What happened
The Screaming Tunnel is a small limestone culvert, about 38 metres long and just under 5 metres across, in the northwest part of Niagara Falls, Ontario, near Warner Road. It was built in the 19th century for the Grand Trunk Railway – in one version for a planned north–south line that in the end ran over the tunnel rather than through it. It drained the surrounding fields, and in the 20th century farmers used it to move animals and wagons safely under the busy tracks. The legend tells of a girl who died here in flames, though the versions differ: in one she fled a burning farmhouse nearby and collapsed in the tunnel with her hair and clothes on fire; in another her father set her alight, either drunk or during a custody dispute; in a third she was murdered in the tunnel. Her ghost is said to cry out to this day. The ritual is to stand in the middle of the tunnel at midnight and strike a match – the flame will be blown out by a sudden gust, and in the darkness comes a terrible scream. In 1982 David Cronenberg filmed a murder scene for The Dead Zone in the tunnel.
Witnesses
Oral tradition of Niagara Falls residents and visitors; no named witnesses and no contemporary account of any kind.
Explanations and hypotheses
No record has been found of a girl dying in or near the tunnel – there is no name, no date and no newspaper report, and three contradictory versions are typical of urban legends. Even the tunnel's construction history is told in different ways. A long, dark culvert with water and draughts easily explains matches going out and strange echoes, and the ritual of “calling” the scream primes visitors for an experience. The scene in Cronenberg's film and local ghost tours have added to its fame.
Legend A story handed down through generations – it can be neither confirmed nor disproved.
Sources
- Atlas Obscura – Screaming Tunnel
- Canada Eh – The Screaming Tunnel
- Clifton Hill – The haunting legend of Niagara Falls’ Screaming Tunnel
More: Wikipedia (en)