The Hauntings of Queens University

Posted: 12.31.2024 | Updated: 12.31.2024

When you visit Queens University in Charlotte, you see everything you’d expect to see on a small college campus: students studying, athletes hauling around their workout gear, professors rushing to class. 

Yet, this school has a uniquely old-fashioned ambiance from its location in the heart of the historic Myers Park neighborhood. The 150-year-old history is on display everywhere you look, and sometimes, the reminders of the past are more in your face than you’d like. 

Queens University is only one of many haunted sites around Charlotte. To see more spooky sites for yourself, book a ghost tour with Charlotte Ghosts tonight. 

Is Queens University Haunted?

While Queens University may be revered for its academics and athletic programs, many locals know it for another reason: the stories of ghosts and unexplainable happenings around the campus grounds. 

From a phantom piano player to a student who took their own life, several spirits are known to hang around specific halls and stairwells. One building is so well-known for its ghostly activity that people refuse to be behind its doors after nightfall anymore. 

So, how long have these ghosts been wandering the faculty halls and dorms? While sightings can be dated back to the 1930s, some say the ghosts have been present in the school from its founding — back in 1857.

The History of Queens University 

Queens University is aptly named: it was originally founded as an all-women school when it opened in 1857. Called the Charlotte Female Institute, the program was unveiled the same year that downtown Charlotte broke ground. 

While the first buildings were in a different location, the school moved to its current Myers Park location in 1912. The college continued as an all-female institution until the 1940s. After World War II, men were permitted to attend the university but could not live on campus. It wasn’t until 1987 that the school fully became co-ed. 

Today, approximately 1,300 students are enrolled in Queens University every year, and the most popular majors are health-related fields, as well as business and marketing. Outside of academics, the private institution is well-known for its championship-winning sports programs. 

While the school is small, its students and staff have a lot of pride in their school, which is perhaps why some former students and faculty have been so hesitant to move on. 

Who Haunts Queens University?

With every incoming class comes new stories of strange and unusual experiences. Between students seeing shadowy figures in dorms to feeling an odd presence in the auditorium, it seems like most people have some tale to tell about encountering an otherworldly being. 

However, there are some tried-and-true spirits that many people have spotted (or heard) time and time again. 

The Ghost of Mrs. Margaret Anna Burwell

While she was alive, Mrs. Margaret Anna Burwell would often accompany her husband, the university’s first president, to all kinds of school-related events and functions. In fact, she was such an avid supporter of the school that she’s claimed it as her forever home, choosing a very appropriate place to haunt: Burwell Hall, the building named after her.  

Burwell Hall is the oldest building on the Myers Park campus — built in 1914. While it is now an administrative building, you won’t find many people staying late to work on-site. This is because Burwell’s ghost appears on a fairly regular schedule. 

After 10 pm, she’s often seen milling around the second floor. Her spirit is so frequently spotted that most people avoid the building after nightfall altogether. While Burwell’s spirit doesn’t typically seem threatening toward those who see her, a recent development may have soured her attitude. 

The Burwell Tie to Slavery 

While Margaret Anna and her husband, Rev. Robert Armistead Burwell, were once revered at Queens University, this sentiment has changed of late. It was discovered that not only did the Burwells own slaves but they were said to be harsh and cruel to their enslaved workers. 

This account comes directly from one of the Burwell’s former slaves, Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley, who published a memoir of her life, which included the brutal conditions she endured under the Burwells. Despite her difficult circumstances, Keckley was eventually able to buy her freedom and went on to become a respected dressmaker, making garments for clients like Mary Todd Lincoln. 

Documentation has also shown how the Burwells fought to keep slaves from worshiping at a Presbyterian church in Hillsborough, North Carolina.

After their hidden past was brought to light, Queens University has distanced itself from the family, changing the name from Burwell Hall to Queens Hall. Word is still out on what Margaret Anna’s ghost thinks of the change. 

The Spirit in Morrison Hall 

Another admin building is also home to an unknown presence. Morrison Hall has hosted many departments over the years, from acting as a dorm to a student newspaper office. Today, it houses the Student Life office — as well as an invisible spirit. 

“There’s a presence — we’ll call it a presence — here on the second floor of Morrison that has existed for a long time,” says Kayla George, director of residence life and housing at Queens.

One of the strangest encounters George has had with said presence is the moving of objects, specifically her colleague’s diploma. George said that her coworker’s college diploma was displayed in a glass frame in his office. Yet, quite often, the diploma would fall within the frame. Her colleague would try all kinds of ways to secure the piece of paper, but it would continue to fall. This continued until he left for another job. 

After he was gone and his office was empty, George would often hear sounds coming from his office — like the squeaking of floorboards. When she’d go check who was in there, the room would be empty. 

The Heartbroken Student 

In the 1980s, a student went through a devastating breakup. Distraught, the young woman chose to take their own life by hanging herself in a stairwell in her dorm. Today, a tall fence blocks the opening where she jumped from, stopping any other students from following suit. 

However, many students have filed noise complaints about the empty room where the student once lived — which has been empty since her death. Others have heard loud sobbing in the stairwell. When they go to check on the person, they find they’re alone. 

Haunted Charlotte 

Queens University has its share of resident ghosts, some with tragic backgrounds and others with disturbing ones. This seems to be the case for Charlotte as a whole.

Not far from Queen University are some of the most haunted sites in all of Charlotte. There’s the Tryon House Apartments, where a fast-moving fire took the lives of five people. These victims’ spirits remain trapped in the house, unable to ever fully escape the home. There’s also the McNinch House. Acting as a restaurant today, diners can spy shadowy figures as they eat dinner in the converted home. 

If you want to see Charlotte’s spooky locations for yourself, schedule a ghost tour with Charlotte Ghosts. 

Want to learn about other haunted universities around the United States? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to learn about more chilling locations. To read about other North Carolina ghost stories, check out our blog.

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