This legend was first published on the Forgotten Ohio website.  Located in the old Milan Cemetery in Erie County, the mausoleum is said to be inhabited by the restless ghosts of Mr. and Mrs. Abbott.  As the story goes, the Abbott ghosts like their privacy and will run off any intruder who knocks on the crypt's door.

While this site normally covers Northeast Ohio haunts and cemeteries, this cemetery was too good to resist. 

The tomb was difficult to locate.  The tall marker is part of the Abbott gravesite.  Behind the marker is the tomb, which appears to be buried in the ground. It is actually set into the side of the hill, overlooking a slimy green pond, as can be seen in the background.

Update:  For information about recent structural changes to the tomb, check out the Abbott's Tomb section of the Stories and Submissions page.

 

 

 
This was the closest above-ground shot we could take of the front entrance of the tomb.  

 

The descent down the hill to the entrance was treacherous.  There was very little solid ground at the entrance of the tomb, making it difficult for more than one person to stand at the door, much less take a photo of the entire door without falling over the ledge into the pond.

The entrance appears to have been recently bricked-over.  The Abbotts must have had prior visitors, as evidenced by the torn screen.  Apparently, our predecessors could not resist a peek at the goodies inside:

 

Knock, knock.

 

This brave guinea pig reported that after knocking on the door, frogs from the pond below abruptly started croaking loudly. 

 

 

Word of caution:  Night visits to this site are NOT recommended, nor should one attempt to visit the tomb while under the influence. 

 

NOTE: Be sure to visit Milan Cemetery featured in the Cemeteries Section.  Milan Cemetery is quite remarkable.  It contains many beautiful, historic, and interesting grave sites.   Rare items were found here, including iron-cross grave markers and a "receiving vault." 
 

Updates

10/18/04:  Charles Mosser, webmaster of MilanArea.com, kindly shares these amazing photographs of Abbott's Tomb, and writes:

I've recently been reading some history of Milan and it turns out old Ben Abbott was a very famous guy in this area. There is an island named after him and he was a significant landowner in the area. I also read an article that says Ben and his wife are no longer buried in the tomb, but rather his two children. Apparently, when his children died, they buried them at their home.  Later, later when the home was sold, the new owners came across the graves and had the children dug up and re-buried in the tomb, at which time the parents where moved out of the tomb and into a burial grave near the tomb. I'm not sure of the logic behind that but that's what I read.