Theorosa’s Bridge - Valley Center, Kansas

Officially known as the 109th Street Bridge, this concrete bridge spans Jester Creek in a rural area about three miles north of Valley Center (itself just north of Wichita). It is an early example of a “crybaby bridge.” The original bridge was wood, with iron trestles. That bridge burnt twice in the 1970s, and for many years the crossing was closed and overtaken by weeds and partygoers. There are several versions of the legend of Theorosa’s Bridge. In one, a party of pioneers was ambushed by Indians. The Indians carried off a child named Theorosa, and her mother, driven mad with grief, wandered the creek crying out for her baby. In another version, a woman named Theorosa gave birth to an illegitimate child and drowned it in the creek under the bridge. The baby’s cries can be heard to this day. A new bridge was constructed over Jester Creek in 1991, but tales of cold spots, ghostly shapes, disembodied cries, and unexplained car trouble remain.