History & local legend
Hunsecker’s Mill Covered Bridge spans the Conestoga River in Lancaster County, about a mile downstream from Pinetown Covered Bridge. A drowned girl’s ghost has been associated with both crossings. When the Pennsylvania Rambler published the Pinetown version in August 2020, a Lancaster reader named Bryan said he and his childhood friends had known the story at Hunsecker’s instead.
In Bryan’s version, the girl could appear in a car’s headlights after dark. He remembered visiting with friends and hearing strange sounds around the bridge. The Pinetown account came from another local informant, Kelly, who said an Amish girl drowned while trying to recover her ball. The bouncing ball could supposedly still be heard, and one of Kelly’s friends reported handprints on her car the morning after a visit.
Sources
- The Pennsylvania Rambler, August 19, 2020, Lancaster resident Bryan’s recollection, bridge inspection and geography
- The Pennsylvania Rambler, August 12, 2020, direct interview with Kelly about Pinetown and its handprint story
- National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, standing Hunsecker’s Mill bridge 38-36-06#2, county, townships and coordinates
