Why Do The Headstones In These Michigan Graveyards Appear to Move On Their Own

Spooky! Scary!

We Michiganders know the Mitten is a magical place; Southwest Michigan is also home to the "Magic Capital of the World" in Colon, MI! But where do you draw the line between enchanting ...and haunted?

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I recently became aware of a bizarre phenomenon that's happening in several cemeteries across Michigan. Just so we're clear it's not normal for headstones to move on their own, right?

McManus Gravesite

In a small cemetery near Petoskey sits the grave of Melinda McManus. Young Melinda passed away unexpectedly at 32 years young and to mark her eternal resting place the family commissioned a gray headstone with a large granite ball sitting on top. The granite sphere is about 2 feet in diameter and is heavy no doubt but even at that, locals still claim the ball has moved at least twice since its installation.

A large pin keeps the ball in place but each time the ball has moved, the pin has snapped. The superintendent of the cemetery claims to have ruled out human manpower as the ball is too heavy and too high. So, what could possibly be the cause? It's unknown whether temperature change is to blame or perhaps it is something otherworldly. We may never know...

The Witches Ball

Located within a small cemetery in Memphis, MI sits a spherical gravestone reportedly weighing nearly 3,000 pounds. Again, locals here claim the ball has been "moving" since 1903. The grave belongs to a man named Eli Miller and what makes this haunting so perplexing is the fact neither Eli nor any of his family members are alleged to have ties to the occult.

Legend claims the ball has moved in all directions at one time or another and those who gaze into it long enough will begin to see spirits and apparitions. Perhaps it is, in fact, the woods located next to the gravestone that are haunted as locals claim to hear blood-curdling screams from out of nowhere.

Experts have once again suggested it is the change in temperatures that can be blamed for the ball's rotation (similar to the aforementioned McManus sphere) but locals claim the ball is too heavy to move by hand which makes the temperature theory unlikely. The gravestone has such an infamous reputation that it was even featured in Ripley's Believe It or Not!

What do YOU believe is the cause for these mysterious rotations?