The legends of Crybaby Bridges have been around for centuries. A Crybaby Bridge is a pretty general term that can apply to quite a few bridges in the United States. The urban legends about these bridges involve ghost stories where witnesses have heard babies crying. These urban legends may feature stories of car accidents on the bridge, infanticide, or other events that ended up full of heartbreak and sorrow.
One famous urban legend about Crybaby bridges is that a mother threw her baby off of the bridge and ended up feeling so terrible afterward that she ended up jumping off the bridge herself. Now, the baby’s ghost continues to cry, or the mother is crying for the loss of her child on the bridge. There are no locations specific to one story, so many bridges have this name. Different states have a variety of bridges with these names; depending on the lore, culture, and region, they vary quite a bit. We want to introduce you to the many Crybaby Bridges in the United States and the tales that they hold.
Crybaby Bridge Locations
Kentucky’s Crybaby Bridge
Those familiar with Sleepy Hollow Road in Kentucky have told stories of their own Crybaby Bridge. The bridge is between Oldham and Jefferson County. One of the legends states that a mother with her new baby was driving home in a terrible storm. It was late at night, and as they were going over the bridge, the car’s steering wheel began to jerk, and the mother couldn’t control it. This led the car to spin and swerve, and when the mother tried to brake, the brakes failed. She ended up hitting the side of the bridge, and the impact threw the mother and the baby out of the windshield. This is a legend of the bridge, and there was never any proof that it happened or that the so-called bodies were ever found.
Another part of the legend is that drivers can come out to the bridge slightly before midnight. Then, it is rumored that if the drivers cover their car in baby powder and then return to it at midnight, they will hear baby laughter and thumping on their car. When they get out of the car, they will see baby footprints all over it. There are also rumors that drivers can hear the cries of babies while in their car.
A final legend about the Crybaby Bridge in Kentucky is that it leads to a time warp. There have been several people driving onto the bridge who claimed that they lost hours at a time. Some even claimed that they had lost days from being on this bridge.
Crybaby Bridge – Salem, Ohio
Not too far from Kentucky is Salem, Ohio. This Crybaby Bridge has a few legends of its own, and it is very well-known because of the visitors who come here to try and discover if these legends are true. The bridge is closed and abandoned, but that doesn’t stop people from coming to see what the big deal is all about. The rusted bridge holds plenty of dark secrets, and those who visit do their best to find out what these secrets are.
One of the most popular legends about this bridge began in the 1930s. The story is that a couple was having a picnic near the bridge when they got into a heated argument. They were so upset with one another that they didn’t even notice that a child was walking on the bridge. The child fell off of the bridge and fell into ice-cold water. The couple continued to fight, and they were so loud that they didn’t even hear the child crying and trying to get out of the water.
Another legend about this bridge is that there was a woman who came to the bridge as a way to kill her baby, who was born out of wedlock. The woman’s family disowned her because of the baby, and this is where she ended her life and the life of her baby. A local historian claimed, “By the time she has her baby, she’s starving. After she has the baby, the baby is starving. So, she decides to end the baby’s suffering by taking it to Crybaby Bridge and throwing it over the side.”
The legends may be quite different, but at midnight, like clockwork, the sounds of a baby crying can be heard. Many paranormal investigations have taken place on this Crybaby Bridge. The investigators have heard many sounds coming from the bridge, including someone saying, “Get out!”
Crybaby Bridge – Maryland
In Mitchellville, Maryland, there is yet another Cry Baby Bridge legend. This is one of the most popular legends in Maryland, and carloads of thrill seekers often find themselves trying to determine what will happen to them on Crybaby Bridge.
The tales begin with a young woman who is in an argument with her husband in their car. Their baby, who is in the backseat, won’t stop crying as the couple continues to scream at one another. The husband decides they need to pull over to try and get the baby to stop crying and screaming. The bridge was very rickety, and as the husband drove, he swerved the car over it. This threw the baby out of the car and into the cold water below. The couple was hysterical, so they drove away, and the baby ended up dying in the water.
Of course, there isn’t much proof to back up this story, but ghost hunters often find themselves driving to the bridge to see if they will experience the legend. They want to hear the baby’s crying, and some have claimed that they can see floating ghosts in the area. This area allegedly has served as a dumping ground for dead bodies since the 1940s and is surrounded by very creepy woods.
Crybaby Bridges – Texas
There are multiple Crybaby Bridges in Texas. One is located in DeKalb, Texas, and is also known as Spook Bridge. The legend of this bridge is about a mother who drove her car off of the bridge into the creek. This caused her baby to get thrown out of the car and into the water. That is where the baby ended up drowning. There is another similar legend about the Crybaby Bridge in Lufkin, Texas. Those who have visited the bridge claim that when they drove away, they would see a baby’s handprint on one of the car windows.
In Port Neches, Texas, the Crybaby Bridge is also called the Sarah Jane Bridge. Sarah Jane is the alleged name of a girl who was murdered there. The tale of this bridge is that a man murdered a woman here, and then he threw her baby into the water. The water was infested with alligators, and they killed the baby shortly after it was thrown into this water. The baby’s name was Sarah Jane, according to the legend. The legend states that Sarah Jane’s mother’s ghost continues to look for the baby, and she can be seen and heard looking for her.
Crybaby Bridge – South Carolina
In Anderson, South Carolina, there is yet another legend of the Crybaby Bridge. This bridge is located on High Shoals Road and is quite popular, especially in October. During the time that this bridge was being built, there were a few fatalities and injuries. One of the workers fell to his death. According to one of the legends, he can be heard at night calling out “Maya” since he died just days before his daughter, Maya, was born.
This isn’t the only story about Crybaby Bridge, though. There are plenty of stories about people drawing under the bridge and throwing themselves off it. There is also a horrible story about how a mother threw her newborn baby off of the bridge, and then weeks later, she went back there to hang herself.
For those who have come to see if these legends are real, some have mentioned that they have seen a young girl hanging from the bridge late at night. While she is hanging there, she tells her baby not to cry. There is also a story that if drivers stop their cars on the bridge at night, a woman will come to the window and scream at the driver that she is the one who killed her baby on Crybaby Bridge.
Folklore Attached to Crybaby Bridges
Almost every state has a legend of Crybaby Bridge. It is one of those urban legends that doesn’t change the subject matter much but is still good for a scary story or two. The folklore behind Crybaby Bridges has grown with the invention of the internet, and it is amazing how many ghost hunters have popped up all over the United States to check out these bridges.
There have been stories of Crybaby Bridges that go back to the days of slavery when escaped slaves would use these bridges to run to safety. In some cases, the legends began when the escaped slaves were murdered. However, these legends weren’t shared as much online as in oral history and books.
Each state with a Crybaby Bridge legend loves to tell the tales of ghosts and haunts. If you’re hearing a baby crying or a woman looking for her baby, the similarities in these legends are all spot on.
