Plant Hall (University of Tampa)

Railroad tycoon Henry B. Plant built this Moorish Revival hotel in 1891 — guests included presidents and the very wealthy. The University of Tampa took over the building in 1933, and it's been a campus landmark ever since.

Plant Hall at the University of Tampa was originally the 511-room Tampa Bay Hotel, built by railroad tycoon Henry Plant between 1888 and 1891. The construction cost over three million dollars--an enormous sum at the time--and the Moorish Revival architecture with its distinctive silver domes and minarets was designed to appeal to wealthy European travelers.

Plant spared no expense. The hotel sprawled across 150 acres of lush landscape, featuring exotic furnishings from around the world. When the Depression forced its closure in 1930, the building sat empty until 1933, when it was converted into the University of Tampa. Plant Hall remains the university's primary academic building while also housing the Henry B. Plant Museum.

But Henry Plant never checked out.

His ghost, known as The Brown Man, is the most frequently encountered spirit on campus. Described as a tall, shadowy figure with long white hair, a white mustache, and glowing red eyes, he wears a brown suit and patrols his beloved hotel. Long-term faculty and staff advise newcomers to avoid eye contact--if you acknowledge his presence, he'll rush at your face before vanishing just before contact.

Plant's attachment to the building may stem from his vast antique collection, much of which was sold over the years. Some believe his ghost remains to protect what's left.

Other spirits include Bessie, an actress who killed herself after discovering her husband's infidelity. She's seen wearing the scarlet frock she died in. Victorian-era servants continue their duties, and a janitor in bib overalls pushes a phantom cart through museum hallways.

Students report seeing figures in windows, hearing footsteps and someone taking a seat in empty classrooms, and encountering a strange mist that a theater professor watched literally suck into the wall.