Bloody Bridge

This is the story of Bloody Bridge and how it got its name. It crosses the Miami Erie Canal just outside Spencerville, Ohio and is haunted by ghosts ever since a grisly murder happened there in 1854.

A plaque erected on Bloody Bridge tells the story that gave the bridge its creepy name.

“During the canal years of the 1850s a rivalry grew between Bill Jones and Jack Billings for the love of Minnie Warren. There became hatred by Bill because Minnie chose Jack. On a fall night in 1854, returning from a party, Minnie and Jack were surprised on the bridge by Bill, armed with an axe. With one swing, Bill severed Jack’s head. Seeing this, Minnie screamed and fell into a watery grave. Bill disappeared, and when a skeleton was found years later in a nearby well, people asked was it suicide or justice.”

Almost immediately after the murder, whispers of ghostly images seen on and around the bridge began to surface. Some people saw the ghostly apparition of a headless man walking across the bridge at night. Others say that they looked into the murky waters while crossing Bloody bridge and saw the ghostly face of Minnie Warren staring back at them.

As more and more people saw the ghostly apparitions, they began referring to the bridge as “Bloody Bridge.” People came from miles around and took pieces of the bridge as souvenirs.