Pere Cheney, now a ghost town not found on any map, was once a small lumbering town in Crawford County, west of Grayling. Pronounced “pair-a-shaney", the town got its start in 1870 when lumbermen following the railroads set up camp. Soon, the town had a school, grocery store, post office and much more. Thirty years later, the timber industry in the area moved on and the area didn’t offer much in the way of supporting a thriving town. In the early 1900’s, only eighteen people were living in Pere Cheney. It was declared a ghost town in 1913-14. The only remnants left of this town are a small cemetery and some old holes in the ground where buildings once stood. Sicknesses such as scarlet fever and smallpox took the lives of many people, including children, during the few decades Pere Cheney was in existence. This fact has given fuel to the legends of Pere Cheney.

Over the years, vandals ruined what was left of the town. According to the book “Ghost Towns of Michigan,” as a teenager, a Crawford County sheriff vandalized the cemetery and was said to have driven around with “a human skull in the back window of his car”as a teen.

Pere Cheney Legends and Ghost Stories

No ghost town is short on actual ghost stories. One Pere Cheney legend says a witch lived in the town and was hung in a big oak tree in the cemetery where she is buried under. People say she wasn’t a witch, but a woman who had a child out of wedlock.

Some say the town was cursed from the start because it was built on Native American land or the classic, “a witch cursed it!” is another popular reason. In an online posting I found, one person stated, “There are no witches buried at Pere Cheney. The townspeople would not have buried her in the town graveyard. (Hah! I love this little quip. It’s so matter-of-fact.)

Everything that’s paranormal has been reported coming out of Pere Cheney. I think a large part of this is because Pere Cheney is remote, spooky, been heavily vandalized over the years and is also the last remaining piece of a ghost town. It has all the classic elements that make up some good breeding grounds for legends!

Throughout the years, I’ve heard tons of stories about Pere Cheney. People have reported all the usual paranormal occurances such as cold spots, apparitions, disembodied voices, ghost trains and everything else under the sun. So is Pere Cheney really haunted? Being that the ghost town is the perfect breeding ground for legends, most of the stories circulating are nothing more than urban legend and over active imaginations…but you never know. You’ll have to visit Pere Cheney to find out for yourself.

Read the Hilarious Tale of the “Bloody Boot” from Pere Cheney

 

Michigan's Otherside Forum Member Uglynrude Checks In After Visiting Pere Cheney Cemetery - July 2008

I went to the famous Pere Cheney Cemetery last night. It’s in Crawford County near Roscommon and Grayling. I took a lot of pictures and tried to capture some EVP’s but I didn't capture anything unusual. I spent thirty minutes cleaning up beer bottles, cans and broken glass off the headstones. Most of the stones are missing, others are smashed. I walked around the cemetery and all I felt was a peaceful feeling. I did upon entering the cemetery, tell the nearby residence why I was there. I have been to other cemeteries and had really bad feelings, but this is the first time I felt so relaxed. I am going back tonight and meeting up with Mid Michigan Paranormal Investigators. I still need to check out the remains of the town.

Pere Cheney was the first settlement in Crawford County and was settled by lumberjacks and sawmill hands who followed the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw railroad north towards mackinaw city. G.M. (papa) Cheney built the first sawmill in town and began lumbering operations there. In 1879, the County was organized and Pere Cheney was the first County seat. It was changed shortly thereafter to Grayling. The town, which was located about seven miles southeast of Grayling, had a hotel, general store, three sawmills, a railroad depot, school and post office which operated till 1911. By 1918, the town was nearly abandoned. In 1920 there were two residences.

Pere Cheney Cemetery was actually named Center Plains Cemetery back then. There isn't much left of the town, only one foundation left. Also if you go looking for the town, it’s not like a town with buildings side by side. It’s spread out over at least seven acres. A lot of it is in woods that have been growing since 1920. I got a map of the town, and then I did a satellite image. I then made the image transparent and laid it over the original map. I am going over all the death records I could find too and found the sources while having some of the same names; I also have different names so I am rebuilding both and combining them. The map of the Cemetery is poor but I am trying to figure out each section and figure out who is laid out where. When I finish with all my research I will post the interesting stuff. It’s truly amazing how much the vandals and partying destroyed this place. There are only a few graves left and a lot of them are smashed. If any of you decide to check this place out, do so during the week. On weekends its party central.

For a great interesting page visit here.
http://www.geocities.com/perecheney/index.html

 

Commonly Heard Rumors About Pere Cheney

1. The ground is cursed by a witch or Native Americans

2. The town was killed off by sickness and then rebuilt again and again.

3. A fire ravaged the entire town.

4. Mass burials are all over Pere Cheney

5. Bad luck follows you if you take something from the town (although some will swear this is true and happened to them!)

 

Written by Amberrose Hammond

Sources

Wakefield, Larry. Ghost Towns of Michigan Vol. II. Thunder Bay Press, Holt. 1995.

Internet Resource: http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/mi/percheny.html

 

  • *All cemeteries should be entered with respect. Leave them like you found them. Don’t liter, if you smoke, pocket your butts and for the love of every god, don’t vandalize anything or so help me, 10,000 demons will strike you down. If the cemetery has hours posted, respect that as well or find out how to get permission to be in there after hours. Many times a simple phone call to the right person will grant access into a cemetery after hours. If you can’t get access, enjoy the cemetery during open hours. We are firm believers that spirits don’t just come out at night. I think it’s just ghost hunters who only come out at night.