SHADES OF DEATH RD.

Located in Great Meadows, New Jersey, the Shades of Death Road runs through a remote section of the state. It is unknown how it got the bizarre name.

The earliest known tale says the area was once plagued with wildcats that would kill those travelling on the road. The cats were so vicious that, so it's said, the settlers had originally called Petersburg the Cat Hollow and Cat Swamp. A road still exsists by the name of Cat Swamp Road.

Another tale says that it was because of murder that it got its name. As the story goes, the original residents were a boisterous group of squatters. The men would often fight over the women which often led to the killing of one of them. When civilization moved in they left but the name stayed as a reminder of the evil past.

Along the murder idea states that it used to be called "Shades" because the trees made a tunnel over the road. Due to its dark demeanor many unsolved murders were commited there, so the locals added the rest of the name to the road.

Other say the name is because of the natural deaths that happened there. It runs along an area named Great Meadows, which used to be a large marshy swampland. Because of malaria-carrying insects the residents expected outbreaks every year, and the name came from this gloomy outlook.

How it really got its name may never be known but it would be best to use caution when traversing Shades of Death Road.

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