Rocky Ford Bridge overlooks the Cottonwood River outside of Emporia city limits. The bridge doubles as part of a hiking and bike trail. Rocky Ford Bridge is the site of Sandra Bird's murder in 1983 and is believed to be haunted. Photo courtesy of Brandy Nance.
On Sunday, July 17, 1983 hikers found the body of Sandra Bird and her car submerged in the Cottonwood River under the Rocky Ford Bridge. What those hikers didn’t know that morning was that this murder case would later lead to the urban legend Emporians know today.
Bird was a mathematics instructor at Emporia State before she died. Her death gained national attention with newspapers like the Los Angeles Times and it inspired the film “Murder Ordained”.
Bird was found face down in the water directly in front of her car. Evidence also supported the theory that she most likely died from injuries sustained on the bridge and was thrown over instead of being ejected from the car, according to Justica US Law.
“And allegedly what had happened, her husband reverend Tom Bird had beat her up on the bridge and drove the car off to make it look like she drove the car off and then threw her over the bridge,” said Brandy Nance, co-founder of Flint Hills Paranormal and web content and marketing communication manager at ESU. “It was a pretty violent thing.”
While convictions have been made there is still a question of who killed Bird that night. Was it her husband who she was having marital issues with, was it Lorna Anderson who was allegedly having an affair with Thomas Bird or was it a contractor who they possibly hired?
No matter how the death came about, urban legend says that the bridge is haunted and visitors can hear Bird’s screams, according to Nance. However, she said that when her paranormal investigative team spent time out on the bridge they could not find evidence of this.
However, Twitter user Ashley Gillet commented on her experience at the bridge on a Bulletin post.
“After visiting Bird Bridge, my car kept locking and unlocking the doors on me in a weird pattern,” Gillet wrote. “Was convinced it was Sandy using Morse Code.”
The Forensic Science department will be hosting a true crime seminar called the Sinister Minister at 7 p.m. on Nov. 14 in Science Hall room 72. They will be discussing the murder of Sandra Bird and Martin Anderson, Lorna Anderson’s husband.