Shades of Death Road
A country road in New Jersey has one of the most ominous names in America. No one agrees on how it got it.
What was reported
Shades of Death Road winds through woods and farmland in Warren County, New Jersey, beside a dark lake known as Ghost Lake. Its name alone has made it famous, and visitors report mists, strange lights and figures on the road at night.
Many stories try to explain the name: that bandits once robbed travellers there, that settlers died of malaria from the swamps, or that a series of grim events took place in the area long ago.
Explanations offered
Local historians say no one knows for sure where the name came from. The 'shades' may refer to the deep shade of the trees. The road's legends are kept alive by its name, its spooky lake and visitors who come to photograph its sign, which is often stolen.
- When
- Named by the 1800s
- Where
- Warren County, New Jersey, USA
- Witnesses
- Locals and visitors
- Status
- Origins debated
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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