There is an abandoned railway tunnel known as the Screaming Tunnel in Niagara Falls, Ontario, which has a special significance among paranormal enthusiasts.
It has been the birthplace of an infamous urban legend for decades. People have hiked through the woods to experience what locals have christened the Screaming Tunnel.
If you wander around the area you’ll come across a section of railway line belonging to Canadian National Railways. Running under that railway is a tunnel that’s home to a rather unhappy ghost.
When the railway line was being built in the early 1800s, several tunnels needed to be built under raised sections off the track.
However, the tunnel itself was built just before the outbreak of World War I. When the funds fell through and they were having financial difficulties, all plans had to be scrapped.
A local Legend tells that one of these tunnels is haunted by the ghost of a farmer’s daughter. A girl who brutally died inside the tunnel.
A Tragic History
As the story goes over a century ago a family lived in a large farmhouse that stood in the field at the top of the hill close to the tunnel.
One fateful night the farmhouse caught fire as flames raged through the house. The family was trapped inside the house and they burned to death.
When the fire was eventually put out the fire-fighters were looking through the wreckage. They found the charred bodies of all the family members except for the daughter.
Searching the surrounding area they found the burnt corpse of the young girl inside the tunnel at the bottom of the hill.
They assumed that she had fled from the house with her clothing engulfed in flames, running into the tunnel in a desperate attempt to extinguish her burning garments.
Overcome by the flames she must have collapsed and died alone in the depths of the tunnel. However, they could never figure out what had caused the fire in the first place.
Truth Behind the Legend
According to locals, the little girl was killed by her psychopathic father, when he found out that he had just lost custody of his children in a bitter custody battle with his wife.
They claimed he became mentally deranged and in a fit of rage burnt down the house. The girl was forced to flee from the house.
Narrowly escaping the fire the little girl tried desperately to get away. Searching for a place to hide, she ran into the abandoned tunnel, hoping the darkness would conceal her.
But there was no hiding from her deranged father as he followed her into the tunnel. He then doused her with gasoline, lit a wooden matchstick, and burned her alive.
The deathly silence inside the tunnel was shattered by the young girl’s painful screams.
Some people say that the fire was started by a local butcher who would become obsessed with the young girl.
Wearing a mask he sneaked up to the farmhouse in the middle of the night and set it on fire. He also attempted to kidnap her but when she tried to escape through the tunnel he burned her alive.
Whoever her killer was everyone agrees that the ghost of the young girl still haunts the tunnel.
The Screaming Tunnel
According to the legend, if you stand in the middle of the tunnel at night and light a wooden matchstick, she will blow it out immediately and you will hear the agonizing deathly screams of the burning girl.
Locals say that it has to be wooden matches and you can’t use a lighter. When you strike the match you hold it up and you’re supposed to hear a scream immediately followed by the match burning out.
The reason a match would instantly be blown out in the tunnel is that the person who set her on fire used a wooden matchstick to burn her.
The middle of the tunnel is unusually cold and people who visit the tunnel always get the feeling that they are being watched by something or someone.
Distant screams have also been heard by local residents and passers-by originating from the tunnel. This earned it the nickname of the Screaming Tunnel.
Hauntings Inside the Screaming Tunnel
Since then, it has become a small area of interest for paranormal investigators. Some have recorded strange sounds echoing through the tunnel, mostly eerie screams.
But there’s more. It is believed that it’s not just a girl haunting the tunnel alone. People also reported hearing a man’s voice inside the tunnel.
Some of the investigators also claim to have made physical contact with more than one spirit. Leading them to believe that the terrified little girl may not be the only ghost inside.
One person who visited the screaming tunnel wrote, “I’m from Niagara Falls and yeah the stories are true. My dad was telling me he and some friends went to the tunnel when they were kids. His friend lit a match and it blew out almost instantly and he then heard the girl screaming.”
Another person wrote, “As far as the match story goes we attempted it three times and the match did blow out all times but we did not hear any screaming or a man’s voice. Instead when we turned towards the entrance they saw a transparent man-like figure approaching.”
It is believed that the little girl’s father is one of the other ghosts inside the tunnel, though he disappeared after the murder. Perhaps he remains there to relive that fateful day.
Despite the conflicting stories the main thread of them all involving a girl being burned is enough to keep people coming to see if the legend is true.
The Screaming Tunnel is not a place to go if you are very easily scared and I do not recommend going here alone unless you’re in for a gamble. Or you can also try some other haunted places in the world.
