The Green Lady

Every city, every town seems to have a creepy legend. And my small hometown of Burlington, Connecticut is no exception to this.

Down an unlit road called Upson Road lies a small graveyard officially called the Seventh Day Baptist Cemetery. However, most locals (including myself) know it as the Green Lady Cemetery. This is because a woman surrounded by a green mist is said to haunt the graveyard.

According to the numerous legends surrounding this ghost, this woman used to be Elisabeth Palmiter. Since there are several different versions of said story, I will be focusing on the one I heard from friends and other people around town.

The story starts in the late 1790s or early 1800s depending on who you ask. Elisabeth was married to a man named Benjamin/ the couple lived on Upson Road together and were supposedly very happy in their relationship.

Some time during the winter, Benjamin had to travel into town to purchase some supplies. While he was out, a horrible snowstorm hit. It was so bad that he had to stay in town until it had passed.

When her husband didn’t return when he said he would, Elizabeth became worried. So much so that she went out to look for her beloved. In her travels, she unfortunately got lost and drowned in a nearby swamp.

A few days later, Benjamin was finally able to make his way back. He was welcomed to an empty home. Now it was his turn to be worried and go out to look for his loved one.

Unlike Elisabeth, Benjamin successfully found her. At the bottom of a swamp. Wearing a green dress. It is said she was buried in that very same green dress after her body was recovered.

I was unsuccessful in finding an official cause of death for Elisabeth Palmiter. However, in my research, I did discover that she died on April 12, 1800. She is one of the few who were buried in the Seventh Day Baptist Cemetery. Her date of birth is unknown as well.

Elisabeth’s original tombstone cannot be found at the site. It had been vandalized countless times, so the town of Burlington replaced it. The current stone reads:

“ELISABETH

WIFE OF

BENJAMIN PALMITER

DIED

APRIL 12, 1800

AE. 30”

If you plan on going to Upson Road, be careful. There are a number of “No Trespassing” signs along the street. I have not visited my hometown, or at least that part of town, in at least a decade, but I have been told that the rule is enforced and you will probably get a fine.

To investigate the small graveyard, you need to ask the town for permission. Even if you are successful in getting permission, you are in for some creepiness.

The area around Upson Road is normal, for lack of a better term. It’s not too dark at night, you don’t feel an unusual coldness, and there’s no strange happenings. A safe place, if you will.

The haunted street itself, though? Not the friendliest places. In some ways, it’s not dangerous. The Green Lady won’t hurt you physically or anything like that. However, if you’re not paying attention or you don’t have good lighting, you might crash your car or trip over something.

As soon as you turn onto Upson, there’s a certain chilliness that will wash over you. It is different for everyone. For me, I start feeling cold from the inside out. For someone else, they may feel a brief cold. Almost as if someone, or something, just passed through them. The darkness almost feels darker than it should at night. The lack of street lights and the large amount of trees doesn’t help with this.

The cemetery will make you quake, even if it’s the middle of the summer and you don’t feel any sort of chill.

The Green Lady Cemetery is surrounded by an uneven rock wall with a gap as a way for a person to enter. Presently, there are only a handful of headstones scattered in the cemetery. And save for the stone for Elisabeth, none of them are completely together.

I need to remind you that if you are interested in checking this haunted place out, it is patrolled by the local police and residents guard the site at night to protect from further vandalism. However, you are welcome to adventure down this resting place during the day for research.

As for seeing the Green Lady herself? Well, I can’t tell you where to find her specifically. But most people catch a glimpse of her at the cemetery, most likely still looking for her husband.