October 31st is creeping around the corner – we are three weeks shy of the spookiest day of the year. Here at ISU, people are starting to get into the Halloween spirit. From decorating their windows with clings or post-its, to decorating their doors, to the clown scare that raged our campus and the Twittersphere; Halloween is making its mark here in Bloomington-Normal. To continue the celebration of Halloween, let’s dive into a few local spooky stories.
The Old Milner: Williams Hall
Williams Hall was the first library here, founded in 1890, at Illinois State. The first librarian to work in Williams was a woman by the name of Angie Milner. Sound familiar? Our current library is named after her! Although Mrs. Milner was just a librarian, ISU legend say that she haunts the parts of Williams that was used as her workspace. Williams has a special room with a few rare older books located in it; footsteps are said to be heard even though no one is there. Cases of books being found oddly placed or unbound have also been reported, as well as sightings of Angie herself!
Phi Mu Alpha: Spooky Music
Phi Mu Alpha is a music fraternity on campus, who reside in an old Victorian household now. This house was built in 1898 by a doctor from the area, for his wife and daughter. The daughter found out she was pregnant, and her father attempted to abort the fetus. She passed away during the operation, and was buried in the basement. Students that have lived in the house have said they have seen her on several occasions. She walks around while wearing a veil, but she is not threatening to the residents of the house.
Kemp Hall at Illinois Wesleyan
The I-House, also known by its full name of Kemp Hall International House is a building on the Illinois Wesleyan Campus that is also located here in Bloomington-Normal. The ghost that is said to haunt this hall is named Mrs. DeMange, but is known as the Lady in Red. The I-House was once the mansion that Mrs. DeMange lived in, and where she passed away. She appears in the mirror of the master bedroom, with her red dress on.
These are the most common ghost stories for the Bloomington-Normal area. Make sure to share these with your friends the next time you have a scary storytelling get together! Have a happy and safe time on Halloween… Boo!