Canada’s iconic Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is known for its legendary haunted stories about the tragic end of a bride to be and a helpful staff, even after their deaths.
Two elderly women checked into the hotel and called the bell desk for assistance after their keys wouldn’t work. The bellman on duty had other things to do and wasn’t able to help them for another 15 minutes.
Another bellman in plaid jacked came and helped the two ladies inside, and when the bellman on duty finally managed to get to the two ladies, they had already unlocked the door. He asked them how they managed and the two ladies said that an old Scotsman in plaid had helped them. The bellman turned white as that description fit perfectly with Sam McCauley, the former head bellman in the sixties and seventies. Problem was though, he had been dead since 1975.
Step into the storied halls of The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and experience its mysterious history. The iconic establishment has been tantalizing travelers with tales of hauntings and long-forgotten ghost stories since 1888, making it one of Canada’s most interesting haunted hotspots.
Introducing the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel
The Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is a historic hotel located in the Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. Built in 1888 by railway magnate William Cornelius Van Horne and designed by architect Walter S. Painter, the grand chateau-style building has been a Canadian landmark for more than 130 years.
Its picturesque setting in the Canadian Rockies at 1414 meters altitude makes it perfect for an unforgettable stay.
History of the Hotel
With its long and fascinating history, it’s no surprise the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel is rumored to be haunted. Built in 1888 for pioneering Canadian Railway chief William Cornelius Van Horne, the hotel was originally used as a grand chateau-style residence for railway employees before becoming a popular tourist destination.
The hotel has seen many events over the years, from royal visits to mysterious disappearances – all of which have contributed to its reputation as one of Canada’s top haunted locations.
There are more than one ghosts supposedly haunting the hotel, like Sam the bellman who is mostly spotted at the 9th floor, helping guests, but vanishing into thin air if you try to strike up a conversation or try to tip him.
The Bride of The Hotel
The most famous ghost of the hotel is the story of the Ghosts Bride. She even dates back to the 1920s and got so famous she even appeared on her own stamp and coin.
According to the legend, she was walking down the hotel’s marbled staircases on her wedding day. She was dressed up in her wedding gown, a long ting that dragged along the staircases. Some say she got her heel on the dress and slipped, some say she brushed up against a candle and burst into flames.
No matter what caused it, it ended in the same way, she died on those step before she were able to get married.
After her death, guests have claimed to have seen a ghostly figure ascending from the stairs, still trying to reach the last step. Others have claimed to have seen a woman wearing a wedding dress in the ballroom upstairs, dancing alone while she is still waiting for the first dance with her husband.
Watch Out for Room 873 – The Haunted Suite
The Fairmont Banff Springs is home to many haunted stories, but none quite as spine-tingling and mysterious as that of Room 873. According to local folklore and anecdotes from guests, the room’s occupants often experience strange noises, sudden temperature drops, and even the feeling of being touched in the night.
Some have reported seeing apparitions walking up and down the halls outside – though no one knows what the specter could be. Despite these eerie tales, visitors still flock to the hotel each year for a chance to encounter its legendary hauntings.
One of the theories about who is haunting the premise is the old legend that once an entire family was murdered inside.
Today the door is bricked up and looks like the rest of the wall in the hallway, but according to the stories, the ghosts of the murdered family still get out late at night.
In the outskirts of the moors in Cornwall with a dark history of smugglers and gothic romances. The Jamaica Inn is a perfect setting for a british ghost story, and according to the legends, it has many.
“Dead men tell no tales, Mary.” ― Daphne duMaurier, Jamaica Inn
Located in the rugged landscape of Cornwall, England, Jamaica Inn is said to be one of the most haunted places in Britain. Its walls are steeped with stories of ghosts, dust and deep secrets of smugglers and stolen goods and murdered guests – it’s a place that has enticed many looking for paranormal activity.
The Jamaica inn is said to be haunted by small children being mischievous, old smugglers lurking in the corners, blacksmiths that burned to death but are still handsy with the female guests and mysterious Victorian women in the dark shadows. So let’s put on our tricorn hat and bring our smuggled rum for a stay at the haunted Jamaica Inn.
History of Jamaica Inn
Jamaica Inn was built in 1750 as a coaching inn and has a long history of being a hideout for smugglers during the 19th century. It was originally known as The Jamaica Arms, but underwent many changes over time, including the addition of drunkards’ dens and clandestine accommodation for smugglers.
Over the years, it has served several purposes, most notably a coaching inn for local travelers. But what really sets it apart is its mysterious stories of hauntings by spirits that lurk in its passageways and hidden doorways.
Jamaica Inn lies upon the ancient Bodmin Moor – a wild and untamed landscape which has held a certain allure for centuries. The moor is full of legends, myths, and stories from both ancient Britain and more recent times. It was once home to people living in remote settlements and Iron Age Hillforts, as well as a hideout for smugglers and pirates.
Jamaica Inn The Novel
Jamaica Inn is perhaps best known for its namesake novel, written by Daphne du Maurier in 1936. She was inspired by the real Inn when she was staying there in 1930. It is also a song by Tori Amos which she wrote when she was driving along the cliffs in Cornwall and was inspired by all the legends she had heard of at the inn.
The book is a classic example of gothic romance, and tells the story of a young woman called Mary Yellen, who moves to the Cornish inn and becomes involved in the murderous activities of its inhabitants.
While some argue that Jamaica Inn is purely a work of fiction, many locals have cited uncanny similarities between their own experiences at the inn, and Daphne’s descriptions of unexplained events and hauntings in her novel.
The Ghosts of Jamaica Inn
Many believe that Jamaica Inn still remains haunted, with multiple unexplained occurrences taking place in the inn over the years. There have been countless investigations, even TV shows about the Inn. Especially an episode of the TV show Most Haunted in 2004 sparked a new interest in the old inn.
Most of the ghosts and paranormal things that have been spotted have been at The Smugglers Bar, The Stable Bar, which now is a museum, in the old bedrooms upstairs as well as in the restaurant and gift shop area.
Some claim to have seen faceless figures wandering through the corridors, while others have heard strange noises coming from empty rooms. Staff and visitors have many times heard conversations in a completely different language than English, some speculating that it could be old Cornish, meaning that these spirits can be really old as the language became extinct for a long time at the end of 18th century.
Ghost Hunting at the Jamaica Inn
Now the Jamaica Inn has opened up for its own weekends and late nights for ghost hunting at the inn. Perhaps you as well can experience seeing the highwayman in the traditional three cornered hat often seen passing through the doors before vanishing into thin air. Or perhaps the young mother in distress with her crying baby that also has been seen.
One thing the ghost hunters got on tape was a strange thing that happened on a Sunday on October 23rd in 2017, when the CCTV camera picked up something strange when the wall phone hanging by the bar looked like it was lifted before dropping to the floor. The staff member April was startled, and had earlier heard the bar door open without anyone entering. Nobody alive at least.
Have a look at the footage and see for yourself. What do you think?
The Mother with her Crying Baby
As mentioned, one of many possible ghosts at the inn is the many reports about people having heard a baby crying at the inn. This has apparently mostly been close to room 3 and 7, and the baby has been heard even if it has been confirmed that no baby has been staying at the inn at the time.
Most often this ghost is linked to the tragic story of Mary Downing. She was young and single, but had an illegitimate son. In 1934 she sued the landlord at the time, Thomas Dunn to make him recognise their son. Thomas Dunn was a married man, but the son ended up being christened Thomas Downing Dunn at Altarnun Church.
Hannah the Child Ghost
The baby crying is not the only child haunting the inn if we are to believe the rumors. There is the ghost of a small girl that has been dubbed Hanna that is said to roam the inn barefoot. One guest that stayed in room 5 once woke up and saw her wet footprints in the carpet that led to the wardrobe where there used to be a bathroom.
People have heard her running around their bedrooms at night and even claim that their feet have been touched in their sleep as they see her transparent figure by the side of their bed. There is a story about a service man that was so frightened that he fled his room and spent the rest of the night in his car.
In the later years there seems to be a bigger interest for the ghost of Hannah and people have started to write her letters and send her toys. And even these toys are said to sometimes move on their own.
The Murdered Stranger
Perhaps the most talked about ghost is the stranger that ended up murdered in the moors by the inn. His apparition around 1911 were especially noticeable as many reported about seeing someone who shouldn’t be there on the walls by the inn.
The inn has become shrouded in myths and legends over the centuries, with tales of apparitions seen near hidden staircases and secret rooms, eerie noises coming from the old stables even though no horses were ever kept there, ghostly figures roaming the grounds at night, and strange sightings in each of its many otherworldly locations.
One of the tales is the ghost of the murdered stranger that passed through the inn. Once a man was in the bar having an ale before someone called him to come outside. The stranger didn’t even finish his drink, but went into the night and was never seen again.
The next morning they found his dead body in the moors, but how he died and murderer was never found.
There have been reports of a stranger by the wall outside the Inn that neither moved or responded when people greeted him. Sometimes when the bar is closed and the inn is empty, there have been footsteps heard towards the bar, but no one reaching it, and some have speculated that it is the man returning to finish his ale.
Ever heard of the haunted Kehoe House? The historic Bed and Breakfast in Savannah is said the house is filled with ghosts and has more than one chilling story, from spectral lights to mysterious whispers.
Welcome to the haunted Kehoe House, a bed and breakfast hotel on Columbia Square in Savannah, known for its strange and chilling ghost stories within the historic rooms that are served with the breakfast.
The Kehoe House was finished in 1885 and Willam Kehoe, an Irish immigrant that made his fortune in an iron foundry moved into it with his wife and 10 children.
It was sold in 1930 and has since then been used as a funeral parlor, a boarding house as well as a home. In 1990 it was sold and renovated into a historic bed and breakfast that it operates as today.
Read about more haunted hotels around the world: Here
The Kehoe House is said to be inhabited by many spooky spirits, from mysterious voices to spectral lights. Some believe that the house holds many secrets from its past.
Strange Happenings at Kehoe House
Savannah is often dubbed as one of the most haunted cities in America and the Kehoe House is filled with many strange and creepy stories.
Several people claim to have heard mysterious whispers when passing by certain rooms, and others claim to have seen ghostly figures lurking in the corridors. Others swear to have been pushed by an invisible force and felt a chill down their spine when entering certain parts of the house. Whether these stories are true or not, remains a mystery!
The Funeral Parlor
The most often told story is that the Kehoe family is still haunting the house, both William and his wife Annie Kehoe are said to still be seen on occasions in their former home. But it is not the only thing that made the house haunted according to the stories.
One of the things that led the Renaissance Revival house to being dubbed as a haunted house was from when it was used as a funeral home.
The Kehoe House was used for this for around 5 decades and many believe that those that passed through Goette Funeral Home still lingers.
The Ghost of the Two Twins
Perhaps one of the most chilling aspects of Kehoe House is the unexplained sounds and noises. Many visitors have reported hearing mysterious whispering and strange voices echoing through the house, as if invisible spirits are exchanging hushed conversations deep within its walls. Some believe these whispers are coming from those trapped in limbo, while others simply ignore them and leave as quickly as possible.
Another of the ghost stories that are told on the haunted pub crawls and from the tour buses is the story about the ghosts of 2 of the 10 Kehoe children that supposedly died inside of the Kehoe House. The most told legend is the horrible tragedy of the two twin boys playing and getting stuck in the chimney. Slowly as ashes fell and were breathed in, they suffocated and died.
This is a story that has been debunked several times as there are no paper trails that support these claims. But even though the story about the chimney is a lie, there are those that claim to have heard the sound of children playing and laughing even if the Bed and Breakfast doesn’t allow children to stay there. Sometimes they have even heard the voice of a small child calling out: Mommy.
From rooms filled with terror to séances gone wrong and best seller horror books, discover what really goes on inside The Stanley Hotel and why some say its ghosts still haunt the grounds today.
The Stanley Hotel is known for its vibrant history, picturesque mountain views, and haunted past. The 140 room hotel in the Rocky Mountains has become an infamous stage for paranormal activity, from séances gone wrong to guests staying in rooms filled with terror.
Uncover what really goes on inside the hotel rooms and why some believe its ghosts still haunt the grounds today and why the Stanley Hotel is so famous.
Learn the Fascinating History of The Stanley Hotel
The Stanley Hotel has been a Colorado landmark since 1909 when it was first built by businessman Freelan Oscar Stanley with the help of his wife Flora. It was built for the upper-class Easterners and worked as a health retreat for sufferers of tuberculosis. It is still operating as a hotel to this day where they have expanded on the original hotel as well as tried to preserve it.
The place of Estes Park is a pretty remote place in Colorado, so why did a luxury hotel suddenly spring up here?
In 1903, Stanley was given less than 6 months to live because of tuberculosis and he was recommended to take some fresh air. He and his wife went to the Rocky Mountains like so many other people with the means to heal in the brisk fresh mountain air.
Thinking it would be the last place he would see, he instead recovered in the couple of months he spent there and he fell in love with the place, and he lived to be 91 years old. He then started constructing Estes Park into a summer resort town and building the Stanley Hotel.
The Stanley Hotel as a Haunted Hotel
Feel an air of mystery and intrigue that seems to linger within its rooms, each full of strange stories and some potentially haunted by those who passed through them over the years.
Read Also: Find out more stories about Haunted Hotels: Here
The Stanley Hotel’s eerie atmosphere—fully illuminated in Estes Park’s pristine night sky—has been featured in films, TV shows and artwork for decades. Its most famous appearance is in Stephen King’s classic horror novel The Shining— a tale involving ghostly apparitions, psychological torment and murder. Despite a rather peaceful history in the early years and not many traumatic happenings connected to the hotel, it has a very strong haunted reputation, especially since King’s visit.
Others say they’ve found themselves locked in an elevator with a ghostly figure inside and staff members whisper tales of unexplained children’s laughter echoing through the hotel’s hallways. Ghost shows, paranormal researchers as well as guided ghost tours are all trying to get to the bottom of the supposed haunted hotel.
The Shining
“The Shining” is a classic horror novel penned by the renowned author Stephen King. Published in 1977, it delves into the story of Jack Torrance, who becomes the winter caretaker of the secluded and eerie Overlook Hotel. As Jack and his family, including his psychic son Danny, endure the isolation and the hotel’s malevolent supernatural forces, they are gradually consumed by their own inner demons and the sinister history of the place. King’s storytelling and exploration of psychological horror have cemented “The Shining” as a seminal work in the horror genre, and has been adapted into a highly acclaimed film directed by Stanley Kubrick. The novel combines elements of the paranormal with the psychological, creating an atmosphere of dread and unease that lingers.
As mentioned the book was inspired by the Stanley Hotel and the legends that surrounds it. King was inspired to set his book to the hotel after he spent a night there in room number 217 just when it was about to shut down for the winter season. This particular room transformed into the infamous room 237 in the book.
The exterior shots seen in the movie The Shining were filmed on studio sets and at the Timberline Lodge in Oregon, not The Stanley Hotel though. The interior scenes were filmed on sound stages in England. There was a mini series from 1997 on TV by the same name that were actually filmed at The Stanley Hotel.
Room 217
From disembodied voices heard in the hallways to unearthly shadows passing through rooms, The Stanley Hotel has plenty of spine-chilling stories. People who have visited over the years claim to have seen strange mists moving from guest room to guest room and feel a chill as they pass by Room 217.
So what is it about this room that has made it a hot spot for the alleged paranormal activity? During a Colorado snowstorm there was a housekeeper named Mrs. Elizabeth Wilson who walked around and lit up the acetylene lanterns in the hotel to prepare the hotel for the snowstorm that could cut off the power to the hotel.
Unbeknownst to her, there was a gas leak on the second floor that filled the entire wing with flammable gas, and when she lit a match inside of room 217 there was an explosion that destroyed the entire floor and she fell down into the MacGregor dining room below.
No one died and Mrs. Wilson only broke both her ankles. But the legend started to take hold in the hotel and many believe it is Mrs. Wilson is haunting the room after she died at age 90, many years after the explosion.
Guests who have been staying in room 217 are reporting of the lights turning on and off as well as claiming that their personal items are being moved around in the room. But perhaps there wouldn’t have been as many claims if it hadn’t been that Stephen King himself stayed there when he was inspired by his book.
Room 217: In the movie The Shining, the use of the haunted room of 217 is still used, although in a different way than in the actual The Stanley Hotel. Inside this room is the ghost of Lorraine Massey who used to to seduce young bell boys into her room. In the end she killed herself in disgust.
The Stairway Vortex
Another place that has gained attention for the strange things happening around it is the stairway connecting the hotel lobby to the second floor. Many think of it as a kind of tunnel of spiritual energy that attracts all the spirits and ghosts around the hotel and makes them stay.
This is what the mediums are saying, but are normal people just as affected as those claiming to be able to sense energy like that? According to guests and staff members, many feel dizzy walking down the stairs and there have been many ghost sightings in this staircase and some even claim to have it documented.
One of the more famous documentaries is a picture of what they think could be the ghost of a young girl as they claimed there was no one walking down the stairs at the time. This made headlines in the news and many look at this as convincing evidence for hauntings at the The Stanley Hotel.
So what do we think? Convincing evidence or obvious fraud?
The Concert Hall
One of the gifts the original builder made to his wife, Flora, was the concert hall. In it there was also a piano she would play as often as she could. After her death there is said to be classical piano music coming from the concert hall when there is no one inside late at night that fills the hotel.
Another ghost that allegedly haunts the place is Paul. He used to be the one enforcing the hotel curfew in the early years of the The Stanley Hotel that started at 11 sharp. Guests as well as staff have said they have heard Paul tell them to get out when it is too late.
The 4th Floor
In the early days of the The Stanley Hotel, the 4th floor was only used as an attic to store stuff during the closed winter months. It would later be rebuilt, first as lodging for females as well as their children. Then even later the 4th floor would be remade into hotel suits.
Today, many guests complain about the noise of children running through the halls, laughing as they play throughout the night. When they open the doors for a closer inspection though, there are no children in sight.
The Child Ghosts: In the movie The Shining, the ghost twins plays a prominent role. The Grady sisters are two ghost girls who were murdered by their father Delbert Grady, when he was possessed by ghosts.
Inside of the rooms, especially in room 428, there are reports about people’s stuff being moved around. Especially the clothes they just casually threw away would be tidied away and folded in the drawers.
In addition to children playing in the late hours, there is also a rumor of it being haunted by a local cowboy.
His name was James Nugent, otherwise known as the Rocky Mountain Jim, a local man that was pretty well known in the town. He was known as quite a ladies man, and people tell that they are surprised when they wake up and see the ghost of him standing by their bed. Female guests are particularly bothered and straight up harassed by him, and he is said to try to give them kisses in the middle of the night when they try to sleep.
The Underground Caves
Under the The Stanley Hotel there is a very intricate underground cave system underneath it where the employees used to discreetly get around the hotel to not be seen by the guests.
Those still working in the The Stanley Hotel say that there are some activities still going on in those caves. The smell of freshly baked goods has been thought to be from one of the pastry chefs that worked at the hotel when it first opened.
The Icehouse
Before refrigerators and freezers became an indoor thing with the help of electricity, people used to store food outside in cold ice houses. There they also stored large blocks of ice to use in the bar for fancy drinks.
Today the ice house is reworked into a museum to hold old cars at the hotel, and there are said to be two ghosts inside. One of them is a kid named Billy that tends to show up rather blurry in photographs. Who he was in regards to the The Stanley Hotel is unknown though.
Stay at the Haunted Hotel
So those are some of the most famous ghost stories and places around the The Stanley Hotel where there are reported a lot of paranormal activity.
These stories, combined with King’s famous novel and other supernatural legends attached to the grounds, have made The Stanley Hotel an alluring attraction for those interested in eerie secrets. And the hotel itself has decided to really lean into the haunted rumors with their own ghost tours.
So, would you like to have checked in and stayed a night for yourself?
Before it was renovated, the staff working at Radisson Blu Hotel in Bergen kept seeing the same ghostly guest over and over that never checked out.
The Radisson Blu Hotel is built all the way on Bryggen in Bergen and is some of the oldest parts of the city. And although the way it looks now seems modern enough, some old things are maybe still lingering.
Before they did some major renovations at the Radisson Blu some years ago, the staff that worked at the hotel kept noticing strange things on the second floor close to the nightclub located inside the hotel.
According to them, the staff kept seeing the same guest over and over again around the hotel but when they looked further into it, strange things about this man were revealed. Turns out, no one had checked him in, but then again, no one had checked him out either.
The Ghost on the Dancefloor
In the mornings the staff would bump into him in the hallways, especially around the second floor. The man would look like he was ready to party and he would be holding a glass of beer. Other stories from the staff was that they kept finding the glass lying around even if they were certain they had cleaned everything the day before.
There were also stories about something making the revolving door into the kitchen move without there being someone entering. The ones working there blamed the supposedly eternal guest from the dancefloor.
The employees at the Radisson Blu Hotel felt so uneasy and they kept reporting about a shadow that followed them through the corridors or seeing someone on the dancefloor, long after closing.
The Haunted Elevator
It was especially in the elevator that they noticed strange things that seemed out of place. To use it you had to have a special code and was reserved for staff use. But it started to stop at the second floor, close by the nightclub constantly. When the door opened, there was no one there, and the hallway was dark.
So who could the ghost that never left the hotel? Some unfortunate soul that ended his days on the dancefloor, or perhaps just a man that roamed around the hotel without a room?
The Idanha Hotel has a long story of being haunted. And even after it was renovated to apartment buildings, the stories about the misty apparition, the elevator with a will of its own, and whispering voices in the halls still happens in the building.
The old hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho is a historic hotel that was built in 1901 with a long and supposedly bloody history that is still being told in the corridors and whispered about inside the apartments.
Today the old French-chateau style building has been converted to apartments, but until its renovation it was used as a hotel and restaurant that caters to wealthy people from all over the country as it was considered to be the hotel in Boise as a stop on the Oregon trail or just to have some fun downtown.
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During the renovation to make it from a hotel to an apartment complex, the workers reported on strange things happening around them as they worked. Lights turn on and off without someone there as moaning sounds from certain places in the building can be heard without no one there. There is also a strange gray misty apparition that has been spotted without a good explanation.
There are numerous reported sightings about the building and residents in the apartment building have connected their strange experiences to certain stories, where some of the stories they experienced supposedly made them so scared they moved out.
Haunting on the Upper Levels
Not all hauntings stay as just a misty apparition in the corner of the eye or a sound that you may or may not hear. There have also been reports about something sinister going on in the upper floors. People have said that a certain something pulls them out of their beds. But for whatever reason or what it can be is still to be found out.
One of the ghosts that are supposedly haunting the building is a bellboy that worked there in the 1970s. He was shot dead by a guest at work and has been to blame for the elevator malfunctioning. He is known to move the elevator up and down without any people going, especially to the fourth floor where he was reportedly killed.
Some residents have also claimed to have seen his ghost peeking around the corners of the building. Hard evidence that this ever happened has not surfaced though and the story usually ends in its own rumor.
Hauntings at the Lower Levels
On the second floor there is a story of a woman that was murdered by her husband in the 1920s. She was reportedly murdered with a pair of scissors and now is said to roam the halls. There are many stories of residents hearing, talking and walking outside their doors, but when they open, there is no one there.
In the basement there is also a legend that is told again and again. It is said a woman was killed and buried there. She still lingers there as her body is buried underneath the building as well according to the legend. There have never been found a body under the basement floor however that has been revealed to the public, and the story is just that for the moment – a story.
The Future for the Old Idanha Hotel
The building is considered to be one of the landmarks of downtown Boise and is beloved because of the fine architecture and local stories. The apartments have residents that stay for decades and it is a very difficult place to get into apparently.
But there are also stories that tell something else. Although a much sought after place to stay, some of the strange encounters the residents have experienced have supposedly made them so scared that they decided to move out, unable to stay in the haunted space for long.
Refusing to leave their home, the ghosts of Ann Starrett mansion still reside in the Victorian house, haunting the place in Port Townsend.
In the city of Port Townsend in Washington, the place is known for its many old Victorian and historical buildings. The place itself was once called, The City of Dreams and a safe harbor.
It’s here a Queen Anne-style mansion that is said to house the dead stands. Built in 1889 by Georg Starrett for his wife Ann, it is said that even in their afterlife they spend their time in this Victorian mansion.
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The House of Four Seasons
For many years the house was used as a motel, and the guests reported about a particular feeling when staying there. A haunting feeling for sure, but perhaps not of the spooky one. The beautiful frescos in the ceiling represented the four seasons and worked as a solar calendar, nicknaming the house The House of Four Seasons as well as Port Townsend’s most haunted.
The Starrett family was living in the mansion for many generations from then on and many will claim that they never really left. For more than twenty years they lived with their only son Edwin, two servants and their nanny, and it is said to have been a happy time for them. So happy that they never left?
The Ghosts in the Ann Starrett Mansion
The House of Four Seasons: The Solar Calendar fresco where the ghosts have been spotted.// Source
There is not only one ghost that has been spotted in the house over the years. The first one is a female ghost with red hair, believed by many to be Ann herself, still the woman in the house. It is said she is seen as a more peaceful spirit than a restless one and she is spotted more than once by the solar calendar that George built for her.
There also has been seen a man believed to be Georg Starrett that also lingers in their home, even after their death. He is often seen accompanying the red haired ghost in the halls and down the stairs. A sign that even in their afterlife, the happy couple stayed together.
The third ghost that has been seen is said to be the spirit of their son’s nanny and her presence has been sensed especially in her old bedroom with her face showing up in the mirror. This is the ghost that often is blamed when something of the more paranormal occurs, like pictures on the walls falling, turning on and off the lights when no one is in the room or smacking peoples head when they say something offensive.
The Future Hauntings of the House
Although a beautiful thing to behold, the house has seen its difficult times being on the market, even though the haunting itself was not something that received any complaints from the owner themselves. For years it was used for a boutique motel before the owners wanted to sell. For twelve years in the early 2000s, they struggled to find a buyer for the house and one can wonder if the spirits in the house much preferred that.
By 2022 though the house was back again as an airbnb for now, and it looks like the permanent residents will continue to be the original owners in the afterlife.
Haunting the iconic Agua Caliente Casino and Hotel in Tijuana, the performer known as La Faraona remains like a ghost from the Golden Age of the Sin City.
During prohibition times in the US in the 1920s, people flocked to the borders to have a drink and a good time. The border towns also become a hot spot for smuggling activity and flourishing establishments that would quench peoples thirst.
Tijuana was one of these border towns that saw a golden age and growth during this time. People came from the whole world to get a drink while gambling at their casino and watch horse racing and bullfighting. For the conservatives, Tijuana became known as a Sin City or was even called Satan’s Playground.
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The demand for a good time was profitable however and attracted many people south of the border, and many resorts were established for this particular need. One of these places was Agua Caliente Casino and Hotel that opened in 1928. It was like the American Monte Carlo and Deauville that attracted American celebrities, Mexican politicians, diplomats, gangsters and gamblers alike during the 30s. This is the time that is remembered as Tijuana’s golden age.
The hotel in Tijuana in Mexico in Baja California is said to be haunted now however, and the glamor it once held, is now under the layer of dust and only a footnote in history. It is now a high school and many of the reports of the haunting come from the students themselves. There are many stories, and especially about a woman walking past the student, whose feet don’t even touch the ground. The legend of this ghost has been called La Faraona.
The Dancing Ghost La Faraona
Agua Caliente is a place where performers had the chance of being discovered and making it big. Rita Hayworth was one of those while she was playing a show at the hotel. She went on to be a famous Hollywood star and a cultural icon. But there was not every performer that managed to get out of Tijuana.
Satan’s Playground: The Agua Caliente was a famous tourist spot for a weekend away. It was also a place were many performers were employed and made famous. On the other end it was a place were many illegal activities took place. // Photo: Guy Sensor Landscape Photo, courtesy of San Diego History Center Photo Archive.
It is said that a female performer haunts the former hotel that was built atop of a natural hot spring. In many versions she worked as a singer, but in the most detailed stories, she was a dancer in one of the more popular shows. A flamenco dancer from Spain. The stories told at the school call her La Faraona, apparently her stage name as the star in one of the many shows at the casino at the Agua Caliente.
She was supposedly also known as being somewhat of a good luck charm to keep at your side by the gambling tables at the casino. By her many admirers, she gained a lot of wealth in the form of diamonds and jewelry and there are rumors that she hid her treasures by the minaret which is the place her ghost has been spotted many times.
Crime of Passion
La Faraona: According to the legend, La Faraona laced her lovers drink with poison and they both ended up dead.
She was in a relationship with a man at the resort. Some call him Mr. Patrick, a British gentleman and a dealer that had made money on the alcohol smuggling business. In some accounts, he was even in Al Capone’s mafia. In all accounts however, it ended in tragedy when La Faraona killed him.
Why she did it differs from one version to the next, but it is usually by poison. In some accounts, she only poisons him, but in many versions, she does it to both of them. She supposedly poisoned her lover after stealing his money or after she realized he wasn’t intending to bring her back with him to England. In some versions it was because she saw him with another woman.
Apparently she laughed in his face when she poisoned him and even told him there was an antidote for it that she wouldn’t give him. He ran after her to get the antidote from her but didn’t get it. He then shot and killed her.
This also meant that he would never find the antidote to the poison as well and he too died. Or they both died by the poison she laced their drinks with. Now they both haunt the former hotel where they ended their days.
A Real Murder at the Hotel
When we look at the historical facts, there are only one murder registered at the Agua Caliente, although who knows how many that never made it to the public really happenend, we will never know.
But a dancer working for the past four months at the Agua Caliente was found on 26. March in 1934. Named Esperanza López was found murdered in one of the bungalows at the premise that were kept for the artists at the casino. She had been shot by her husband who also worked at the hotel named Rodrigo Prieto.
The hotel closed down in 1938 when the prohibitions were lifted in the states, and Mexico forbade gambling. Then the building was turned into a private school named Lázaro Cárdenas High School where the stories about the hauntings mostly came from.
And the students at the school keep insisting on seeing her ghost roaming about the place as she is never leaving the Agua Caliente.
Even the home of the priests can’t keep the ghosts at bay. And in this house, the ghosts outnumber the living.
Haunted: Many ghosts have been reported haunting this house throughout the years since it was built.
In the idyllic countryside of Sweden Borgvattnet is an old village deep in the forest. There are around 70 people living there, going about their business in the serene landscape of green trees. In this small village, the Borgvattnet Vicarage, a building from 1876, lies, used to house the priests connected to the local church. There are many residing in this vicarage, adding to the number of people in the small place, although not exactly living.
More than once has the Swedish news media as well as a number of paranormal researchers found their way up to the quaint vicarage, looking like a cute inn to relax and enjoy nature as it has been open to the public since 1970. But the rooms available for rent are not necessarily just for you. The rooms are already all occupied by the ghosts, and therefore, it has earned the name of Sweden’s most haunted house.
The Ghost Priest
The story was first only whispered among the priests living there as well as inside the church of Sweden. But one priest would break the silence and make it the most famous place in the country at the time.
When the priest Erik Lindgren came as the new priest of his area, he came alone. The furniture was still something he was waiting for to settle into the old vicarage that was to be his own home. Therefore he was surprised and a bit scared when he started hearing stuff from the second floor. It sounded like heavy objects being dragged across the floor. When checking he found the second floor to be empty. There was no furniture there, and there was no one in the house but him. Or so he thought in the beginning, but it was only the start of the paranormal hauntings he was about to experience, living in this house.
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Although it was not something that had been spoken about publicly before the haunting of the house was well known within the church. In 1947 that was about to change as a journalist heard about the haunting of the vicarage. He got the priest, Erik Lindgren to tell about his experiences and an article was published on the matter. The curiosity was overwhelming from the public and Lindgren himself had to block his phone in the end because of all the journalists trying to get to him to talk about the paranormal occurrences.
Lindgren was meticulous and noted down every strange encounter in detail he experienced. But the list got so long that he stopped when he just accepted this was just a part of his everyday life. There were a lot of different activities going on in the lonely house. Everything from light turning off and on, invisible figures “crashing” into him making it hard to work and always giving him a feeling of someone watching him, never giving him a moment’s peace. From the second floor where he had the first day of the house heard heavy stuff being dragged over the floor, footsteps when there was no one there was constantly heard.
The worst experience though, was on this particular day when he was sitting in his rockin chair, reading a book in 1945. The chair started to rock harder and harder so violently that he fell on the floor. When he sat down again, it happened once more, making it hard to stay seated. He felt a force from behind, going through him. His legs started to shake and he lost footing, falling on the ground. After this interview, the chair got famous and in the 60s, it turned up on one of Sweden’s entertainment shows before being bought back to the vicarage in the 80s.
Some of the spotted ghosts:
So many encounters of different kinds have been reported. Shadow of a man passing by, the sound of footsteps coming to the front door and music playing out of nowhere. Some of the ghosts though, have a bit more story to them.
The Gray Lady
More and more priests started coming forward with their stories. Like the priest Rudolf Tängdén who was also sitting in the great hall reading in 1930. Suddenly a gray clothed lady appears in the corner of the room. She walks towards him, taking small slow steps before changing direction, turns and walks into the office. He followed, but found nothing when he entered.
The Crying Ladies
Ghosts in the Rooms: The rooms in the vicarage each carry their own ghost legend.What makes this particular house so haunted?
In the house there is a room called ‘the cryers room’. It’s been called that since the notary for the church, Inga Flodin stayed there on a business trip in 1941. She stayed in that very room and was awoken during the night. She finds three figures sitting on the couch, watching her intently. She turns on the lights, but nothing changes, they are still sitting there, staring. Flodin pinches her arm as well as letting her alarm clock ring to check if she really is awake. But, yes, she is. She notices that they all look incredibly sad, wearing a black, a purple and a gray dress. One of them is knitting. The woman in the gray dress looks particularly sad with red circles under her eyes. In a staring deadlock, Flodin can not do anything but stare back, petrified as well as curious and confused about what is going on. However, eventually she falls asleep.
The Maid’s Baby
In the pink room there are those claiming to hear the sound of cries of a baby, even baby figures have been spotted around on the property. Story goes that at the end of the 1800s, an unmarried maid gave birth out of marriage. There were also rumours that the father was the priest in the house at the time. The maid was then locked up to the birth of the child that never grew up. Most likely the child was killed and buried on the north side of the house, outside the pink room. Now both the maid and the baby wander the house.
The Dead Priest Wife
One of the first documented sightings of ghostly activity came from the priest Nils at the start of the 1900s. Nils had grown up in the house as the priest’s son before he himself became the priest. Through the years he experienced stuff in the house he was sure was his mothers doing. Like the time when he watched all the clothes on the clothesline being ripped from the line.
His mother was Martha and died young giving birth to Nils. His father, Per, didn’t take the death of his beloved wife well. It was a cold spring and the ground was still too hard for the body to be buried. Therefore it was stored in the house as Per simply couldn’t be parted from his beloved. And it might have been a bit too long. In any case, several of the guests have also seen shadows and shapes, pulling their clothes, sitting in the bed, in none other than in the yellow room, the same room where Märta died.
One of the more well known Icelandic ghost stories that are told over the cold and desolate island, is the haunted hut in the middle of nowhere. Here the ghost of a lady in gray is haunting the place. This is the story of Hvítárnes hut, one of the most haunted places in Iceland.
South on the Island of Iceland a small hut is placed on a field in the middle of nowhere. From it you can look far into the distance in every direction, nature, beautiful nature, lonesome nature that in the winter turns pitch black. And the legends surrounding the Hvítárnes hut, is of the paranormal sort.
The Icelandic Touring Association built the lodge in 1930 for a place off the road were one could be in peace in the southern highlands of Iceland. The turf roofed hut is protected by Icelandic law because of its old age and uniqueness. The hut is the oldest mountain hut owned and operated by the Ferðafélag Íslands, The Iceland Touring Association.
The hut, the name of it meaning white is far from everything else and the closest neighbour to the hut is some old farm ruins in the distance. Farming was a way of living here in the old days, although, no one lives there all year today, and the only true neighbours are the echos from the surrounding mountains.
The Haunted Hut In solitude: Hvítárnes hut in the wild is one of the most well known icelandic ghost stories. There are stories about a woman haunting the little hut in the wilderness and many of the guests have felt her presence.
To the north towers Iceland’s second largest glacier, Langjökull over the horizon, always reminding the passing summer there is a cold winter after it that will take over the landscape. In the winter, storms can havock the highlands for days, making the area harsh in the winter, and green in the brief summer.
The Most Haunted Place in Iceland
Today it’s those fond of nature and solitude that are drawn to this place, to Hvítárnes hut. The hut has two floors and room to 30 persons in bunk beds with a warden watching the place during the summer months. The kitchen is narrow, but has running cold water and a gas oven and the toilet is outside. In other words, the Hvítárnes hut is a place for people seeking something simpler. Although, perhaps the rumours and legends of ghosts are not really a part of that simple life.
Hvítárnes hut is said to be one of the most haunted places in Iceland, and that is saying something for a country so steeped in the supernatural ways and legends. Since Hvítárnes hut was built, the hut has had complaints about something lurking, howling as the winter storms outside, although no one can really pinpoint exactly where or from who the howling is coming from.
Read Also: Check out all of our ghost stories in haunted houses from all over the world
Story goes that when guests arrive late at night, maybe coming down from hiking the ancient Kjölur hiking trail, they have vividly seen the face of a woman inside the hut through the window, expecting to meet her when entering. But once inside, there is no one but the gathering dust and coldness of solitude. However, as the short days and long nights in Hvítárnes hut passes, the ghost of this female present won’t leave the guests alone.
The Ghost of the Woman in the Window
According to the stories, the ghost of this mysterious woman you can see through the window, is refusing the guests to get a good night sleep after a long day in the wilderness and she is persistent in making her presence become known for the guests.
What she does varies, but it is often during their sleep they can feel her presence. She is been known to almost sit on top of people chests, pressing them down so that they are unable to breathe as well as being haunted by horrible nightmares.
Sometimes she even kicks them out of the many bunk beds they were assigned to. There are particular male guests that have been tormented, some even driven out from the warm hut out in the freezing cold because of the fear of what the ghost of the woman are capable of.
Read Also: Check out ghost stories from haunted hotels from all over the world you can check in to.
There is especially this one bed in the hut that are rumoured to be the most haunted one, and if you are so unlucky to be placed on it, try to move or accept that you might not get a good nights sleep. According to the stories no one are able to get a good rest on the bed and it’s nicknamed the ‘ghost bunk’ or ‘her bed’. The bed is placed on the opposite way than the rest of the beds by the door, so it’s easy to see if you got the short end of the stick.
The Ghost in the Window: According to many of the guests staying at the hut, they claim to have seen a woman in the window. Many also reports of having their sleep disturbed by something paranormal. Who can she be, is there really a ghost haunting this place?
In all lodges with a long history as this and as many guests passing by, there must be a guest book. Guest Books are meant to leave nice messages about your stay, how the weather was, and how the days went by in the little hut. And in this one, countless of frightened visitors have scribble down how they slept in their car instead, or didn’t get a single minute of sleep because of the hauntings. Someone just scribbling down the word: Ghost. This is a very old entry as well, and it shows that the hut has been deemed haunted for a very long time.
Who is the Ghost Haunting Hvítárnes Hut
There are several theories of who this girl can be. The building was built for travellers, and no one ever lived in the hut. Perhaps it is a lost traveller that disappeared a long time ago, trying to seek shelter. Perhaps there is something about the ruins of the farm that can shed some light of this?
Just a stone throw away from the hut there have been discovered traces of the ruins of a village, at least settlements called Tjarnarkot. Could the ghost be from this time? It is said to have been inhabited as soon as Iceland was discovered, but after Hekla, the volcano erupted around 1104, the place was deserted. Was it before this? Was it after? Was it ever?
There are many theories of who she could be, and they are almost all linked to the farm ruins nearby. Some claim that there was a girl working for the farmer and his wife once upon a time. The farmer tried to sleep with the girl once, but she refused him. Angered by her refusal, he locked her outside in a snowstorm, which around these parts can rage for days. She died in the snowstorm. But the farmer didn’t live long after as his wife killed him to avenge the poor girl that was under their care.
A Country of Fairy Tales: Iceland is a highly superstitious country. Here is a little cottage made for the fairies they believe lives on the island. There are plenty of places were they think these supernatural creatures lives, and they even have the modern infrastructure like making roads go around so not to disturb them.
Another theory of what happened is that she was the farmers wife, and her husband cut of her arm and drowned her in a lake nearby. Another is that she died after being left by him while pregnant. Classic tales of female ghosts in these icelandic ghost stories. All trying to explain why she mostly goes after male guests.
Whoever she is, she refuses to leave. In 1996, there was a priest named Björn H. Jónsson that blessed the hut, but to no avail, she won’t leave Hvítárnes hut. Books, podcasts, the news and paranormal researchers of icelandic ghost stories have tried and failed to find her identity or proof of her existence for years. And she is not likely to be leaving anytime soon. She has been her long before the guests started arriving at the hut, and she will be staying long after they have gone.
An online magazine about the paranormal, haunted and macabre. We collect the ghost stories from all around the world as well as review horror and gothic media.
