The shadow town of Chesterville, Illinois sits near Arcola in the heart of Amish country. Near the Kaskaskia River you will find the Chesterville Cemetery. Legend has it the old cemetery is where a young witch was buried. A large oak tree grows over a gravesite and marks the location of the grave.
Legend has it that over a century ago a teenage girl rebelled against her Amish upbringing and spoke out against the treatment of women in her community. Because she had the audacity to question her religion she was shunned by the community and deemed a witch. The young woman went missing and then her body was discovered in a field and the cause of her death was unknown. Her body was laid to rest in the town cemetery and an iron fence was placed around it. An oak tree was planted over her grave to keep her spirit from escaping. Over the decades the tree grew and has now grown over the fence.
Exactly how true the story is, I am not sure, but it is interesting to see how the tree has consumed the fence. I prefer not to think of it as a tale of sadness but one of hope that as we pass on our spirit and story continues to grow and spread like the tree over the gravesite. I have visited a lot of gravesites in my travels, but I was moved by the enormous size and beauty of the oak tree. I must not be the only one who visited the gravesite since there had been several artificial flowers placed on the fence and her grave.
A wooden sign with the words Frauke Yoder has been added to the fence. The German translation for frauke means “little girl” in English. Yoder is a common surname in Amish Country.
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