Augusta is a city ripe with myths, from the Haunted Pillar to sea monsters in the Savannah River, and the myth of catacombs under St. Paul’s Church is no different.
A small, locked door in the bowels of the church have led some to speculate the door leads to a giant vault-filled with human remains. However, unlike the catacombs of Europe, the diminutive door leads only to a small crypt.
As it so happens, though, the truth behind the locked door is every bit as fascinating as the myths.
There are actually several people who are interred in the crypt beneath St. Paul’s. One of them is Richard Tubman, husband of Augusta philanthropist Emily Tubman.
According to Eric Montgomery, executive director of Historic Augusta, the crypt holds the remains of Confederate General Leonidas Polk who was killed in General William Sherman’s campaign for Atlanta.
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Well, the crypt holds some of Polk’s remains. Montgomery says that in 1945, representatives of New Orleans came to collect the general’s remains, but they did not get all of them.
“They did recover some of the dust left, but half of his remains are still down there,” Montgomery said.
Former St. Paul’s Rector William Clarke is also interred in the crypt, and Montgomery says that a woman with the last name of Barnes, who lived in the 18th century, is supposedly interred as well, but the location of her grave is unknown.
The congregation of St. Paul’s is the oldest in Augusta, but the building that stands today is in its fifth incarnation. According to the Augusta Museum of History, the church was established as a parish of the Church of England in 1750.
The fate of the buildings erected on the site have been a large part of Augusta history, as many times the church building found itself in the wrong place at the wrong time.
In 1781, the church was in the center of what was the British Fort Cornwallis. According to Montgomery, as the second siege of Augusta roared on, the British soldiers were forced to dismantle the church building to shore up the fort.
Montgomery speculates that even tombstones were taken out and used as reinforcements, which might explain why Ms. Barnes still rests in the crypt with no marker.
It was to no avail. On June 5, 1781, the siege ended with the British vacating Augusta.
The church would again find itself the victim of its placement when the Great Fire ravaged downtown Augusta in 1916.
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According to the St. Paul’s Church website, the fire moved slowly enough for a short service to be held and most of the church’s records, wall hangings, pulpit and some furniture was moved out of harm’s way.
Despite the fires and floods, the congregation has always chosen to rebuild on the same site making it hallowed ground, such as exists in Augusta.
However, if you want to see underground catacombs decorated with skulls, you will need to purchase a plane ticket to Paris.
…And that is something you may not have known.
Scott Hudson is the senior reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
