Central New York High School Built Over an 18th-Century Burial Ground
33 Oxford Rd, New Hartford, NY 13413
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Active school; no public paranormal access
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Wheelchair OK
Paved campus
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Photos OK
Est. 1788 · Colonial-Era Burial Ground · Oneida County History · New York Pioneer Settlement
The New Hartford burying ground was established in 1788, serving the early settler community of what is now New Hartford in Oneida County. The cemetery operated as the primary local burial site through the 18th and early 19th centuries.
The high school campus was developed over and adjacent to this historical cemetery. In 1952, a gymnasium addition was constructed utilizing space that had been part of the old burying ground. While some remains were relocated to Greenlawn Cemetery in New Hartford before construction, not all were moved. This gap between documented relocation and actual remains was confirmed in 2009, when remains were found on the school grounds during maintenance and construction activities, as reported by the Utica Observer-Dispatch.
A historical plaque on the school property acknowledges the presence of the former burial ground. The school serves the New Hartford Central School District and remains an active educational institution.
Sources
The most specific account from New Hartford High School comes from a former custodian who cleaned the auditorium as part of her routine. She repeatedly found one particular side door locked when her schedule indicated it should be open. On returning with a key, she would find the door shut and locked — not as she had left it when she went for the key. The doors-relocking-themselves detail is distinctive because it is specifically documented and described as a repeating pattern rather than a one-time event.
The more extreme account from the same custodian is less repeatable: she described the sensation of something like a human form passing directly through her body, a sensation immediate and physical enough to be the proximate cause of her resignation.
Teacher-level accounts describe two presences on campus. One is characterized as disruptive and associated with the auditorium; the other is described as benign and encountered in the hallways. The two-spirit structure in these accounts may reflect the auditorium's proximity to the old burying ground section of campus.
The 2009 discovery of remains on the grounds gave the school's paranormal reputation an anchor in verified physical fact — the bones are there, or were. This moves the school from pure folklore into documented archaeological record.
New Hartford Senior High School is an active K-12 institution. The campus sits on the site of the New Hartford burying ground, established in 1788. A historical marker on the property acknowledges the burial ground. The 1952 gymnasium addition was built over the original cemetery space.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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