Savannah’s airport holds a unique distinction: it’s the only one in the world with graves built into an active runway. Richard and Catherine Dotson, buried in the 19th century on their farm, now rest beneath the asphalt where planes land daily. Their headstones, flush with the tarmac, are a quiet nod to the land’s history.
When the U.S. government converted the area into a WWII airbase, most graves were relocated—but the Dotsons’ descendants insisted four remain. “It’s very Savannah,” says historian Shannon Scott. “A city built atop its own history.” Today, the couple’s presence adds to the local lore, with pilots joking about “ghostly bumps” on takeoff. For a city steeped in hauntings, from Civil War spirits to Yellow Fever victims, the airport’s eternal residents fit right in.
