The Haunted Bridge - By Miss Ruby Dean, 1978

The Haunted Bridge –

Near the turn of the century (1890-1910) there was in Crittenden County a small bridge which was known for miles around as the ha'nted bridge.

 

Where was it located and what were the circumstances which led to this strange phenomenon?

 

Well, it was on the old Shady Grove road, then a dirt road, between Deanwood and Shady Grove.

 

Traveling toward the latter from Deanwood, you crossed Piney Creek by way of the iron bridge, long since gone, turned rather sharpy to the right for a short distance, then to the left, and began the long climb up Piney Hill.

 

About midway up this rocky steep, a stream cut through a sort of gorge on the left and made a swash across the road. This necessitated a crossing which resulted in a loosely thrown up bridge with wide cracks between the heavy boards.

 

Often when I crossed it, I wondered what kept horses from stumbling there.

 

It was in a ravine just to the right of this spot that the ha'nt reportedly appeared, in the shape of a person, headless, arms outstretched and draped in gauzy white. It floated back and forth, sometimes higher, sometimes lower, but always at a distance.

 

Now this unidentified floating apparition never harmed anyone in anyway, shape or form, during all the years of its habitation there, and probably would never have been remembered except for the difficulty it caused passersby who were riding or driving horses. In such cases, always at night, the horses would rear, try to turn back and in some instances absolutely refuse to go another step.

 

A doctor once had to return to his home and ask a friend to accompany him on his call. It seemed that when two or more persons crossed the bridge together, the ghost remained in hiding.

 

Whether this non-understandable phantom was the result of trickery and or deviltry played by human hands, or whether it was an inexplicable phenomenon of nature, has not been determined to this day.

 

In fact, it has been years since I heard anyone even so much as mention the ha'nted bridge. But, sometimes, when and if you are traveling eastward on the Shady Grove road, at night and alone, and get about halfway up Piney Hill, you might just take a peek into the ravine to the right of the culvert there, which bridges the self-same stream at the self-same place as did the haunted bridge, and see if by any chance you see any signs of a headless form in white.

 

Who knows? This ha'nt must might at some point in time, at its own discretion and pleasure, choose to revisit old haunts! 

 (Another wonderful story written by Miss Ruby Dean.  wish I could have known her.)

(This bridge was replaced in 1934 with a concrete bridge)