Hillside Dormitory, it's that overlooking Westminster College for over a hundred years.
And as one of the oldest buildings on campus, it has quite the history.
It's housed trainee pilots for World War II, and was once part of the music department.
Despite its service to the college, however, with old age comes old legends and rumors.
Someone said to me one time, you know there was a girl murdered in her closet, I'm like
get out of here.
They range from murder to suicide and have numerous different stories.
But no matter what version you believe, many people on campus agree on one thing, that
this now closed dorm has one non-living occupant left.
Most students and staff know her as Betsy, a supposedly playful ghost with a long list
of common mischief such as flickering lights, moving objects, shadows, and strange sounds.
The Westminster alumni, Kristen Kurz, shares a vivid memory of her own from one night
on her top bunk bed in Hillside.
So I remember looking over and I saw what I thought was Kathy standing over the desk
kind of leaning over it like she was grabbing for an apple.
And I can remember being awake and saying out loud, oh, thank God, Kathy, it's just
you.
And I closed my eyes and I went to roll over.
When all of a sudden from underneath me, I heard her say, no, Kristen, it's not.
We even got special permission to explore inside of Hillside and visit the room where
Kurz's event took place.
OK, so here we are, where it took place, my freshman room, room 415.
Now when I lived here, our bunk bed was right here.
Of course, this bunk side was on the top and Kathy was on the bottom.
While we did not see ghosts, we did see remnants of the building's past, many that gave Kurz
nostalgia.
Oh, God, those are the desks that we used to shh, so this door was always here.
So here was the TV in this corner here and I think there was a ping-pong.
A stone fireplace and a coal furnace.
Many other pieces of history were delved through in researching this door to search for any
truth behind the rumors or possible connected deaths.
A common legend is that Hillside was a mansion where Betsy was murdered.
However, no evidence was found of Hillside ever being anything other than a dorm.
According to Westminster College through time, it was completed and opened in 1885.
But another story claims the mansion was on the same property, so there might be something
to it after all.
But not much evidence was found towards the mystery, only lots of speculation.
Either way, lots of people on campus swear by what they heard or saw, be it their own
or others' accounts.
And whether it's haunted or not will never be proven.
What we do know is that Hillside was and still is a unique and historical part of campus
and will always hold a special place, be it good or bad, in the hearts of many Westminster
grads and faculty alike.
In New Wilmington, I'm Kristen Deering for WCN 24-7.
