Colorado Springs' 1871 city cemetery with a Romanesque chapel tied to paranormal reports and a Biography Channel feature
1005 Hancock Expy, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free and open to the public
Access
Wheelchair OK
220-acre grounds; paved roads through cemetery, some uneven grass paths near older sections
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1871 · National Register of Historic Places (1993) · Interment of General William Jackson Palmer · 1910 Romanesque Revival Chapel · Civil War Veterans and Pioneer Burials
Evergreen Cemetery was established in 1871, the same year Colorado Springs was platted by General William Jackson Palmer and the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. As the city's official municipal cemetery, it grew rapidly alongside the population boom of the Pikes Peak region, accommodating burials for pioneer families, Civil War veterans, and early civic leaders.
The cemetery's most architecturally notable feature is its 1910 chapel, built in the Romanesque Revival style with stone walls and characteristic round-arched windows. The chapel was constructed as a dedicated space for graveside services and has since become the cemetery's most visually prominent landmark. Unlike many historic cemetery chapels that have fallen into disuse, Evergreen's chapel remained in service through much of the 20th century.
General William Jackson Palmer, the railroad magnate and founder of Colorado Springs, is interred here. Palmer's legacy permeates the city's geography—he donated parkland, funded civic institutions, and shaped the urban plan in ways still visible today. His grave draws visitors interested in regional history beyond any paranormal associations.
Evergreen Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993 (reference number 93000035), recognizing its significance as a 19th-century burial ground that reflects the social and demographic history of El Paso County. The city's parks department manages the grounds, which extend across 220 acres on the southeastern edge of the urban core.
Sources
The paranormal accounts connected to Evergreen Cemetery concentrate almost entirely on the 1910 chapel rather than the broader grounds. Witnesses have described dark figures seen through the chapel's windows and at its entrance, typically during low-light conditions. The figures do not correspond to any specific documented death at the site—reports treat the chapel as a focal point for undefined activity rather than the haunting of a named individual.
The cemetery received national attention when its chapel was featured on Biography Channel's 'My Ghost Story,' a documentary series that profiled ordinary people's paranormal experiences. The feature introduced the chapel to an audience beyond Colorado Springs and generated subsequent visits from investigators and enthusiasts familiar with the show.
The cemetery's scale—220 acres with burials spanning from the 1870s onward—means the grounds include numerous graves connected to violent or tragic deaths from Colorado Springs' early history. Whether this contributes to the chapel-specific reports or represents a separate category of activity has not been systematically examined.
Local press coverage has described the atmosphere of the older sections of the grounds, particularly in the fall, as notably affecting—though accounts of specific phenomena outside the chapel are far less consistent than those tied to the Romanesque structure itself.
Media Appearances
Evergreen Cemetery is open to the public for self-guided visits. The 1910 Romanesque chapel is the focal point for paranormal interest, while the broader 220-acre grounds include Civil War-era burials and the grave of General William Jackson Palmer, founder of Colorado Springs. Daytime visits are free; no booking required.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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