Circular Congregational Church and Graveyard

The congregation's first meeting house was constructed in 1681 on the land that now holds the graveyard. This simple wooden structure served the growing community of settlers who had recently arrived in the Carolina colony.

From its earliest days, the church's burial ground became the final resting place for many of Charleston's founding families. The graves of merchants, planters, ship captains, and their families began to fill the consecrated ground.

During these early years, Charleston was a dangerous place to live. Yellow fever epidemics swept through the population with terrifying regularity, especially during the hot summer months. The graveyard quickly filled with victims of disease, many of them young children who succumbed to illnesses that had no cure.

In 1740, a devastating fire swept through Charleston, destroying much of the city including the original meeting house. The congregation rebuilt, but the graveyard remained, its growing collection of headstones serving as a reminder of Charleston's tumultuous early history.

The second church building stood for over a century before it too met a fiery end in 1861, when a massive fire consumed large portions of downtown Charleston. This conflagration occurred during the early days of the Civil War, adding to the chaos and destruction that would plague the city for the next four years.

The distinctive circular design that gives the church its current name wasn't built until after the Civil War. In 1890, the congregation completed construction of the unique Romanesque Revival style building with its circular sanctuary—an architectural rarity in Charleston.

This circular design was chosen for both its aesthetic appeal and its symbolism. The circle represented unity and the eternal nature of God's love. Little did the congregation know that it would also come to represent the eternal cycle of spirits said to haunt the adjacent graveyard.

The church building was severely damaged by Hurricane Hugo in 1989 but was carefully restored. Today, the distinctive structure remains a beloved Charleston landmark, and the congregation continues its centuries-old tradition of worship.

While the church itself has been rebuilt multiple times, the graveyard has remained constant. Over 340 years of Charleston's history can be read in the weathered inscriptions on its tombstones.

The oldest marked graves date to the 1690s, though there are likely unmarked burials that are even older. Many of the early markers have been worn smooth by centuries of Charleston's humid subtropical climate, their inscriptions now impossible to read.

The graveyard holds the remains of Revolutionary War veterans, Civil War soldiers, yellow fever victims, and generations of Charleston's most prominent families. Each headstone tells a story, and according to local legend, many of those stories continue to unfold long after death.

The most frequently reported apparition in the graveyard is that of a woman dressed in Victorian mourning attire. Witnesses describe her as wearing a long black dress and veil, typical of the elaborate mourning customs of the 19th century.

She's most often seen at dusk, kneeling beside a particular grave marker in the older section of the cemetery. Those who have approached her report that she appears solid and real until you get within about ten feet—at which point she simply fades away like morning mist.

The identity of this ghostly mourner remains a mystery. Some believe she's a mother who lost children to yellow fever and returns nightly to watch over their graves. Others think she may be a widow who died of grief shortly after her husband was killed in the Civil War.

What makes this spirit particularly unsettling is the overwhelming sense of sadness that witnesses report feeling in her presence. Several visitors have found themselves inexplicably moved to tears, overwhelmed by a grief that isn't their own.

Among the most disturbing phenomena reported in the graveyard are encounters with shadow figures—dark, humanoid shapes that move between the tombstones after dark.

Unlike typical shadows, these entities appear to have three-dimensional form and seem to move with purpose and intelligence. They've been observed:

• Walking along the pathways between graves
• Standing motionlessly beside particular tombstones
• Moving through solid objects like trees and the church wall
• Appearing to watch visitors from the darker corners of the graveyard

One security guard who patrols the area reported seeing five or six of these shadow figures standing in a circle around a central grave marker, as if holding some kind of meeting. When he shined his flashlight in their direction, they all turned to look at him simultaneously before vanishing.

Paranormal researchers theorize that these shadow people might be residual hauntings—echoes of past funeral gatherings replaying themselves over and over in the location where they occurred.

One of the most poignant paranormal phenomena reported in the graveyard is the sound of children's laughter and playful voices, typically heard in the late afternoon or early evening.

This might seem out of place in a cemetery, but it takes on deeper meaning when you consider the tragic number of children buried here. Yellow fever, smallpox, and other diseases claimed countless young lives in Charleston's early years.

Witnesses report hearing:

• The sound of children playing and laughing
• Small running footsteps on the gravel pathways
• A child's voice calling out for their mother or father
• The distinctive sound of children singing hymns or playing games

Several visitors have reported feeling a small hand slip into theirs while walking through the graveyard, only to look down and find no one there. The sensation is described as both touching and deeply melancholic.

In the section of the graveyard where Civil War casualties were laid to rest, visitors have reported seeing the apparition of a Confederate soldier standing at attention, as if on guard duty.

The spirit appears most frequently during the early morning hours, just before dawn. He's described as a young man, perhaps in his late teens or early twenties, wearing a tattered gray uniform and holding a rifle.

Unlike many ghosts that flee when noticed, this soldier spirit seems unaware of modern observers. Witnesses report that he stands perfectly still, staring off into the distance, occasionally turning his head as if watching for approaching enemies.

After several minutes, he typically begins to walk along the graveyard's perimeter, as though making rounds. His form becomes increasingly translucent until he finally fades from view near the iron gates.

Local historians believe this might be the ghost of a young soldier who died in a Charleston hospital during the war's final days, still carrying out his duty to protect his fallen comrades.

Photography enthusiasts and paranormal investigators have captured numerous unexplained lights and orbs in the Circular Church graveyard. While many orb photographs can be explained as dust or moisture, some of the phenomena here defy easy explanation.

Visitors have reported seeing:

• Floating balls of pale blue or white light drifting between tombstones
• A flickering glow that appears to emanate from certain grave markers
• Beams of light that move purposefully, as if carried by an invisible hand
• Brief flashes of light accompanied by a sudden drop in temperature

One particularly intriguing account comes from a couple who visited the graveyard on a moonless night. They reported seeing what looked like dozens of candles flickering throughout the cemetery, as if mourners were holding a nighttime vigil. When they entered the graveyard to investigate, all the lights vanished simultaneously.

Photographers have captured numerous images showing unexplained light anomalies that don't correspond to any visible light source. In several photographs, these orbs appear to form patterns or gather around specific grave markers.

Perhaps the most common paranormal experience reported in the graveyard is hearing voices when no living person is present. These range from whispers too quiet to make out specific words to clear phrases spoken in antique Charleston accents.

Visitors have reported hearing:

• Whispered conversations in what sounds like Old English or archaic Southern dialect
• A woman's voice softly singing hymns
• The sound of someone calling out names, as if taking attendance at a gathering
• Prayers being recited in various languages

Paranormal investigation teams have recorded numerous EVPs (Electronic Voice Phenomena) in the graveyard. Some of the clearest recordings include:

• A man's voice saying "Remember us"
• A woman asking "Where are my children?"
• Multiple voices singing what appears to be an 18th-century hymn
• The sound of someone sobbing

One recording captured during a ghost tour includes what sounds like a crowd of people talking, even though only a small tour group was present. The background conversation includes period-appropriate language and references to events from Charleston's past.