The OES visited Green Lawn Abbey on July 13, 2003. Originally called Woodlawn Museum, the Green Lawn Abbey is located on Greenlawn Avenue in Columbus. This beautiful mausoleum has often been associated with the huge Green Lawn Cemetery located just down the road, but they are not affiliated with each other whatsoever and even have different owners. In fact, the Green Lawn Abbey was named after the cemetery to take advantage of the cemetery’s good name. Built in 1927, the Abbey is an awesome structure built from Ohio limestone and Italian marble. It was the largest and finest mausoleum in Columbus, with enough space for 654 interments. There are several notable eternal residents of the Abbey, including the world-famous Howard Thurston the Magician, five-time Columbus Mayor George Karb, and members of the Lewis Sells family, who owned the second largest traveling circus in the early 1900s.
Of course, a building of this magnitude is said to be haunted. The ghost of Thurston the Magician is said to roam the hall of the Abbey, as is a woman who is said to haunt the second floor. Even if these stories are folklore, the Green Lawn Abbey is a very creepy place inside. Maybe it is knowing that just inches behind the plaque on the wall lie the remains of someone who has been long gone. Since the Abbey is such a difficult place to get into, not many photos of its interior existed prior to our visit. We managed to take two 360° panorama photos and record several EVPs when the place was open. We also shot video inside the Abbey, which may be uploaded to this page someday. We heard one of the metal gates open on the other end of the building from us when we were visiting the building. We were expecting to find a homeless person in the building, but upon inspection, no one was there. Restoration work on the heavily vandalized Abbey began in 2006. Please visit the Abbey’s Official Website to make a donation to help with the restoration costs.
NOTICE: Green Lawn Abbey is regularly patrolled by police and has an alarm system with video monitoring and security patrols. Anyone conducting illegal activity will be arrested and prosecuted. Please contact the Franklin Township Police Department at 614-462-3333 if you witness any illegal activity taking place at this magnificent building.
Location Information: Restoration In Progress
Green Lawn Abbey is located at 700 Greenlawn Avenue in Columbus; Franklin County. Please read the notice above.
Photographs
The Green Lawn Abbey.
The marker at the peak of the Abbey shows that it was built in 1927.
An angled view of the two story mausoleum.
Another view of the Abbey taken from the large yard in front of the building.
The first and second floor entrances to the Abbey.
The building was pretty intimidating as we walked closer.
Inside the Abbey this was the landing that led to the basement.
Looking down the stairs to the basement.
An old two liter plastic bottle on one of the steps that led to the basement. Perhaps left by a vagrant.
This was the view of the basement after we went down the stairs.
There were lots of janitorial tools in the basement.
Some pieces of wood and stone were these tables along with a few light bulbs.
Some kind of closet in the corner.
A couple of screens and a ladder.
More wood was piled up in another corner.
This ladder on the floor was missing a few steps.
An old marker next to a fallen chair. We're not sure why the marker was in the basement.
Another look at the creepy chair in the basement.
These old spikes were in all of the walls.
This pile of ash in the corner was home to a few hundred flies.
This massive furnace provided heat to the building during colder months.
Inside the furnace.
This large pile of coal was next to the furnace.
The entry to the first floor. We weren't sure why corn was attached to the door handles.
This was the main lobby of the first floor of the mausoleum.
Looking up at one of the light fixtures.
Looking down the east hallway.
Looking down the west hallway.
Almost every window in the Abbey was made of stained glass.
This small altar was probably used during funeral services. It looks like there used to be something attached to it.
A broken pot sat on this bench in the lobby.
Another one of the beautiful stained glass windows of the Abbey.
Some sort of table was at the west end of the building.
Upon closer inspection, this was probably used to lift the deceased to their final resting place.
We thought it was really neat that a wand and special plaque was left at his tomb.
The tomb of Howard Thurston, known as Thurston The Magician.
Howard's younger brother Harry was also a magician and often performed with his brother.
The nasty restroom were just outside of the first floor entry.
The second floor's entry.
The lobby of the Abbey's second floor contained some pretty neat furniture.
Looking to the east on the second floor.
The west hallway of the second floor.
Walking into the west hallway.
The view from the west hallway looking east.
One of the many headless statues on the second floor.
This headless statue was just down the hallway.
A closer view of the second floor's altar.
Some electric candles were left behind.
This light looked more like a chandelier.
A domed lighting fixture on the second floor ceiling.
An angel statue was on top of one of the tombs.
This magnificent life-sized statue was in one of the second floor vaults.
Some of the statues that did not survive.
A broken light fixture on the floor.
All of the private vaults had a bronze gate guarding the tombs.
This vault had a bench for the living to rest on while visiting the deceased.
Another vault had both a small bench and a metal chair.
Wilted flowers left in front of these tombs. We wondered how long they had been there.
Whatever sat on this pedestal had been gone for quite some time.
The second floor had its very own body table.
It appeared that the table hadn't been used for a very long time.
Back in the lobby, this was one of the faux fireplaces where heat from the furnace downstairs warmed the building.
Some stained glass on the second floor had been broken by vandals.
This was the bench at the end of the east hallway.
You could see straight down to the first floor through the air vent beneath the bench.
This was the eastern spur hallway.
The west spur hallway.
Looking through the bars of one of the gates.
A nighttime view of the Green Lawn Abbey.
The entrance of the Abbey was even more intimidating at night.
The darkened first floor lobby was only lit by our camera's flash.
We were hoping that a ghost would appear sitting on the bench, but nothing showed up.
Looking down the east hallway, you can see how dark it was.
Down the west hallway wasn't much brighter.
You can see all of the artificial flowers that had been left at the various tombs.
Thurston The Magician's tomb gave off an eerie vibe at night.
The second floor lobby was pretty creepy too.
The body table with the darkened stained glass.
The angel statue seemed even more peaceful at night.
The life-sized statue between dark windows.
Looking down the east hallway. We had closed all of these gates a few days prior, but someone...or something...had opened them since.
All of the gates were still closed in the west hallway.
One of the gated tombs.
360° Panoramas
Temporarily Unavailable
EVP Recordings
No: After an OES member says, “This place is sweet,” an unknown voice whispers, “No.”
Gate Opening: The sound of a gate opening down the hallway. No one was near that section of the building.
Ask Me: During an investigation at the Abbey, this ghostly voice says, “Ask me.” Credit to COPS
Save Our Souls: While having a discussion, this voice was recorded saying, “Save our souls.” Credit to COPS
Save Our Souls (Edit): This is the same recording as above, but edited for better clarity. Credit to COPS
We Heard It: After an OES member states, “We all heard it,” the unknown voice quickly says, “We heard it.”
Behind You: While walking down a hallway, the recorder picked up this voice saying, “Behind you.”
Nana: This voice sounds like a little girl saying either Nana, Hannah, or Anna. We believe it says “Nana.”
Walk If You Enter: A female voice saying, “Walk if you enter,” was captured on one of our recorders. The audio was edited to remove loud background noise.
