Bothwell is known for its fantastic theater productions, lively music, beautiful art and…a haunting?
Isabel Bothwell was a Presbyterian student who was very interested in Blackburn because of its work program. One day, she came to Blackburn unannounced, and an unknown student bought her ice cream and continued to give her a tour of the campus. Because of this, Lady Bothwell wanted to make her mark on the school.
Lady Bothwell had a lifelong passion for music, and in her will, she left almost $1 million to Blackburn to build a music conservatory. After her death, construction took place, and it was finally ready for the public in 1970. It was to be called the Isabel Bothwell Conservatory of Music in her memory.
The building, however, now has a spooky stigma. The building is said to be haunted by Lady Bothwell herself. People have witnessed lights flickering on and off, doors shutting without any wind and even an apparition with a long, white dress appearing as Lady Bothwell herself.
Alex McAuley, a senior working in campus security, said that during his freshman year, he was a general worker and would unlock the building by himself. “It’s about 5:45 in the morning in the spring semester, and I always listen to music,” McAuley said. “So, I had my earbuds in, and all I was doing was looking around, but I was in my own little world. In the middle set doors at Bothwell, I was (going to) unlock those set of doors and then I look and I see this apparition of this white dress float by heading towards the auditorium…that’s what I saw, and I believe it to this day.”
Freshman Karley Elliot has been in many musicals at Bothwell. She said, “Before they redid the theater, it was a lot scarier, and we weren’t allowed in the back where the stairs are to go downstairs because it was a safety issue. So, a friend and I snuck down there one day, and we were looking at all the props…we were in the back of the room, and both of the doors closed on us…we went to the first door, and we couldn’t get it opened, so we had to go to the other side, and we got out from there.”
With all this in mind, I decided to see if Lady Bothwell was real for myself. With the help of a close friend, I went into Bothwell theater at night to try to find this ghost. About halfway through our adventure, we started walking across the dark stage when I heard someone say “hey.” Thinking it was my friend, I responded, “What?” Then my friend turned around and said, “I didn’t say anything.” I admit, I was a little spooked because I know I heard someone say “hey,” After that, the building was silent and rather peaceful. We didn’t see any white apparitions or have any doors slammed on us, but there was an eerie feeling that hung in the air.
However, the question still stands: does Lady Bothwell haunt her own theater? I think we’ll never really know for sure, but I dare you to find out for yourself.