Library of Congress’s Ghosts

The Library of Congress found a friend in Congress when the legislative body passed the Copyright Act of 1870. This single measure made the Library of Congress the central copyright authority for the entire country. Those who wanted to get a copyright had to deposit two copies of their work instead of the local federal courthouse. The result was a free supply of books in abundance that soon caused the Library of Congress to have a building of its own instead of remaining at the Library of Congress.
In 1897, the Library of Congress was blessed with its own building, now known as the Jefferson Building, because his sale of books to the Library of Congress after the War of 1812 had been nucleus of Library’s collection. Not only was the building designed to be as fireproof as possible, but it was the first government building to incorporate electricity into its design from the get goes in the nation’s capital.
Although the library has moved, it failed to make provisions for the relocation of its ghosts that continue to haunt its original location in subbasement of the Capitol Building. A librarian passed away without telling his family where he hid $6,000 in government bonds. That would be over $100,000 in today’s money. The old gentleman has been unable to pass on because he continues to look for his money in the Capitol’s subbasement. He joined by another old gentleman known as “Mr. Twine,” who died shortly after the move. He seems to prefer his government job of still stamping shadowy books as government property instead of moving on.
The Jefferson Building does a ghost, a police officer, who guides visitors out of the building at closing time through its myriad corners. As they leave the building, he suddenly disappears. They remark to other police officers at the door at the old-fashioned uniform that he was wearing where they replied they haven’s seen that particular style in years. To learn more, read Tim Krepp, Capitol Hill Haunts (Charleston, South Carolina: The History Press, 2012), pages 47-48. And of course, the Library of Congress has a very collection of books on ghosts and the supernatural.