Dancing Her Way Home

I grew up hearing about both of these spirits. One because she is the most famous hitchhiking spirt in the United States. The other because not only is she locally known to those that live in near High Point, North Carolina but either my uncle or his friend has had the privilege of meeting her. Not only did these women both die on an evening when they went out dancing but both have recently had their true identities revealed.

Lydia’s Bridge

Lydia’s Bridge is an urban legend I grew up learning about both from my family and from other classmates. It is a local haunting that many have witnessed. Reports of people picking up a young girl by a bridge near East Main Street in Jamestown, Guilford County, North Carolina only to have her vanish from the backseat while driving her home have been given since 1924. The first to claim to pick up Lydia was Burke Hardison when he was driving home to High Point. He said that a girl in a white dress had waved him down and asked for help getting home. She gave him her address and got in the car. When he arrived at the address, he got out of the car to open the door for her. That’s when he realized that she was no longer in the car. Wanting to make sure she got inside safely, Hardison knocked on the front door. An older woman answered the door and stated that her daughter had died the year before.

People seeing Lydia happens so often that the local newspapers and news stations have reported on the sightings. You can find one of the more recent articles here. Lydia is typically seen on foggy or rainy nights standing on the side of the road in a white dress. She waves drivers down and asks them for a ride home. Along the ride home, she disappears from the car without saying a word.

Lydia’s identity has recently been discovered. Her name was Annie L. Jackson. She was killed in June, 1920 when the car she was traveling lost control on the wet roads. She was thrown from the car and killed instantly.

Resurrection Mary

Resurrection Mary is a hitchhiker spirit that many people are familiar with. She is probably the most famous hitchhiker spirit known. She is often found near Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, Illinois. Reports of seeing her go back to the 1930’s.

Most reports of Resurrection Mary are from guys stating that they are waved down by a beautiful girl in white dress, shawl, dancing shoes, and a small purse near Willowbrook Ballroom.. They say that she has blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She asks for a ride home and gets in the car. As the car gets close to Resurrection Cemetery, she tells the driver to let her out and that they can’t follow her. The drivers report that they watch her walk through the closed gates of the cemetery and disappear.

Others have reported seeing her at other local night clubs and dance halls in the area. A few have claimed to have danced and kissed her before offering her a ride home. As previously mentioned, when they get near to Resurrection Cemetery, she asks to get out and disappears into the cemetery.

There is also a third type of sighting that is connected to Resurrection Mary. Occasionally, drivers in that area at night report hitting a blonde woman that suddenly appears in front of their car. She appears so suddenly that they don’t have time to react or steer around her. When they get out of the car to check on her, she is no where to be found. Also there is no damage to their vehicle.

Most of the legends I find dealing with Resurrection Mary, are said to based on a girl who use to go the Oh Henry Ballroom. The most common legend says that she went there with her boyfriend. After a night of dancing, Mary was walking along Archer Road when she was hit by a car driving by. The driver left her there to die and was never caught. Mary was buried in Resurrection Cemetery which is on Archer Road.

Recently Resurrection Mary’s true identity has possibly been discovered. Several researchers think that she may have been Anna “Marija”Norkus who died in 1927 in an automobile accident. Just prior to the accident, Norkus was at the Oh Henry Ballroom.

Have you ever picked up a ghostly hitchhiker? Is there a hitchhiker ghost story in your area? I would love to hear more about it in the comments below.