Emma Crawford

Who hasn't heard of Emma Crawford?  She one of the thousands with tuberculosis who flocked to Manitou Springs in the hopes of being cured by the mineral rich water. Unfortunately, the disease got the best of her...but not for want of trying.  Emma was a spiritualist and enjoyed taking daily hikes up Red Mountain to connect with the Great Spirit.  It is said that she would leave a piece of her clothing tied to tree limb as an offering.  Emma had even asked to be buried at the top of her beloved mountain in the event of her death.

The mountain did not accept her request.  On December 4th, 1891 Emma died from TB.  She was only 19 years old. It took two days for Emma's casket to make it to the top of Red Mountain.  As the story goes, her casket came crashing down in a rainstorm.  As a child I was told that Emma's casket actually collided with the back door of a house, and her bones spilled out. Imagine the horror of hearing this story as an impressionable 10 year old!  To this day, you can see an erosion line that goes all the way down the face of the mountain.  It looks just like a track made for a coffin to take a plunge toward the sleepy town of Manitou Springs.

I do know that a railroad company relocated her coffin.  They didn't bury her deep enough and she washed down the mountain.  That part is true.  Now she is buried in a cemetery.

 I have "heard" that Emma's sister was also a spiritualist.  She tried to contact her sister in the spirit world from the famous red castle and mysteriously disappeared.  Perhaps they are both with their great spirit after all.

Every year, Manitou holds the Emma Crawford Coffin races in October. (Perfect for Halloween right?)  The town has a wake and even offers ghost tours of Emma's house.