Stull Cemetery (Kansas City, KS)

"It's infamous nicknames are The Seven Lost Gates of Hell, The Cemetery of The Damned, Satan's Burial Ground and most notably The Seventh Gate to Hell. Stull cemetery is often said to be where Satan the Devil himself holds court with his lost worshippers.

The devil's only half human haunted child is reported to be buried here in Haunted Kansas. They say he appears as a 9 -11 year old boy, he was believed to be able to turn himself into a dog, a cat or a wolf. Basically a werewolf or just plain shape shifter. Many stories say he was born covered with long red hair and a full set of two rows of double teeth. His story is sad. He was an out cast chained under the house, and thrown scraps of food like a wild animal, since he was an infant.

One day when he was about 10 years old he chewed off his left hand and escaped and tore through the town killing someone who he met. He was finally killed after a 11 month killing spree by a lone farmer.

Ghost stories state he was a hermaphrodite. At the spring and autumn equinoxes evil forces, orbs and lights are suppose to materialize in this Haunted Cemetery near or over his grave, which is unmarked.

And don't forget that of Witch a awful lady ghost who is said to curse at you for stepping on her grave. She is said to appear as a tall lady with white hair. EVP's of her can be heard to say "Keep Away From My Bones." and " Watch Your step." They say she hated her last husband who is buried next to her and often the soil seems pushed up where he is buried. Many say she is trying to get him to move elsewhere.

Stull Cemetery, and the abandoned church that rests next to it, is located in the tiny, Kansas town of Stull. There is not much left of the tiny village, save for a few houses, the newer church and about twenty residents. However, the population of the place allegedly contains a number of residents that are from beyond this world!

In addition to its human inhabitants, the town is also home to a number of Haunted legends and strange tales that are linked to the crumbling old church and the overgrown cemetery that can be found atop Stull’s Emmanuel Hill.

These stories have been linked to Stull for more than 100 years. In November 1974, an article appeared in the University of Kansas student newspaper that spoke of a number of strange occurrences in the Stull churchyard. According to the article, Stull was “haunted by diabolical, supernatural happenings” and the asserted that the cemetery was one of the two places on earth where the devil appears in person two times each year.

But such stories have a strong hold on people, as evidenced by the reaction to the article that claimed that the devil would appear in Stull Cemetery on the night of the Spring Equinox and again on Halloween. On March 20, 1978, more than 150 people waited in the cemetery for the arrival of the devil. The word also spread that the spirits of those who died violent deaths, and were buried there, would return from the grave.

The legends also say that the Devil has been appearing here since the 1850’s and insist that the original name of the town was “Skull” and that the later corruption of that into “Stull” was simply to cover the fact that the area was steeped in black magic. It was said that the witchcraft-practicing early settlers were so repentant about their past deeds that they changed the name of the town. In truth, the town was called “Deer Creek Community” until 1899, when the last name of the first postmaster, Sylvester Stull, was adopted as the name of the village. The post office closed down in 1903, but the name stuck.

In 1980, an article appeared in the Kansas City Times, rumors about Stull Cemetery and the abandoned church. The article states that the Devil chose two places to appear on Earth every Halloween. One of them was the “tumbleweed hamlet” of Stull, Kansas, which occurs simultaneously at midnight, is someplace on the “desolate plain of India.” From these sites, according to the article, the Devil gathers all the people who died violent deaths over the past year for a prance around the Earth at the witching hour.

The article adds that he appears in Stull because of an event that took place in the 1850’s, when “a stable hand allegedly stabbed the mayor to death in the cemetery’s old stone barn. Years later, the barn was converted into a church, which in turn was gutted by fire. A decaying wooden crucifix that still hands from one wall is thought to sometimes turn upside-down when passersby step into the building at midnight...” The story neglects to mention that, historically speaking, neither the Deer Creek Community nor Stull have ever had an official mayor.

Author Lisa Hefner Heitz has collected numerous legends that have added to the mythology of Stull Cemetery. Some of them include the “fact” that the Devil also appears at Stull on the last night of winter or the first night of spring. He comes to visit a witch that is buried there. Coincidentally, an old tombstone bearing the name “Wittich” is located fairly close to the old church. It should also be mentioned that there are rumors that an old tree in the graveyard, which was cut down a year or so ago, was once used as a gallows for condemned witches. There is also said to be a grave in the cemetery that holds the bones of a “child of Satan”, who was born of the Devil and a witch. The child was so deformed that he only lived for a few days and the body was buried in Stull. Some say that his ghost may walk here, as there supposedly was a photo taken a few years ago that shows a “werewolf-like boy” peering out from behind a tree.

One of the strangest stories about Stull supposedly appeared in Time magazine in either 1993 or 1995 (depending on the version you hear). This story claims that Pope John Paul II allegedly ordered his private plane to fly around eastern Kansas while on his way to a public appearance in Colorado. The reason for this, the story claims, was that the Pope did not want to fly over “unholy ground”.

The legends grew and by 1989, the crowd at the graveyard on Halloween night had become so overwhelming that the Douglas County sheriff's department had to station deputies outside to send people on their way. They handed out tickets for criminal trespass to anyone caught on the property. It was believed that nearly 500 people came to the cemetery on Halloween night of 1988, doing damage to the church and gravestones, prompting a police response the following year.

As time passed, the local residents grew more irritated that vandals and trespassers were wreaking havoc in the cemetery where their loved ones and ancestors were buried. Finally, a chain link security fence was installed around the grounds and although the area is still regularly patrolled, the visits have died down somewhat, at least outside of October. In addition, there have been the signs posted against trespassing here and locals have made it clear that visitors are not welcome.

We have no idea and local residents are not talking. Strangely, although property owners have spoken out against both vandals and the macabre stories, they have done little to try and end the legends for good. For example, as so many of the paranormal events supposedly involve the ruin of the old church, why not tear it down? The building has been standing vacant 1922 and it has been badly damaged by vandalism over the years. In 1996, the remnants of the roof blew off and once exposed to the elements, the interior walls have been damaged by both weather and graffiti. Recently, a large crack also opened in one of the stone walls after the church was struck by lightning. So why not tear it down before it falls down on its own? Wouldn’t this bring an end to the demonic tales circulating about the place? To make matters worse, why chase away those who come to the cemetery at midnight on Halloween to see the Devil appear? Why not simply “control the chaos” and allow the curiosity-seekers to see that no spirits will run rampant on that fateful night? On Halloween night of 1999, reporters from a local newspaper and a television news crew joined a group of onlookers at the cemetery. Sheriff’s deputies were on hand, but did not ask anyone to leave until 11:30pm.

At precisely this moment, an unknown representative for the cemetery owners appeared and ordered everyone to leave the property. The officers had no choice but to go along with their wishes and the reporters and spectators had to leave. As Stull Cemetery and the land around it is private property, there was no option but to comply. The owners stated, through the representative, that they did not want media attention brought to the graveyard because it attracts vandals.

According to the Lawrence (Kansas) newspaper, the Journal-World, the old stone church was mysterious torn down on Friday, March 29, 2002. A man named Major Weiss, who owns the property, along with two other people said that he did not authorize the abandoned church to be destroyed. Those who live nearby stated that they were also unaware of the demolition, although one of them did say that a wall of the church had collapsed about two weeks before.

The spooky church is no more... although the reputation of Stull Cemetery still remains!

The town of Stull is located about ten miles west of Lawrence, Kansas in the northeast part of the state. It can be found by traveling west on Route 40 and then traveling straight west to Stull. The town can be found on the northwestern edge of Clinton Lake and close to the Clinton State Park. Visitors to the cemetery are advised to go there at their own risk."

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