Rick

The Screaming Bridge of Maud Hughes Road

 

Located between Princeton & Millikin Roads in Liberty Township, the Screaming Bridge is the home of several mysterious tales. The bridge spans the mainline that has had many names since the 1870’s -the Short Line, Big Four, New York Central, Conrail, Penn Central, and now, Norfolk Southern. No one knows for sure when it first was called the Screaming Bridge, but allegedly the original bridge here was grooved, and caused a sound similair to a scream when a vehicle drove across it.

But, urban legend tells of a more sinister origin to the name. It’s said that the ‘scream’ that is heard is that of someone who has died here. One of the earliest tragedies linked to the bridge goes back to a railroad accident in which two men were scalded to death when the locamotive they were on exploded between West Chester and Gano. However, that accident was in West Chester Township (formerly Union Township). The Maud Hughes bridge is in Liberty Township, yet somehow, the accident became attributed to this area.

Other tales tell us though that the ‘Screaming Bridge’ name came from one of several possible other events. Stories such as an arguing couple crossing the bridge, when a woman was pushed, or fell, to her death. Or of another couple breaking down at the bridge, and the boyfriend left his girlfriend behind to go get help. When he later returned, she was found hanging by her neck from the bridge. Yet another tells of a distrought mother throwing her newborn baby from the bridge, so the screams you hear are of her misery and horror of what she did.

While these are all stories told of any number of bridges around the world, there’s more. Reports of phantom trains or engineers on the tracks below. Orbs seen floating along beneath the bridge, along with supposed Satanic rituals taking place below as well. Still other variations of the tales say that if you stop on the bridge, and flash your headlights 3 times, some form of ghostly activity will occur. I wouldn’t recomend trying though, the bridge turns sharply at either end, making it impossible for oncoming traffic to see you until they are right on you!

A 1909 accident killed two engineers and injured 3 others aboard a train on October 24th. One of the engineers killed was off duty, hitching a ride back home to Middletown when the steam locamotive exploded. It had been fully loaded with water when it left Ivorydale in Cincinnati, but after about 11 miles out, a leak had drained most of it, causing the explosion. That accident wasn’t the only tradgedy along that stretch of track. On June 7th. 1976, at the Princeton Road overpass in Liberty Township, a Penn Centeral employee was killed when two rails protruding from a southbound work train penetrated the cab of the Northbound locamotive he was on.

So while I can’t say no one had died here, in fact, i’m sure someone has at some point in time, but all these tales surrounding the bridge seem to be just urban legend, or error. But who’s to say, after all, those phantom trains and engineers have to come from somewhere, maybe they are just passing by here on thier way to the other side!

Directions

Take I-75 North to Cincinnati-Dayton Rd. Turn left onto Cin-Day Rd. It will then turn into Maud Hughes Rd. Turn right on Princeton Rd, the left back onto Maud Hughes. Continue until you reach the bridge.

22 comments

  1. I grew up in the house they turned around in at the end of the video and I can assure you it is most likely not haunted I lived there 17 years right on it. I will tell you that most of the story’s are not true so many people would come from all over to park in our driveway and scare us to death never knowing who was out there. Once someone actually burned a car between our driveway and the bridge. I also know that in the 70’s my uncles good friend was hit by a train in his car and died along with another guy when his car stalled on the tracks. There used to be an old farm gate directly across from the end of 6278 Maud Hughes and these boys went out there partying an drove there car through the gate onto the tractor path that crossed the tracks and parked, the car stalled and a train hit it and killed them both this is a true story. I can also tell you that while we lived there someone stole a Duke Energy van and wrecked it and ditched it inside that same gate and Butler County sherrifs sub-station on the corner of Maud Hughes and Princeton towed it to there lot and found that it was full of odd things like duct tape and rope? So I can definately tell you crazy things go on there at night, but most likely not ghosts, maybe those are some story’s you should look into!!

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  2. I was there when a train passed under the bridge right around midnight, me and like 4 other people, the train is going under the bridge and we all see small orbs floating along the sides of the train. There had to be 20 or 30 of them just floating like bugs, but they were orbs for sure. After the train passed by we all noticed in the distance, a large orb floating along the tracks. The orb continued to float closer to the bridge and when it was about 50 ft off, it stopped, morphed into a humanoid like blob, and drifted into the woods to the side of the tracks. 100 % true story, can not to this day explain it, everyone there seen exactly the same thing.

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  3. have been there on quite a few occasions. None of the times i went there, neither I nor my friends were under the influence of anything.
    We took this very serious, and had total respect for the place and it’s residents past/current.
    Usually no one got out of the car if we went at night. Although, this one particular night i had got out of the car.
    I walked the bridge, shinning my flash light at the tracks below. Not hearing anything but nature itself i walked back to get into my car. I saw a faint light what seemed a few hundred yards down the line. So i got back in my car and within 5 seconds that light was now within 50 yards of the bridge.
    Now I’ve been down there plenty of times so i know it’s still an active line, and I had been on the bridge before when one went under.
    But this was a different style, not the diesel that i am so used to. It was steam, i couldn’t see anything other than the light on the front a bell ringing, and the heat from the steam (i looked over the side as the light passed under the bridge).
    After it passed under, it disappeared.
    Another time we had no luck at all. Until we started to leave. No train, no light. It just started raining cats and dogs, ONLY on the bridge. We drove off the bridge to turn around and no rain. We turned around and drove back across, only rained on the bridge. We proceeded to get the hell out of there lol
    This all happened in 95 so no footage 😦 If only cell phones had came 5 years earlier.

    I’ve always believe that people who are more open to the idea, often can sometimes experience things the more closed minded individual cannot.

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  4. Went there as teens and hung out, sober, under the bridge at night during an almost full moon. There was enough light to see by. I saw a shadow cross the tracks about 50 yards from us. Then, my friend’s pager went off. The number calling it? 666. No joke. This trip was a spur of the moment, there were no cell phones back then, so no one knew we were heading there.

    Many years later in 2012, I went back with my son to make a documentary with him for his birthday. This time, it was daylight. We saw several piles of animal bones around the tracks under the bridge.

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  6. I have been here 3 times and each time I have been here something happened. Now I’m the type of person nothing scares me but the second I drove on the bridge I got a very bad feeling. My friends and I pull on to the bridge and one time One of my friends and I saw and red and white light but my I other friends did not. So we drove over the bridge turned around and drive back over the bridge. That time we dididnt see the light either but this time we saw someone leaning right up against the back of my car and then just walk off the bridge. Now when we did this I had just washed my car so there was absolutely nothing on there. So when we got home I looked at the back of my car and you could see the imprint of a body and a hand print right where we saw the person standing. This place is scary and I highly recommend going to go visit it.

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  11. I live along those railroad tracks. They run along my property line. That section of Maud Hughs where the bridge is located is closed. They actually tore the old brodge down and are replacing it. The tracks are still active and on multiple occasions I’ve heard a train coming, but have not felt the rumble. Which is odd, expecially when you feel the other trains!

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  12. I grew up in the area & have been there many, many times to party beneath the bridge. I was told the nearby barn was used to slaughter cattle…& that devil worshipers held their ceremonies there I did actually see a dead white lamb on the tracks once. Very scary place!

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  13. There was a real tragedy here when I was in high school. A classmate of mine named Joel Earl met another classmate named Tron,can’t remember last name, but words exchanged and Tron shot Joel Earl fatally. This was in 1985-1986

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  14. This legend is very old. Dating Way back to the 1960’s. A woman hung herself from the bridge and you can see her walking at midnight on full moons. Or so it goes.

    This was told by many people from different schools in the area before there were anyway to share information. No social media or cell phones.

    In the early 1970’s I would ride my bike along Maud Hughes when I collected old beer cans because there were a lot of old dump sites. I knew nothing, felt nothing and never saw anything. When I got to high school in 1975 I heard the stories. Of course when you turn 16 you and all your friends all head to Maud Hughes for a good creep out.

    Funny how years earlier it was nothing but a couple years later it’s scary. The power of suggestion and influence from shared terror.

    This became a tradition throughout high school. Sitting around bored and someone would say “hey lets go out to Maud Hughes”. I promise you everyone was always up for it. It was good clean scary fun.

    Back then Maud Hughes, was a VERY dark long lonely country back lane. Very narrow with a lot of dark bends and barns and old houses. Not very many houses and the ones that were there were old.

    Sadly the site is gone. Not only did they tear down the bridge but they widened the road and modernizes it. You cannot even recognize it. Development has covered the area. There is houses built on every mile of it. Only a few old houses left. This has become a rather busy road at all hours with plenty of lights and even new roundabouts.

    I drive it all the time as I really like the winding tree line road but the only orbs are reflectors from bicycles riding on the nice paved bike trail that runs along side the road near the old bridge.

    I recommend anyone with a motorcycle or convertible who enjoys a cruise, it is still a really nice ride with a great history.

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