Haunted Hotels

The Empress of Little Rock is an elegant bed and breakfast which originally served as a private residence for many years. The Empress of Little Rock is revered as one of the most haunted places in Arkansas and certainly the most haunted bed and breakfast.

Little Rock locals referred to the huge Victorian mansion as the Hornibrook Mansion. The Empress has a rich history and has served as a college for women, a boarding house, a nursing home and even apartments. Newer owners renovated the old home and turned it into one of the most loved inns in the entire state.

Despite its elegance, this bed and breakfast is home to multiple ghosts, including its former owner. Hornibrook himself died while playing a game of cards with friends at the age of just 49. Hornibrook was allegedly so worried that he might die young that he even had a death mask made of himself years before, which now hangs in the hotel. Its current owner believes that the man came to him and pleaded with him to renovate the hotel to its former glory. The owner’s wife also experienced cold spots and felt chills while working in the hotel.

There are a several other ghosts haunting the hotel as well. One ghost is of a former maid who workers sometimes spot standing quietly in rooms on the second floor and disappearing into closets. Others witnessed the ghost of a man in an old-fashioned captain’s outfit standing in the Empress. Guests also hear footsteps coming from empty hallways and the sounds of people talking in rooms that were completely empty for the night. The Empress of Little Rock is a great haunted place for those hoping to catch a glimpse of the paranormal.

Once owned by a wealthy man and used as a private residence, Cedar Grove Inn is now a hotel that is a popular place for weddings. Many of the couples who married there love knowing that the original owner built the home for his wife and that the two raised their children there. The couple had at least three children who died in the former home, which might explain some of the hauntings.

Those owners, John Klein and his wife Elizabeth, both haunt their former home. Guests sometimes see John sitting in his favorite chair and smoking a pipe or smell the lingering scent of pipe smoke hanging in the air. Others see Elizabeth herself in an old-fashioned dress standing at the foot of the stairs or walking down the stairs.

Many believe that the couple’s children haunt the inn as well. One of their children died during infancy, which explains the sounds of a baby crying that many hear when there are no babies staying there. Both workers and guests saw a little girl on the second floor. Though she sometimes looks confused and worried, she’s often in a good mood and seen playing and running in the halls. Some believe this is the same girl whose grave previous owners moved off the property. Other stories surround the ghost of a woman who committed suicide and men in Civil War era uniforms. Cedar Grove Inn has a gorgeous look, offers southern hospitality and seems content with the ghosts living their after lives there.