Queen Cleo Ann Judge was traveling through Marion County with a band of gypsys in the early 1900's. She died during childbirth on March 20, 1905, and was buried in the non-Catholic section of Saint Mary's Cemetery.
She was supposedly buried in an upright position (standing up) with her coffin encased in concrete...this was a gypsy burial tradition. Her grave is marked with an old wooden cross, as well as a new stone marker. Today people claim to see her restless spirit wandering throughout the cemetery, especially near her grave. Also, it's very bad luck to vandalize her grave...she supposedly puts a curse on anyone who does!Now for some facts regarding Ann Judge (with many thanks to SJ Koblentz of the Marion County Historical Society):
Her legal name was Ann Judge, not Cleo Ann Judge. Ann Judge was a dancer who appeared on stage at the Saint Louis Worlds Fair in 1904.
As reported in the Marion Star, Judge entered into a relationship with another performer who left her when he discovered that she was pregnant.
Alone, she turned to another group of performers (Roma/Gypsy) at the fair, one of which declared that she wasn't Simply Ann Judge, but that she was also "Queen Cleo." She began touring with this band of travellers.
While this band had been through Marion County before (prior to having Judge join them), they were allowed to make a winter camp in Big Island Township by a farmer who befriended them.
Ann died from complications following childbirth - the baby did not survive either.
The "gypsy" clan sought a local undertaker who would allow them to prepare the body of Ann and the body of her infant for burial. Telegrams were sent to other bands, and the body was displayed in the window of the undertakers until the mourners arrived in town. Then the clan removed the body and placed both remains in a coffin - the undertaker was not permitted to see this process - for burial and the excursion to the Catholic Cemetery proceeded.
Ann is buried in unhallowed ground not because she was a gypsy, but because the baby was conceived out of wedlock and wasn't baptized in the Catholic Church.
LEGEND has it that she was buried "standing up", but we can find no documented evidence to corroborate this.
For several years following her death, the clans would covene in Marion on the anniversary of her death, but haven't done so (with public acknowledgement) for many, many years.
GYPSY DIVORCE SUIT 1882 30TH MARCH OHIO
LEVI LEFFMAN HUSBAND OF MATILDA LEFFMAN /STANLEY THE GYPSY QUEEN HAS SUED HIS WIFE FOR DIVORCE HE AVERS HE WAS LEGALLY MARRIED TO HER IN BOLIVER COUNTY MISSISSIPPI IN JANUARY 1881 AND THAT SHE WENT TO DAYTON WITH HER FAMILY LATER THAT SAME YEAR AND ON 23RD OF SEPT WAS GIVEN IN MARRIAGE TO WILLIAM JEFFREY WITH WHOM SHE LIVED AS HIS WIFE VER SINCE.THESE GYPSIES ARE WELL KNOWN ARE WELL KNOWN THROUGH OUT THE WESTERN AND SOUTHERN STATES.
1901 MAY 9TH OHIO
THE GYPSY, HARRISON/ GORMAN/ COOPER/ JEFFERIES/ TRIBES OF HORSE TRADING GYPSIES THE RICHEST AND LARGEST ROAMING BAND IN OHIO CROWNED LULA MAY GORMAN THE GYPSY QUEEN AT THEIR CAMP IN HAMILTONON ARIL 30TH THE TRIBE HAS BEEN UNDER A REGENCY SINCE THE DEATH A YEAR AGO OF THEIR QUEEN AND ACCORDING TO GYPSY CUSTOM THEIR NEW QUEEN COULDN'T BE CROWNED UNTIL SHE REACHED 19 YEARS, WHICH SHE DID THAT DAYTHE QUEEN WAS RICHLY GOWNED IN WHITE SATIN AND WAS CROWNED BY THE OLDEST WOMAN IN THE TRIBEFIVE HUNDRED GYPSIES CAME MANY COMING A GREAT DISTANCE AND AFTER THERE WAS A DANCE
1905 JUNE 4TH OHIO
PRISONER LOCKED UP FOR HIGHWAY ROBBERYEDDIE GORMAN 22 SON OF LEADER OF GORMAN TRIBE OF GYPSIES WITH COOPER TRIBE OF GYPSIES CAMPED NEAR SEVENMILE OHIO WAS ONE OF 2 MEN WHO ROBBED GRANT BLOSSOM OF HIS HORSE WHIP LAP ROBE AND $3 GORMAN WAS HELD UNDER A $ 1.00 BAIL AND KEPT IN JAIL AWAITING A HEARING THE FOLLOWING DAYIT WAS SUGGESTED GROMAN HAD BOUGHT A HORSE FROM BLOSSOM AND WHEN BLOSSOM FOUND IT TO BE A BAD TRADE ASKED FOR MONEY BACK THATS WHEN GORMAN AND LEONARD COOPER ATTACKED HIM AND ROBBED HIM.THIS MORNING GORMAN GAVE HIS BOND BY SURETY OF MR O BURNS AND WAS RELEASEDLEONARD COOPER WHO WAS ARRESTED YESTERDAY IS STILL HELD IN AT THE STATON HOUSE HIS HEARING WILL BE TOMORROW.
