Old Morrison, Lexington, KY, Guide du visiteur et quoi faire à proximité

Old Morrison is the historic main building of Transylvania University on West Third Street in Lexington, Kentucky. Designed by the Kentucky architect Gideon Shryock and completed in the early 1830s, it is a Greek Revival landmark that has survived war and fire. It also holds one of the city's odder stories: a tomb said to contain the remains of the naturalist Constantine Rafinesque.

The story behind it

Old Morrison was built between 1830 and 1834 to a design by Gideon Shryock, one of the first notable architects to work in Kentucky. It became the central building of Transylvania University, one of the oldest universities west of the Allegheny Mountains. During the Civil War it served as a hospital, treating both Union and Confederate soldiers. A fire gutted it in 1969, and it was rebuilt and reopened in 1971. Its image appears on Lexington's city seal.

Inside is the tomb of Constantine Rafinesque, a gifted and quarrelsome naturalist who taught at Transylvania from 1819 until 1826, when he left after a dispute with the university's president. He died in Philadelphia in 1840. In March 1924, remains believed to be his were brought to Lexington and placed under a stone reading "Honor to whom honor is overdue." People have questioned ever since whether the bones are really his. The mystery has become a campus tradition, and students hold a lottery for the chance to spend a night by the tomb.

What to look for

• The columned front of the building, a good example of the Greek Revival style that Shryock brought to Kentucky.
• The stately proportions of the whole building, which makes it easy to see why it was chosen as the symbol on the city seal.
• The inscription on Rafinesque's tomb, "Honor to whom honor is overdue," which sums up his reputation as a brilliant scientist who was never fully appreciated.
• The surrounding campus grounds, where the old brick building sits among newer university buildings.

Tips for your visit

• Allow 15 to 20 minutes to look at the exterior and walk around the nearby campus.
• You can see the building from the street and the campus paths. Access inside can change, so check with the university before planning to enter.
• Morning or late afternoon light is kind to the facade and makes for good photos.
• Old Morrison is close to downtown Lexington, so it combines easily with a longer walk through the city centre.

See it on a quest

Old Morrison is one stop on Ghost Hunt in Lexington, and the Rafinesque legend suits a ghost-themed walk. You reach the building on foot as part of a longer route through the area, the app tells you about the place as you arrive, and you solve a puzzle based on what is in front of you. It is a paid quest, and one ticket covers the whole group. You can start whenever suits you, with no guide and no group to join.