History & local legend
The Temple Performing Arts Center occupies Philadelphia's former Baptist Temple, a building closely associated with Temple University founder Russell Conwell. In 2016, staff called in the student-run Hoot Paranormal Society after noticing unusual elevator behavior.
The students found a straightforward explanation for that behavior: the elevator operated on a timer. Their visit also produced a different report from the stage. While making an audio recording, they asked for a knock and later heard one on the recording about fifteen seconds after the request. Temple University recounted the investigation in an October 2017 article.
Sources
- Temple Now, 2017 account of the Hoot Paranormal Society’s investigation the previous year
- Temple Now, campus folklore and Russell Conwell’s services in the old Baptist Temple
- Temple Performing Arts Center, history of the Baptist Temple and Broad Street address
- OpenStreetMap, named Temple Performing Arts Center footprint
