Have you ever heard footsteps on the Eppley Auditorium stage when no one was there? Ever heard weird shudders and moans coming from the third floor of Argonne? Ever see a mysterious figure atop the watchtower at the dining hall?
If so, you are not alone.
Even today, with Halloween upon us, people at Culver Academies report hearing odd sounds and doors mysteriously closing for unexplained reasons. Strange sounds aren’t unusual in old buildings. Was that the building settling or a spirit meddling?
Culver visual arts master instructor Bob Nowalk, who retired in 2022, told The Culver Citizen in 2012 that he doesn’t believe in ghosts and didn’t think much about it when a member of the summer staff reported seeing a man dressed in full early military Culver uniform, complete with feathered hat and cape, silently walking the corridors of the then Eppley Hall of Science at 11 p.m. one early August night. But he had an experience at the other Eppley building on campus, Eppley Auditorium, that caused him to reconsider his thoughts about ghosts.
He was painting a backdrop on the set of “Guys and Dolls” and had dismissed students who were helping him at 9:30 p.m. He lost track of time and decided to step back into the auditorium to view his work. It was around midnight.
He sat down around the 15th row and was pleased with the work. He was making some mental notes when he was startled.
“I heard keys rattling the back door at the left side of the stage. Figuring that it was the night watchman, I sat quietly so not to scare him,” he said.
The Eppley stage was more shallow then and the backdrop was against the back wall.
“Anyone who walked in would have to cross in front of the backdrop in order to get to the door at stage right. I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and onto the stage and thought that any moment someone would appear when suddenly the footsteps stopped,” he said
An uneasy quiet came over him. It only lasted a few seconds.
“I suddenly felt a flush of uncomfortable dread as no one appeared on stage,” he said. “Suddenly, the silence was broken by footsteps on the other side of the stage, keys rattled, a door opened and closed, and then nothing.”
He said all he could think about was getting out. The next day he rationalized that campus security must have gone down the stairs to the dance room and come up the other side, even though he didn’t believe it could be done in that short a time.
He spoke with campus security about when they had walked through Eppley Auditorium the evening before. He was told the person on duty didn’t go into the building because he saw Nowalk’s car outside and figured he was working late.
“For many years afterward, I confined my work habits to the school day,” Nowalk said.
There are other reported spectral hauntings on campus.
Culver Academies Museum archives manager Jeff Kenney searched the Digital Vault archives and found two stories, almost 70 years apart, in The Vedette, the student newspaper, reporting about the “Phantom of Argonne.”
According to a March 26, 1926, article in The Vedette, boys living on the third floor of Argonne reported being awakened in the early morning hours for several nights in a row by “a hideous scream that trails off into weird shudders and moans.”
The article said that on another occasion the cadets reported hearing the water fountain running and footsteps in the hall.
“But upon inspection, it was found that the fountain was dry and had not been used for at least an hour-and-a-half,” the article reads. “The question that is confronting the terror-stricken cadets on the third floor of the Argonne Barrack is, who or what is the ‘Phantom of Argonne’ and why does ‘it’ desire to terrorize only the occupants of the third floor of the building?”
On Feb. 1, 1994, The Vedette reported that girls living in Argonne said sometimes “a man dressed in a tuxedo appears in the mirror in their bathroom.” They referred to this spooky specter as ‘Tuxedo Man.’”
That article added that Argonne residents reported hearing the showers mysteriously turning on and off. But witnesses added they didn’t know whether to chalk it up to a ghostly presence or just “bad plumbing.”
“That still happens,” a girl who now lives in Argonne said when Kenney told this story during a “Haunted Campus” tour on Saturday night.
That same story from The Vedette also reported that one of the more popular stories in CMA was “about a ghost on the second floor of North and East barracks. Several cadets have claimed that they have seen the ghost roaming the halls at night. Many believe that it is the spirit of a young cadet who was tragically killed.”
A website called Ghosts of America has a brief Culver reference to “a tall figure in a black suit that can be seen standing on the clock tower during the Sunday garrison parade.” The writer, who is anonymous, finishes his piece with “He stands on the tower and watches us.”
Another spooky tall tale that has stood the test of time around Culver Summer Schools & Camps campfires “explains” why there is no Division 2 in Woodcraft Camp.
It involves a Woodcraft Camp counselor named Zeke who slips in wet grass and runs over his foot with a lawn mower. The horrendous accident leaves his foot disfigured, which leaves him with a noticeable limp.
The accident evidently impacts him psychologically as well. When Zeke overhears the Division II campers making fun of his limp, he loses control and extracts his revenge against the entire unit.
Another CMA story involves a group of cadets who sneak out of the barracks late one night and go to Memorial Chapel. While inside, they hear young boys singing. As the song progresses the voices get deeper, as if the singers are growing older. The cadets didn’t stay for the end of the song.
So, is Culver haunted? What have you heard?