Buried at 30, Essie Dunbar woke up and lived 47 years

Essie Dunbar was pronounced dead at 30 after an epileptic seizure in Blackville, South Carolina, in 1915. She was buried six feet under the next morning. A local doctor, Dr D.K. Briggs, examined her and found no sign of life. Her family rushed funeral plans so a sister traveling from a nearby town could attend. The service was led by three preachers, but the sister arrived minutes late. After the coffin was lowered, the family agreed to exhume it for a final goodbye. When the lid was opened, Dunbar sat upright and smiled. According to the 2002 book Buried Alive, the ministers panicked and fell into the grave, breaking ribs. Dunbar recovered and returned to work, picking cotton and living independently for decades. Dr O.D. Hammond told the Augusta Chronicle, "She gets a nice sized welfare check monthly." She outlived the doctor who declared her dead and became a local curiosity. Dunbar died in hospital in 1962 at 77, prompting headlines that finally got the funeral right.