Jon Solo Sebastian 04/20/2024:

The Lady in White is a folktale that’s been told for ages, but the tale slightly differs based on where it’s told. I’ve always found her to be interesting; especially since I’ve seen her. I grew up in North Olmsted, Ohio where there is a large cemetery on the southeastern end of the suburb. I was around 19 or 20 years old, and was on my way home late one night. I was driving passed the cemetery when a young woman, probably my age, wearing a white dress was walking through the cemetery near the road. I found it strange considering it was two hours past midnight on a chilly summer night. She stopped walking to look at me, and I slammed on the brakes to look at her. She looked upset or scared. I shouted out my window asking her if she needed help or a ride.

She started wandering the cemetery again without responding. With her white dress flowing in the cooling summer air, she disappeared. I parked on the side of the road and went to look for her. She was gone. I saw her again later that summer, and again a few times in the couple of years after. I had a few more encounters with her, but that part of the story is in a book I’m writing; I’ll update this with a link to that book once it’s available. Until then, if you’d like to keep tabs on my other writing projects, follow me here— Jon Solo Sebastian

Sightings and Lore

One of the most popular “Lady in White” stories resides in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The story is that she is the ghost of a woman who lost her beloved during the Civil War. She’s described to appear lost and her facial expression is sad, scared, worried, or all three. She is “forever searching for him among the countless graves and battle sites.”

There is a slightly different version of the lady in white of Gettysburg. She lost her beloved in the war, and was so torn over the loss that she committed suicide. The tale says if you see her and look into her eyes, you will end up meeting the same fate as hers.

Throughout different areas of the country, and even in other countries, there is a ghost of a woman in a white flowing dress that had been dealt a tragic blow and ending to her life. In Rochester, New York, there is the story of the White Lady’s Castle. Durand-Eastman Park hosts an old Spanish fort styled structure that has been long burned down leaving only a set of stairs and a castle-like wall behind. The stairway below is where she carries out her nightly hauntings.

“She is thought to be the unsettled ghost of a mourning mother whose daughter went missing while walking down to the lake. She assigns the responsibility to men for the tragedy.” Like the lady of Gettysburg, she spent the rest of her life, and apparent afterlife searching for her daughter’s body. As a ghost, when she’s not searching for her daughter’s body, she attempts revenge against any males that spot her in the area. So, look out for that one if you’re in the area, guys.

In Celtic Mythology, there is Y Ladi Wen. She too is a ghost of a woman wearing a white dress, and it is said she would warn children about their bad behavior.

After so many years since my encounter with her, I’ve never come across anyone else that has seen her. During my research, however, I was able to find another lady in white sighting that takes place in Ohio. Leavittsburg Cemetery in Trumbull County, also referred to as “Lovers Lane Cemetery” is haunted by the lady in white. It is said she harasses young lovers who go there for privacy.  

All of the tales involving the lady in white carry within them loss, tragedy, and searching for answers or closure. I feel that is something we can all relate to, though we’re not out haunting the local forests or cemeteries. Or are we?