‘Bear Man’ grave in Monroe County, Alabama is a true historical oddity

The 'Bear Man' grave in Natchez, Alabama.

I found myself passing through Natchez last Thursday and stopped for a few minutes at the historic New Hope Baptist Church. This old church was founded in 1855 and is listed on the National Register of Landmarks & Heritage. It had been several years since I’d last visited this antebellum church in person, but it looked pretty much the same as it did the last time I was there.

Those of you who have been there before will know that a sizeable cemetery of about 50 graves sits within the confines of a chain-link fence on the east side of the church. The oldest grave that I know of there is that of Ruby Cornelia McNiel. She passed away at the age of three in 1835.

Of course, no trip to this cemetery would be complete without a visit to the Bear Man’s grave. You’ll find this grave in the northeast corner of the cemetery, marked with a simple wooden cross. Burned into the crossarms are the words, “The Bear Man.”

Some of you will remember that the Bear Man was an old-timey entertainer who traveled the rural countryside with a brown bear on a chain. Around the year 1892, the Bear Man arrived in northern Monroe County and he would make his bear put on a show for the low, low price of just 15 cents. The handler, who people said was of German extraction, would make the bear climb a tree, waltz with him and do other tricks.

The Bear Man put on what turned out to be his last performance at the home of Asberry Hayles near Buena Vista and then he began making his way towards Old Scotland. On that road lived a Mr. Mills, who had butchered some cattle that day. He’d cut the fresh meat into pieces, loaded it on a wagon and began peddling it up and down the road to his neighbors.

As he traveled along, blood dripped through the bed of the wagon and onto the road. When the Bear Man passed this way, his bear smelled the blood, grew excited and began to pull violently against his chains. The bear went into such a frenzy that he attacked his handler and killed him.

Mills heard the Bear Man’s cries and came running with a gun. He shot the bear, but could not save the Bear Man. Not knowing what else to do, the men in the community took the Bear Man and his bear to the New Hope Baptist Church Cemetery and buried them in the same grave.

Mills, who had no family, felt guilty about what had happened to the Bear Man. Just before Mills died, he asked to be buried beside the Bear Man because he felt responsible for causing the entertainer’s death. Oddly, while the Bear Man’s grave is marked today with a wooden cross, Mills does not have a headstone or grave marker.

In the end, I’d like to hear from anyone in the reading audience with more information about the Bear Man incident. For years, I’ve tried to piece together as much information as possible about this strange event. If you know anything more about it, please let me know.

(Got a comment or question? E-mail Lee Peacock at leepeacock2002@hotmail.com.)