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rosy future replaced by the frustrated longing of a spectral existence. Right—that’s enough purple prose and overblown themes from b-list fiction. The fact is that many people claim to have seen a girl in a pink dress along Bordentown Road. A trucker once called the police after picking up a hitchhiker answering her description, only to find his passenger seat empty of everything but a large puddle. A mother walking her child in a stroller along the banks of the lake claimed she saw a pink-clad figure moving across the waters of the lake, almost as if she were dancing. The witnesses to these apparitions come from all strata of society, from matrons to middle schoolers, and many of the details seem remarkably similar. Of course, when you look for hard evidence, there is none to be found. The nearby cemetery at St. James Episcopal on Cedar Street contains the grave of a Gertrude Spring who died in 1935, and who is believed to be the girl behind the Mary legend. Nobody can say for sure why Gertrude is associated with the ghost, or why the ghost goes by the name of Mary—but it must be said that Midnight Gertrude is a far less appealing name for a vision of loveliness on the water. My own twilight strolls and drives beside the lake never turned up any spectral visions, but there is a quality to the light on that water and something in the air that about the place that has a special quality. So if you happen to spot a bright young thing in a pink ball gown in the vicinity of Bristol in Bucks County, only give her a ride if you have plenty of towels on board. You can read about all of Pennsylvania’s other haunted hotspots in Weird Pennsylvania. |
