Ghosts Still Haunt The Beaumont Library Historic Building Amid Remodeling Project, Librarians Say

BEAUMONT, CA — From creaking stairs to sounds from locked rooms, the staff of the Beaumont Library knows the truth. The original library building is haunted, and it's anyone's guess how the ghosts are feeling this year with a massive restoration plan in place.

"The library is definitely haunted, whether or not you believe in that," a library official who requested anonymity told Patch. "For now, we are leaving them alone during the renovation."

The renovation project began in early October, and during the massive remodel, visitors to the library are asked to pardon the dust and bear with them through the inconvenience the project might cause. The library will remain fully open to the public during the reconstruction, but the work is stirring up dust and possibly some old friends who have remained silent in recent years.

Patch took a moment to chat with the Beaumont Library staff on the current state of the library, the renovation schedule, and whether this has caused a resurgence of local ghosts.

"We have left the plans and timeline out on full display so that everyone can see them," they told Patch.

Luren Dickinson, Director Emeritus of the Beaumont Library told Patch they are going "full speed ahead with the addition, making good progress, and hoping to see framing late in the year." When that's complete, we'll move the current library into that area while the renovation of the original Carnegie-funded library takes place. The remodel is expected to take 18 months, with a tentative completion date of December 2026.

It’s almost impossible to discuss one of the oldest buildings in the city without bringing up those who have gone before. Beaumont, the Pass area, and at the Beaumont Library are rife with historic lore. Our haunt expert says that the last time the Beaumont Library's hauntings were reported was during a renovation of the old, Carnegie part of the library.

"Reportedly, spirits don't like to have their post-mortem domiciles altered. Change to their physical environment often means increased activity in purportedly haunted buildings," they said.

Current renovations could be causing a resurgence in spirits. Though there are many stories of hauntings in the craggy oak trees and recollections of a large humanoid creature roaming the hills between Cherry Valley and the Morongo Reservation, the Pass Area's ghost stories have nothing on the well-witnessed library hauntings of the last 20 years.

"Probably the most famous ghost story involves a late-night incident when, while working, an unidentified library employee heard a knocking sound from inside a seldom-used, locked storage area underneath the front stair entrance of the original Carnegie library, constructed in 1911," they said. "Believing someone may be locked into the storage area, he called out, but no one answered, although the knocking continued and grew louder. Alarmed, he called the Beaumont police, who sent three officers to investigate."

Linda Johnson, the children's librarian at the time, was also called, as she was apparently the only person with the key to the lock enclosure, according to Coleman.

"When the officers slowly opened the door and illuminated the space, they found it empty—no one was there! They were met with dead silence; not so much as a rat scuttling in the storage space; no explanation for the loud pounding noise they had all heard," she wrote.

Johnson was also the witness to other paranormal experiences over her 33 1/2 years of employment at the Beaumont Library, according to Coleman, who says the librarian identified one of the spirits as the late Bob Long, a friendly homeless man who was well-loved in the Beaumont/Cherry Valley community.

One night, while upstairs in the children's section, she was chatting on the phone, talking about "Mr. Bob" when she heard footsteps coming up the wooden stairs.

"She watched in amazement as the little gate (installed to keep small children from falling down the stairs), unlatched itself and creaked partway open, apparently by itself," they said. "There was no one there to open it - at least no one she could see! The children's librarian is convinced it was the spirit of Mr. Bob, who apparently heard his name and dropped in to say hello."

While paranormal activity is often thought of as happening at night, Coleman said the most vivid Beaumont Library ghost story occurred around 7:30 am, in broad daylight.

"A staff member arrived early to begin her shift. She was startled to find a bearded, elderly man sitting at a computer station, staring at the monitor. The old gent looked over and glared at the employee, sending her running for help from another early bird employee. When the two women returned to the spot where the old man had been sitting, he had vanished. A thorough search of the building revealed nothing out of the ordinary. All entry doors had been locked, accessible only to staff members with keys."

Such stories have kept residents coming back, and seeking out interactions with the resident ghosts.

"Why would spirits flock to a library, of all places?" They pondered. "One theory is that the dead return to a place where they had a strong emotional connection, be it positive or negative. In the case of the library spirit(s), could it be that 'Mr. Bob' loves returning to the place where he was welcome, appreciated, and happy, where he spent many pleasant hours reading and chatting with the staff and other patrons.

Could he also have been the spirit encountered at the computer station early one morning? Did he show up one night as an invisible entity mounting the stairs to the children's section to visit his old friend, Miss Johnson, the children's librarian?

"We may never know the answer to these questions," they admit. "It is said, however, that a happy living person makes for a happy ghost, and it seems that whatever ethereal entity visits the library, it is quite content!"