Ghosts, Legends, and Things That Go Bump on Campus

Most campuses as old as the University of Denver have their fair share of superstitions, legends, and ghostly stories—and DU is no exception. You’ve surely heard about the ghost of Mary Reed, but do you know the story behind the legend? And how about other unexplained disturbances across the grounds? Read on, if you dare, to discover all the haunted happenings on our very own campus.

Restless sprits at the Reiman Theater 

Built in 1928, Margery Reed Hall is rumored to be the second most haunted building on the DU campus. 

Margery Reed, the eldest daughter of Colorado businessman Verner Reed and his wife Mary (yes, that Mary Reed), graduated from DU in 1919 with a bachelor’s degree in English and then took a position here as an assistant professor. During her studies at DU, she met a man named Paul Mayo, an adjunct faculty member and fellow DU alumnus. 

They soon wed, but their wedded bliss was cut short when Margery died suddenly after returning from a trip to Peru. “Some people have said it was a jungle disease, but there are rumors that she had a falling out with her husband, who used an exotic poison on her while in Peru,” explains historian Phil Goodstein (MA ’75) in his book, “The Ghosts of University Park, Platt Park and Beyond.” 

To commemorate her, Margery’s mother, Mary Reed, donated funds to build Margery Reed Hall, which served as home to the Reiman Theater and DU’s theater department until 2003.

But actors weren’t the only ones hanging out in the theater. “[Hundreds of performers] over the years have all been convinced there’s a ghost,” Goodstein says. “They claim strange whispering and odd echoes during performances; things were always slightly going wrong.”

The Buchtel legacy lingers

The Buchtel Bungalow, named after Henry Buchtel, the former DU chancellor and Colorado governor, is also rumored to be a haven for haunts. 

Located two blocks east of campus, the home was designed by Harlan Thomas for Buchtel, who was elected governor of Colorado in November 1907 and served until 1909 while simultaneously handling his duties as chancellor. In 1920, after suffering a stroke, Buchtel resigned as chancellor and four years later, died in his home.

A “militant prohibitionist,” according to Goodstein, it’s possible Buchtel did not approve of the parties that occurred in his home once he was gone. Visitors to the house regularly experience cold breezes, thumping noises, and slamming doors. 

DU sold Buchtel Bungalow last year, but another Buchtel haunt remains on campus. Buchtel Memorial Tower, located just east of Anderson Academic Commons, is what’s left of Buchtel Chapel, a mission-style chapel constructed in the early 1900s that was largely destroyed by a fire in 1983. The original building was dedicated in 1917 as Memorial Chapel, honoring alumni who had fought and died during World War I, and in 1949, it was renamed in honor of Buchtel, who oversaw its construction. 

Could Henry Buchtel have moved his haunting to the ruins of the chapel that bears his name—just to stay close to his beloved DU campus? Visit the tower late one night this October and decide for yourself! 

Most likely to be haunted: University Hall 

One of the first places most students visit, University Hall—home of the offices of admission and financial aid and the meeting point for campus tours—is the oldest building on campus and exemplifies the Richardsonian Romanesque architecture seen in DU’s original buildings. 

Built in 1890 after the University moved from its downtown location and designed by architect Robert S. Röschlaub, the building is made from lava stone sourced from nearby Castle Rock. In its first few years, University Hall was home to classrooms, administrative offices, a library, a gymnasium, the school newspaper, and more. 

A building this old—and the cornerstone of DU history—makes one wonder what spirits might be lingering in those hallowed halls. 

Mary Reed looms large 

And finally, we’ve arrived at the most well-known haunted building on the DU campus. One of the top 10 haunted places in Denver, Mary Reed Hall memorializes one of DU’s most prominent early philanthropists. 

Mary Reed made a sizable donation to DU in the early 1930s to build a library for the University. The cornerstone was placed in 1932, and the building was first used in January 1933. When DU’s current library, Anderson Academic Commons, was built in 1972, Mary Reed Hall was decommissioned as a library, but Mary’s legacy remains. 

Now home to the Renaissance Room and several administrative offices, the stately building has long been the site of reports of books soaring off shelves, lights turning on and off, and stuck doors mysteriously opening on their own. A transparent figure can sometimes be seen reading in the dark of the DuPont Room. Still others have noted cold drafts in otherwise warm rooms.

Could it be Mary Reed herself, who is memorialized in the 1923 portrait that still hangs above the fireplace in the Renaissance Room? Or is it Margery, her daughter, visiting from Reiman Theater—or Marcella Miller DuPont, a donor to the study room in the library? Or do all three of these prominent women still walk the halls of Mary Reed after dark? 

If you want to explore more of DU’s eerie history, don’t miss Crimson Curse: Haunted DU Tours, taking place on Oct. 28-29.These chilling guided walks, filled with ghostly tales and campus legends,  are family friendly in the early evening, while the later tours get spookier as the night darkens and more spirits come alive. Tours are free to the community.