History & local legend
Dykeman Pond in Shippensburg is associated with a woman called Mary, who is said to search the bank for her drowned infant. The legend places the child’s death in the nineteenth century and describes Mary returning to the water after dark.
A version recorded by Central Penn College’s Knightly News turns the story into a dare. Someone repeats three times that they have Mary’s baby, and the mother is expected to appear. Other tellings describe her searching without anyone calling her.
The old stone hatch house stands at the pond’s edge, its windows overlooking the water. It remains a recognizable landmark in the park surrounding the pond and its stories.
