'Ghosts and Gears:' Bikers take a ride through Miami's ghostly past

The spirit of Helen Peabody, an organ player who went mad, a deadly duel and a tale of lost love are just some of the spooky stories told by student trip leaders of the Outdoor Pursuit Center at Miami University during the “Ghosts and Gears” bike tour through campus on Oct. 22.

Andy Mushaben, who works in the maintenance department at Miami University, said he chose to join the tour for his love of biking and “spooky things.”

“I’ve been here on campus for three years working, so I’ve kind of heard them all through the grapevine,” Mushaben said of the haunted tales, “but I just thought it was kind of fun for something to do with my friends.”

The tour started at the Recreational Sports Center and guided bikers through campus on a nearly 4-mile-long ride, with stops at Peabody Hall; Kumler Chapel; The Pines sanatorium (known most recently as Wilson Hall); Fisher Hall (now the Marcum Hotel and Conference Center); Arthur F. Conrad Formal Gardens; Reid Hall (now the Farmer School of Business); Ogden Hall; Lewis Place; and the former Thobe’s Fountain, which was replaced by a monument.

“I had a great time,” Mushaben said. “I just like being scared. That’s why I like mountain biking.”

Katie Heckscher, a student assistant trip leader at the Outdoor Pursuit Center, headed the group as they made their ghostly journey through decades of Miami’s supernatural sightings, murders and legends.

“I remember when I first went on (the tour), and I loved how you get to learn parts of Miami’s history through a spooky Halloween theme,” Heckscher said, adding the tour allows participants to work on their biking skills while being outside and meeting new people. 

“Miami has such a huge history. It’s been here for so long, and there’s so many layers to all of these buildings and land and places that most of us have no idea of,” she said. “So I think it’s cool to expose students to those stories and help them live on.”

One tale told by Student Assistant Trip Leader Serenity Owens tells of a missing persons case that’s stumped local law enforcement since 1953.

Ronald Henry Tammen, Jr., was a sophomore at Miami and a resident of Fisher Hall in 1953. Tammen was enrolled in the School of Business, now known as the Farmer School of Business, and was a member of a campus choir group, fraternity and the wrestling team.

As the story goes, Tammen returned to his room on the evening of April 19, 1953, to study when he saw a fish in his bed. As a resident’s assistant (RA), he was often given a hard time by other students living in the dormitory, Owens said.

Tammen then left his room to search for spare sheets, never to return. 

Owens said one sighting of Tammen was reported following the incident by a woman who saw a boy matching Tammen’s description at her home with no shoes on who appeared to be confused. The Butler County Coroner, Owens told the bikers, also reported seeing a boy matching Tammen’s description prior to his disappearance entering his office and asking for a blood test – an unusual request of a coroner.

In 1979, Fisher Hall was demolished to build the Marcum Hotel and Conference Center, and authorities searched the rubble for Tammen’s remains, which were never uncovered. 

Today, Owens said students and faculty still report sightings of a “cloaked” figure in the woods near the center.

Another story told by Heckscher was of Peabody Hall, where Helen Peabody’s portrait now lives.

Helen Peabody was the principal of the Western Female Seminary in the mid-19th century. The building later burned down in both 1861 and 1871 and was rebuilt both times.

Heckscher said, today, Helen Peabody can still be seen walking the halls, occasionally terrorizing mostly male residents. A ghastly tale of three boys who were paid a phantom visit after disrespecting Helen Peabody’s portrait teaches students to respect the site’s history.

Kailey Stec, a sophomore at Miami, joined the tour with her two friends, Allie Harville and Sienna Ballinger, after seeing an advertisement on a campus television.

“It was cool to see Peabody Hall,” Stec said. “I’m scared of Helen.”

Ballinger said of her experience, “It was a nice way to get outside and do something fun, because it’s getting cold and in the next few weeks you’re not going to be able to really do anything.”

Although she didn’t bike often prior to the tour, Ballinger said she felt it was “doable” for beginners.

Heckscher said the Outdoor Pursuit Center provides a variety of trips designed to be both “affordable” and “accessible” to a variety of students.

Owens said, “I think it’s good to have trips where it is both educational and active.”

She said the stories told on the tour were either fully true or based on true stories that detail campus history otherwise requiring research. 

“It attracts more than one audience,” she said.