Happy Halloween! BOO!
One of the most well known, and most
celebrated ghost legends in Indiana is that of Diana of the Dunes.
Near Chesterton, Indiana, in the Indiana Dunes, there is a legend
that fisherman around Lake Michigan would occasionally sight a naked
woman swimming in the lake. The legend dates back to at least 1915,
and goes on to say that a beautiful woman was living as a hermit near
the lake. Because no one knew her name they began to refer to her as
Dianne, because of her beauty. In actuality, she was Alice Mable
Gray, the daughter of a wealthy Chicago family, who had come to live
on the dunes after she began to lose her eyesight. She had grown up
near the dunes, and sought to enjoy the remainder of her life there.
In 1920 a man named Paul Wilson moved into the cabin with her. He was
an unemployed boatwright, and a suspected murderer. The two
eventually married, but he began to treat her badly, and was abusive.
She died shortly after the birth of their second child from being
poisoned.
The local legend claims that Alice's
ghost still returns to the beach at the dunes to relive her happier
days. For decades there have been sightings of a naked ghostly
looking woman running along the beach and disappearing into the lake.
The legend is commonly referred to as Diana of the Dunes. The story
is commemorated in an annual Diana of the Dunes Festival and Pageant.
Personal Note: Diana better be careful, the Rangers issue disorderly conduct tickets to skinny dippers at Dunes National Park, even though it is on federal land, and nudity is not illegal they still do it,
