The Legend of the Ferncliff Fence

If you’re a Springfield, Ohio native, then you know about the infamous Ferncliff Fence. 

The black, wrought iron fence along the perimeter of Ferncliff Cemetery & Arboretum on McCreight Avenue has a history all its own: it has been struck by dozens of vehicles in recent years. 

Facts about the Ferncliff Fence

• The fence has been hit by vehicles more than 60 times since 2018, and was a cause for concern even earlier
  • That’s an average of about 10 car accidents a year
• The worst year on record for the fence was 2021, with 13 automobile accidents
• Ferncliff Cemetery budgets around $30,000 per year for these fence repairs 

Fixing the Ferncliff Fence

The section of McCreight Avenue where cars often hit the Ferncliff fence has a steep curve and a slope which might be what creates challenges for Springfield drivers.  It seems that as a driver approaches the curve, the road banks slightly in the opposite direction than it should, therefore with speed, wet roads, or not paying attention, the rear end of the car starts to fishtail and it’s almost as if the car iss thrown into the fence.

Ferncliff Cemetery budgets about $30,000 a year for fence repairs – a sum that would be much better used for staffing, maintenance or education efforts. This annual expenditure is the result of uninsured drivers and fence damage that doesn’t warrant a claim to the cemetery’s open insurance. 

Ferncliff officials have been in contact with the City of Springfield to ask for support preventing accidents along McCreight Avenue. In 2024 a lighted solar-powered sign was installed by the city, placed ahead of the curve in the road where accidents occur.  Discussions are underway for the city to install rumble strips and additional light up signs to keep cars on the road. Painting a white line along the curve has also been suggested.

Unfortunately, suggestions to erect a guardrail or install boulders are not viable, as they would cause any cars veering off the road to bounce back in traffic and potentially create more danger. 

The plight of the Ferncliff fence is not only a financial drain on the cemetery, it also poses safety risks to both drivers and visitors. There is a sidewalk on a portion of street next to the fence on one side, and an internal pathway on the other side of the fence. 

A car crashing into the Ferncliff Fence in fall 2024.

How to Help

• Contact city officials. 
  • Consider sending a thoughtful email to your elected officials to let them know this issue is important to you, or placing a phone call to share your concerns about the section of road by the fence. 
• Support the Ferncliff Foundation. 
  • The Ferncliff Foundation is a 501c3 that supports the rich history and cultural heritage of Ferncliff Cemetery and Arboretum. Your contribution can help to offset the cost of fence repairs, and replace funds that can be used to further our mission
• Drive safely.
  • While solutions are discussed, we ask drivers to use caution on McCreight Avenue. 

Ferncliff Fence Fun

With more than a decade’s worth of accidents, the infamous Ferncliff Fence has taken on a life of its own in the community. The team at Ferncliff had a laugh in 2023 when Champion City Supply introduced t-shirts for Halloween featuring the supposed curse of the fence (and, of course, we purchased one for everyone on staff). 

We created our own fence Facebook page to follow along as improvements are made and accidents are tallied. 

And a parody fence Facebook page also popped up, from the point of view of The Ferncliff Fence. Whoever runs it has a great sense of humor and clearly loves our community, making sure the fence goes on exciting adventures across the city. 

The legend of the Ferncliff Fence is a story we’d love to wrap up with more additions to the road to warn drivers to be cautious, and a commitment from our community members to drive safely!