First Cemetery Expedition of Spring

I was in the throes of a deadly bout of cabin fever at the end of March when, after a long and cold Wisconsin winter, some tolerable weather finally permitted a bit of exploration before the onset of another snow storm.

That meant an excursion to photograph the Witherell House for this Cult of Weird post, where I stood in the ditch beside a rotting deer carcass (I’ll spare you the photos, but rest assured I could devote an entire gallery to artistic shots of roadkill) to capture the cursed house in my lens once again.

On the return trip I took a detour to locate a secluded rural cemetery I had visited a few years ago. It was cold and still as the pale sun sank behind the trees, but I managed to snap a few shots before losing the light.

Most of the burials date to the 1800s, including one particularly beautiful old headstone with the final handshake carved into it. But there are a few recent interments, as well, like the one pictured below engraved with a small cat. It’s so touching when beloved pets are included on the stone.

The remains of a fieldstone foundation can be found near the road at the edge of the cemetery. It may have been a chapel, shed, or small home. I haven’t researched it yet, but I’m sure there’s an interesting story to be told.