Blue Bell Hill Ghost
One of my favorite kinds of ghost stories is that of the hitchhiker. I find hitchhiker ghosts to be one of the most pervasive across cultures and capable of a whole host of intents - from the malevolent to the pitiable. Tonight, we’ll be discussing the Blue Bell Hill Ghost, who hails from Kent.
The story goes that the Blue Bell Hill Ghost is all that is left of a woman who died in a tragic, fatal car accident sometime in 1965. The collision occurred by the bridge at Old Chatham Road, and involved two cars. Three out of four women in one of the cars died. Even more tragically, one of the women who died was supposed to get married the next day. It is believed that her ghost is the one that haunts that stretch of road where she spent her final moments.
Those who experience here, generally, describe the experience similarly. On the road, motorists come across a young woman hitchhiking. As the car approaches, she disappears. Others have said they have seen a woman walk through cars or even suddenly appear in front of their cars. Others, like Resurrection, claim they get close enough for the girl to get into the car...only to vanish shortly after.
However, not every story is as simple. For example, Maurice Goodneough’s story from 1974 was quite remarkable. He was driving through Blue Bell Hill when a girl jumped out from nowhere in front of his car. He claimed, “my car hit her with a hell of a bang.” He stopped his car and rushed to the roadside to find the girl lying in the middle of the road with a gash in her forehead and cuts on her knees. Unsure of what to do, he covered her with a blanket and tried to flag down another motorist to stop for help. No one was stopping, so he rushed to the Rochester Police Station to report the accident. When they returned to the scene, only the blanket he placed over her remained.
It should be noted that, while car accidents have happened on this stretch...none has ever *quite* matched up with the story. Although some proposed victims have arisen, like our Resurrection Mary, the Blue Bell Hill Ghost’s true personhood remains a mystery.
Thanks to Shane W. for the blogstonishing suggestion!
The above image highlights ‘Subway taking the North Downs Way under the A229 at Blue Bell Hill. Looking east. Kent, England.’ It was taken by Simon Burchell and is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
