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| 5239 W Florissant Ave, St Louis, MO 63115, USA (Saint Louis, Missouri)
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The Exorcist Connection
The Jesuit Priest section of the Calvary Cemetery in Saint Louis, Missouri is the final resting place for Father William Bowdern. In 1949, Bowdern allegedly took place in a series of exorcisms to remove a demon from a small boy from the Washington D.C. area. It was reportedly Bowdern who was finally able to exorcise the demon on April 18, 1949 at nearby Alexian Brothers Hospital (since torn down - see Old Alexian Brothers Hospital). Bowdern, who passed away in 1983, would never comment or even acknowledge his involvement in the case. The infamous case was the main inspiration behind William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist.
Other Notables
Calvary Cemetery is also the final resting place of Dred Scott. Together with his wife, who also has a memorial here but is actually buried in nearby Greenwood Cemetery (see Greenwood Cemetery, Hillsdale, MO), they battled for their freedom from slavery. In 1857, their case was denied in the infamous Dred Scott Decision by the U.S. Supreme Court and was one of the factors that led to the Civil War.
Speaking of the Civil War, William Tecumseh Sherman was also laid to rest in Calvary Cemetery. Sherman was a famous Union General in the war that led his regiments through a path of destruction of the south in an attempt to break the Confederacy's supply line. The effort would become known as Sherman's March.
Also in Calvary Cemetery's grounds is the grave of renowned playwright and poet, Tennessee Williams (A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat On a Hot Tin Roof, etc.). The cemetery also is the final resting place for some of the founding fathers of St. Louis, various Missouri politicians, sports heroes, and other influential Missouri residents. |
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| Related Sites |
Find A Grave: Calvary Cemetery
Find A Grave's entry for Calvary Cemetery, the final resting place of Father William Bowdern, who performed the infamous exorcism that would later inspire The Exorcist. |
Missouri Paranormal Research: The St. Louis Exorcism
An entry from Missouri Paranormal Research about an exorcism that occurred in St. Louis, Missouri that inspired William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist. |
The Haunted Boy: The Inspiration for The Exorcist
A five-part article by Mark Opsasnick that explores the true story behind the inspiration for William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist. The article relies on newspaper reportings at the times, as well as Blatty's own explorations into the case. |
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| Similar Destinations |
| Saint Augustine National Cemetery, FL |
| Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord, MA |
| Old Gray Cemetery, Knoxville, TN |
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| See Also on TheCabinet.com |
| There are no other pages on this site associated with this location. |
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| Available from Amazon.com |
The Devil Came to St. Louis |
Possessed |
Possessed |
The Exorcist |
The Exorcist - The Complete Anthology (Original / The Version You've Never Seen / Exorcist II The Heretic / Exorcist III / The Beginning / Dominion) |
Spirits of St. Louis: A Ghostly Guide to the Mound City's Unearthly Activities |
Spirits of St. Louis II: The Return of the Gateway City Ghosts |
Haunted Missouri: A Ghostly Guide to the Sho Most Spirited Spots |
Ghost Stories of Missouri: True Tales of Ghostly Hauntings |
More Missouri Ghosts |
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