Happy Halloween! At Yale, there are many ways to celebrate every college kid’s favorite holiday. This year, I took myself on a little walking tour to scope out some of the school’s spookiest spots. Here are my picks for the top five!
5. The Stacks in Sterling Memorial Library. Sterling Library is basically a tower of terror, with narrow mazes of books stretching up, up, up into the sky. You can very easily get lost in here, and rumor has it that some students actually have…forever. Are the stacks really haunted with the ghosts of grad students past, doomed to hammer out their theses for eternity? We may never know for sure, but the vibe is definitely there.
4. The Senior Societies. These actually just look imposing (some society buildings are literally called “tombs”) because they have no windows. However, societies serve primarily as social spaces for seniors, and most aren’t particularly secret or scary. Something many incoming Yale students don’t know is that there are about fifty active societies on campus!
3. Handsome Dan at Payne Whitney Gymnasium. I know what you’re thinking: “Lily, this statue isn’t scary–in fact, it’s kind of cute!”And you’re RIGHT. This statue isn’t scary at all. (Well…) But it used to be that the first thing you saw upon entering the gym was not a statue of Handsome Dan, but an ACTUAL TAXIDERMIED HANDSOME DAN from way back in the day. This poor stuffed dog freaked me out so bad that you think I’d be happy it’s gone now. But I’m not. Because where did it go? Is it in my bed?
2. Engraving on the Cemetery Gates that Reads, “THE DEAD SHALL BE RAISED.” Absolutely not. This is so scary. It would have the number one spot, but in recent months, something has popped up that frightens more. Without further ado…
1. Sign Advertising Phil’s Barbershop. This startles me every time I walk past it.
