The origins of the “Sabattus Well Descent” incident are unclear.  We’ve done a bunch of research but the results have all been super redundant and not at all forthcoming as far as specifics of the case are concerned.

The Story goes like this:

There were 3 teenage boys fooling around out in the woods one day when they came upon an old uncovered well.  Boys being boys they decided to challenge each other to a dare, and one of them accepted.  The dare was for one of them to be lowered into this well by the other 2 boys.

So they found some rope laying around, and they located a small tire for the kid to sit on, and they lowered him down into this deep, dark, well until they lost sight of him completely. When it was clear he had reached the bottom, because the rope got loose, they pulled him back up.

When he reached the top of the well they couldn’t believe their eyes.  The boy’s appearance had seemingly morphed into this horrid, hagrid looking old-man appearance.  His face looked like he’d aged 50 years in the past few minutes, and his hair had turned completely white.

When they were able to pull him onto the ground beside the well he started laughing maniacally and when they tried to question him about his condition he responded with gibberish.  He had apparently lost his mind and gone insane.

The story continues on that his condition was incurable.  There was no bringing him back from this sudden case of insanity and so he was sent away to a county mental institution to live out his days as a psyche patient, having no ability whatsoever to tell the tale of what happened at the bottom of that well.

Getting there

With a little help from some of the locals who are familiar with this legend, we think we might have a bit of a handle on where it could be located. Hopefully, if the well really did exist, it’s been covered up. But at least we can bring you to the general location of where this mysterious incident took place.

Your first step is to head to Long Beach Road in Sabattus. From here you’re just a hop, skip, and jump away from the old Coombs cemetery on a little traveled side-road named Mitchell Street. It’s here that we’ve been led to believe the “well” is located; in the back, in the woods – but it’s been either filled in or covered up, thank goodness.

We hoped to not find an open well just waiting for someone to fall into it.  Kids run around in the woods all the time, that would be a tragedy waiting to happen so we’re glad there is no readily visible open hole in the ground with no discernable bottom.

We’ve also been led to believe the well is fairly close to the edge of this cemetery, off a back corner and away from the road.

Respecting Land Ownership and The Deceased

After reading this blog entry we ask that you remember this is a sacred place – a cemetery – and when coming here, please respect the dead by walking on the outside border of the graveyard.  Pick up any trash you might see laying around, and pay your respects without disrupting the environment.

We’ve been told that some of the residents nearby this cemetery are very well aware of the urban legend of the Sabattus Well Descent and they’re not too happy about people helping themselves while on private property.  So please have respect for the people who live here 24/7 and if you see someone watching you, ask them if you can have permission to be there if it’s their land.  If they say “no”, that’s their prerogative.  You can investigate from inside the cemetery.