Haunted Libraries!

Unexplainable things happen in the library from time to time. A book we thought we left on a desk turns up in an unexpected place. Creaking noises are heard when no one's around. Lights go off unexpectedly. When things like this happen, we usually attribute them to the library ghost.

Now mind you, we have no official proof that a ghost haunts our library since our budget has no wiggle room for us to hire a medium or ghost hunter. There are, however, other libraries in the U.S. that are supposedly haunted by one or more ghosts:

• Cairo Public Library (Cairo, IL)  Toby occasionally walks upstairs in the library and turns off lights.
• Houston Public Library (Houston, TX)  Julius, a night janitor who played the violin, can be heard playing uplifting waltzes on his instrument.
• Parmly Billings Library (Billings, MT)  At least four ghosts call this library home: a six-foot tall ghost in the kitchen and lounge, a brunette wearing glasses on the third floor, and a woman accompanied by a grey blob ghost in the basement.
• Umatilla County Public Library (Pendleton, OR)  When the Pendleton Public Library was housed in an older building, a librarian named Ruth, who died of a cerebral hemorrhage, made an intercom system buzz repeatedly.
• Willard Library (Evansville, IN)  The Grey Lady likes moving boxes, running the elevator with no one inside, and making typewriter sounds.

By no means are these the only library ghosts around. If you're interested to read about more hauntings, check out the articles through American Libraries Magazine and the Open Education Database. And the next time you hear or see something strange in our library, don't worry--it's just the library ghost.

Wishing you a fun and safe Halloween from the perch.