A group of TikTokers in Washington DC broke into the former site of Howard University's School of Divinity and appeared to discover a trove of treasures inside, including abandoned books and statues deep in the archives.
Benjamin E. Mays Hall housed the department from 1987 to 2015, but when the staff moved to a new building on campus, rather than remove everything from the inside, they simply boarded up the building with plywood, leaving the place to fall into disrepair.
It made for an all-too-tempting search through the archives as the group posted their actions on social media.
The video shows the group prowling Mays Hall, running through the library, flipping through books and files and even lighting a fire extinguisher while inside.
A group of TikTokers broke into the former grounds of Howard University's School of Divinity, Benjamin E. Mays Hall, discovering a trove of treasures
The School of Divinity moved in 2015, leaving valuable materials behind
The exterior of the building featured intricate glass windows and frescoes
In 2015, the School of Divinity moved from Mays Hall, pictured, on the university's East Campus to a new home on the university's West Campus in Washington DC.
The TikTok creator admitted that the group initially had difficulty getting into the building because the doors and windows were boarded up, but the group persevered and was able to get in through a mechanical room.
Aside from hundreds of books, some dating from the 1860s and earlier, the building also seemed like a time capsule of sorts as the group unveiled forgotten computers and telephones from the 1980s and 1990s.
In 2015, the School of Divinity moved from Mays Hall on the university's East Campus to a new home on the university's West Campus.
At that time, all necessary educational content required to maintain the school's education was transferred to the school's new location, including priceless works of art, administrative files and other archival materials.
But due to the limited amount of space at the school's new location, the remainder of the school's belongings remained stored in Mays Hall.
When the staff moved to a new building on campus, instead of removing everything from the inside, they simply boarded up the building with plywood.
The group filmed their actions as they explored the abandoned building
The group discovered a broken statue simply lying on the ground
Abandoned books from archive found in 'creepy library'
Row after row of books were on display in what would have been the school's library
The building was a kind of time capsule, housing computers and telephones from the 80s and 90s
The group seemed to have a lot of fun generating clouds with a dry ice fire extinguisher
There also seemed to be room for students to sleep within the school
The school did not appear to be impressed by the TikTokers' actions, which they described as outright violation.
“Despite the university's efforts to remove historically relevant material from the site in 2015, the actions of those who trespassed and broke into Mays Hall remind us how some are willing to violate and violate the sacred boundaries of our beloved historically black colleges and universities threaten to encourage others to take similar actions,” the establishment said.
The university says Howard University's Department of Public Safety will increase security patrols at the site following the incident, while a full reassessment will take place regarding the building's contents to secure it from unauthorized access.
In the school's abandoned chapel, a grand piano also appeared to be in good working order
After spending some time inside, the group decided to head to the bell tower
The TikTokers even ring the bell, which will undoubtedly alert people nearby to their presence
In a long letter, the university accused the TikTokers of trespassing
“As DPS continues to investigate, we want to make it abundantly clear that the university condemns the unlawful entry of this group of misinformed individuals,” Dean Rev. Kenyatta Gilbert wrote in a statement.
“The University is taking the necessary steps to ensure that the School of Divinity's most precious archival materials remain in safe custody.
“We take this incident of trespassing very seriously and the Howard University Department of Public Safety (DPS) has already begun investigating the matter,” Rev. Gilbert said.