History & local legend
The Early American Nationality Room in the University of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning includes a concealed upper bedroom with a four-poster bed. Its most personal ghost story was told by E. Maxine Bruhns, the longtime director of the Nationality Rooms program.
Bruhns associated the room with her grandmother, Martha Jane Poe McDaniel, whose wedding quilt was displayed on the bed. On one occasion, she said, she straightened the quilt and turned away. After hearing a sudden rushing sound, she looked back to find the quilt turned down and an indentation in the pillow, as though someone had put their head there.
On another occasion, Bruhns rested on the floor beside the bed. Her handbag fell from a chair and landed near her head. She interpreted both incidents as visits from her grandmother.
