{"id":26125,"date":"2015-11-05T15:07:12","date_gmt":"2015-11-05T20:07:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/?p=26125"},"modified":"2016-03-29T19:45:44","modified_gmt":"2016-03-29T23:45:44","slug":"specters-and-phantoms-and-ghouls-oh-my","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/2015\/11\/05\/specters-and-phantoms-and-ghouls-oh-my\/","title":{"rendered":"Specters and Phantoms and Ghouls, Oh My!"},"content":{"rendered":"<span style=\"color: #000000\">In the spirit (tee hee, see what I did there?) of Student Life\u2019s <a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/media\/set\/?set=a.488545061316756.1073741841.259149090923022&amp;type=3\" target=\"_blank\">fifteen-minute leaf walks on campus<\/a>\u2014and also in the spirit of Halloween\u2014I have decided to create a walking route of my own. Autumn leaves may be a tad more picturesque in terms of dead things you can observe\u00a0on a walk, but ghosts are cool too.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #000000\">Without further ado, I present to you my campus ghost walk!<\/span>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"color: #000000\"><a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-26126\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png\" alt=\"Pictured: a map of UofT displaying a route from Queen's Park to the MacDonald-Mowat Building\" width=\"900\" height=\"649\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png 900w, https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk-300x216.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk-416x300.png 416w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><!--more--><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n<ul>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Start out on the north end of Queen\u2019s Park<\/strong>, which used to house an insane asylum. Three of its patients are said to haunt the property, although they spend most of their time in the Ontario legislative buildings nowadays. There is also a phantom soldier in full regalia; he is fond of the main stairwell and the statue of King Edward VII.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Walk north on Queen\u2019s Park until you reach the south side of the ROM. Turn left here and you\u2019ll pass by the Planetarium<\/strong> <strong>on your way to Philosopher\u2019s Walk. <\/strong>Look out for the ghost of a little girl. Her name is Celeste; she used to love watching the shows in the Planetarium. The building now belongs to UofT and the plan is to demolish it. Poor Celeste!<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Turn left at Philosopher\u2019s Walk and head south until you come to Trinity College.<\/strong> John Strachan, the college\u2019s founder, is said to roam the halls every year on the anniversary of his death, but I was there on November 1<sup>st<\/sup> and I didn\u2019t see him. Nevertheless, be sure to take a peak at some of the portraits hanging on the walls; they\u2019re rumoured to follow your movements with their eyes.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Head west on Hoskin and pass under Soldiers\u2019 Tower.<\/strong> In the 1930s, a construction worker fell while he was cleaning the bells; sometimes he appears around the tower or a strange glow comes from the upper windows.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Head south into King\u2019s College Circle and wander University College<\/strong>, the site of UofT\u2019s most famous ghost story. Two stonemasons, Diabolos and Reznikoff, were both hired to help with the construction of UC in the mid-1800s. They were also both courting the same Torontonian woman. When Reznikoff found out that Diabolos was going to run away with her, he chased him through the UC buildings, swinging an axe at him all the while. When they got to the top of the then unfinished tower, Reznikoff lunged at Diabolos with an axe. Diabolos dodged and Reznikoff fell to his death. Diabolos hid the body by burying it in UC\u2019s foundation. After the fire in 1890, a man\u2019s remains were found. Creepy, huh? Reznikoff is said to haunt the building to this day, as miserable and broken-hearted as ever.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t<li><span style=\"color: #000000\"><strong>Keep heading south along King\u2019s College Circle<\/strong>. <strong>Just north of Knox College, you\u2019ll find the MacDonald-Mowat House,<\/strong> which is the former residence of Canada\u2019s first prime minister. It\u2019s now used as a student services building for the School of Graduate Studies. Members of staff and caretakers over the years claim to have seen Sir John A. MacDonald\u2019s ghost on the second floor, rocking his trademark frock coat.<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<span style=\"color: #000000\">That concludes our tour! If you want to learn more about the ghosts of UofT, or Toronto hauntings more generally, check out <a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"http:\/\/torontoghosts.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">this awesome website!<\/a>\u00a0It's where I learned all about the different hauntings at UofT. The site\u00a0includes\u00a0extensive information on the ghosts of\u00a0the city and even a forum where you can share your own experiences or read about the experiences of others.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #000000\">While the places you'll encounter if you follow my route\u00a0are definitely spooky, let\u2019s not forget the #1, without-a-doubt, scariest place on campus:<\/span>\r\n\r\n<figure id=\"attachment_26127\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-26127\" style=\"width: 750px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/exam-centre-spooky-scary.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-26127 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/exam-centre-spooky-scary.jpeg\" alt=\"Pictured: The Exam Centre with lightning superimposed onto the picture\" width=\"750\" height=\"1000\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/exam-centre-spooky-scary.jpeg 750w, https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/exam-centre-spooky-scary-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\" \/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-26127\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><\/span> <span style=\"color: #000000\">That's right folks, the dreaded Exam Centre.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #000000\">I'd take a run-in with a ghostie over an exam any day! So get out there and take a walk, UofT. <em>Let me know if you have any spooky sightings in the comments below.<\/em><\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<span style=\"color: #000000\">In the spirit (tee hee, see what I did there?) of Student Life\u2019s <a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/media\/set\/?set=a.488545061316756.1073741841.259149090923022&amp;type=3\" target=\"_blank\">fifteen-minute leaf walks on campus<\/a>\u2014and also in the spirit of Halloween\u2014I have decided to create a walking route of my own. Autumn leaves may be a tad more picturesque in terms of dead things you can observe\u00a0on a walk, but ghosts are cool too.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #000000\">Without further ado, I present to you my campus ghost walk!<\/span>\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><span style=\"color: #000000\"><a style=\"color: #000000\" href=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-26126\" src=\"http:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png\" alt=\"Pictured: a map of UofT displaying a route from Queen's Park to the MacDonald-Mowat Building\" width=\"900\" height=\"649\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk.png 900w, https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk-300x216.png 300w, https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/files\/2015\/10\/ghost-walk-416x300.png 416w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p><div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/2015\/11\/05\/specters-and-phantoms-and-ghouls-oh-my\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &ldquo;Specters and Phantoms and Ghouls, Oh My!&rdquo;<\/span>&hellip;<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"author":271,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[15693,101,276,15694,15696,15697,15695,1837,2020],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26125"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/271"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26125"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26125\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28171,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26125\/revisions\/28171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.studentlife.utoronto.ca\/lifeatuoft\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}