Not all relics from the past can be displayed under glass and behind velvet ropes. Sometimes, pieces of history get up and walk for themselves.

The Hockey Hall of Fame, housed in a building which has stood for more than 150 years, originally home to a branch of the Bank of Montreal. The structure can be found at 30 Yonge Street, filled to overflowing with relics from one of the world’s longest-played games.

But the Hall of Fame holds another historical piece, one which has frightened many a visitor since the museum took up reference in the old building.

Her name is Dorothy, and she is hockey’s most famous ghost. Seen often by workers at the museum, she is said to be the specter of a young woman who committed suicide in one of the lavatories. Her motives are usually attributed to the loss of her life’s love, which so overpowered her that she took her life with a revolver.

After years of sightings, odd creeks, and speculation, Toronto’s “The Star” newspaper decided to investigate. What they found confirmed much of the legend’s oral tradition. Through extensive searches of their records, they came up with a name, date, and reason for her tragic decision.

Dorothea Mae Elliott was her born name, and she was nineteen years old on Wednesday, March 11, 1953.

She died, according to the Star’s article published a few short days later, “of a self-inflicted revolver wound to her head. Death came 22 hours after she was found in the washroom of the bank. Doctors were amazed she had lived for so long.”

The article goes on to state the following:

“Entering the office early, she was ‘kidded’, police said, by other employees about getting in so early. She shrugged her shoulders and smiled, then walked over to the messenger’s desk. Without being seen, she took the revolver and went to the washroom where she was found a short time later.”

The motive given was loneliness “for her boy friend who left during the week-end to take a job on the boats.” But this is rather ludicrous, don’t you think?

In reality, people close to her at the time have confirmed that she was having an affair with a married man who also worked at the bank.

Any way you look at it, Dorothy’s tale is a tragic one. But at least she’s haunting a place now held sacred by so many of her nation’s biggest sports fans. She could be stuck in someplace the the Figure Skating Hall of Fame, or maybe a museum dedicated to the greatest Canadian Pop Musicians. That would be truly terrifying.

- Taylor Maxwell

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Tags | Dorothea Mae Elliott, Dorothy, ghost, Hockey, Hockey Hall of Fame, nhl, Toronto, Yonge