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	Vol.7, No 31, October 21, 1999
	Friendly ghost may haunt downtown furniture store By Rebecca Brown Daily Forty-Niner The Z Gallerie, a home furnishings store in downtown Long Beach, has its own resident ghost, whom employees affectionately call "George." Some employees, such as Robert Murphy, have reported strange occurrences including the store's elevator mysteriously opening and closing and noises that cannot be explained. "No one goes up to the second story of the store after closing time," said Murphy, a sales associate. "We send one person up there to straighten up, then we all work together on the first floor." Built in 1903, the three-story brick building has three gables and has Tudor influences, said Dominique Brummond, associate archivist for the Long Beach Historical Society. "We have no record or confirmation that the building is haunted," Brummond said. "What we do know is that the building was designed as a Masonic temple by an architect named H.S. Starbuck," she said. Murphy said weird noises are often heard in the store. "Several times we have clearly heard furniture sliding across the floor up there when all of the employees are accounted for," he said. Murphy said last Thursday was a particularly active day for their resident spirit. "I was minding my own business, cleaning up in the gallery area on the first floor, when a rather large picture hanging on the wall flew off right in front of me," he said. Murphy said he believes only George could have caused such a commotion. "It couldn't have possibly just fallen off that way, and no one  else was within 20 feet of where I was, so I know no one was playing a trick on me," Murphy said. On that same day, Murphy said dishes flew off of tables and shattered. A candleholder also came off of the wall as he passed by. "I have never seen the ghost," he said. "I don't recall anyone ever seeing him, so I think he does these things to make his presence known." Murphy is not the only one who has seen the ghost in action.  Salesman Rodney Ainsworth has also seen the ghost play a few tricks. "One time, I was about to bring two barstools down to the storeroom, so I placed them in front of the elevator,"  Ainsworth said. "I went downstairs to release the elevator to the first floor. When I got to the basement, the elevator was open and the stools were placed inside. No one else was around, so there really isn't any other explanation for it." Employee Jason Robinson claims to have actually been pushed by the ghost. "I was folding linens on the second floor with Rodney when we both heard a sort of cracking noise coming from the ceiling,"  Robinson said. "Just after the noise, I felt someone push me from behind. It wasn't hard, just enough to knock me off balance." When he turned to see who pushed him, no one was there.  Ainsworth confirmed his story.		Study abroad fair hits CSULB   Students learn about life from dead   Spirits of past passengers haunt ship Scared stiff   Beer too costly   Money makes celebs unaccountable Faces of Halloween   The Flying Dutchman   Friendly ghost may haunt downtown furniture store   Halloween's origin not so frightening Fall 99 ISSUES DAILY 49ER HOMEPAGE
Forty-Niner Publications, Department of Journalism, California State University, Long Beach ©1999 All rights reserved.