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Boothill Graveyard – Haunted Cemetery in Tombstone, Arizona

Boothill Cemetery is Tombstone’s most haunted graveyard, home to poltergeists, gunfighters, and unmarked spirits

📍 Location: 408 AZ-80, Tombstone, AZ

🕒 Hours: 8 AM – 6:30 PM

💵 Admission: $3 per adult

📸 Known For: Ghost sightings, photography, the Lady in Red​

Is Boothill Haunted?​

Yes. Boothill Graveyard is one of the most haunted cemeteries in the American Southwest. Visitors report:

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  • Apparitions and shadow figures

  • Unexplained lights near graves

  • Voices near unmarked burial sites

  • Rotating merchandise and physical disturbances in the gift shop

  • Daytime spirit photography with unaccountable figures

Notable Ghosts at Boothill Cemetery

1. Billy Clanton

  • Killed in the 1881 Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

  • Said to rise nightly from his grave and walk Allen Street

  • Frequently sighted around both Boothill and downtown Tombstone

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2. The “Lady in Red” (China Mary)

  • Real name: Sing Choy

  • Tombstone’s influential 19th-century businesswoman

  • Associated with a red-garbed spirit seen wandering Boothill

  • Died in 1906; buried on-site

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3. Unidentified Child Spirit

  • A journalist reportedly heard a child’s voice whispering near an unmarked grave:

    “You came back. You must like to play with me a lot.”

  • A shadowy figure was also sighted before vanishing behind headstones.

Boothill History (1878–1884)

  • Originally known as Tombstone Cemetery

  • Became known as “Boothill” by 1919, popularized by writer Frederick Bechdolt

  • Named for the phrase: "buried with their boots on"

  • Contained mostly outlaws, cowboys, and gunfighters

  • Later replaced by Tombstone City Cemetery

Fictional or Tourist-Added Graves

  • Lester Moore: “Here lies Lester Moore, Four slugs from a .44, No Les No More” — No historical record

  • George Johnson: “Hanged by mistake” — story unverifiable

  • John Heath, Federico Duran: Grave markers inconsistent with historical death records

Restoration and Tourism

  • Cemetery fell into disrepair post-1880s

  • Restored in the 1920s by Boy Scouts and civic groups

  • Became a tourist attraction after 1923 highway development

  • Protected with fencing due to artifact theft

  • Still features original (and staged) gravestones and epitaphs

Paranormal Highlights

  • Rotating gift shop displays: sweatshirts move on their own

  • Unseen figures in daylight photos (popular with spirit photographers)

  • Cold spots and whispers near unmarked graves

  • Poltergeist activity linked to outlaw spirits

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