|
| Walk Among the Shadows 2025
The Bombardment of Falmouth, 1775: The 250th Anniversary of Maine’s Baptism by Fire |
|
| October 16–19 & 23–26, 2025
Thursdays to Saturdays: 6:30pm–7:30pm
Sundays: 5:30pm–6:30pm |
|
| Our evening walks through Eastern Cemetery are back. In 1775, the English burned Portland to ashes. The spirits will materialize for 8 nights to tell their stories of the events leading up to, and including, the tragedy of October 18. Donations are suggested. Find a series of frequently-asked questions and reserve your space on Eventbrite! If Eventbrite says the night is sold out, you can pay in cash at the gate. We are all volunteers! All funds go to the conservation of Eastern Cemetery (through Spirits Alive) as well as to the humans who embody the spirits. We welcome volunteer specters! We train and provide you with a specter costume. And you get to tour for free! Email us easterncemetery@gmail.com if you want to be a volunteer specter. |
|
| | | | Conserved head stone for Edmund Quincy Goodhue |
|
| | On October 8, 1861, seven friends from Portland set sail on the yacht Otraska for a day of fishing in Casco Bay. After spending the early afternoon off Great Diamond Island, they decided to return to port. As the Otraska left Diamond Cove in full sail, a sudden severe storm arose. They had no time to loosen the sails and the yacht was quickly blown over and sank. Six of the party drowned; only Edmund Goodhue was able to swim ashore. He was 33 at the time of this tragedy, married and a father of two. The others were ages 26 to 37, two were single and four married (some with children). Five of them were buried at Evergreen Cemetery; one at Bay View in South Portland. A year after this tragedy, Edmund enlisted to serve the Union during the Civil War. Nearly three decades after losing his six friends to the sea, sole survivor Edmund Quincy Goodhue passed at the age of 60 years, 10 months, and 1 day. He was laid to rest next to his sister Hannah in the Quincy family lot in Section C of Eastern Cemetery. |
|
| Edmund Q Goodhue September 3, 1828
July 4, 1889
Member of Co. D 17 Reg
Me. Vol. |
|
| Goodhue’s marble gravestone with a pointed top was reset and cleaned by Spirits Alive in 2017. Photos of the process that show his newly-poured base and bracing are on our Flickr site (keyword: Edmund Goodhue). Though not an official government-issued marker, it proves his Civil War service. He is one of at least 50 known Civil War veterans in the Eastern Cemetery. |
|
| | | | | Ron gives a tour demonstrating the mirror technique to read markers. |
|
| Daily
4:00pm ET until Wednesday, October 15
$10 adults, $0 children (0-12 years) |
|
| Daily tours of Eastern Cemetery continue until on Wednesday, October 15. This is one of Yankee Magazine's top five cemetery tours in New England! Visit the cemetery's unique field of underground tombs, the oldest grave marker from 1717, the final resting place of the famed captains of the 1813 battle between the Boxer and the Enterprise, and the interesting carvings of Portland's first stone-cutter, Bartlett Adams. Tours include early gravestone art, important local historic figures, Portland's historic events, and the landscape of this National Historic Landmark, including segregated sections for Black people, Catholics, Quakers, and strangers. We look forward to escorting you through this incredible outdoor museum. |
|
| The guides receive specialized training on the history of the site, the lives of the interred, and Portland and Maine history. Join us for a jaunt through time and this beautiful historic landscape. If you would follow us on Instagram you’ll get even more content (photos AND videos!) about what is going on inside the gates: Spirits Alive on Instagram. |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| | | |
Guess what cemetery fan group has its own shirts, caps, playing cards, and tote bags? Spirits Alive does, that’s who! Visit us on Zazzle to view all of our products. Please know that proceeds go directly back to Spirits Alive to help us fund our work to keep the Eastern Cemetery cared for and to teach others about its wonders. |
|
| |
| |
| |
|
You can help Spirits Alive keep the Eastern Cemetery alive for generations to come. Through your support, you can help us, an ALL-VOLUNTEER organization, to continue to: Keep the gates open – encouraging the community to explore its open and safe green space Offer education about the cemetery and its residents to the public – through tours, lectures, and events Encourage and support the city in keeping the site clean and safe for visitors of all ages Preserve this incredible outdoor museum and sacred historic landscape
|
|
| |
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
