Palm View Cemetery

Posted: 11.05.2024 | Updated: 05.03.2025

Florida offers something for everyone as one of the most popular vacation spots in the United States. From breathtaking coastal landscapes and year-round sunshine to a multitude of entertainment venues. 

What many don’t know, however, is what emerges from the shadows once Florida’s cotton-candy-colored skies submerge into darkness: spirits, creatures, and ghoulish figures that leave seekers of the unusual second-guessing everything they see. 

Palm View Cemetery is one of those locations where you may encounter all three.

Nestled in the coastal city of Palmetto, the cemetery silently whispers a mournful history of some of its residents through its decrepit and unmarked tombstones, a tragic history they all share.

But that’s not the only thing that has locals and visitors steering clear of the century-old cemetery come nightfall. 

Who Haunts Palm View Cemetery?

At first glance, Palm View Cemetery looks like many other cemeteries in Florida… peaceful, still, and timeless. But as the sun dips low and shadows stretch across the gravestones, something changes.

Whispers seem to rise with the wind. Strange cold spots appear out of nowhere. And some say they’ve seen ghostly figures watching from the tree line.

Many believe that just being a final resting place makes Palm View Cemetery a natural magnet for restless spirits. But others are convinced something more sinister lurks here, something drawn out by the energy of yellow fever victims buried beneath the soil.

Could they be the only ones? Or are there other souls, forgotten by time, that still roam the grounds?

This spot has become one of the most quietly chilling haunted places in Florida, and no one truly knows who or what remains. Curious?

Read more to find out who lies beneath and what spirits may still walk among the living. And if you’re brave enough to explore Tampa’s haunted history in person, book a ghost tour with Tampa Terrors.

History of Palm View Cemetery

Palm View Cemetery is as old as the history of Palmetto itself. Many of its scattered tombstones still bear the names of some of the city’s original descendants.

Others bear the names of the victims of a yellow fever outbreak that devastated the Tampa region of Florida in the 1880s, infecting thousands and killing hundreds. It’s unclear exactly how many victims lie here, as many of the engraved names have faded from time and exposure.

Palm View Cemetery, sometimes referred to as Yellow Fever Cemetery, was disused in 1910. Yet, it still stands as a historical marker to this day in Palmetto.

The Yellow Fever Cemetery

In the late 1800s, yellow fever, a mosquito-borne viral disease, began to ravage Florida’s Gulf Coast communities. Historical records suggest that Mary Howze was Palmetto’s first known yellow fever victim, and she now rests in this very cemetery.

Many at the time believed yellow fever to be highly contagious through human contact, leading to panic and isolation. In reality, the virus is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.

The illness came in two waves—first, flu-like symptoms and fever. Victims would appear to recover, only to be struck again by jaundice, internal bleeding, and the infamous “black vomit,” a sign of hemorrhaging in the stomach. The second stage was often fatal.

Palm View Cemetery became a resting place for many struck down during the outbreak, turning it into a site of both sorrow and significance in the community.

The Outbreak

Reports from genealogical records tell the story of Mrs. Peter Harllee, who cared for Mary Howze while pregnant with her son, Peter Stuart Harllee.

It’s said the child was born with yellow fever, though neither ultimately died from the disease. Both are interred at Palm View, forever tied to the town’s yellow fever history.

The cemetery’s role during the epidemic made it a symbol of both compassion and loss, serving as a quiet witness to the resilience of a town forced to confront an invisible killer.

Unlike many cemeteries in Florida that simply reflect local heritage, Palm View tells a story of survival and sacrifice during a health crisis that shaped Palmetto’s early identity.

Over the years, stories began to swirl that the spirits of those lost to the fever still wander the grounds. With its history steeped in disease, death, and mystery, Palm View Cemetery has become one of the more quietly discussed haunted places in Florida.

Locals and visitors alike claim to feel uneasy while walking among the headstones, especially at dusk when the sun filters through the Spanish moss and shadows grow long.

Whether you’re seeking history, genealogy, or the supernatural, this unassuming patch of Palmetto soil has stories to tell—and maybe a few spirits still lingering to tell them.

Beware the Hanged Man

Ghost enthusiasts widely believe Palm View Cemetery to be teeming with spirits.  A ghost-hunting team documented the experience they had in 2017. Digital recordings captured several responses when the team was set up near a World War II veteran’s grave.

Despite the evidence, much remains a mystery regarding the extent of the cemetery’s haunting and the identities of the spirits that roam its grounds. However, many are convinced that it serves a much more dreadful purpose.

It’s commonly thought that a cemetery is not just a final resting place but a gateway where the line between the living and the deceased is blurred. That blurriness is shattered at 3 am (the witching hour) as the dead dwell among the living. This is where the story of the hanged man of Palmetto begins. 

Those unfortunate enough to pass by Palm View Cemetery at 3 am may catch the horrifying sight of a ghoulish figure swinging from a gnarled tree by the neck at the cemetery entrance.

According to legend, all souls interred at Palm View Cemetery will meet this haunting specter, which leaves them a choice of how they will enter the afterlife.

The hanged man is also said to guard the gate to the afterlife itself, warning visitors to turn away if they get too close to the cemetery.

Those foolish enough not to heed this specter’s chilling words are given a terrifying ultimatum: flee, or take his rotted hand and go with him, with their soul never allowed to return. 

Haunted Tampa

Florida may shine bright under the sun, but beneath the palm trees and beaches lies a darker truth—a hidden world of haunted legends and ghostly echoes.

While Tampa may be one of the most popular vacation spots in the state, it shares its borders with something far less sunny: a sprawling necropolis teeming with restless spirits, tragic pasts, and places where the line between the living and the dead is almost nonexistent.

Palm View Cemetery in Palmetto is one of those shadowy places. This peaceful-looking patch of land is no ordinary graveyard, it’s a yellow fever cemetery, a final resting place for countless victims who met a cruel end.

Much of its haunted history stays shrouded in mystery, and locals tend to steer clear once the sun goes down. Whispers float on the wind, shadows shift where no one stands, and one ghost often appears near the entrance—the hanged man, his body swinging from a twisted old tree, forever frozen in his final moment.

Could this cemetery truly be an entrance to the afterlife? Or just one of many haunted places in Florida where the dead never rest?

If you’re ready to step into the unknown, book a ghost tour with Tampa Terrors for a chilling first-person experience while learning more about Tampa’s haunted locations. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and keep reading our blog for more real Florida hauntings.

Sources:

1. https://www.palmettofl.org/1402/Cemetery
2. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article117368838.html
3. https://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article116958843.html
4. https://backpackerverse.com/haunted-palmetto-the-hanged-man-of-palm-view-cemetery/