Ball Cemetery – Haunted Cemetery in Springfield, Nebraska

Ball Cemetery rests quietly in the rural countryside near Springfield, Nebraska. The small burial ground dates back to the mid-1800s and serves as the final resting place for early settlers.

Local residents have reported strange occurrences at this graveyard for over a century. Witnesses describe glowing orbs, phantom figures, and an overwhelming sense of being watched among the weathered tombstones.

The cemetery earned its notorious reputation after multiple visitors reported encounters with a mysterious woman in white. She appears near the oldest section of the graveyard, particularly on foggy nights when visibility drops.

Despite its small size, Ball Cemetery has become one of Nebraska’s most discussed paranormal locations. Ghost hunters and curious visitors make regular pilgrimages to this isolated spot hoping to experience the unexplained.

Historical Background

Ball Cemetery was established in 1857 by founding families of the Springfield area. The first burial recorded was that of Sarah Ball, who passed away at age twenty-three.

The Ball family donated the land after losing several children to scarlet fever during the harsh winter of 1856. Community members created the cemetery to honor those who died building this frontier settlement in Nebraska Territory.

Throughout the 1860s and 1870s, the graveyard expanded to accommodate victims of various tragedies. Cholera outbreaks claimed dozens of lives, and their graves cluster together in the northeast section.

A devastating tornado struck Springfield in April 1879, killing sixteen residents in a single afternoon. The cemetery received all sixteen victims, and their graves form a semicircle near the old iron gates.

The most tragic event occurred in 1891 when the Miller family perished in a house fire. Eight family members, ranging from infant twins to grandmother Constance Miller, were buried side by side.

By 1920, the cemetery had fallen into disrepair as newer burial grounds opened closer to town. Vandalism plagued the site throughout the mid-twentieth century, with numerous headstones damaged or destroyed completely.

Local historians believe the desecration of graves may have triggered the paranormal activity reported today. The Springfield Historical Society took over maintenance in 1985, but the damage had already been done.

Paranormal Activity Summary

Visitors to Ball Cemetery most frequently report seeing unexplained lights floating between the gravestones. These orbs appear as pale blue or white spheres that move with apparent intelligence and purpose.

Phantom footsteps echo through the cemetery even when no living person walks the grounds. The sounds seem to follow visitors, stopping abruptly whenever someone turns to look behind them.

Cold spots manifest suddenly throughout the burial ground, even during hot summer months when temperatures exceed ninety degrees. These areas of frigid air can drop temperatures by thirty degrees or more within seconds.

Electronic devices malfunction regularly within the cemetery boundaries, with cameras draining batteries and cell phones shutting down unexpectedly. Several visitors have reported their car engines dying when parked near the entrance gates.

A woman’s voice has been captured on numerous audio recordings made by paranormal investigators at the site. The voice speaks in whispered tones, often saying “help me” or “find them” in desperate pleas.

Shadow figures dart between tombstones in visitors’ peripheral vision, vanishing when approached or observed directly. These dark shapes appear human-sized but lack any distinguishable features or details.

The overwhelming sensation of being touched or grabbed has been reported by at least forty different witnesses. Most describe feeling invisible hands on their shoulders or arms, accompanied by intense feelings of sadness.

Ghost Stories & Reports

The Woman in White remains the most famous apparition haunting Ball Cemetery’s weathered grounds. She appears near the Ball family plot, wearing a long Victorian-era dress with lace sleeves.

Witnesses describe her as appearing solid and real until she suddenly fades into transparent mist. Her face shows profound sadness, and many visitors report feeling overwhelming grief when she manifests nearby.

Local legend identifies the Woman in White as Margaret Ball, who died in 1867 at age nineteen. Margaret supposedly succumbed to pneumonia while pregnant with her first child, and neither body received proper burial.

According to Springfield folklore, Margaret’s husband buried her hastily during a blizzard without a coffin. The baby was never found, leading some to believe she searches eternally for her lost infant.

The Miller family ghosts appear as a group phenomenon that multiple witnesses have documented since 1935. All eight family members manifest together, creating an eerie tableau of the moments before their deaths.

Witnesses see them standing near their shared grave marker, appearing as translucent figures surrounded by flickering orange light. The smell of smoke accompanies these apparitions, so strong that several visitors have called the fire department.

Children’s laughter echoes through the cemetery on quiet nights, particularly near the section containing young victims. The sounds seem joyful rather than sinister, suggesting the spirits of children playing together in the afterlife.

A tall man in a dark coat has been spotted standing at the cemetery’s western edge. He never moves or speaks, simply watching visitors with an intense stare before vanishing completely.

Some researchers believe this figure represents a cemetery caretaker from the early 1900s named William Foster. Foster allegedly hanged himself from a nearby tree in 1912 after his wife left him.

The Weeping Angel phenomenon began in 1998 when visitors reported hearing sobbing near a specific angel statue. The stone angel marks the grave of Elizabeth Dawson, who died at age seven in 1889.

Witnesses describe hearing a child’s inconsolable crying that seems to emanate directly from the statue itself. When approached, the crying stops abruptly, leaving only an unnatural silence in its wake.

Most Haunted Spot

The Ball family plot in the cemetery’s oldest section generates the most consistent paranormal reports. Margaret Ball’s grave marker stands at the plot’s center, weathered and cracked from over 150 years.

Visitors experience extreme emotional distress within ten feet of this particular headstone, often breaking into tears unexpectedly. The Woman in White appears most frequently here, particularly between 11 PM and 2 AM.

Photographs taken near this grave often show strange anomalies including mist formations and unexplained light streaks. Several paranormal investigation teams have captured EVP recordings with the clearest results at this exact location.

The ground near Margaret’s grave feels noticeably colder than surrounding areas year-round, maintaining near-freezing temperatures even in summer. Grass refuses to grow in a perfect circle around the headstone, leaving only bare earth.

Can You Visit?

Ball Cemetery remains open to the public during daylight hours without any entrance fees required. The Springfield Historical Society maintains the grounds and welcomes respectful visitors interested in local history.

Official visiting hours run from dawn until dusk, seven days a week throughout the year. Nighttime access is technically prohibited, though the cemetery lacks gates or physical barriers preventing after-dark visits.

No organized tours are currently available at this location due to its small size and rural setting. Self-guided visits are permitted and encouraged, with visitors asked to show proper respect for the graves.

Photography is allowed throughout the cemetery for both historical documentation and paranormal investigation purposes. The Historical Society requests that visitors not climb on monuments or disturb any grave markers.

The nearest parking consists of a small gravel pull-off along County Road 1 approximately fifty yards from the entrance. Space accommodates three to four vehicles, so larger groups should coordinate arrival times accordingly.

Best Time to Visit

Most paranormal activity at Ball Cemetery occurs during late evening and early morning hours between 10 PM and 3 AM. The Woman in White appears most frequently around midnight, particularly during foggy conditions that reduce visibility.

October through December represents peak haunting season according to documentation spanning over fifty years of reported encounters. The anniversary of the 1891 Miller family fire on November 12th generates especially intense paranormal phenomena.

Full moon nights produce significantly higher numbers of sightings and unexplained occurrences throughout the graveyard. Local paranormal researchers recommend visiting within three days of the full moon for optimal activity levels.

Weather conditions dramatically affect the types of phenomena witnessed at this location year-round. Fog, mist, or light rain creates ideal atmospheric conditions for apparitions to manifest with greater frequency.

First-Hand Accounts & Eyewitness Reports

Jessica Martinez visited Ball Cemetery in October 2019 with three friends during a weekend ghost hunting expedition. She photographed a transparent figure near the Ball family plot that hadn’t been visible to the naked eye.

Martinez described feeling suddenly cold and experiencing intense sadness moments before capturing the image on her digital camera. The photograph clearly shows a woman’s form in period clothing, matching descriptions of the Woman in White.

Robert Chen, a paranormal investigator from Omaha, conducted extensive research at the cemetery throughout 2017 and 2018. His team recorded over seventy hours of audio, capturing numerous EVP responses to direct questions.

Chen’s most compelling evidence includes a recording where a female voice clearly states “Margaret” when asked for a name. The team also documented multiple instances of equipment malfunctions and unexplained electromagnetic field fluctuations.

Springfield resident Dorothy Hammond grew up near the cemetery and shares memories from the 1960s of strange occurrences. She recalls seeing lights floating between graves while walking home from a friend’s house in 1967.

Hammond describes the lights as “dancing” in patterns that seemed deliberately choreographed rather than random movements. Her parents dismissed her account as imagination, but similar reports from neighbors confirmed her experience.

Thomas Greeley, a truck driver, stopped at Ball Cemetery in March 2021 to stretch his legs. He encountered a tall man in dark clothing standing motionless near the western fence line.

Greeley approached to offer assistance, assuming the man needed help with a broken-down vehicle nearby. The figure vanished completely before Greeley closed half the distance, leaving him shaken and confused.

A group of college students from the University of Nebraska visited in Halloween 2020 for a documentary project. All five students reported hearing children’s laughter simultaneously, which their recording equipment captured clearly on video.

The students also experienced their flashlights failing in unison despite having fresh batteries installed minutes before entering. Their footage shows orbs of light moving intelligently around the group before the equipment failures occurred.

Local Legends & Myths

Springfield folklore includes stories of a curse placed on Ball Cemetery by a grieving father in 1889. Patrick Dawson supposedly cursed the ground after his daughter Elizabeth died from influenza at age seven.

Dawson blamed town doctors for inadequate treatment and vowed that the cemetery would never know peace. Local legends claim his curse manifested the paranormal activity that began shortly after Elizabeth’s burial.

Another persistent legend involves treasure supposedly buried somewhere within the cemetery grounds by outlaws in 1876. The bandits allegedly hid stolen gold from a bank robbery before a shootout with authorities.

According to the tale, the ghosts protect this hidden treasure, attacking anyone who attempts to dig. No evidence supports this story, but it persists in local oral tradition and attracts occasional treasure hunters.

The “Midnight Funeral” legend describes witnesses seeing a ghostly procession carrying a casket through the cemetery. The spectral mourners appear dressed in black Victorian clothing, moving silently between the graves before disappearing.

This apparition reportedly appears only on the anniversary of mass burials following the 1879 tornado. Witnesses describe feeling overwhelming sorrow and hearing hymns sung in languages they don’t recognize or understand.

Paranormal Investigations & Findings

The Nebraska Paranormal Research Society conducted their first investigation at Ball Cemetery in September 2015. The team documented significant temperature drops, unexplained electromagnetic field readings, and multiple photographic anomalies during their overnight investigation.

Their thermal imaging camera captured a human-shaped heat signature near the Ball family plot with no physical person present. The signature maintained human body temperature for approximately forty seconds before dissipating completely into the surrounding air.

Midwest Ghost Hunters featured Ball Cemetery in their 2018 YouTube documentary series on Nebraska’s haunted locations. Episode seven documents their three-night investigation, including compelling EVP recordings and video footage of unexplained light phenomena.

The team’s most dramatic evidence shows their K-II meter responding intelligently to yes-or-no questions near Margaret Ball’s grave. The device lit up in apparent response to questions about her name and circumstances of death.

Amateur investigator Sarah Kowalski has visited the cemetery over fifty times since 2012, maintaining detailed logs. Her research documents patterns in paranormal activity correlating with lunar cycles, weather conditions, and specific dates throughout the year.

Kowalski’s data suggests that activity increases dramatically during anniversary dates of major tragedies connected to buried individuals. She has shared her findings with multiple paranormal research organizations studying cyclical haunting patterns nationwide.

Safety Warnings & Legal Restrictions

Visitors should exercise extreme caution when visiting Ball Cemetery after dark due to uneven ground and hidden hazards. Broken headstones, sunken graves, and gopher holes create serious tripping risks, especially in low visibility conditions.

The cemetery technically closes at sunset, making nighttime visits potentially subject to trespassing charges if reported. Local law enforcement occasionally patrols the area and may issue citations to visitors found on the property.

No lighting exists within the cemetery grounds, requiring visitors to bring adequate flashlights or lanterns for safe navigation. Cell phone reception remains unreliable throughout this rural area, limiting emergency communication options if accidents occur.

The Springfield Historical Society reminds visitors to respect all grave markers and never move or remove anything. Vandalism or desecration carries severe legal penalties under Nebraska state law, including substantial fines and possible jail time.

Visitors should inform someone of their plans before visiting this isolated location alone, especially after dark. The nearest residence sits over a mile away, making immediate assistance unavailable in emergency situations.