<p>The UMass story is definitely not true, as noted above. Thing is the library is 28 stories tall, which makes it one of the tallest college buildings anywhere of any kind, and it had a problem with the brick facade chipping. That was caused by a design change from stone to brick and the mortar not holding up and it happened back in the 70’s, just after it was built. They moved the most popular books - a quarter million out - and shut it down for repairs. That is how the legend started. The building has been completely renovated more than once since then.</p>
<p>I’m amazed by how these stories hang on. One of my favorites is the hideous name “rape stairs” for a particular staircase that leads up to Beacon Street behind a building at BU. The name dates to 2 assaults in the early 1970’s. Not exactly a current issue, but this name actually came up as a safety concern in conversation: well, they have this name so it must be dangerous. Uh, no. That area of Boston is likely safer than a small college town.</p>