Drummond Hill Cemetery
Ghosts of Niagara Falls (The Canadian Side)
Last week’s episode of i hope it’s a ghost took us to Toronto’s Historic Distillery District. This week we’re exploring another haunted historical location in Ontario: Drummond Hill Cemetary, Niagara Falls.
If you missed last week’s ghost story, never fear! You can always click that subscribe button or hit up the archives.
Ever since I can remember, I’ve been interested in visiting cemeteries.
I know. This sounds incredibly creepy. So, before you close this window, please let me take a moment to explain:
Cemeteries tell stories.
Weathered, worn stone, and almost impossible to read engravings reveal a cemetery’s oldest residents. If you pay attention, you can also work out which families held (or still hold) influence over the community. Dates, both impossibly brief and blessedly long can even give clues about cause of death.
Cemeteries are made up of the people we love, people like you and me, who lived, breathed, and died—sometimes in a much different time.
And that, dear readers, is why my friend and I headed to Drummond Hill Cemetery to see if this land, drenched in bloody history, would show us a ghost.
(This writer acknowledges that land that is now known as Drummond Hill Cemetery is on Haudenosaunee territory. It’s also important to note that this land’s history stretches farther back than the information mentioned in this post.)
Drummond Hill Cemetery - A Brief History
In the late 1700s, Christopher Buchner was one of the most prominent settlers in the Niagara Falls area. In 1799, Buchner purchased 400 acres of land from his father-in-law, James Forsythe.
Buchner designated the top of the hill of that 400 acres as a burial ground for the area.
The Battle of Lundy Lane
In 1814, a battle between the Americans and British took place on and around this land.
The Battle of Lundy lane was brutal for both the British and the Americans. The majority of the fighting took place over 6 hours. Both sides took heavy casualties.
The British claimed victory the following day, only after the Americans admitted defeat and withdrew.
After this battle, the area’s name was changed to Drummond Hill in honor of the General who led the British during this battle.
Drummond Hill’s Famous Figures
You’ll find several notable people buried in Drummond Hill Cemetery including,
Laura Secord
In 1813, during the war of 1812 – 1814, Secord walked over 20 miles from American-occupied territory to deliver crucial information to the British about an impending American attack.
She’s one of the most famous women in Canadian history (let us take a minute to appreciate this Heritage Minute, shall we?).
Burr Lockhart Plato
Plato was born into slavery in what is now West Virginia, U.S.. With the assistance of the Underground Railroad, he and several friends made it to Canada in 1856.
He settled in Niagara Falls where he became one of the first Blacks in Canada to be elected as a councilor in 1886. Plato held this position almost every year until his retirement in 1901.
The Ghosts of Drummond Hill
The ghosts of Drummond Hill Cemetery aren’t historical figures that you would immediately recognize.
That being said, with such a bloody history, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to hear that many people have experienced a ghostly sighting at Drummond Hill.
According to the Niagara Falls Public Library, a visit to this cemetery means you might catch the ghosts of five soldiers in Royal Scots uniform, limping across the cemetery.
You might also catch the ghosts of three British soldiers, slowly making their way toward Lundy House— the location of the hospital during the war.
In addition to these ghoulish apparitions, it’s common to hear the sounds of battle or the heavy footsteps of unseen individuals.
People have described their visit to Drummond Hill Cemetary as odd, and/or discomforting. Some feel something or someone watching their every move. They might even see orbs, random mist, and strange lights.
My visit to Drummond Cemetary took place during the day. While cold (and by that I mean, freezing!), the sky, a clear blue, didn’t give me the sense that this cemetery was at all haunted.
On this random Thursday afternoon, my friend and I happened to be the only visitors.
All I felt was a sense of calm as we navigated the icy grounds. The world felt very quiet and very still— despite the nearby traffic that led down to the Falls.
I rather enjoyed the visit, and now that I know about Drummond Hill Cemetery, I’m curious to make a second trip. This time, for an evening ghost walk that may (or may not!) just change my mind about this haunted Ontario location.
I enjoyed this post as well. I lived here in Niagara Falls and I am familiar with the history of the Battle of Lundy’s Lane but I didn’t know of Pluto so thank you teaching me something new about my town 😉
Nicely written. Great bits of important history. Thank you.