Is There Really A Haunted Bridge Connecting Minnesota To Wisconsin?

I always love scary or weird mystery stories. I also love history and legends about Minnesota, so when you combine the two, oh man, I get super excited!

Now, have you ever heard of the Arcola Trail Bridge? It’s an old railroad bridge in Stillwater that was built in 1911. The Arcola crosses over the St. Croix River from Stillwater, MN to Somerset, WI.

According to outdoorproject.com, “This impressive steel arch bridge has five steel arches and is still in use today and towers 185 feet above the Saint Croix River.” But not only was it known for its importance for transportation it used to be known for the best views of the St. Croix and the valley around it.

However, because it had the best scenery of the river valley that meant people would come from all over to walk on the bridge. The problem with this is that there were no safety features! None!

The bridge was built and designed for trains so there were no railings or safety features of any kind. So, say you wanted to go on the Arcola bridge to view the breathtaking scenery of the river valley, this would mean you would be walking on a narrow bridge, 185 feet above the water and with no safety features. Not only this but if there was a train coming there is absolutely no room for you to get to safety. You either had to try to hang on the side or jump and fall almost 200 feet into the water.

Now, this is where Minnesota history combines with urban legends and ghost stories.

Throughout the bridge’s history, several people have been killed while walking on it, but there is one story that still lingers.

Once a young man was on the tracks and when he heard the rumbling of a train coming, he realized had to face the very same decision of those who crossed before him.

He decided to jump off the bridge, but his body was never found…

This young man had a girlfriend/fiancé and in mourning, she would go back to the tracks for years after the event, hoping to one day find her lover. She never did…

To this day she is said to be roaming up and down the bridge, still looking for her lost love. She is known as the woman in white.

americashauntedroadtrip.com shares the following about the women in white:

Often at night, people near the bridge encounter what appears to be a young woman in a white dress walking up and down the train tracks. She has been spotted as far east as the Arcola Trail overpass and as far west as the span crossing the St. Croix River. When she is seen, she never seems to notice the onlookers. She simply walks further down the tracks and sometimes disappears into the night.

Sometimes the ghost is carrying a blue lantern in her search for her lost love. Witnesses either see the woman in white or a blue light traveling up and down the tracks at night. The apparitions always eventually dim and fade into the night.

It is always a lost lover that causes so much pain. You know what they say, nothing hurts more than a broken and mourning heart.

If you ever decide to visit Arcola, just be careful. And of course, keep an eye out for the lady in white.

All information is credited to outdoorproject.com and americashauntedroadtrip.com.