Another Halloween has come and gone with the parties, trick-or-treating, costumes, and best of all, haunted houses. So what better place to be scared during Halloween than Louisville’s own historic Baxter Avenue Morgue. “The Morgue is a great way to get into the Halloween spirit, especially since it can get so bleak around here,” junior Dylan Valenti said. Freshman Chase Nalley said of a recent trip to The Morgue: “It was pretty fun and scary.” He added that it was “kind of” worth the money ($20), and he would be willing to go again. We have all undoubtly heard of the horrible haunted morgue on 451 Baxter Avenue, but how many of us really know the reason for all of its hype? The truth of the building turns out to be a very dark part of Louisville’s history. Victor Vanderdark opened the Vanderdark Morgue in 1901, making the morgue 108 years old. It started out as a very prosperous and respected business in our city because of its quality and convenient location next to the cemetery. However, this success did not last. In 1932, Victor Vanderdark suddenly disappeared and the business was forced upon his only son, Warren Vanderdark. The business started declining from then on. There were reports of bizarre mistakes and unusual practices. The business pretty much stopped after the disappearance of the elder Vanderdark. In an attempt to restore the business, Warren changed the name to the Baxter Avenue Morgue. This proved to be unsuccessful and the morgue was closed for good. During this time, most of the creepy stuff started happening. The rate of missing persons and pets went up, as well as problems with the dormant morgue itself. There were reports of strange noises and smells coming from the basement, where all the bodies were kept. So, in 1976, the building was finally condemned. Local inspectors went into the abandoned building and conducted a thorough investigation of the place. However, the team refused to report what they found, and no one knows why to this day. After 23 years of dormancy, private business owners finally bought out the morgue in 1999. However, the morgue that we know and love did not come about until two years later. In 2001 the basement was renovated and opened as an attraction. The Morgue is known as a haunted house during the time around Halloween. The Morgue itself is a terrifying plunge into the horror of a ghost-infested pit. It features 22 of the original rooms–including the body shelves, doll room, and the funeral parlor–when the Vanderdarks owned it. In addition, they also present many of the creepy objects left by the family, as well as a whole staff to scare you through your terrifying tour of the old morgue. The Morgue is also a major supporter of the Caufield’s Halloween parade. One of supporters said, “The Morgue works in conjunction with Caufield’s to help with this parade. It’s a really good time, and it lets people know about The Morgue.” The tour requires people to walk through The Morgue alone and experience some of its horrors. Valenti said, “It’s really fun and scary how people pop out at you. I enjoyed it.”