The Richmond Vampire!

 

Richmond, Virginia is home to Hollywood Cemetery, which takes its name from the native Holly trees that you'll find throughout the park.  It is the final resting place for a number of famous individuals, including two former U.S. presidents - James Monroe and John Tyler.  You'll also find many veterans of the Confederate army, including J.E.B. Stuart, George Pickett, and the CSA's one and only president, Jefferson Davis.  It is also home to more recent notables, including Tom Wolfe, author of The Bonfire of the Vanities, and Dave Brockie, lead singer of the rock group GWAR. 

The park also harbors a local legend - William Wortham Pool, aka The Richmond Vampire.  Despite this moniker, he was not native to Transylvania, rather, he was born in Mississippi in 1842.  As a young man, he moved to Virginia, where he had a successful career as a bookkeeper.  He married Alice Purdue, with whom he raised four children.  In 1922, just two months shy of his 80th birthday, Pool passed away and was entombed at Hollywood Cemetery.

Three years after Pool's passing, disaster struck the community with the collapse of the Church Hill train tunnel.  Several workers were buried and killed, but legend tells of a bloody figure seen escaping from the wreckage and taking refuge in Pool's mausoleum.  In the century since, Pool has gained notoriety as a supernatural creature due to this event. 

Rest in peace.

Trivia

• If you want to learn more about the Richmond Vampire, take a voyage to Amazon.  Its all in books.
  
  
• Pool's wife preceded him in death, passing in 1913, the number that appears atop their mausoleum.  
  
  
• The internet is home to a series of fan-produced videos highlighting the Richmond Vampire and the Church Hill tunnel collapse.  Check out this collection on YouTube.

Happy Halloween!