Ralph Cram was an American architect of collegiate and ecclesiastical buildings, often in the Gothic style. In 1911 Cram accepted a commission to design Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Cram worked for Princeton and MIT. Cram authored numerous publications and books on issues in architecture and religious devotion. Black Spirits and White is a book of ghost stories published in 1895. Stories included are No. 252 rue M. le Prince -- In Kropfsberg keep -- The white villa -- Sister Maddelena -- Notre Dame des eaux -- The dead valley.