South Carolina's Spooky Island Has An Abandoned Cemetery Rife With Ghostly Tales

When the Harris family built their plantation on the water-fed plains of Anderson County, South Carolina, they probably did not envision their cemetery plot becoming a hotspot for spooktacular kayak or paddleboard pilgrimages. The result of Lake Hartwell's creation in 1962, the bone-shaped 'Cemetery Island' is all that remains of the Harrises' former plantation. Today, the island attracts visitors who want to check out the family graves and brave the ghostly tales of its other moss-covered, unnamed graves.

Where the Harrisburg Plantation's cemetery once stood on a hilltop, there are now about 60 graves visible above the lake's waterline. For the thrill-seeking adventurers, Cemetery Island (sometimes called Ghost Island) can be reached by paddling across Lake Hartwell. For the closest access spot, launch your kayak or paddleboard from Oconee Point Campground. 

Oconee Point is less than 40 miles from the small but charming city of Greenville, known for its fall foliage and seasonal festivities without big crowds. Once you've checked out this spooky site, it's worth exploring Lake Hartwell as a natural delight in its own right — fishing and dockside dining are among the waterside activities the sprawling lake between Georgia and South Carolina offers.

Cemetery Island wasn't always an island. As part of a larger federal damming project, South Carolina has accumulated a long history of modifying river courses to reduce flooding risk, often displacing entire villages in the process. What was once the Harrisburg Plantation, built in the 1700s by prominent Revolutionary War soldier John Harris Junior, suffered a similar fate. The Flood Control Act of 1950 brought the creation of artificial Hartwell Lake to quell flooding and increase hydroelectric power.

While many families were often displaced during damming projects, the Harris' descendants reached a peaceful settlement with the state, following legal disputes and firm opposition to moving the graves of their loved ones. While the island is home to the Harris' cemetery — with John Harris, his wife, and other unnamed souls buried above ground — it is also supposedly haunted by the legendary Serril Broin, hence the Ghost Island nickname. 

Serril Broin was the granddaughter of a condemned witch who exhaled her last breath on the pyre in Salem, Massachusetts, during its infamous trials. Not just a perfect hub of witch lore, Salem is worth visiting for its ghost lore and colonial charm. But, back in South Carolina, the ghost of Serril is said to haunt this island, seeking revenge for her grandmother. As with many ghostly tales, there is no proof Serril Broin ever trod the Harrisburg Plantation grounds, or indeed whether she or her grandmother even existed in the first place. But that is part of the fascination, after all: On this island, the supernatural intersects with South Carolina's darkest chapters of plantation history.