Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Saint Michael's Cemetery - Pensacola Florida

I know that when most people think of cemeteries they either think of ghosts or somewhere creepy. While this is the case for many cemeteries there are some like Saint Michael's Cemetery in Pensacola Florida that are different. This cemetery is located in the downtown historic district of Pensacola. It's an eight acre cemetery that has people of all faiths resting in it. The cemetery was officially designated a cemetery in 1807, which makes it a very old cemetery and a sort of a museum in its own way.

If you plan to visit this cemetery during your visit to Pensacola there are some things to remember. This is a cemetery and while visitors are welcome from about 9AM to sunset you should be respectful. This is a final resting place for people and many people have loved ones that have been laid to rest in this cemetery, show them the same respect that you want your loved ones shown.

That being said that are some interesting tombstones that you can see while walking through the cemetery, some are just random and may draw your attention. When I walk through the cemetery I can always find some interesting tombstones that I don't remember having seen before. You can walk through the cemetery and explore on your own, or you can go their website and look at a self guided tour. They have some graves that could be of interest. Some of these graves include descendents of the Washington family, seamen from the Gertrude, former mayors of Pensacola, as well as notable places in the cemetery that are not graves, and it will show you some of the oldest marked graves in cemetery and where they are located.

If you plan on visiting this cemetery make sure to check the weather before you head out there, its best not
to go on a day that it has been raining as the ground can get a little soggy and wet. This might not make the trip as pleasant as it could be for you. Like I said before its a good idea to be respectful when you visit the cemetery while its a historic place that should not be missed its still a place that should be shown respect. When you visit you can take as many photos as you want and take as much time as you want before leaving, but you must leave before sunset. While some people will try to visit the cemetery at night it is not allowed and if you are caught it will be viewed as trespassing, these laws are in place to help ensure visitor's safety and to help keep the cemetery from being vandalized. You can however walk around the outer fence to look at the cemetery at night if you want, but remember to be safe when doing this.

If are interested in finding out more about the cemetery or seeing the self guided tour you can visit their website