Before you bury someone, please make sure they’re ready to be buried. Here are some “dead” folks who came back to life.
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Before you bury someone, please make sure they’re ready to be buried. Here are some “dead” folks who came back to life. |
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Pronounced Dead: Margaret Erskine of Scotland
What Happened: Erskine was pronounced dead in 1574. She was given a somber funeral and was then buried in the family tomb. That night, the cemetery caretaker snuck into the tomb and tried to steal the ring off Margaret’s finger. He was given the fright of his life when the dead woman sat up in her coffin and let loose a blood-curdling scream. Erskine recovered and lived for another 51 years. The caretaker, on the other hand, was probably never the same again.
Pronounced Dead: Matthew Wall of England
What Happened: Wall was a farmer in the 16th century. When he died, he was put into a wooden coffin and carried to the cemetery. But the clumsy pallbearers slipped on some wet leaves and accidentally dropped the coffin on the road (Fleece Lane), somehow knocking the life back into Wall. Years later, when he finally did pass away, the farmer provided in his will for Fleece Lane to be swept clean every year on the anniversary of his revival—October 2. The townspeople still celebrate Old Man’s Day to commemorate that lucky old farmer, Matthew Wall.
It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it: A garbologist is a scientist who studies garbage.
Pronounced Dead: James Bartley, a 36-year-old sailor
What Happened: In 1891 Bartley, a crewman of the British whaling ship Star of the East, was swallowed by a sperm whale. His mates quickly harpooned the whale, badly injuring it, but were unable to save poor Bartley. The next day, the whale was found dead, floating on the surface of the water. The crew hauled it aboard, sliced it open, and were shocked to find seaman Bartley—unconscious, but still breathing—in the whale’s stomach!
Bartley was delirious for days but recovered to describe his ordeal. He remembered being in darkness, then slipping along a passage to a larger space, and then being covered in slime. Not only that, his tan skin had been bleached white by the whale’s gastric juices.
Pronounced Dead: Glenda Stevens’s dog, Sweetie
What Happened: Glenda was heartbroken when a mail truck hit her little dog. She checked carefully for a heartbeat, but when she didn’t hear one, she tearfully buried her beloved pet in the backyard. Hours later, Glenda’s daughter looked outside and saw Sweetie’s legs sticking out of the ground. Sweetie, who wasn’t dead after all, was actually digging herself out of the grave!
First European to explore North America: a Viking named Leif Eriksson, in about 1000 A.D.