Visiting Union County's "Haunted" Crybaby Bridge

Yours truly in front of Union County's "haunted" Crybaby Bridge.

 

Hello and Happy Halloween Season, Y'all!

In keeping with the spirit of this year's spooky season, I wanted to share with y'all the photos of my recent trip to an allegedly local haunted site in nearby Union County, South Carolina.

How many of y'all have ever heard of the "Crybaby Bridge" urban legend? Just about every State and region in the United States has at least one such story, but for those of y'all unfamiliar with the tale, let me explain.

A "Crybaby Bridge" is the term that refers to numerous bridges associated with urban legends and ghost stories involving the sounds of a baby crying. These tales all typically involve tragic backstories of infanticide, accidents, or other sorrowful events that purportedly occurred at, or near, the bridges. 

At its core elements, the legend has it that, at some point in the bridge's history, a mother -- usually a woman in a state of distress, or madness -- is said to have either thrown, or lost, her baby off the bridge; resulting in the ghost of the baby to cry out at night. Hence the name Crybaby Bridge.

Many versions of this story also include the distressed mother either throwing herself off the same bridge in remorse, or fell to her death in a tragic accident that claimed both mother and child. These variations of the legend later include people reportedly witnessing ghostly apparitions of the mother and child wandering the bridge at dusk, or a woman weeping over the side of the bridge at night for her lost baby.

South Carolina actually has several of these Crybaby Bridges where local legend has it some women lost her child, and sometimes her own life, falling over a bridge that is now haunted by their spirits.

Union County's Crybaby Bridge is officially known as the Tyger River Bridge, and also known as the Sardis Road Bridge and the Rose Hill Bridge as it leads right to nearby Rose Hill Plantation State Historic Site.

The bridge is an old steel trestle bridge that spans the Tyger River on an active roadway, with rusty steel beams giving it a somewhat creepy and desolate look with the surrounding woods.

There are actually conflicting accounts about the legend of this particular Crybaby Bridge.

One account says that an adulterous woman, angry that her husband refused to allow her custody of their toddler, threw the child over the bridge into the flowing river in a fit of rage and spite -- then, in horror of what she'd done, flung herself after the child, resulting in both being lost in the current.

Another account suggests that a woman with a baby, desperate to escape an abusive spouse, committed a murder-suicide by jumping off the bridge still holding the screaming baby in her arms, resulting in both downing.

The point where these incidents allegedly took place also vary, with one account saying it happened sometime in the 1950s while another says the 1980s, or 90s. Research on this writer's part has found no conclusive evidence to substantiate any of these stories being valid.

Nevertheless, there are witnesses who claim they've heard the wailing of a baby when standing on the bridge during both day and night.

The bridge itself is located in the southwestern part of Union County, about a 50 minute drive west from where I live in neighboring Chester County. So, I figured I would use one of my days off from work to take a drive and see this place for myself; not to mention take some photos for y'all to share in the experience.

Now, before I go any further, let me make something clear. While I have had my share of encounters with things I can't fully explain, (see the story of my possible encounter with a cryptid HERE) those were things that largely happened when I wasn't going to actively look for them. Nearly all of them had some rational explanation for them, though sometimes I wonder if that's just my mind trying to protect itself from an encounter with the unknown.

I did not plan this trip and take the drive to the site in any way looking to encounter anything at all, nor did I expect to find anything. Most of the Crybaby Bridge stories are just that -- legends and tall tales.

This does not mean I'm a skeptic when it comes to things like hauntings and ghosts by any means. I readily accept that there are things in this world that we do not understand, and while I am a firm believer in my Christian faith when it comes to the afterlife, I can also believe that the energy that makes up the human body could theoretically leave an imprint on this plane of existence once our souls leave.

That being said, I was never the type of person to go to a cemetery and walk around a dead baby's grave three times to try and see if I would hear the baby cry (another urban legend). I don't believe in disrespecting the dead, and I would never play around with Ouija boards to try and summon someone -- EVER! I've heard too many personal stories about what happens to people who play with the supernatural and come to regret it to try it myself.

My trip began just before noon on Tuesday, October 22nd after packing my tripod and camera and making certain that I had the funds for both the gas and my road trip stacks -- always important for those drives into the Upcountry. My road trip snacks of choice were Dr Pepper and Chick-O-Sticks.

Nothing quite beats Dr Pepper and Chick-O-Sticks for a nice
short afternoon trip to an allegedly haunted place....except maybe
some boiled peanuts that is.

After getting my tank somewhat full and securing my road trip snacks, I headed west on SC Highway 9 and crossed the Broad River into Union County. 

I was surprised to see how low the river was in the weeks following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene at the end of last month. The Broad River itself had swollen to flooding levels during the storm and remained swollen for days following the rainfall. Thankfully there has been little to no rainfall since the hurricane in this area, helping the rivers and creeks to return to some semblance of normal levels.

The rocky Broad River which marks the borders of Union
and Chester Counties in the South Carolina Piedmont.

Traveling west through to the town of Union, I could see that Hurricane Helene left her mark hard there too. Uprooted trees could be seen in front yards that had yet to be disposed of, and probably won't be for at least a couple months. The historic downtown Union looked pretty much okay. I snapped a few photos -- including one of the old cotton textile mill that once employed at many as 1400 people at the height of its hundred years of service before being shut down in the 1990s. 

I made my way through Union and made the turn on Sardis Road where the bridge is located further southwest. The road is pretty well maintained up to a point, after which it forks off. At the fork I saw a sign that informed me that the bridge was out a couple miles ahead with a detour sign pointing towards the right side of the fork.

I was a bit concerned that I took the trip for nothing, however the road was not blocked off so I tentatively continued towards the Crybaby Bridge mindful of any sudden need to stop. At this point the woods begins to get a bit thicker and the sunlight isn't quite so bright, even at noontime.

I came to the site of the rusty-looking bridge a few minutes later to see that several trees had toppled across the road and that a pile of dirt was blocking access to the bridge. I parked my car and retrieved my camera and tripod, continuing the rest of the journey on foot.

It turns out I was not alone -- and no it wasn't ghosts. An older gentleman was also there filming the site and just finishing up when I arrived. He'd come from the other way from nearby Rose Hill Plantation and informed me that the river had flooded over the bridge and up the side of the road a ways during the hurricane, which explained the fallen trees and why it was blocked off to car traffic to assess damages to the nearly 80 year-old bridge. He did assure me that it was safe enough to walk across. I thanked him and watched him go before crossing the bridge and taking the following photos of both the bridge and the now quiet Tyger River below.

This was my first view of the Tyger River Bridge from where
I parked. The road was blocked off and fallen trees are visible.

These fallen and uprooted trees mark the spot where the Tyger
River flooded during Hurricane Helene. These were at least
50 yards from the bridge itself.

My first view of the now calm Tyger River below.
It was so shallow I could see the minnows swimming near the
sandy bottom.

This final shot with your favorite blogger at the bridge shows
the scale of the narrow-looking old bridge surrounded by the
October autumn foliage.

I did not have any ghost encounter, although while I was crossing the bridge coming back (just after I took the picture of my shadow) I heard a loud squawk that quickly brought me out of my musings. The sound came from a Blue Heron that I was unfortunately unable to get a shot of as she flew out of sight the moment I spotted her. It didn't quite sound like a baby crying....although I confess, just for a second there, it did startle this Southern boy just a little bit.

The rusty bridge and the nearby woods with its foliage turning red, brown and orange for the fall season here in South Carolina held a somewhat charming, rustic feel. I can see why some people would think the site to be haunted, especially with no traffic on the bridge.

Overall, the visit to the Union County's infamous Crybaby Bridge was a good one, well worth the time spent. Though I did not encounter any spectral apparitions, cold spots, or anything else associated with ghost encounters, I did find a few small lizards....oh and a Sasquatch.

I hope y'all enjoyed my post and photos, please let me know in the comments below what you thought, or if y'all have any stories about "crybaby bridges" near where you live.

Have a wonderful Dixie Day, and Happy Halloween Y'all!