Haunted Bloomington-Normal, Illinois

By Deborah Carr Senger and Janice Oberding

Discover the haunting history—and supernatural mysteries—of this Midwestern city and its resident ghosts. Includes photos!
 
From the clamor of bygone parades to the phantom scent of burned rubber on Route 66, ghoulish and supernatural visions flourish in Bloomington-Normal . . .
 
Claimed by a devastating fire in 1859, the spirit of a young girl haunts Kelly’s Bakery. Visitors to Kemp Hall report seeing the specter of a lady in red. Cantankerous pitcher Charles “Old Hoss” Radhourn trolls Evergreen Memorial Cemetery. In this spooky book, Deborah Carr Senger embarks on a tour of Bloomington-Normal’s haunted heritage.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Sep 19, 2016
• ISBN: 9781439657607

Deborah Carr Senger

Deborah Carr Senger is a spiritual medium and mystic with a private metaphysical practice in Normal, Illinois. She co-owns and operates Spirits of Bloomington, which offers step-on and walking tours, as well as presentations of historic and haunted Route 66 and Lincoln sites in the Bloomington-Normal area.

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Bloomington-Normal has many haunted stories to tell. The community was established in the early 1830s, when James Allin heard that the area was being considered for the county seat. He immediately donated some of his own property to establish high land for government and business opportunities. The area would become downtown Bloomington. Here a young, eager Abraham Lincoln soon showed up to join the Eighth County Court Circuit.

Mary Todd Lincoln brought me to Bloomington-Normal. Work brought my husband, Tom, to the area. When we first visited in December 2007, we were content living in the St. Louis area. Family lived nearby, so Tom planned to work in the Bloomington-Normal area while I used St. Louis as a home base for my work as a spiritual medium and historic-paranormal investigator.

Bloomington continued to thrive through the decades, evolving into the Twin Cities of Bloomington-Normal. America’s historical timeline is clearly marked through the development of these midwestern towns. Lincoln, politics, the universities, the railroad, Prohibition, Al Capone, women’s rights, Route 66 and major corporations set the stage for historic benchmarks and provided the ideal backdrop for local legends, lore and ghost stories.

From that very first snowy morning in December 2007, we were enchanted. Historic homes, sites and neighborhoods and Route 66 remain, reflecting the growth of America from the 1800s to today. The David Davis Mansion and Ewing Manor offer frequent tours, and yearly events such as the Old House Society’s Annual Tour of Homes and Christmas at the Mansions allow ample opportunity to glimpse into the past. Route 66, built parallel to the old Chicago & Alton Railroad, has local sites such as Funks Grove and Ryburn Place/Sprague’s Super Service. Visitors can experience The Mother Road’s tourist attractions while Cruisin’ with Lincoln on 66.

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Illinois State Route 66 Scenic Byway map. Courtesy of Illinois Route 66 Scenic Byway.

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Enthusiastic paranormal participants. Courtesy of Connie Hoagland.

Mary Todd Lincoln and the spirits of Bloomington and Normal told their stories to me. Clearly, history still echoes down the streets and alleys of the Twin Cities. Looking for Lincoln signs mark the residual shouting grounds of political rivals and haunts. You can almost smell the burnt cinders as they fell through the air during the early morning of the great 1900 fire. Prohibition still resonates with the screeching tires of a gangster’s getaway on bloody Route 66. Big Foot sightings are still questioned by experts and locals. Along with the incredible history lessons, these are the tales not found in the reference sections of local libraries, but are buried in the peaceful and manicured cemeteries.

As the Twin Cities’ secrets unfolded, so did my relationship with Mary Todd Lincoln. A few local ghost stories and legends are well known: Kelly’s Bakery’s little girl ghost; University of Illinois’s ghost, Angie Milner; the lady in red at Illinois Wesleyan University; and Bigfoot appearances in the Funks Grove area. In addition to these local classics, other realms of the paranormal, both present and past, are now being told. Murder, mayhem, tragedies and Mary Todd Lincoln can be found in these stories, and there are other spellbinding tales down the yellow brick road of haunted and historical streets of Bloomington-Normal.

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1

FUNKS GROVE

LINCOLN AND ROUTE 66

Iconic Route 66 stretches a little over 300 miles in the state of Illinois, the Prairie State, from Chicago to East St. Louis, on Missouri’s border. McLean County’s Route 66 was built parallel to the old Chicago & Alton Railroad and winds its way south from Funks Grove and as far north as Chenoa, with Bloomington and Normal being the primary cities in the county. Funks Grove is the midpoint of Route 66 in Illinois. Abraham Lincoln practiced law in McLean County, and friends such as pioneer Isaac Funk played a key role in his election and presidency. Funks Grove is the perfect gateway into haunted Bloomington-Normal.

FUNKS GROVE

About twelve miles southwest of Bloomington-Normal is Funks Grove—a historic ghost town filled with legends, haunts and the supernatural. Majestic timbers carefully preserved from McLean County’s virgin hardwood groves of long ago stand roadside, like sentinels preserving memories of the past. First settled by the Funk brothers and others in the 1820s, the town was home to cattle ranching that fed Chicago’s beef industry. Abraham Lincoln was the attorney for the Funk family, and together they helped bring the railroad to this part of Illinois. Some Funk family members are even rumored to have hosted slaves escaping the South during the Civil War.

Many attractions and historic sites remain among the timbers to entice a stop, including the syrupy taste of Funks Grove Pure Maple Sirup. Locally manufactured and sold by the Funks since 1924, the product is made by boiling sap and not adding sugars. It makes for an incredible, natural sweet treat. The sirup’s discovery, however, is a mystery. History suggests that the syrupy benefits of the maple trees were likely produced and enjoyed by the local Native Americans to season and sweeten food such as corn and meat.

One of the most popular legends involves an Iroquois chief named Woksis. One night after returning from hunting, Chief Woksis plunged his hatchet into the side of a tree for safekeeping. Underneath the cut was a bowl. The next day, his wife used the liquid from the bowl for water in a venison stew. As the stew cooked, water evaporated from the sap, leaving a thick, sweet substance. The chief and his wife were pleasantly surprised by the sweet-tasting stew. In this way, it was discovered how maple sirup could be made from tree sap.

Bigfoot sightings have been recorded in many areas of the world since the beginning of man. Pacific Northwest Native Americans told wild men stories. According to Bigfoot enthusiasts and scientists, these hairy creatures are usually drawn to areas where food is readily available. Some believe that Sasquatch actually migrate southeast from the Pacific Northwest, following the creek beds and seasonal vegetation. Funks Grove could possibly provide the necessary foliage and water source, not to mention the sweetness of sirup, to entice a Bigfoot to get his Kicks on Route 66.

In the summer of 2005, a local resident was slowly cruising down Route 66 in his 1990 Mustang. Enjoying the beautiful day, he was completely stunned when a large black creature ran behind his car. At first he thought it was a big black bear running into the woods, but then he felt a giant slap on his car. Startled, he pressed down on the gas pedal and quickly sped away. With his heart pounding, he finally slowed down and came to a complete stop. In his mind, he questioned what he had witnessed. After calming down, he slowly opened his car door. Looking cautiously in both directions, he got out of his car. He had clearly heard something. He carefully examined every inch of his beloved Mustang. As he went around to the back of his car, he couldn’t believe what he saw! Five large claw marks were clearly seen on his car’s trunk. He was shocked, not to mention stunned and upset. Who was going to pay for the paint job? How was he going to explain these markings to his insurance company? He went home and started to conduct research on the Internet to figure out what could have possibly caused such damage. Despite the markings on the car, many people did not believe his story.

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Funks Grove naturally sweet maple sirup on Route 66. Photography by Cari Towery.

A few months later, there was another sighting from folks who claimed they had seen a large, hairy, upright creature in a ditch. They were in a rural area of Shirley and not going to stick around to see what the monster might do!

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources states that there has never been a public request to check for the possible sightings of a Bigfoot. A local zoologist claims that even though Funks Grove is a wooded area, the vegetation is not conducive to supporting a large primate.

The Mustang owner was able to contact a Bigfoot research team in California. The group travelled to the Funks Grove area and visited the areas of the sightings. They did a thorough study, including examining the markings left by the creature and studying the possibility of a Bigfoot’s survival in the area. The findings were inconclusive. According to the group’s secretary, the marks [on the car] were not distinct enough to indicate the kind of creature that may have made them. The researchers did conclude, however, that there are enough small rodents, grubs and vegetation for the hairy creature to survive. No mention was made of Funks Grove’s naturally sweet maple sirup.

Among the timbers of Funks Grove is the historic Methodist church and old cemetery. Adam Funk, the patriarch of the family, chose the location of the cemetery. In 1830, he was one of the first to be buried there. The church was completed in 1865. Both sites are flawlessly maintained by the Thaddeus Stubblefield Trust to provide for religious and educational benefits and for beautification of the grove. Beautiful and serene, the grove is no place for lost souls.

With simple dignity, Funk’s Grove Church welcomes families of all faiths.

Just inside the entrance to the cemetery is a large stone that once marked the location of Isaac Funk’s cabin. This memorial was originally located at what is now the Funks Grove rest area on I-55. Also near this location, some say, is an old well—and the ghost of a murdered railroad worker. As the story goes, among the group of the railroad workers were two particular men who could not get along with each other at all. Their personalities clashed so greatly that they were kept apart for their own good. One afternoon, the two men were unknowingly left behind, alone with each other. When the others returned, one man was dead and the other was alive. The survivor said that the other man had tripped and fallen into the well. The dead man apparently has another side to the story, and his screams can be heard in the dead of the night. The location of the well has long been forgotten.

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With simple dignity, Funk’s Grove Church welcomes families of all faiths. Photography by Cari Towery.

The construction of the railroad lines from Springfield to Bloomington was backbreaking work. Local businessmen, attorneys and politicians such as Isaac Funk, Abraham Lincoln and Asahel Gridley were able to sidetrack the Chicago & Alton Railroad route through Peoria into the region. However, it was the Irish immigrants whose blood, sweat and lives were spilled to build it.

The Irish, escaping starvation from the potato famine, eagerly escaped to America, arriving at an opportune time. The country was growing, and it needed men to do the heavy work of building bridges, canals and railroads. It was hard, dangerous work; a common expression heard among the railroad workers was an Irishman was buried under every tie. Construction of the Chicago & Alton Railroad line was no exception.

It has been said that, in the old cemetery in Funks