Throwback Thursday: Hilltop Haunts with Dr. Tamela Smith

For more than a century, students have climbed the hill at Western Kentucky University in pursuit of an education. But along the way, they’ve also encountered a few stories that weren’t exactly covered in their textbooks. Tales of mysterious figures, unexplained sounds, and spirits said to linger in some of the university’s oldest buildings have become part of WKU folklore. And every October, those stories find new life through Dr. Tamela Smith’s Hilltopper History and Haunts spooky stories tour. Part history lesson, part ghost story, this walking tour introduces participants to the legends and lore surrounding some of WKU’s most familiar landmarks. It’s an opportunity to see the hill in a different light, discovering stories generations of students have shared, embellished, and passed along. And like any good ghost story, the question is often where historical fact ends and folklore begins.

WKU’s story began in 1906, when the Western Kentucky State Normal School opened under the leadership of Dr. Henry Hardin Cherry. Over the decades, the institution grew, its buildings multiplied, and thousands of students made memories on the hill. Some of those memories became university history, and others became legends. Consider Van Meter Hall, the oldest building on campus, completed in 1911. This landmark has witnessed generations of performances, ceremonies, and campus gatherings. With its historic architecture and commanding position on the hill, it’s exactly the kind of place that inspires a mysterious tale. There’s more to the story when it comes to Cherry Hall, Fort Lytle, and other campus spots too.

But WKU’s ghost stories aren’t necessarily about proving whether spirits exist. They’re about the people who lived, worked, and studied here. That’s what makes the tour such an interesting way to experience campus history. Instead of reading names and dates from a textbook, participants walk through the places where stories originated. Buildings become characters. Familiar sidewalks become settings. And stories that might otherwise disappear find a new generation of listeners. Ghost stories have always been part of the oral traditions that help communities remember their past. And at WKU, those legends belong to the hill just as much as its historic buildings and cherished traditions.

So this October, if you find yourself walking across campus after dark, remember you’re following in the footsteps of more than a century of Hilltoppers. And according to some of the stories, perhaps a few of them never really left.