Tonopah is easily one of the most fascinating towns in Nevada. Not only was it one of the most prosperous mining camps during the Gold Rush era, but it actually continues to be inhabited by nearly 2,500 people to this day. This living ghost town was never fully abandoned, but the town certainly isn’t without creepy reminders of Tonopah’s past. In fact, Tonopah’s cemetery is considered to be one of the most unsettling graveyards in the state. This ghost town cemetery acts as a reminder of just how rough living in the Wild West really was.
Visiting Tonopah today, it's easy to forget that this was once a booming mining town that was responsible for a huge amount of wealth during its heyday. Although people still reside in the town, it very much resembles a typical mining ghost town.
The Tonopah Cemetery is widely regarded as one of the creepiest graveyards in the Silver State. There's definitely an unsettling aura that surrounds this place.
Strolling through the cemetery, you'll be overwhelmed by the amount of graves. The cemetery was founded in 1901 but it was completely filled up by 1911. At this time, the number of bodies far outnumbered the space available in the cemetery and Tonopah had to find a new plot to bury their dead.
It's fascinating how many of the gravestones are still legible. You can even read on some of them how the people actually perished. Most of them were not from natural causes. About a dozen or so are graves of the miners who died in the tragic Belmont Mine Fire on February 23, 1911.
One of the most notable graves is Bill Murphy's (Big Bill) who died while saving other miners from the fire. Looking back, the event is terribly sad. However, these types of fires were unfortunately very typical of mining towns such as Tonopah.
You'll also notice that many of the headstones belong to people who perished of the "Tonopah Plague". The cause of the plague is still unknown, but it is widely thought that the "plague" was actually pneumonia which broke out from the lack of sanitary conditions.
Many believe the Tonopah Cemetery is haunted. How could it not be when so many of the people suffered such early and sometimes violent deaths? There's only one way to be sure—you'll just have to visit it for yourself.
Have you visited this ghost town cemetery before? If you’re one of those people that loves the paranormal, you should definitely check out this Nevada Ghost Trail which leads you to some of the spookiest haunts in the state.
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