The first ghost is said to be that of a young man who died here many years ago. Campus legend has it that long ago there was a young student who was waiting for class to begin in Memorial Hall, in either room 301 or 302. He was sitting on a window pane. He leaned back against the window, but it gave way, and he fell three stories to his tragic death. It is said that today his ghost still walks the halls of the third floor of Memorial Hall. Many people describe an uneasy feeling they have there when they are there alone at night, though this probably isn't all that unusual in such an old building. No one knows when this incident occurred (there is no record of it), but the story has been told for years, possibly as early as the 1940s or 1950s, perhaps earlier.

The second ghost is said to have appeared much more recently than the first one. In the mid 1980s, there was a science teacher at Cumberland. He was teaching a late class one night, and began to experience some sharp pains in his chest. After class ended, he had a very difficult time getting down the rather steep steps of Memorial Hall. When he arrived home, he suffered a heart attack and died. It's also said that his ghost now wanders the campus of Cumberland University, especially at the horrendous steps (which are a workout to climb) where his heart attack began.

Practically every college campus has it's share of ghosts. Are any of these stories true? We can only speculate. While most people tend to scoff at them, many of the same people avoid such locations after dark. Is there some truth to these tales? We can only guess.

Special thanks to Professor Monty Pope for information about these legends.

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