Virginia Wade
by Johnetta Toy
(Birdsboro, PA)
My ghost story begins with the trip my husband and I took to Gettysburg in June 2011. During our stay, one day we decided to try and find the Cashtown Inn and have lunch. On the way there as I was driving, I began to tell my husband about the story of Virginia Wade (only civilian killed during the three day battle in 1863). We came down Baltimore Street, heading north past the intersection of Baltimore and Breckenridge Street.
I pointed out that Breckenridge Street was the street that Virginia Wade lived on. I continued explaining how she, her mother, and two brothers were visiting her sister who lived on the other side of town near Cemetery Hill. (I visited there the previous day and took a tour of the home where I intuited that she was a very spiritual person. This was confirmed afterward by my happening along and reading the framed information about her). I felt sympathetic that this poor young girl had been killed by a stray bullet. I told him how people speak about her referring to her as Jenny Wade. Out of respect, I purposely explained that her name was Virginia Wade with the nickname of Ginny as in Vir-ginny.
We got to the corner of Baltimore St. and Rt 30, turned left and headed West to the Cashtown Inn. At one point we made a left turn too soon, realized this and then started heading back in the right direction. We were crusing along about 45-50 mph. Both of the front windows were cracked open about three inches. It was one of those beautiful sunny early days of summer with the temperature about 78 degrees.
I became aware that I was hearing the sound of a woman humming coming from the back seat of the car. I turned to my husband and asked him if he heard that. He said, “Yes”. I more specifically asked him, “Did you hear a woman humming?” He said, “Yes I hear a woman humming”. I made sure that the radio was not on. After confirming the radio was not on, we both looked at each other and knew as incredulously as it sounded with the wind blowing in the car that there was an unearthly passenger in the back seat of our vehicle, humming.
This was one of those once-in-a-lifetime have a great experience moments. We wonder… after just talking about her, was this Ginny Wade who came along for the ride with us out of Gettysburg to neighboring Cashtown? My only conclusion was that she was happy to be traveling and enjoying the ride.
“God Bless you Ginny and thank you for the visit”.
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