Everything OddWay knows about. Narrow it down by what you're after, or where you're going.
Real events too strange to have made the textbook.
Paducah, KY
Charles "Speedy" Atkins drowned in 1928, was embalmed and then remained unclaimed at a Paducah funeral home for an astonishing 66 years. The preserved body became a local celebrity before finally being buried in Maplelawn Park Cemetery in 1994; his modest marker records the bizarre delay between death and burial.
Worcester, MA
Harvey Ball, the Worcester artist who created the familiar yellow Smiley Face in 1963, is buried beneath a granite marker displaying his own cheerful design. Ball reportedly created the image in minutes for an insurance-company morale campaign and was paid only a small fee. Visit Notre Dame Cemetery respectfully from dawn to dusk.
Gray, ME
A Confederate soldier whose identity remains unknown is buried in Gray after his body was mistakenly shipped north during the Civil War in place of Union soldier Charles Colley. Unable to determine who the stranger was or where to return him, local residents buried him in Maine, leaving one of the state’s strangest Civil War graves.
Rahway, NJ
In 1887, the body of an unidentified murdered woman was found near Rahway, drawing national attention but never yielding a confirmed identity. Her simple grave survives at the rear of Rahway Cemetery and still bears the mystery in its inscription.
Merrillville, IN
George Molchan spent decades portraying Little Oscar for Oscar Mayer and traveling with the Wienermobile before retiring in 1987. His grave in Calumet Park Cemetery includes a bronze image of his costumed alter ego and the Wienermobile; it is in Section 19, Marker 901.
New Haven, VT
Doctor Timothy Clark Smith feared being buried alive, so his nineteenth-century grave was built with a window that allowed people above ground to look into the burial chamber. The unusual design survives in Evergreen Cemetery as a physical reminder of Victorian fears surrounding premature burial.
Westminster, VT
William French was killed during the 1775 Westminster confrontation between local protesters and New York authorities. His unusually direct gravestone inscription condemns King George III and his supporters, and French's death became part of the political chain of events preceding Vermont's declaration of independence.
Belvidere, NC
Legendary radio personality Wolfman Jack, born Robert Weston Smith, spent his final years in rural northeastern North Carolina and was buried near his Belvidere home after his death in 1995. The gravesite can be seen from the road, but it is associated with private family property, so this should remain a respectful roadside-view stop.
Amherst, MA
Astronomer David Todd repeatedly traveled around the world chasing solar eclipses only to encounter clouds and other failures, while his wife Mabel Loomis Todd became crucial to the publication of Emily Dickinson's poetry. Their unusual memorials incorporate astronomical and botanical imagery tied to their lives.
Framingham, MA
Two men killed by the same lightning strike in 1777 are remembered with neighboring stones. The paired graves preserve the bizarre shared fate of John Cloyce and Abraham Rice inside Framingham's historic burial landscape.
Hendersonville, NC
Billy and Benny McCrary became internationally famous as the McGuire Twins, professional wrestlers and entertainers billed as the world’s heaviest twins. Their matching graves continue the pair’s visual symmetry even after death.
Portsmouth, NH
Matching gravestones in South Cemetery mark Karen Christensen and Anethe Christensen, two women murdered on Smuttynose Island in 1873. A third woman escaped and accused Louis Wagner, who was later executed for the killings, though debate over the case persisted. The graves provide a mainland stop tied directly to one of the Isles of Shoals' darkest stories.
Dixville, NH
A tiny burial site near Dixville Notch preserves the story of early settler Betsey Whittemore, who died in December 1815. Winter conditions were so severe that her body reportedly could not be transported out of the notch and had to remain until burial became possible. The graves are near the public waterfall parking area but should be treated as a cemetery, not a roadside prop.
Andover, NH
Richard Potter, born in 1783, became one of the first American-born professional magicians and a prominent Black entertainer in the early United States. He and his wife Sally are buried near Potter Place, the village that eventually took his name. The graves are behind the historic railroad-station area and are accessible for respectful visits.
Badin, NC
When the Yadkin River was dammed to create Badin Lake, hundreds of graves from threatened cemeteries were relocated to higher ground on what became an island. Roughly 300 burials are associated with the site, including marked and unmarked graves; portions have access restrictions, so visitors must respect posted rules and obtain permission where required.
Westport, WA
Washington's tallest lighthouse rises inland from today's shoreline because the coast has shifted outward since it was built. Climbing access is seasonal and scheduled, while the exterior remains the landmark.
Boston, MA
A small marker near the North End waterfront remembers the 1919 Great Molasses Flood, when a storage tank burst and a wave of molasses tore through the neighborhood, killing 21 people and injuring scores more. The understated plaque marks one of Boston's strangest and deadliest industrial disasters.
Hinckley, MN
A restored railroad depot tells the story of the catastrophic 1894 Hinckley fire through artifacts, photographs and survivor accounts. The museum is seasonal, so current hours matter if the fire history is the reason for the detour.
Omaha, NE
The museum preserves and interprets African American history in Omaha and across the Great Plains, including civil rights, migration, businesses and community life. Its regional focus fills an important historical gap often missed by broader Nebraska museums.
Wymore, NE
This specialized center preserves the history of Welsh immigrants who settled on the Great Plains, including language, music, religion and community life. Its narrow cultural focus makes it a worthwhile niche-history stop rather than a generic local museum.
South Kingstown, RI
A granite monument deep in the Great Swamp commemorates the December 1675 battle in which colonial forces attacked a fortified Narragansett settlement during King Philip's War. Hundreds of Narragansett people, including noncombatants, were killed. The monument is reached by an undeveloped walk and should be treated as a historical memorial rather than a casual photo prop.
Macon, GA
The largest mound at Ocmulgee rises above the floodplain and can be climbed by a designated staircase. It formed part of a major Indigenous ceremonial center, and the summit gives a clear sense of the enormous amount of earth moved to construct the site.
Durand, MI
A 1903 collision involving the Great Wallace Shows circus train killed performers, workers and animals near Durand. Several unidentified victims were buried together in Lovejoy Cemetery, where a memorial preserves the story of one of America's deadliest circus-train disasters.
East Providence, RI
Just offshore from Providence and East Providence lies Green Jacket Shoal, an underwater graveyard containing the remains of abandoned nineteenth- and twentieth-century vessels along with debris from the waterfront's industrial past. The wrecks are most apparent at low tide and are the subject of ongoing maritime archaeology. Route visitors to the public waterfront at Bold Point Park rather than onto the shoal or wreckage.
