Haunted Schools

[MauEvig]

I didn't realize the Washington and Lee Chapel crypt is where ol' Robert E. Lee was laid to rest. It definitely sounds creepy. I'd also forgotten that Washington and Lee University was in Lexington, a place where Lee himself lived and died. There were a great deal many stories it seemed about him and his trusted horse on the Lexington ghost tour.

If Mary Baldwin is old, it wouldn't surprise me if the place was haunted. I didn't know about the Tallulah Bankhead story, or even who she was. I can't imagine stuff floating from one's desk though! Now that's pretty creepy!

[Murfreesboro]

Lee was the president of then-Washington College after the Civil War. And of course his pre-war home at Arlington had been appropriated by the Union for the beginning of Arlington Cemetery. So there really wasn't any other place to bury him in 1870. His horse, Traveler, is buried outside.

Mary Baldwin traces its history to Augusta Female Academy, which was founded in 1842. So it's pretty old. Tallulah Bankhead was famous back in the day but not much discussed now. When I was a young child she would sometimes guest star on tv shows, but I don't think she lived to be really old. From what I've heard, she was quite a character. There's a fairly detailed Wikipedia entry on her, if you're curious.

[MauEvig]

Bankhead seemed to have an interesting life, but she definitely had a wild side that's for sure! I realize I'm putting it mildly.
I guess she was in an Alfred Hitchcock film that was based off a book by John Steinbeck. And it's funny, I recognize both those names because Hitchcock was famous for his horror films, and Steinbeck is a name that comes up in literature studies.
So it's just kind of fun for me to make those connections.

That's right, the horse's name was Traveler! He seemed like a great horse. I think they showed us the stable where traveler lived during the ghost tour. The tour guide told us that we'd have safe travel through the graveyard that night if we could smell horse. I'm not entirely familiar with horses myself, I've worked with some when I studied vet tech back in the day (completely different story entirely, but I will say my love for animals inspired me to attempt getting into veterinary. But...I really struggled with anatomy and found out that there's no way I could euthanize animals...taking them to be euthanized like I did with my cat Domino was bad enough...I can't imagine putting so many to sleep for other people...so I found out real quick it wasn't for me) and even got close to a horse named Cloudy. (Cloudy was one reason I decided it wasn't for me, I had to watch the poor girl get put down and I couldn't handle it.) Anyway, so it's not like I had particular experience with horses, other than a few brief encounters here and there.
But there was no mistaking it...I COULD smell horse when we approached the graveyard. So, it seems ol' Traveller was doing what he did best, and guiding Traveller's to safety. He must have been a good, loyal horse.

I guess it makes sense that it used to just be called Washington College. I wonder what made them add "and Lee" to the name?

I sure hope with today's political climate that they don't change the name. Robert E. Lee, however anyone felt about the civil war, sounded like a good man. I don't think he should be erased from history.

They changed the name of the community college I went to down here as well. It used to be called Dabney S. Lancaster. Now it's called "Mountain Gateway." -sigh- Political correctness culture...it drives me nuts. I don't see why people would get so daggone offended by a name. When they erase names, they erase history. Don't even get me started on a certain pancake or rice brand. I won't even buy that pancake mix after they changed the name. I'll just get the generic store brand, it's cheaper anyway.

[Murfreesboro]

I dont know how I managed to miss this one post of yours, Mau, but I'm glad I found it. I agree with you whole-heartedly about the political correctness that drives people to change names, etc.

I came here, actually, to talk about Tallulah Bankhead, because my husband was feeling nostalgic today and pulled out our dvd of 101 Dalmatians. I had completely forgotten that the marvelous Cruella DeVille was based on Bankhead. She did not voice the character, but the vocal quality, accent, and sense of style was all Tallulah.