Go Columbia: Tours of Elmwood Cemetery

Calling all ghostbusters! If you’re lamenting the fact that Halloween is more than six months away, it’s time to cheer up: On Thursday, Historic Columbia kicks off their spooky spring tours of Elmwood Cemetery. More than 25,000 souls – including 500 Confederate soldiers – are buried at Elmwood, which was founded in 1845 on land then considered the far outskirts of Columbia.

“As soon as it opened, it became the place for socially prominent Columbians to bury their loved ones,” says Carrie Phillips, marketing director for Historic Columbia. “In fact, the first person buried there had been dead for 20 years. His family wanted him at Elmwood.”

Three tours are scheduled for the Thursday. “Secrets from the Grave,” which explores the iconography of headstone and markers, will start at 7:30 p.m. At 8 and 8:30, guides will take visitors or moonlight tours of the cemetery, where they’ll share ghost stores and legends about some of those buried there, including William and Mary Huntt.

William Huntt served as South Carolina’s Secretary of State during the Civil War, and as such, was charged with keeping the Ordinances of Secession safe from Union soldiers who were occupying Columbia at the time. It was Mary who came to the rescue, hiding them by sewing them into her voluminous skirts.

Elmwood Cemetery is located at 501 Elmwood Avenue. Participants are asked to bring a flashlight and bug spray and to be prepared to walk and stand for an hour or so. Tours are $5 for Historic Columbia members and $8 for the general public. Visit historiccolumbia.org for more information.

Katie McElveen

This story was originally published April 10, 2014 at 10:13 AM with the headline "Go Columbia: Tours of Elmwood Cemetery."