Tour Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery ... If You Dare

October's changing weather and earlier sunsets bring thoughts of Halloween. If your inner child feels the ghostly pull of haunted places, perhaps it's time for a visit to our Historic Hollywood Cemetery. It's located in Richmond's Oregon Hill neighborhood at 412 South Cherry Street. If the possibility of a ghostly encounter doesn't scare you, you can walk (or run) through the grounds or even sign up for a tour. 

While our real estate agents value Hollywood Cemetery for its national historical significance, we also recognize it as the perfect place to generate Halloween inspiration.

A Brief History

Cemetery founders, William Haxall and Joshua Fry, commissioned Architect, John Notman, to design a cemetery at a vast property called Harvie's Woods. As the work began, Notman recommended the name "Hollywood" for the proliferation of Hollywood trees on the site.

Hollywood Cemetery is the final resting place of a long list of notable Americans. In 1969 the site was added to the National Record of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register. It's also listed as a United States Historic District.

Vampires and More

Hollywood Cemetery is known nationally as a historic venue. But over the years, it developed a higher profile as the home of hauntings and unusual events.

• Richmond Vampire sightings
• Whispering dead at Dimmock's Pyramid
• Unexplained blasts of icy air

No one knows if these eerie cemetery tales are true, but they could be. Hollywood is 130 acres of aging monuments memorializing centuries of buried dead. Its history includes horrible deaths in a collapsed underground tunnel, thousands of dead Confederate soldiers and an iron dog watching over a toddler's grave. Given the colorful history, it's the perfect environment for ghostly happenings.

Burial Place of the Known and the Unknown

If you're more interested in Hollywood's history than scary experiences, you can track down graves or tombs for President, James Monroe, President, John Tyler, a Supreme Court Justice, and six Virginia governors.

A monument of Confederate President, Jefferson Davis, stands over his grave.

There's a 90-foot stone pyramid marking the spot where 18,000 Confederate soldiers are buried. The identities of 11,000 of these soldiers remain unknown.

One of the best-loved monuments in the cemetery is the cast-iron Newfoundland dog standing guard over a grave of a two-year old Richmond girl.  There are a number of versions of how the Iron Dog came to rest by the little girl's grave.

1. One tells the story of how a local shopkeeper remembered how much the child loved the dog perched in front of his Main Street store and gave the statue to her family to guard her grave. 
2. The second story says the child's father placed the dog's statue at his daughter's grave to prevent it from being melted down for bullets during the Civil War. 
   
   

Take a Tour

If you're interested in getting up close and personal with Hollywood Cemetery history and scary legends, you have several tour options:

• Historical Walking Tour
  Check the tour schedule. Choose a Daily, Evening, or Saturday Specialty Tour. Meet your tour guide at the entrance located at Cherry and Albermarle Streets and prepare yourself for a two-hour cemetery adventure.
• Segway Tour
  If you prefer gliding through the cemetery instead of walking, contact Segway of Richmond to schedule a Segway tour.
• Trolley Tour
  Each Saturday from April to November, you can take a trolley tour. Visit the RVA Trolley website to book your tour.
• Gem Car
  If you prefer an eco-friendly ride, you can schedule a 2 to 10 person private tour in an electric car. Visit the rvagemcartours.com to schedule your group.
• Self-Guided Car Tour
  You don't have to leave your car when you opt for a self-guided tour. You can view or download a map online or pick one up at the cemetery office.

Your Real Estate Professionals in Richmond, VA

It's not uncommon for people who own homes in Richmond to add the Hollywood Cemetery at the top of their list to show guests and visitors.  If you're interested in relocating to this area, our professionals can help. Contact Napier ERA if you're thinking about buying or selling your home in Richmond, Virginia.