The word around Sidney is, a janitor at the middle school went into these catacombs and never came out. Ever after, students and teachers brave enough to descend into the bowels of the school would hear his keys jingling, as if he were walking around, and encounter a shadowy figure moving deep within the tunnels.

The school was demolished recently (2005), but this report relates some firsthand details from when it was still around:

"This school was originally built on the site of the town's cemetery, after the graves were moved to the cemetery's current site on the south end of town. I attended school there from 1991-93, and this was what all of the teachers told us: They said that if you went clear down into the basement there were tunnels that led through old crypts and that it was quite possible to get lost in the labyrinth. I do know that on several occasions I was in that building at night, and it was a creepy old place! I hated having to be there after dark.

"In addition, it really was an impressive piece of architecture. It had massive doorways with little stone gargoyles at the top of each, and was three stories high."

Another e-mail I received tells of the faucets in the girls' locker room turning themselves on in full view of everyone. It must have been an active place, spiritually speaking.

Shelby County History: Schools Evolved from Early Days
Shelby County History: Sydney's Founder Makes Land Donation