A Harris County cemetery established in 1829, named in Jim Miles' *Weird Georgia* as one of the state's most haunted, where investigators have recorded 43 EVPs including the response 'Not dead — dreaming' to the question 'Do you know that you are dead?'
Old Cemetery Rd, Waverly Hall, GA 31831
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Free public cemetery
Access
Limited Access
Grassy cemetery with uneven ground and older headstones
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1829 · Established 1829 — among the older rural cemeteries in Harris County, Georgia · Contains antebellum burials including Major Osborne Crook (d. 1851) and General Henry H. Lowe (d. 1854) · Featured in Jim Miles' *Weird Georgia* (Sterling Publishing, 2006)
Waverly Hall, a small community in Harris County, Georgia, sits in the rolling piedmont approximately 30 miles northeast of Columbus. The town's cemetery is its oldest continuous institution, with marked burials beginning in 1829 — predating Georgia's rail network, the relocation of the state capital to Milledgeville, and the forced removal of the Creek Nation from the region.
The cemetery holds a cross-section of 19th and early 20th century Harris County life. Notable interments include Major Osborne Crook (died October 15, 1851) and his wife Elizabeth C. Crook (died October 1839), as well as General Henry H. Lowe (died July 8, 1854) and his wife Mariah H. Lowe (died November 27, 1852). The presence of military officers suggests the community's ties to antebellum Georgia's social and civic structure.
The cemetery is still in active use, with modern burials alongside the weathered antebellum stones. This layering of eras — pre-Civil War sandstone markers, Victorian marble, and 20th-century granite — gives the grounds a particular visual complexity that rewards slow, careful walking.
Sources
Waverly Hall Cemetery's paranormal reputation rests not on dramatic folklore but on a steady accumulation of investigator documentation. Jim Miles, in his 2006 Sterling Publishing book *Weird Georgia*, identified the cemetery as among the most haunted in the state — a designation that brought a series of paranormal investigation teams to the small Harris County town.
The most frequently cited EVP session was conducted by Lewis O. Powell IV and documented in *The Southern Taphophile* (August 18, 2011). Powell recorded 43 EVP responses during a single investigation session. The most striking came when a researcher asked the question 'Do you know that you are dead?' — and the playback captured a clear response: 'Not dead — dreaming.' This particular EVP has circulated widely in paranormal research communities as an example of responsive electronic voice phenomena.
Other investigators have reported orbs that 'danced and darted' during nighttime photography sessions, shadow figures moving between headstones, and sudden temperature drops in specific areas of the cemetery. One account describes a figure walking directly in front of an investigator during a return visit.
The Ghost Village community site (www.ghostvillage.com) published an early investigation account in 2005 that helped establish the cemetery's reputation nationally within paranormal circles. The Paranormal Investigators website has also published documentation of activity there.
No specific named ghost or historical trauma has been definitively attached to the phenomena. The lore centers on cumulative presence rather than a specific narrative — the general weight of nearly two centuries of burial in a small, isolated community.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Explore a cemetery in active use since 1829, where investigators have captured EVP recordings and documented shadow figures. Bring a recorder and flashlight. Waverly Hall is approximately 30 minutes from Columbus.
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