The Hell Hound of Baker Hollow Road Cemetery

Baker Hollow Church, Source

It's getting closer and closer to my favorite holiday...HALLOWEEN!  To help celebrate the more fun, light-hearted side of Halloween spookiness, today's blog post is nothing but pure, unadulterated urban legend.  For the investigation and research process, we try to uncover the truth about haunted locations, supported with as much historical documentation as possible.  However, in the spirit of the season, sometimes its just as important to enjoy a good story for what its worth.  With that caveat, I bring you the tale of Baker Hollow Road Cemetery.

Baker Hollow Road Cemetery is located in Marion, Kentucky and there are so many aspects to this legend, that there's no way I could cover them all.  But before we get to all that, I can't resist throwing in a LITTLE bit of history!

The Baker Hollow Road Cemetery is actually two separate and distinct cemeteries known collectively as the Baker-Phillips Cemetery.  Baker Cemetery is the burial ground associated with the Baker Church, and can be found to the side of the building.  Phillips Cemetery is located towards the front of the church.  When the new road came through this area, it split the farm property of Edgar Ovel Phillips in two, leaving one section on the other side of the road in front of the church.  When a cousin's son passed away in 1949, Phillips gave permission for the boy, Major Samuel, to be buried on that strip of land for free.  As more and more family members passed away, they were also buried on that plot of land.  It wouldn't be until 2008, however, that an arch would be erected denoting the fact that this was a separate cemetery from Baker. (Source)

Courtesy, Find-a-Grave

Find-a-Grave, however, still has the both sections listed under the Baker name, and contributor, Jean, posted the photo of Major Samuel's grave.  The boy died of non-infectious encephalitis just shy of his 10th birthday.  He was the son of James and Marie Samuel.  The reason why its important to note who Major Samuel was is because his burial may or may not have a direct affect on at least one of the cemetery legends!  It is a belief, especially in the southern United States, that the first person to be buried in a new cemetery is destined to become the cemetery's guardian, protecting the grounds and manifesting in a variety of ways, including...in the shape of a black dog.

But, in order to experience the black dog, one must first FIND the cemetery in question, which is located off Baker Church Road.  Coming from Marion, the church and one section of cemetery will be on your left.  Pass the church until you come to the fork in the road and turn around at the fork.  Those who have experienced the Baker Hollow Road legend report that midnight is the best time to go and under the cover of this darkness, the section of cemetery in question will not be visible until one turns around at the fork.  But, as the cemetery suddenly pops into view, its not unusual to experience feelings of extreme sadness to the point of even crying.  Now is the time to keep your eyes open for the Hell Hound.

The rather large dog is described as being as black as night with glowing yellow eyes.  It may appear as limping, or otherwise injured, but DO NOT get out of the car and attempt to pick it up!  If you speed up the car in attempt to get away from this dog, it will keep time with your car, always watching you with its yellow eyes.  If you manage to follow it back to the triangle section of the fork in the road, watch its shadow---legend says that the shadow will turn into a large, demonic beast, before it and the dog disappear from view altogether.

Image by Abellia

As creepy as that sounds, encounters with the Hell Hound, or cemetery guardian, are tame in comparison to what others have experienced.  Just on the road alone, people have heard laughing, screaming, crying, and the voices of deceased loved ones calling out to them.  Strange weather phenomena, such as very centralized rains have been noted, as have thick pockets of fog and mist that appear and disappear out of thin air.  Along the sides of the roads, the spectral bodies of men, hanged years ago for crimes lost to history, can be seen swaying from the trees, and broken down cars will be parked, filled with the tormented screams of those crying for help.

If seeing and hearing all this still hasn't scared you off, feel free to drive into the cemetery itself---just be prepared to stay for awhile.  Those who have dared enter the sacred grounds after dark have found that their vehicles will mysteriously shut off and refuse to start back up.  Even if you wait it out until morning or gather the courage to get out and push the car out through the gates, your encounter has not yet ended.  Visitors often report being plagued by horrible nightmares and nocturnal visits by unclean spirits.

Obviously there is a lot of "information" out there on this location, and it seems like everyone has their own story to tell about what they or a friend of a friend experienced!  Strange USA has a wonderful collection of these experiences, but if you've had your own...I want to hear about it!

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