Real Haunts

Is the Grand Union Hotel Haunted?

The Grand Union is the oldest hotel in Montana and one of the most haunted places in Fort Benton. One of the strangest incidents was when a cowboy tried to ride his horse up the main staircase and was killed by the manager of the bar. Guests have heard the sound of horse hooves on the stairs, and other entities as well.

A famous story is about a driver making a food delivery who noticed people in period costumes watching him from a window. When he asked about the event going on at the hotel, he was told that the room wasn’t occupied. Two women guests staying on the second floor reported watching “dancing” blue orbs all night. They were more fascinated by the lights than frightened.

Other activity includes flashlights rolling across a table and beds that were already made mussed up when no one is in the room. One apparition is thought to be Charles Rowe, who once managed the hotel.

Situated within the Scenic City of Chattanooga, Tennessee, the Read House is an upscale and remarkably busy hotel. Undergoing a twenty-five million dollar renovation, the downtown staple is a must stay for any visitor to the city. But behind all the polished marble flooring and original custom woodwork lurks some most bizarre paranormal activity.

Is the Read House Haunted?

The hotel was originally built in 1847 as the Crutchfield House by a philanthropic businessman named Thomas Crutchfield. The purpose of the hotel’s location was to serve as a prime place to stay once the railroads began passing through Chattanooga in 1850. The many trains brought with them lots of visitors to the Chattanooga area and the Read House, in particular, thus creating a very nice economy.

Of all things in 1861, future Confederate leader, Jefferson Davis actually stayed at the hotel and marked his stay with a speech delivering news to locals that the South was seceding from the Union. A fight ensued between Davis and some visitors as well as the locals and Crutchfield sold the hotel shortly thereafter. The new owner was a doctor by the name of John Read who significantly upgraded the property, adding to it even more luxurious architecture than ever before. Only somewhere along the way, a haunted spirit emerged.

The Ghosts of the Read House

Room 311 is the infamously haunted room of the Read House. According to local legend, a prostitute named Anna Netherly was murdered in the room somewhere around the end of the Civil War by a Union soldier. The legend implies there was a disagreement over money and the soldier slit Netherly’s throat, letting her bleed out and die on the floor in the room. While Netherly’s physical body might have been removed from the room, her spirit certainly remained.

Over the years, guests have reported paranormal activity in the room of all kinds. Objects have been moved, cold spots felt, as well as the faint and pale appearance of a young woman in period dress with a darkened slash around her throat. With visitors, Netherly’s spirit seems to only bother male guests,  having been many reports of male guests being touched by an unseen presence.

When the Read House underwent renovations in 2017 and 2018. Crews were going to replace all the doors in the hotel. When it came to removing the door to Room 311, it refused to come off the hinges. Construction workers attempted for hours, but it was the only door in the entire ten-story hotel that refused to be taken down. Crews had to resort to using a buzzsaw to physically cutout out the door from the jamb. Was this an issue of a deeply settled door? Or Netherly’s ghost somehow not wanting to let go of the past?

Despite the reputation of Room 311, it is fully available to stay in if one chooses to stay at the historic Read House. It brings on a refreshing change of pace for a city like Chattanooga that covets tourism and chooses to embrace its sordid history rather than bury it.

The Marshall House Haunted Hotel in Savannah, Georgia

The Marshall House was established in 1851 in Georgia’s oldest city of Savannah. The Marshall House would endure the Civil War and a bout of Yellow Fever early in its history, which provided a grand setting for the hotel to latch onto its ghostly inhabitants. Today the Marshall House is one of the most haunted hotels in America with a ghoulish history that might leave a few in disbelief.

Civil War Ghostly Remnants

During the Civil War Era, The Marshall House functioned as a Union hospital. In 1864, a frigid winter struck and the doctors were presented with a frightening problem. The doctors would be unable to bury the myriad of amputated arms and legs in the frozen ground. Their solution was grotesque in that it had them concealing the human remains underneath the floorboards throughout what is now the hotel.

It wasn’t until 1999 when the hotel was restored that workers uncovered the Marshall House’s gruesome secret. While replacing the hotel’s floorboards, the workers uncovered human remains. Little did they know the discovery would date back to the Civil War. Historians soon learned that the remains were from the old hospital and they were properly removed and the hotel restored. The ghosts of the Civil War had come full circle and the doctor’s secrets revealed.

Civil War Ghosts & Sightings at The Marshall House

The remains were cleared, but many paranormal remnants are still attached to the hotel. Ghosts envelop parts of the haunted hotel and have appeared as apparitions to guests. Many unexplained noises resonate in the late hours of night and even smells of rotting flesh inexplicably accost the senses. It has been reported on numerous accounts that the ghost of an amputee soldier walks aimlessly through the lobby of the hotel with his missing arm in hand as he beseeches guests to find him a surgeon.

Many Ghosts of Savannah’s Haunted Hotel

It is also said that the ghost of a woman haunts the ladies’ restroom and a stall will lock by itself. Late author Joel Chandler Harris was also a frequent visitor of The Marshall House before his passing, and various accounts have noted that there are times when the clacking of a typewriter can be heard reverberating from the room he used to stay in.

One guest reported being unable to sleep due to macabre noises and smells. At one point, she recounts, there was even the feeling of being touched by a paranormal presence. “I always felt very uneasy and utterly creeped-out at night,” she stated. She goes on to say that she “heard strange noises in the hall late at night” and that she was very unnerved by her paranormal experiences. She went on to report that her husband’s sleep was interrupted by what he said sounded “like a child giggling in the sitting area,” but when he got up to turn on the light no one was there.

There are many ghosts and haunts in Savannah, Georgia as it is noted as a historically haunted city. Savannah is home to a variety of ghost tours, haunted hotels, and spooky stories and The Marshall House one of the more famous haunt experiences in the state. If you stay at the Marshall, check in to hear some of the previous guest’s haunted stories as the hotel collects many of the spectacular tales for story time.

Haunted Rooms in the Marshall House

• The 4th floor is where the most haunted activity has been reported.
• Room 414 is the room that has had the most sightings. Children’s laughter can be heard. Doors have locked on their own and mysteriously unlatched.  Guests have had things move and often report a strange

What happened in Room 414? Are the ghosts of the Civil War finally at peace? Have all of the remains truly been discovered?

Marshall House Tips

If you want the 4th floor, book in advance. Also, when planning your stay at The Marshall House try for a Thursday or a Sunday as the hotel puts on a history talk in the library discussing the Marshalls, history of the haunted building, and the many stories and experiences with ghosts over the years. It makes for a great addition to your spooky stay.