A Spooky Midnight Walk at Algonquin College

The grueling semester has finally come to an end.

Geoffrey, Hazel, Olive, Sam, and Tiffany had a fun night at ByWard Market celebrating the semester's end before heading home tomorrow. It’s almost midnight. They have just returned to Algonquin College by bus and entered the campus from the Algonquin Centre for Construction Excellence.

“I’ve never been here this late before,” says Tiffany. “Thank God you are all here with me. This whole space feels so chilling and eerie at night.”

the light of The pedestrian bridge over Woodroffe Avenue keeps going on and off at night

“Wait till you get to the bridge,” says Sam. “The light keeps turning on and off whenever it’s dark.”

When they are on the bridge, the light does keep going on and off as if someone’s playing with the switch.

“Anyone wants a campus ghost story?” asks Olive, feeling the vibe.

Tiffany frowns, but the others get electrified by the idea.

“Let me start with the ghost of Christie Mansion at the University of Toronto.” Olive has his storytelling mode on already.

“The Victorian-style mansion was built by successful businessman William Christie in 1881. His son Robert became the mansion’s owner when the father died. Rumour has it he kept his mistress in a secret room in the library, now known as Room 29, when he lived with his family in the same mansion. The lady had everything she needed in the room, so she didn’t need to come out. But soon, Robert got tired of her, and she hanged herself after losing her mind waiting day and night in the small room. People say the room will shut itself at night and lock up anyone inside.”

A deserted locker corridor at building c of the college

“Another testament showing humans are scarier than ghosts,” comments Sam, as they pass a deserted corridor with walls of lockers, a spot Tiffany dreads because she always feels something creepy will show up at the far end and chase her.

“Can we hurry back to our dorm, please?” she begs.

“I have a good one for you that happened at a dorm, Tiff.” Hazel grins.

“Before the dorm story, let me share a creepy tale about Siri that took place at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore,” says Geoffrey.

“In Singapore, the Hungry Ghost Festival is in the seventh month of the lunar calendar. People believe ghosts are freed from the underworld to roam the world of the living in search of food and entertainment during the festival. There’s a not-to-do list for people to avoid bad luck or naughty spirits. For example, you don’t swim or whistle.

“So, for students of the university at Hall 10, they don’t sing in groups. Because a few years ago, some students sang together during the festival. One of them felt a hand on his shoulder, but there’s nobody. They continued to sing until a student’s Siri spoke suddenly, ‘I’m here.’”

algonquin college residence at night

They have arrived at Residence and are heading to Hazel’s room for the last story. Tiffany is reluctant to join but she doesn’t want to be left alone in the now-empty dorm either.

“So, mine is about one of the dorms at the Chinese University of Hong Kong,” says Hazel, as her friends curl up in her room.

“There was a couple living in the same dorm. The girl was on the upper level, and the boy lived right below her room. It was exam time, so the two decided not to meet each other and concentrated on studying until the exam’s over. The girl wanted to show her care for the boy even when they couldn’t see each other. So, she made oxtail soup every day and lowered a bowl out of the window to the boy.

“The boy enjoyed the wholesome soup for days. Then the exam was finally over. He couldn’t wait but ran to his girlfriend. But when he arrived at her room, he saw people moving her stuff out of the room, and she was nowhere to be found.

“Only then, her friends broke the news to him, telling him she died of a sudden illness some days ago. They kept their mouths shut because they didn’t want to distract him from the exam. The boy broke down in tears. But then he realized something weird—”

“Who’s giving him the soup after she died?” chips in Sam.

Hazel then notices something off with Tiffany.

“You okay, Tiff?” asks Hazel.

“Thank you,” replies Tiffany in another girl’s voice. “For telling my story again. But I didn’t die of illness. I killed myself because of the stressful exam.”

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Iris Tsui was born and raised in Hong Kong, an east-meets-west metropolitan rich in urban legends, haunted places, and ghost stories. She is a full-time college student, an occasional writer, and a 24/7 ghost story collector. Her favourite pastime is to have a cup of Earl Grey and listen to scary tales shared on the radio. Currently, she lives in Ottawa and is exploring the dark scary side of Canada. Don’t hesitate if you want to tell her your creepy tales. She will be more than happy to share her paranormal experiences and story collection with you in return.

The Haunted Washroom of Building B: Algonquin's Toilet Ghost

Photo by Miss g.

On the first floor of building B, down the hallway from room WB156, there’s a women’s washroom. The fluorescent lights are dim inside and sometimes they flicker on and off. Most, if it can be helped, usually avoid using this bathroom, insisting that it gives off a creepy vibe.

I was talking with my friend before class one day about it, confused as to why no one would step foot inside despite it seeming like a very normal washroom. She told me that a few years ago, there was a student named Delilah Morin who was in the last semester of her program. She was set to graduate with the rest of her peers, and she’d be doing the honours of the commencement speech.

However, Delilah had been getting bullied often by a group of girls since she’d started attending Algonquin. They’d whisper things as she walked past, trip her when she was rushing to class, and belittle her achievements. Amongst other things, it started getting to a point where Delilah was afraid of walking onto campus.

One day, a few weeks before graduation, Delilah excused herself from class and headed to the washroom. The group of girls followed her inside. My friend said no one knows exactly what happened, but Delilah never ending up walking out again. It was speculated the girls had drowned her as it was one student who found her in the last stall, hair drenched with toilet water. Once paramedics were called and the body had been taken away, the coroner ruled her death as accidental drowning.

Ever since that day, students and faculty alike avoid using it. Those who have the guile say the air feels thick inside, like breathing through a towel pressed to your mouth. Others have reported that stall doors creak open, faucets turn on and off, and never stop dripping, and most of all, the last stall locks automatically once you step inside and you have to crawl underneath the gap between the floor and the door to get out.

Intrigued, I decided to do a little more digging, and this is what I could find. While the college is closed at night, two students were dared to enter this specific bathroom by their friends. Too stubborn to decline, they ventured inside. When they came out again, roughly five minutes later, they were pale as ghosts and twice as silent. It took an hour for them to open up about what happened.

Photo by Ashley Fraser/POSTMEDIA

One of them said as soon as they walked inside, the lights flickered off and refused to come back on. Still, they pressed on and didn’t think much of it, using their phone flashlights as a solution. The other student described the feeling of being watched, like the walls were glaring at them. Either of them didn’t dare approach the last stall. When they turned to leave, one of them caught a small glimpse of a face peeking over last stall through the mirror. Too freaked out to investigate (that was probably the right idea), the two students bolted.

Now, there’s a lot of debate whether or not this story is actually true. Many want to believe the ghost of Delilah Morin haunts the washroom, while others think those two students lied for fun. But since I personally believe it to be true, I wanted to mention that this wouldn’t be the first haunting in a bathroom.

In Korean mythology, Cheuksin is a toilet goddess who waits until you’re vulnerable before wrapping her long hair around your neck, strangling you to death. In a Japanese urban legend, a young girl, Hanako-san, haunts a toilet. Supposedly, you can summon her by knocking three times while saying, “Hanako-san, are you there?” and she will answer before grabbing you and dragging you down the toilet. As for a more lighthearted tale, Harry Potter’s, Moaning Myrtle, is a young ghost named Myrtle Warren, and she haunts the girl’s bathroom on the second floor at Hogwarts.

While Delilah isn’t Cheuksin, or Hanako-san, or the harmless Moaning Myrtle, her story is widespread across Algonquin College because of the uncertainty surrounding her case. Did she actually accidentally drown, or did her death have something to do with the group of girls who followed her inside? Is she really haunting the last stall, or is it just a faulty lock?

Unfortunately, I’m too afraid to find out. I’ll gladly walk an extra minute or so to a different washroom if it means staying out of that one.

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Peyden Mongrain has been a lover of the eerie and paranormal ever since she was young. She was born and raised in northern Ontario, but is currently enrolled in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College in Ottawa. Her favourite thing to do is listen to scary stories either on Youtube, or reading them on Reddit. It doesn’t matter if they’re true or not because she just likes being afraid. She’s heard more than a few good scary stories and would be happy to tell them if asked.

Barking in Darkness: Black Dogs

2017, August. Kamal and Yuthika Ahluwalia—siblings—Joshau Graham, and Avni Iyer were walking as a group from afternoon classes, walking along the quiet road beside Ryan Farm Park. No cars, no strangers; the buses were cancelled due to a shortage of drivers, but their homes weren’t far away, for Graham at least. The siblings and Iyer had to find a bus route still functional. A warm Sunday night with no one around may once have been a good time. But it was in those quiet moments before the storm erupted, and the sound of teenagers shouting as a dog leapt from the bushes adjacent. Blistering gaze, jowls slobbering, fur black as the shadows it lunged from. 

While it attacked no one, offering a simple fright, the next day would prove otherwise. The four turned up in the hospital from sudden, overwhelming illness. While they all could have gotten food poisoning or caught the cold, their deadly sickness may just as likely originate from a far less mundane source, as what they crossed paths was none other than a Black Dog. A ‘malevolent’ one, at that. 

Originating from Western European folklore, Black Dogs are a classification of ghost with one significant feature: their black fur, burning eyes, and an association with death. From the half-time malicious Black Shuck to the stalwart Gurt Dog, their personalities vary as their duties. Many tales spin from their nighttime howls, and as colonizers ventured into the Americas, they too brought their spirits. However, why is this? Why are dogs, among most animals, so prevalent in encounters with the supernatural? And why are they so diverse?

To investigate their endings, you must first observe the beginning. About 30 thousand years ago, humans began domesticating grey wolves, and the rest is history. One can explain their connotations with the deceased with that past too, what with scavenging behavior… but it doesn’t explain how they persist too. 

Over time our bonds became like steel, where humanity dwells, so did mutts. In that way, we bred an undying loyalty. But at the same time, we removed a simplicity of being “animal.” Most non-human animals' live life in the moment, with no purpose beyond what their instincts tell them. Eventually they die and—if you believe in ghosts—they don’t linger long. They served their purpose in life, so they move on. Humans find themselves in a complex situation. Always confronted with mortality, yet it’s with our intelligence that recognizes the fact we are on limited time, and should one care, how we leave the world once we’re gone. In that way, if a person is so determined to stay, or has unfinished business, who’s to say they cannot? Ghosts, in many cases, may form from that desire.

On that basis, animals of high intelligence, or feel such necessity to continue, should be able to remain after death. The dog especially. Already they are highly social and intelligent but add its latent loyalty to their masters, no wonder ghost pets are such a common sighting. Loyalty, of course, may not be the only reason they keep going, but purpose also adds onto that.

Like human ghosts, Black Dogs can be malicious or benevolent, but in a point of personal investigation, and potential bias, the statement of “there are no bad dogs” may prove truer. Many cases of Black Dogs in America have proven harmless, choosing to stay in search of a master long since dead. The Gurt Dog is explicitly a protector for the living, as are Church Grims for graveyard dead. But then you have the Black Shuck, who’s almost always depicted as malevolent. Almost. One late-night witness claimed to be guided home as she cycled by the beast. With its many similarities to a guard dog, and the long history this specter had with Christain monasteries, I recall how Church Grims are made...

Buried alive beneath a church’s cornerstone.

I’m not surprised it dug the graves of five churchgoers, for how could it trust anyone that dawns the clothes of its murderers?

__________________________________________________________________________________

Maddox Charles Gordon Morphy is an aspiring writer and artist from Ottawa, on a constant hunt for those strange and enthralling things. A student at Algonquin College for Professional Writing, he is early in his career of traversing avenues unexplored by more prevalent authors. Despite his lack of time in the field, he’s already pushed himself to take on the the difficulties ahead with grace. Here’s hoping to a long career!

Haunted Algonquin – An Urban Legend

Did you know that Algonquin College in Ottawa Ontario is haunted? Well, according to urban legend, Algonquin’s residence building has its very own ghost. Her name is Brooklyn Marshall, and it all began when she was brutally murdered in her own dorm room.

The tragedy struck in February 2002. It was Brooklyn Marshall’s second year studying at Algonquin College, her second year staying on residence. She was only a few months away from graduating, from earning her paramedic diploma. Ever since, she has been haunting the residence in search of closure, in search of revenge.

By: Khoa Võ

The Legend

The following story is based off an urban legend I was told while staying in the residence at Algonquin College.

It was a Friday night. Instead of going out with peers, Brooklyn Marshall stayed. Instead of doing homework like she planned, she ended up falling asleep early. Besides, she could do it tomorrow, right?

The rain slammed against the window, making loud thudding sounds. Thunder roared outside, scaring Brooklyn awake. She sat straight up, breathing frantically. Normally storms didn’t bother her, but something was different about this one. It was louder, more violent than usual. It felt as though it was threatening her.

Her bedroom door swung open. Brooklyn screamed as if she was getting murdered. The darkness of the kitchen stared back at her. Jenna opened her bedroom door and stood in Brooklyn’s doorway. “What the hell? You look like you just saw a ghost,”

“Yeah, well-” she said, trying to think clearly. Brooklyn took a deep breath and explained how the door had opened on its own.

“Whatever, just don’t scream so loud next time.” Jenna rolled her eyes and walked back to her room, slamming both bedroom doors behind her.

Brooklyn’s mind was racing. Something wasn’t right. She turned on her light, and sluggishly made her way towards the window. There was someone outside standing still on the sidewalk staring up at her. Brooklyn’s eyes widened. Her heart began pounding as if it were about to jump out of her chest. She didn’t know what to do. She was breathing so heavily; it felt like her lungs weren’t working. The person outside was still staring at her, not making a move. For once, she felt lucky that she was on the third floor, because no one could get her from up there.

She closed the blinds and sat down on her bed. She tried to remember the breathing techniques to calm herself down, but they were no use. No matter how many times she held her breath and counted to four, her heart still wanted to hop out of her chest. There were scuffling sounds coming from the kitchen, like someone was picking a lock. “Its just Jenna, you’re fine” she told herself.

Once again, her bedroom door swung open. This time, there was someone there. It was the person from the sidewalk. She screamed bloody murder, for real this time. Jenna groaned in annoyance and rolled over in her bed. They had a knife, and they weren’t wasting any time. “No, no, no, stop, please!”

The next morning, Jenna found Brooklyn dead on the floor. Jenna called 911, but it was far too late for Brooklyn. Reports say that she had been stabbed over 20 times. Unfortunately, no evidence was left behind and the killer was never caught. They could very well be plotting their next attack, searching for their next victim. Hopefully you’re not the next victim…

By: Animesh Srivastava

The Aftermath

After the murder, Algonquin College allegedly fought hard to bury the story. They went so far as removing room 2203, and replaced it with a custodian closet. There has been no official reporting on the brutal murder, and no one has been able to find out if Brooklyn Marshall ever existed.

Today, you wont be able to find room 2203, but you can find Brooklyn roaming the halls late at night. Rumours say she lurks in the dark, plotting her revenge. Others claim she’s friendly and protects the students.

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Isaiah landry

Isaiah Landry is a writer currently studying professional writing at Algonquin College. He likes writing, drawing, and playing the bass. Besides being creative, Isaiah likes to spend his time surrounded by friends, telling stories, and making people laugh.

What lives on the Mountain?

This story comes from my cousin Brandon who lives in Thunder Bay ON.

I remember this story because it really creeped me out so bad that I still get full body chills.

two statues of ojibwe women stand in front of mount mckay (anemki wejiw)

At the head of Lake Superior, there is a reservation called Fort William First Nation. In the middle of the reservation is Mt McKay or in Ojibwe Anemki Wejiw. There is a lower summit where pow-wows are held near the top of the mountain, and the last summit requires climbing gear but rewards you with a beautiful view.

Hopefully, this tale won’t discourage you from visiting, as it is a marvel to behold.

Long overgrown with trees and brush, the area was only recently cleared out. The story takes place when the area was still an overgrown lot with climbable, rusted-but-still-red ski lifts going up the mountain. Long out of use, somehow, they were still vibrant against the dark greens and browns of the bush.

In the day, these red poles poked out of the ground like Christmas ornaments on a pine tree. We would run over from the safety of the yard and blitz through the trees to climb them, unaware of tetanus and how ridiculously close we were to contracting it. I remember spending hours goofing off in this “jungle gym” and then running back when we got hungry.

Aerial photo of mount mckay ski resort in 1977

Mount mckay brush durng the day

Sometimes I would stay over at my aunts, sleeping on a couch that faced the side of the mountain we played on. Through the massive bay window filled with plants, at night you could see as far as the front yard, the road dimly lit by a streetlight further down the block, and the thick trees lining the other side of the road. Most of what you could see was pitch black shadows, and slightly less black shadows.

I always felt like someone or something watching me sleeping through the window. I would stay up late at night watching satellite TV (we only had cable at home) and periodically feeling like my skin was crawling, as if someone was intensely staring at me.

Brandon creeped me out so badly I stopped sleeping on the couch and opted for a mattress in the basement.

His story goes like this:

“We were playing on the mountain when me and my buddy heard a crashing way up the mountain. We both looked in the direction where we heard the ruckus, and we see some big thing smashing through trees. Like, smashing trees – no joke, there were broken trees all over the place and they had some guys from MNR come and pick it all up. Weird guys in lab coats and some strange vans.

Anyways. We’re looking up the mountain, and this thing is just going nuts – like just rippin’ the place up. We get scared cause its way up the mountain, and we can SEE this thing, it’s like a big hairy dude, or someone in a Gilly suit, and it should be too far to see details like the chunks of fur or hair or whatever is covering the guy.

So, we both just start taking off towards the house. Didn’t even have to say anything, just took right off. And we’re running, just frickin’ givin’ er down the side of the mountain, and we hear it change direction from wherever it was going, to towards us. And we both start screaming like crazy, because we’re freaking out, I can hear my heart beating in my ears, I can taste blood in every breath, I’m sweating like crazy and we can see the house through the trees.

We’re hooting and hollering like crazy, basically screaming, and the bear man, or whatever, kinda looked like a bear anyways, the bear man behind us is smashing through where the paintball park stands today.

We dip across the road, and as we make it up the driveway to the house, the floodlights come on, we book it up the steps and through the front door, not looking back once.

We’re coughing and dying, but we scramble to the front window to look and see if it followed us, and it’s standing on the other side of the road, STARING AT US. Like, just standing there. Ugh, I can still feel how it felt while it looked at us, thing was UGLY. It looked like a dude, but a BIG dude, his face was fricked up, looked like he got hit in the face all the time as a kid, and was just covered in hair. Like head-to-toe dreadlocks, but not on purpose, like those TLC shows where they should just call CPS instead. It looked like I could smell it, I feel like we could smell it man. Through the window and everything.

I’ll never forget its eyes, just piercing into me and buddy. It was pissed, but eventually it just turned around and walked back into the trees.”

The two boys swear by their story, that it's true, and that there is a bear man living on the mountain.

Other reserve members say there is an angry spirit living on the mountain, or the lost soul of a forgotten member of homo sapiens.

Regardless, something lives up on the mountain, and it is pissed.

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Creature from the North - Megan Bannon

Bannon brings tales from their upbringing around Anemki Wejiw (Thunder Mountain). Hidden in the shadowy corners of the Canadian Shield, ancient and modern secrets wait to be told.

In an area of Canada where reality subverts itself - the lush greens of the bush, and the piercing white snow, blend together until there is no longer a horizon…

People hear things, smell things, see things…encounter things.

Thanks to being in proximity of this paranormal area during Bannon’s life, they have experienced and heard stories of encountering these peculiar entities. In this creepy corner of the internet, they will share some of those stories.

Paranoiacs beware, and proceed with caution…

Beyond the Veil…

Waverly Hills Sanatorium: Kentucky's Haunting Legacy

First a schoolhouse to teach the young, next a sanatorium housing patients who were fighting against the deadly disease tuberculosis, Waverly Hills Sanitorium in Louisville, Kentucky, was dubbed one of the most haunted places in America. The sanatorium was first opened in 1910 as a small, one-story building, housing a little over forty patients. But with the increase in the tuberculosis epidemic, it went under renovations to expand its walls. In 1926, it officially reopened as a five-story facility with over 100 different rooms. The addition allowed over 400 patients to move in.

Photo by Sherrill Hyman/Courier Journal

Due to the diseases highly contagious nature, the sanatorium was built on top of a secluded hill for quarantine reasons, but also so the patients could be at peace and have lots of fresh air, which, at the time, was believed to relieve symptoms. While the patients were treated with the upmost care, it was rumoured that, according to the owner, Tina Mattingly, doctors used electroshock therapy on those whose tuberculosis had spread to the brain.

The number of deaths within its walls sparks controversy as some estimate the number to be 3,000 to 6,000, while others believe the number to be much higher, approximately 60,000 to 63,000. Although, no one can know for sure since there are no longer any patient records available.

The sanatorium was officially closed in 1961 after medical treatment for the lung disease became widespread around the country and there were less patients being admitted.

The Body Chute

Photo By Marty Pearl/Special to the cj

One of the more infamous parts of the sanatorium is a 500 ft. underground tunnel that leads all the way down the hill. It’s referred to as the “death tunnel” or the “body chute” as it originally was designed to transport deceased patients discreetly. This was done to maintain a sense of peace and morale to the living patients.

Although, it has also been said that the tunnel had a much more lighthearted history, only used to carry transported good into the facility. The tunnel would’ve been used this way to ensure quarantine from the outside world.

Timmy the Ghost

On the third floor, people have reported seeing a young, spectral boy who loves to play ball. He has come to be known as Timmy. Visitors of the sanatorium are encouraged to bring their own ball to play with him. It’s said if you were to throw it down the hallway, it would come back, like a ghostly game of catch.

One instance of this is showcased on the popular Youtube channel, BuzzFeed Unsolved, where Ryan Bergara and Shane Madej explore Waverly Hills. After throwing the ball down the dark hallway, Ryan and Shane go to retrieve the ball only to find it sitting directly under the graffitied name “Ryan”.

Whether it be a coincidence or something more sinister, we’ll never know for sure.

The Elevator Shaft

Also on the third floor, people have reported seeing a homeless man and his dog wandering the halls. When the sanatorium sat in disuse, the homeless man was said to have squatted here, but unfortunately passed away when he and his dog fell down the elevator shaft. Some say it was an accident, but others speculate he’d been pushed.

While I cannot find any actual reports of the death of these two other than what has been said by the owner, Mattingly, it’s still a highlighted component of the mystery surrounding the sanatorium.  

Room 502

Another infamous part of the sanatorium is room 502 on the top floor. It’s deemed as one of the more “active” rooms when relating to ghost activity. The room seemingly has an off-putting vibe once you step inside, and people often report hearing voices and seeing shadowy figures out of the corner of their eye.

Photo by Sandra N. on Trip Advisor

The room gained its reputation after the story of a nurse, Mary Hillenburg, committed suicide by hanging herself on a light fixture in 1928. No one knows why, but it’s believed that she was pregnant out of wedlock from a doctor at the sanatorium. In 1932, the room had also seen yet another death, where an unnamed nurse apparently jumped from roof. Like the homeless man and his dog, it was suggested that the nurse could have been maliciously pushed instead.

There is also a rumour that a young boy who was a patient there fell off the roof, but it may just be the ghost stories entangling. It could have been a young boy who fell, or it could have been the unknown nurse who jumped. Or perhaps it was both.

While some rooms are said to be more active than others, most visitors have noted that the entire sanatorium seems to hold a dark atmosphere. Encounters range from phantom footsteps that follow wherever you go, disembodied voices, and figures appearing in windows.

As of today, Waverly Hills Sanatorium offers historical, paranormal, public, and private tours as well as special events for funding reasons. All I know is I will never willingly step inside.

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Peyden Mongrain has been a lover of the eerie and paranormal ever since she was young. She was born and raised in northern Ontario, but is currently enrolled in the Professional Writing program at Algonquin College in Ottawa. Her favourite thing to do is listen to scary stories either on Youtube, or reading them on Reddit. It doesn’t matter if they’re true or not because she just likes being afraid. She’s heard more than a few good scary stories and would be happy to tell them if asked.