The Witches of Whitewater
*NOTE: I just fixed the link to the movie preview. Our YouTube link was bad for an undetermined period of time. It is now working.
I just found this movie preview on YouTube thanks to an outside commenter, Kileen, who is a Whitewater native and former resident of Wells East. It appears the movie’s writers combined several items of Whitewater folklore (which were mentioned in our Halloween 2007 post) and fact and smashed them together to make a movie script.
The University of Wisconsin Whitewater was never a school for the occult, but there was the Morris Pratt institute in town, which was across the street from the old Red Owl (now the post office).
Hyer Hall was partially burned down during anti-war protests.
There is a legend of a book in the school’s possession, that when someone reads it, they die.
…many of these items can be found in the Halloween 2007 posting.
January 10th, 2008 at 8:57 pm
this was posted on the youtube comments…
imagenfilms (1 day ago)
This is a SPEC trailer for the actual film which has yet to shoot, as it is in pre-production. The actual film will be shot almost entirely on location in WI. Rest assured a great deal of research has been done on ACTUAL events, and although fiction will be mixed in, the final movie will be a fantastic psychological thriller/horror film.
January 11th, 2008 at 10:24 am
Sorry folks. The only thing remotely true about this movie is the partial burned building. Come on people. I’ve even done historical research on the town and theres nothing strange about it. It’s just a small boring town with a University. I have never heard anything about witches. And the only books on campus are ones that you’d wish you’d die before having to finish reading them.
January 11th, 2008 at 11:53 am
@Rock,
You are right on. If you read the post more thoroughly, you will see a link to a story where we covered a lot of the urban legends about Whitewater in this post…
http://uwwlca.com/2007/10/31/creepy-whitewater/
And you are right about the burned building (Hyer Hall during the war protests).
Thanks for commenting!
January 12th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Uhh no. You are wrong. I live in Whitewater and all this stuff if true. About the witches and everything. Doesnt sound realistic i know, but believe it because it IS true. Kay. Thanks. :].
January 21st, 2008 at 4:18 pm
I am a sophomore currently at UW-Whitewater and from the first day of my freshman year here I’ve heard the urban legends of witches and demons in this town. Lots of crazy stuff has gone on in this town including the burial site below the Wells Towers, and Whitewater is the Second Salem. I can tell you first hand that I have experienced many odd behaviors and events like windows that get closed but then are open moments later, doors that close on their own, and doors that open on their own even if their locked sometimes. “The book” exists (it is currently kept under lock and key by the dean in the university library) and it is a fact that at least six people that have read the book have gone mentally insane or have commited suicided… or was it really suicide?
January 28th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
Also if you rent any witchcraft books from the public library in Whitewater, you are have to sign a waiver saying the library is not resposible for anything that happens to you after you read the books or if you use the books for witchcraft in any way
February 19th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Can someone please send me more facts on this. I live in WI but have never heard of this any thing is helpful thanks
February 21st, 2008 at 6:01 pm
I have lived my whole life only a few blocks from UW-Whitewater. There has always been stories about witches. The three cemeteries in town make a perfect triangle. There are also underground tunnels in town. I’ve actully been in them when I was a kid. I don’t believe most of the stories, but there is some facts to what they say.
February 24th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
I am doing a group presentation on this haunted history of whitewater and after doing some research have read about alot of the same things posted here. However, much to my dissapointment. My speech teacher (J. Fassl), told me that the “book” everyone is talking about is just a book about whitewater written by one of the historical society members. I wish I could remeber the name of it, but ill post it if I remember
February 25th, 2008 at 11:35 am
@Chris,
Thank you for your comment.
If you can find out the name of the book, that would be great, please share it with us.
March 4th, 2008 at 11:04 am
Stories from your grandpa do not count as “straight facts.” All of this is just a bunch of stupid hearsay spread by drunk college students. Anyone wanna actually go through the microfilm archives at the public and university libraries and actually attempt to verify any of this? Documentation of these “weird stories”? Ghost sightings? You know, like actual research? Because then I might actually consider some of this, legend or not.
Yeah, I thought not. Well I guess we’ll just take as fact anything that someone’s grandpa or exgirlfriend’s former roommate’s brother said about something he heard about a library (though he’s probably never been in one.)
May 6th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
This is certainly news to me and I have had family in Whitewater since before WWII! My grandfather was a professor there (Joseph J. Chopp), my grandmother worked there, my mother and aunt graduated from there, my sister went there as well as some other relatives and not until tonight have I heard of any of this. If said book does exist I am the next president of the USA, and that is a job I do NOT want. The pre-trailer is cool but you need an IMDBPro account to access the info so if anyone has an account how about some verification on all this. Don’t expect much filming if any in WW due mainly to its loation and lodging capabilities. I live in the great town of Oshvegas (Oshkosh) and we recently had johnny Depp film part of his new movie Public Enemies (about John Dillenger) here. Getting lodging for everyone was a real challenge adn many of them had to stay in Appleton. Dillenger was never here but that is the way it goes with movies. Films are made in locations that will give the best mix of “authenticity” while also allowing the crew easier working conditions (for lack of a better phrase). That being said I too am stoaked to see the Witches of Whitewater when it comes out and for WWs sake there should certainly be some type of opening night event sponsored by the production company to celebrate.