Often called the case of the moving coffins, the Chase family crypt in Barbados was the location of an unusual haunting. During the years of 1812 to 1820, the six solid lead coffins were found thrown around the sealed solid rock crypt after people reported hearing strange sounds coming from the crypt. Each time the crypt was opened, the coffins put back to their original locations and sealed again.
In Christ Church cemetery on the island of Barbados there is a burial vault of unknown origin. The earliest records call it the "Chase vault". It was first used for the burial of a Mrs. Goddard in1807, followed by two-year-old Mary Ann Chase in 1808 and her sister Dorcas in 1812, a probable suicide. A few weeks later, Dorcas' father Thomas Chase died. When the vault was opened, all the coffins had been moved from their original places. It was thought that thieves had been in the vault, but the concrete seal of the tomb was still in place.
Two more burials were made in 1816. In both cases, when the vault was opened, the coffins already present had been moved about. The casket of Thomas Chase was of lead, weighing 240 pounds, far too large to be moved by a single vandal. In each of these burials, the workers returned the coffins to their proper places and sealed the mausoleum with cement. It happened again in 1819. This time, the Governor sprinkled sand on the floor (to show footprints), and pressed his personal seal into the fresh cement. In 1820 the tomb was opened again, and the coffins were again out of place, even though no footprints showed and the concrete seal was undisturbed. The governor ordered the coffins removed and the vault left open; the mystery has never been solved.
The tomb was opened and the locations of the coffins were sketched (picture above). The crypt was then sealed and an additional slab of marble that took 4 men to lift was put in the entrance. In April of 1820, noises were again heard from the sealed crypt. After examining this, Lord Comberemere ordered all the coffins removed from the crypt and buried separately on the grounds of the cemetery of Christ Church.