The Legend

There was once a bridge along the road connecting Pleasant Plains, NY, and Schultzville, NY. Locals called it Fiddler’s Bridge. The original bridge is gone, but the road still carries its name.

According to local legend, a fiddler who played at barn dances in the early 1800s was known to carry quite a bit of money with him.

On September 7, 1808, the fiddler was supposedly robbed and murdered on the bridge.

The legend says that on certain moonlit nights, you may still hear the fiddler playing from beyond the grave.

Today, the former site of Fiddler’s Bridge is marked by a plaque that tells the story of the fiddler and the legend of his ghostly music.

The 1908 Account

A newspaper article published on September 10, 1908, tells of a group of citizens from Frost Mills, a hamlet in the town of Clinton, NY, who went to the bridge on the 100th anniversary of the fiddler’s supposed murder.

They arrived around 10 p.m., because according to the legend, the fiddler could be heard playing between 10 p.m. and midnight.

As midnight approached, the group reportedly heard the sound of a fiddle.

Some of them tried to follow the music, but as they moved toward it, the music seemed to move farther away.

Notes

I have been unable to confirm the death of a fiddler on September 7, 1808.

Sources

Fiddling Ghosts at Frost Mills. (1908, September 10). Poughkeepsie Eagle-News. p 8.

Fiddler’s Ghost. (n.d.) William G. Pomeroy Foundation. https://www.wgpfoundation.org/historic-markers/fiddlers-ghost/