The popular By My Lantern’s Light cemetery walks presented by the Amherst Historical Society are set for Oct. 21 and 22.
Taking place at Cleveland Avenue Cemetery, 1590 Cleveland Ave. in Amherst, the 15-minute tours cover some of the town’s famous people and their gravesites.
“Ideas like this come up often in our meetings at the Historical Society,” said Sandy Kaiser, executive director of the Amherst Historical Society. “It is all part of a collection of ideas between us.”
While this may be the first time Amherstonians are hearing of the event, it is not new, Kaiser said.
“We first began doing this three years ago,” she said. “When we started, it was a very small group of people and we went to Crownhill Cemetery, one of the other large cemeteries in our town.”
The next year, the group relocated to Cleveland Avenue Cemetery because parking was available there.
Following the event, participants were invited back to Sandstone Village for hot apple cider, Kaiser said.
“This year, we will not be having an after event at the village, nor will be doing our lantern’s light tours because of all the other events that are in the works for October,” she said. “But this cemetery walk, which has become very popular, will continue at Cleveland Avenue.”
Parking for the event is at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 115 Central Drive, across the street from the cemetery.
Tours begin at 3 p.m. and will go out every 15 minutes until 5.
Tickets for the event are $5 per person. Those ages 5 and younger are admitted at no charge.
All funds will go back into the Historical Society for a variety of projects from scholarships to work on the new Sandstone Quarry museum on the village grounds, Kaiser said.
“We are looking forward to seeing everyone during this event,” she said. “Amherst has many important people buried at Cleveland Avenue, and we want to be able to share their stories with the public.”
