Her Vacant Chair

The Mayflower Hill Cemetery in Taunton was established in the mid-19th century and is home to numerous historical graves. Among them is one headstone with a unique design that not only holds a tragic backstory, but is also allegedly possessed by the spirit resting there.

Pearl E. French was born on August 21, 1878, the daughter of Edwin and Emma French. Pearl’s life was cut short, dying from spinal meningitis on March 26, 1882, at three years old. Her parents were devastated, and an Empire-style rocking chair headstone was built in her honor, titled “Her Vacant Chair.” The name is a reference to a poem published in 1850 by Richard Coe Jr. entitled “The Vacant Chair” which is about the heartbreak of childhood mortality. 

Pearl’s cousin, Veva Lucille Johnson, who also died of meningitis, would be buried next to her in 1884. As the years went by, rumors began to emerge of strange and unusual happenings around their graves. Visitors have reported the rocking chair headstone moving, a ghostly silhouette sitting in the chair, and floating orbs and lights in the vicinity. In the mid-1980s, the headstone was cruelly destroyed by vandals. It has since been restored. Today, people occasionally leave toys and gifts on the chair in remembrance of Pearl and her cousin.