The Stow Lake Lady
The Mythologist uncovers the harrowing legend behind one of San Francisco’s most famous folktales
It was 1908 when a man visiting Stow Lake in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park found his path blocked by a woman. The man reported the sighting to the police shortly thereafter, a story that was supposedly then published in the San Francisco Chronicle giving rise to a legend still captivating residents of the Bay Area.
For over 100 years, locals have retold the legend of the Stow Lake ghost with the most popular version of the harrowing myth centering around a young mother and her tragic question. So the story goes, a young mother of three was taking her baby for a walk through the park before she came to a rest on a bench with her baby in a stroller next to her. After coming to a stop the mother was engaged in conversation with another woman. Unbeknownst to her, the stroller had begun to roll forward into the lake. By the time either woman had noticed the stroller had disappeared and her baby was gone. The mother began frantically searching the area for any sign of her child, asking passers-by, searching the banks of the lake, always asking the same question — “have you seen my baby?”
It is said that the mother then desperately waded into the lake, in one final attempt to find her child, never to return again. Over its 100 years, the legend of the Stow Lake Lady has been embellished and has since grown into one of the most famous myths in San Francisco.
Visited by millions each year, Golden Gate Park has become a hotspot for those hoping to encounter the Lady of Stow Lake. It is said that if you say “White Lady, White Lady, I have your baby” she will appear and ask her tragic question once again. If you answer yes, she will haunt you for the rest of your days and but if you answer no she’ll kill you. Though the legend has grown over its many years being retold, one thing has always remained constant — the Lady of Stow Lake is doomed to forever wander its banks searching for her lost baby.
