Ever hear a strange bump in the night, or feel a chill run up your spine that leaves you wondering if, just maybe, there is such a thing as ghosts?

Maybe you've even heard a story of some spooky unexplained event or strange happenings that are just a little on the creepy side. All old buildings have a ghost story or two even St. Ann's Academy, according to the security guards who have patrolled the lonely rooms in the dark of night. St. Ann's is a perfect spot for a ghost - a large old building with lots of empty rooms and 200 years of history. At night, one can easily imagine the ghostly silhouette of a former student in one of the many windows or the footsteps of a Sister that died in the convent echoing the halls. The grounds, full of tall, spidery trees and pitch dark would make a perfect setting for a ghostly figure in white to float among the trees and over the long buried bones of former sisters.

There are a number of guards that look after St. Ann's late at night after everyone else has left and ghost stories from the building come primarily from them. One guard reported hearing strange noises one evening when he was patrolling, which, when he followed them, continued to move into the next room, then the next.There have been other guards who have also mentioned strange sounds moving about the building. Is it a former student, come to finish her home work, or just the wind ??

On a more comical side…there's a story about a girl,a young student, who was startled when she went to look for Christmas decorations in the attic. She saw a human hand sticking out from under a cloth and thought it was a dead body. It turned out that hand, a very realistic one at that, was just a religious statue being stored away!

The famous Brown Lady

St. Ann's had its own cemetery at one time, which was later moved to Ross Bay cemetery. Cemeteries aren't just spooky - they can also be very interesting with information about a city's history, peoples' backgrounds, social status, wealth and religious affiliation. Even great monuments like the pyramids in Egypt, were burial tombs used to commemorate the life and death of pharaohs and their queens. There are many different types of markers and symbols used, which reflect differences in status and symbolic meaning.

The Ross Bay cemetery now holds a plot for the Sisters of St. Ann. This plot was once filled with white marble crosses. Most have been replaced by low granite plaques which are more difficult to vandalize. The Ross Bay cemetery is a great example of a Victorian-era romantic cemetery, popular in the 1800's when there was a trend to large, lavish markers for those who could afford them. Many well-known people are buried there, including Sir James Douglas and Emily Carr.

The Piano Player

Take a visit to the cemetery, and see if you can find the tombstones of these famous people, and the Sisters of St. Ann! If you'd like to visit the Ross Bay cemetery's website, click here. Check out their Grave Art section and prepare yourself for our tombstone activity.


There are two famous ghostly pictures on this page (not from St. Ann's). The Famous Brown Lady photo in which a womanly shape can be seen on the staircase. If you look close enough you can somewhat see the features on a face. The second photo was taken in a church. After it was developed, the photographer noticed the ghostly cloaked image at the steps. They said that during the taking of the picture, no one was present in the area. Spooky!

Write a Ghost Story

Do you a know ghost story about something unexplained or spooky that happened to you or someone you know? There are lots of ghost stories in the Victoria area, such as the Woman in White that haunts the Uplands Golf Course or the many ghosts of Todd House, one of the most famous haunted houses in Canada. Do you feel inspired, now that you've read these ghost stories, to make up your own story. Use your imagination, and write a story about something scary and mysterious…maybe a haunted house or a creepy ghost. Who knows, maybe it happened to someone, somewhere!
Click here to check out websites on famous ghost stories.

Design Your Own Tombstone

Perhaps you would like to design your own grave marker and epitaph. An epitaph is a short statement in memory of a dead person, usually put on his or her tombstone. Things to consider when designing your own tomb are your cultural heritage, hobbies, family history, and artistic persuasions. For an epitaph, try to come up with a small poem about yourself or something you feel strongly about. Check out these examples of famous peoples' epitaphs.

Gravestone Rubbings

Gravestone rubbings are a really fun way to make some beautiful art and learn about history. It's easy, and you'll end up with a really cool copy of an epitaph! All you need to do is place a piece of paper (thinner tissue paper works best) over the gravestone, and lightly rub on it with a charcoal pencil (you can also use a regular pencil, or crayons if you wish). Be careful not to tear the paper, and press more lightly if you're using tissue paper. And, voila, you're very own gravestone rubbing will appear! Check out this website to learn some other basic rules about gravestone rubbings.

---

---