You’re driving along a long, dark stretch of road in the middle of Devon. It’s late, you’re tired, yet you notice the streetlamps begin to flicker ominously. Suddenly, your steering wheel swerves left sharply, the tires screech, and your car is flung viciously off the road, leaving you fighting for your own life stranded in a remote area named Dartmoor.
Originating in the early 20th century, the chilling legend of the Hairy Hands of Dartmoor is a renowned ghost story that follows reports of an unusually high number of motor vehicle accidents occurring on the same specific stretch of road. This road is located near Postbridge, Dartmoor, and is now known as the B3212.
It has become a recognised landmark that surrounds stories of a pair of large, hairy, disembodied hands, which are said to appear out of nowhere. They suddenly grab the wheel of your car, the handlebars of your bike, or even your own wrists, veering your vehicle off the road! These hands have been described as possessing an unnatural force, but victims rarely see them before being wrenched off the road, rooting this legend deep in supernatural territory.
Dr. Todd Gray MBE, an American-British historian who has fast become Devon’s best-known historian, has extensively studied Devon’s past, and said: “Legends and myths can easily become blurred with factual history.
“Many people will see religious miracles as bunkum, but for others, their faith tells them to suspend disbelief.
“We all know people who believe in ghosts, as well as others who see them as nonsense.”
Since around 1910, there have been various reports of an unnatural force swerving vehicles off the road, however, many victims have actually survived, running into a verge and avoiding serious injury. These eerie accounts remained hushed whispers until a medical officer for Dartmoor Prison experienced first-hand what everyone was talking about. In June 1921, E.H. Helby lost control of his motorcycle which had his two young daughters riding in the sidecar – they survived, but he didn’t. Shortly after this horrific event, a coach driver lost control of his vehicle in the same way, injuring multiple passengers and adding more fuel and suspicion to this mysterious case of events. It wasn’t until 26 August 1921 that someone actually described a pair of invisible hands wrenching their vehicle off the road – this was an army captain, whose story was immediately picked up by newspapers.
Dr. Gray adds: “A good story can be so attractive that some people do not want to let it go.
“A few years ago, the Boringdon Hotel in Plymouth created the story that Queen Elizabeth I stayed in that building, despite it being known she never visited Devon.
“I assume this was done for commercial gain, but most myths are simply enjoyable in themselves.”
Not all reported encounters with the ghostly Hairy Hands happened behind the wheel or handlebars. One particularly unsettling incident from 1924 recounts the story of a woman who was camping on the moor with her husband, and saw a large hairy hand clawing at her caravan to get in during the night. Instinctively, she made the sign of the Cross, at which point, the hand retreated and vanished back into the darkness.
Local sceptics have of course hopped on this story, claiming most of the accidents were the result of people driving too fast down country roads, and who didn’t necessarily know the area too well. They argue that people inevitably lose control of their vehicles, or simply misjudge the road and its high-walled sides, leading them to run off the edge.
Various investigations were conducted into the road, shortly after reports of the Hairy Hands began appearing in the national press. These inspections eventually pointed to the severe camber of the road’s surface – the steep slope – as the most probable cause of the accidents. In specific places, the incline of the road was found to be dangerous, and was duly corrected.
Dr. Gray said: “I feel removed from superstitions, given most of them seem silly.
“For example, black cats are bad luck in the USA, but were considered good luck in the UK.”
Myths may fade over time, and roads may get fixed, but this local legend still plagues Dartmoor to this day, with locals still warning drivers to take care when traveling near Postbridge. So, whether you believe in phantom severed hands or not, it is still unclear whether these tragic cases were simply just the result of a poorly engineered stretch of road, or whether there is a sinister spirit still lurking on the B3212.
What is clear, is that in a place like Dartmoor, where the vast upland plains remember all, it’s a place that almost demands a ghost story.
So, the next time you’re driving along the moors at night, and the streetlamps begin to flicker and you sense an eerie presence, keep both hands firmly on the wheel –
Just in case…
