Fiction?  Most likely.  Legend?  No doubt.  Whichever it happens to be there is certainly the makings of a story going back some 150 years that has been told and retold by generations.  It is a story filled with mystery, gruesome murders and the haunting sounds of terror, all of which often accompany these kind of tales. 

The story begins  in 1847, when the contract was written for a bridge to be built on the main route deep in the backwoods of southwest Lauderdale County, Mississippi to make it easier to cross the Chunky River.  According to historical records, the bridge was completed in 1850 and it was from this time until around 1901 when the bridge was replaced by one built by Virginia Bridge and Iron Company that the events leading to the local legend is supposedly to have taken place.

Legend has it that a member of the Dalton gang opened an Inn along side the Chunky River where he offered those traveling the river a place to stay at night.  He took on the name of Stuckey and as the now infamous tale goes, would make people traveling the river aware of his Inn next to an area of the bridge by waving a lantern from the bridge and showing them the way to the Inn.  It is at this point that the story turns creepy.......

It was said that he would be the perfect host until everyone went to bed and then things would take a different turn.  He would kill the visitors, steal all of their possessions and then chop their wagon or boat up for use as firewood or some other project.   The bodies would be buried along the river bank with no one knowing any better of what had gone on in the dark of the night.  One of his victims was a 16 year old girl.

Stuckey somehow managed to murder close to twenty people before he was finally caught and hung from the bridge.  His body was left until he was dead and then the noose was cut and the body fell into the river.

To this day rumors of Stuckey haunting the bridge still persist and it is a favorite haunt of ghost hunters.  According to the locals, many have claimed to have seen an old man carrying a lantern across the bridge and along the river at night as well as hearing splashes that are reminiscent of a body hitting the water.

When the new bridge was built in 1901 (the bridge that still stands today but is closed to traffic) one part of the legend says that during the construction there were numerous bodies found along the river bank next to the bridge. 

As with all legends there is probably some truth as to what happened on those dark Mississippi nights.  Has the legend been embellished over the years?  Most certainly.  But it is hard to know which is truth and which is fiction.  

Today the bridge is closed to vehicular traffic and it is covered by graffiti.  But if your curiosity ever gets the best of you, and you want to see for yourself, take a trip down to the bridge and see if the hair doesn't stand up on the back of your head.

Don't say I didn't warn you.........

This image was created based on the legend as told in the book by Lori Crane, "The Legend of Stuckey's Bridge" available on Amazon.  Click the image to see it larger. Prints are available of this image and if you are interested, please CLICK HERE or use the CONTACT link above.

Legend of Stuckey's BridgeThis photo is an interpretation of the story often told about Stuckey's Bridge, which is an old bridge in southwest Lauderdale County, Mississippi. More about the bridge can be read in the blog post, "The Legend of Stuckey's Bridge" on this website.