Ed Gein’s Grave

Ed Gein‘s grave is located in Plainfield Cemetery beside his mother Augusta, his brother Henry, and his father George. The Gein family burial plot is located directly behind the grave of Eleanor Adams, which is empty, because Gein exhumed her remains soon after her death in 1951.

Ed Gein died at the Mendota Health Institute on July 6, 1984 at the age of 77. He was buried in Plainfield Cemetery with his family, but also surrounded by graves he had once looted. Directly in front of the Gein plot is the empty grave of Eleanor Adams, which Gein had robbed shortly after her burial in 1951. Police exhumed the grave after Gein’s arrest to confirm his claims and found that the body was, in fact, missing.

Gein’s final victim, Bernice Worden, is also buried in Plainfield Cemetery, as well as a hidden plot containing the remains removed from Gein’s house.

Where is Gein’s Gravestone?

Gein’s grave is unmarked. His gravestone had suffered some vandalism over the years, but nothing serious. Then, in 2000, Ed Gein’s gravestone  was stolen by Shane Bugbee, who made a pitstop in Plainfield to visit Gein’s grave with a Seattle-based touring band. Bugbee sold rubbings of the stone at performances and through his Ed Gein Fan Club. The 150-pound gravestone was recovered by authorities a year later in Seattle and returned.

The decision was made to not place the gravestone back on Gein’s grave, as it would likely get stolen again or continue to be defaced. The Waushara County Historical Museum, which houses Ed Gein’s jail cell, briefly considered putting the gravestone on display but decided against it. Over the years, rumors circulated that it was being stored in the basement of the police department, the historical museum, or the courthouse.

However, it seems it’s been with Gein this whole time.

According to the friendly volunteers at the historical museum, soon after the gravestone was recovered in 2001, the decision was made to bury it with Gein and encase it in concrete to prevent any further incidents.

Today, visitors leave behind makeshift grave markers, and there’s usually a hole from which they have dig out grave dirt.