One of the largest student unions in the US, with hotel rooms, haunted portraits, and documented paranormal activity in the Bryan Room.
900 E 7th St, Bloomington, IN 47405
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Hotel rooms available; public areas free to enter
Access
Wheelchair OK
Indoor; multi-story building with elevator access
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1932 · World War I Memorial · One of Largest Student Unions in the US · Indiana University Historic Campus
The Indiana Memorial Union was dedicated in 1932 as a living memorial to IU students and alumni who died in World War I. Over subsequent decades the building expanded multiple times to its current sprawl of more than a million square feet, making it one of the largest student unions in the country. The facility includes the IMU Hotel, several restaurants, the Indiana Memorial Union Bookstore, and dozens of meeting rooms including the wood-paneled Bryan Room.
The building's age and the transient nature of a student hotel have produced a steady accumulation of unexplained-incident reports. Ghost trackers conducting an investigation in the Bryan Room documented EVP recordings and a chair that moved without contact. Two portraits hanging in the building are specifically identified in local paranormal lore as sources of unease, with individuals reporting the sensation of being observed or followed after passing them.
The Indiana Daily Student reported in 2024 on the building's reputation, citing witness accounts of shoulder taps with no one present and the sound of faint laughter from empty hallways. IU's annual Ghost Walk, a tradition organized through IU Folklore, includes the IMU as a named stop, anchoring the building's haunted status within the university's own programming.
Sources
The Bryan Room sits at the center of IMU paranormal reports. Investigators conducting a session there documented EVP recordings — electronic voice phenomena captured on audio equipment — and observed a chair move without physical contact. The specificity of these accounts, attached to a named room in a named building, sets them apart from generic haunted-hotel lore.
Beyond the Bryan Room, accounts describe shoulder taps experienced when hallways are empty, and laughter from spaces that turn out to be vacant. Two particular portraits hanging in the building are identified in local legend as unsettling objects — visitors report a persistent impression of being watched. The Ghost Walk organized annually through IU Folklore lists the IMU as a stop, giving institutional weight to the stories.
Book a room in the IMU Hotel, located within the historic union building where paranormal activity including shoulder taps, faint laughter, and self-moving objects has been reported by guests and investigators.
Explore publicly accessible areas of the IMU including the Bryan Room, where EVP recordings and a self-moving chair have been documented by investigators, and view the two reportedly haunted portraits hanging in the building.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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