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transylvania.haunting
transylvania.haunting
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From: "Milton L. Allen, Jr."
Subject: The Curse on Transylvania Univ.
Message-ID: <05DEC94.01450123.0017@MUSIC.TRANSY.EDU>
Originator: msolda@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu
Lines: 171
Sender: usenet@MUSIC.TRANSY.EDU
Organization: Transylvania University
Date: Mon, 5 Dec 1994 06:20:33 GMT
Hi all. Its been a long time since I have posted anything on here.
Guess you can just call me a lurker ;) But here is a story I touched
on a long time ago that some people wanted better coverage on. The
first time i posted this the time line was extremely broken and the
story wasn't conveyed right so I decided to repost it. So sit back
and let me tell you the story of the Curse of Rafinesque and the
small liberal arts college that is its subject. This is a LONG post
so you may want to get your popcorn. ;)
--- THE HISTORY ---
Picture a small college campus. Covering, oh, no more than five
city blocks at best. Situated in the middle of the downtown of
the second largest city in Kentucky. This is Transylvania University.
(Yes it exists...I attend here) Well over 200 years old Transy (as
it's commonly called) was not always in the sprawling city landscape.
Founded as the first institution west of the Alliganie (sp) mountain
chain it to has had its share of history.
One of whom is one Constatine Rafinesque. A brilliant biologist
and scholar, he taught at Transy in its younger days. (Approximately
when TU was about 75 or so years old) Hewas a extremely intellegent
man who alone discovered and catalogued countless different species
of plants. And spoke fluently 7 different languages. Though none
of his discoveries where published due to his lack of caring if they
where or not.
But Raf (as he too is now commonly called) had a few big flaws.
He liked to skip his classes more than his students to go on his
nature hikes. Along with this it was rumored that he was having a
affair with the school presidents wife. The then president, Horace
Holly, had Raf run outta town on the proverbial rail.
But before Raf left Lexington, Kentucky he said, "Damn thee and
thy school as I place curses upon you."
--- THE GHOST STORY ---
This was translated then (and still popuarly thought of today)
that Raf placed a curse on the school. A curse that would come
to pass every seven years. And the result would be something
terrible would take place on its anniversary.
And upon saying this Raf left Kentucky never to return, alive
anyway. Then only days after Raf's departure, Old Morrison, the
school's main adminstrative building, was gutted by fire. Of
course at first Raf was blamed for this act but it was proven wrong.
For by this time Raf has settled in New Hampshire (I believe it was)
in the New England States. So being as such as he was there (remember
folks this was the 1800s) he couldn't have done the deed.
Within a year or so all the business of a curse and such was
forgotten. But the students (believe it or not) liked Raf and
the President's popularity as well as his health declined. Until
Holly dided of yellow fever. Oddly enuff he died on the seventh
year anniversary of the curse.
In years following the Curse of Rafinesque gained folklore status
on this small campus as it's tale spread around campus by the students
to scare the freshman ;)
Well, holding true to the curse every seven years something did
happen. Various murders and suicides of students happened along
with assorted other occurances. All to numerous to write in this
post.
Moving along in time. By now Raf has long since died in a
Collara (sp) epidemic and was buried with many others in a mass
grave. As the popularity of Raf and his curse grew among the
students the Hemlock Society was formed on campus. The first thing
they did was have Raf's body exumed and brought back to be buried
on campus in a tomb. Where is this tomb you ask? Well in a small
room with only one entrance located in the first level of where
else, Old Morrison. And a small saying turned into a cult thing
that the students took on each year. For the fun of it.
Well as the years passed with still a monsterous occurance that
happened eacht seventh year, the Hemlock Society lost its intrests
and was disolved. But before this happened on the seventh year
anniversary of the curse Old Morrison burned once again. The
building was entirely gutted by fire. Except for one room. One
room escaped the chaos and flames. Rafinesque's tomb.
And as the firefighters where reluctant to say that when they
where fighting the fire in the first level (where the tomb is
located) they saw the flames stop in a virtual wall before the tomb's
door. And they also all swore to have seen a figure of a man standing
there among all the chaos in the doorway laughing. Laughing at them
then slowly fade away into the flames. It was also said that when the
fire was finally out and the buildings interior smoldered with the
remenants of the blaze they inspected the tomb only to find a cool
room as if nothing has happened there.
Again, Old Morrison had been destoryed by who knows or what knows.
But not the be daughtened the school again restored the inside of
the building as well as replaced the stained glass windows in the
chapel located on the second floor that melted in the blaze.
The story goes along like clock work since then. Every seventh
year something has happened. Something notable. All the way up
to my time here when my freshman year the school's silence was
broken. A car load of Transy students where shot at in the main
intersection that runs through the center of the school by a still
unknown assailent. The entire back window of the car was shot out
by the blast and caused the car's driver to crash into a telephone
pole on the corner. All the students where hospitalized and luckly
none of them died. Along with this there was a rash of muggings
that has never happened on this campus before and not since that cause
the school to almost but double the campus police force to counter
act the deeds.
Today we are two years from the curse's anniversy. I, myself,
wonder what can happen next on this small liberal arts campus.
--- MY VIEWS AND SOME EXPLAINATIONS ---
For those of you that like a good story and don't want to be bored
by some truths don't read this section. :) It explains my ideas
on this whole thing and some other more factual stories I've heard.
First of all, Raf's curse is a story that has been told from
student to student for years on this campus and I'm sure that some
of the above has been obscured by time and such. Secondly, the
famous quote has been more realisticly deciphered to the affect that
he was just cussing out the school. (Flipping the school and its
president the old english bird I would say).
As for the many other accounts of things that have happened on its
anniversary? It's just life. Something always happens to a certain
place. Just that because the curse is known it just makes the events
of that year stand out.
As you can tell I'm just the common skeptic :)
--- QUICK FUNNY STORY BEFORE I CLOSE ---
One year a unnamed fraternity decided as a joke to do the following.
Remember the chapel I described earlier? Just picture a huge lofty
ceiling of a church room. High tower backed chairs behind the altar
where the preacher and his men would sit and a huge stained glass window
imediately behind the middle chair spewing forth light from the sun in
many spledid colors (due to the windows colored stain glass).
Well on year during parents weekend when the school has a open
church service for the parents and students imagine walking into
a room described as such with a figure sitting in the middle tower
backed chair. A skeleton--Raf's. Of course this scared the hell
outta the parents..needless to say some of the students.
It turns out that that fraternity decieded to take Raf outta his
tomb and reconstruct him in the chapel that day to freak out the
parents and generally piss off the administration.
Now the tomb is kept locked up tight. :)
--- END NOTE ---
Well that's my story. Hoped you liked it. Send all flames and such
to the .sig below and have a good time. :)
*.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:*.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.*
: Milton L. Allen, Jr. : EMail: mallen@music.transy.edu :
: - Computer Science Major : mallen@worf.transy.edu :
: - Education Major : mallen@riker.transy.edu :
: - Computer Consultant : mallen@deanna.transy.edu :
: - Beta Mu of Delta Sigma Phi : Voice: - By request only - :
*.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:*.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.*
: Buckaroo Bansai: Just remember, No matter where you go...there you :
: are. :
*.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:.:*
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