterious Moai. The mainstream theory for how these people disappeared is their precipitation of ecological collapse. Once they’d cut down all the trees – for agriculture, fuel, and transporting their iconic statues – the soil depleted and people starved. It’s thought rats prevented regeneration by eating all the seeds and disease-ridden European explorers killed off any survivors.

Alternative theories, meanwhile, suggest the statues are alive or left by UFOs.

1. 26.57 S 103.20 E (Wharton Basin)

72 degrees from the Loyalty Islands is Wharton Basin – “an area of deadliness,” Sanderson heard – in the northeast Indian Ocean, 400 kilomdgdfx off Sumatra. It’s here, from a seafloor riddled with fracture zones, that many large earthquakes originate.

It’s also where Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 disappeared in 2014. Pings from the black box narrowed the plane down to a 32 by 16-kilometer stretch before falling silent forever. It’s thought the Boeing 777, which disappeared in March of that year, lies buried in the Basin’s silt floor. However, the region is largely uncharted, the depth abyssal, and, despite early optimism, the wreckage still hasn’t been found.

More recently, we’ve learned Flight 370 didn’t fly straight into the sea but circled for 20 minutes first – similar to the ‘holding pattern’ while waiting to land at an airport. A number of explanations have been offered for this: The pilot may have been communicating with the Malaysian government, or checking to see if he was followed, or simply thinking things through. But what this new information makes clear is that the pilot – or a pilot – wasn’t unconscious as previously thought but “deliberately flew the plane into oblivion”. We just don’t know why.

Just to conclude, the North and South Poles are – as mentioned – the final two devil’s graveyards. Suggested by professional pilots, they’re places where time is “a little off”. While Sanderson did include them in his grid, he was also mostly dismissive, attributing the phenomenon to simple disorientation caused by compass malfunction. Which makes one wonder – is his skepticism here (which wasn’t out of character) enough to lend credence to his theory?