A Man Was So Afraid of Being Buried Alive, He Was Buried With A Phone... (Calls from Beyond)
The legend goes.... There was a man who lived in Terre Haute, Indiana, whose name was Martin Sheets. Sheets suffered from taphophobia, which is the fear of being buried alive after being incorrectly pronounced dead. This may seem a little odd, but this was a surprisngly common fear in the 19th and 20th centuries!
Sheets had a mausoleum built in 1910, and within this mausoleum, he had a working phone and working lights included inside in case he were buried prematurely. Some versions of the legend claim that he also had a chair and a bottle of whiskey put in the mausoleum so he could relax while he waited to be let out. Interesting, right? And what's even more interesting is that that's ALL TRUE. I know, it isn't spooky yet, but we're getting there.
Anyway, a few years later, Sheets passed away. He was placed in the mausoleum, and luckily, he never made any phone calls. However.... a few years later, his wife died. She was found at home, clutching the phone, with a look of terror frozen on her face. They say she was gripping the phone so tight that it had to be pried from her hand. What did she hear on the phone that literally scared her to death?
Can you guess what happens next?
When workers went to prepare the mausoleum for her body's arrival, they made a startling discovery: the phone inside was actually hanging off the hook.
This is a legend I heard about when I was a little girl, and I thought it was so fascinating when I learned that it was actually true. (The part about Martin being a very real person and the phone being in the mausoleum.)
Share your thoughts on this legend, and also, if you have any questions about the legend at ALL, I did so much research on it, it's crazy! I'd also love it if you'd share some local legends around your area as well! :)
***I have the newspaper clippings that talk about the mausoleum being built, in case anyone is interested in seeing them.