Haunted Hotels

The Haunted Congress Plaza Hotel

Built for the World’s Fair in 1893, the Congress Hotel’s famous, and spooky, history lays claim to many ghastly stories. With visits from America’s first serial killer to a one-legged ghost, the hotel has many ghost stories to sort through. These are only a few of the reasons the Congress Plaza Hotel is known as one of the most haunted hotels in America.

The Congress Plaza Hotel & Convention Center has played host to U.S. presidents and world-famous celebrities, but mortal souls aren’t the only visitors these days. The Congress is said to be home to dozens of ghosts.

Several tragic deaths have occurred in this grand hotel over its illustrious history. Even America’s very first serial killer, H.H. Holmes was known to meet young women in the lobby of the Congress only to coerce them to his Murder Castle which was only a few blocks away.

The Sealed Room

Sealed Rooms of The Hotel Congress. Where did room 666 and 209 go?

The room that should be 666 is boarded up. What could possibly have gone on inside those walls? It’s said that this was the most haunted room in the hotel and was sealed shut. Other rooms, such as room 209, have been sealed as well. Room 209 was reported to be, “too horrible,” and was sealed shut. Now you won’t even notice there was a door where 209’s entrance once stood.

The Ghosts of the Congress Plaza Hotel

The 6-year-old “Little Boy” is waiting for you to visit the 12th floor. In the 1930s, his mother was worried about being sent back to Nazi Germany, so in a complete panic, she threw her son out the window. He has been said to follow guests down the hall and back to their room. The 12th floor is considered the most haunted floor, causing some employees to refuse to work on it.

The 12th floor and 12th-floor roof access

Peg Leg Johnny, as some people call him,  has been seen by employees hopping around the hotel. Some people believe him to be Conway, a one-legged killer clown who in 1912 was arrested for murder just feet away from the hotel.

Haunted Rooms & Places in the Congress Hotel

• Room 441 is said to receive more calls of the spooky variety than any other room.
• The Little Boy haunts the 12th floor.
• The Florentine Room is a popular spot for weddings and parties that go late in the night. Some guests have seen tables and chairs move by themselves. Others have heard a young lady’s voice whisper in their ear.
• The South Tower appears to have the most paranormal activity.
• Sealed Rooms 666 and 209 were permanently removed from the hotel.

Al Capone’s Ghost at the Congress Hotel?

Many people have witnessed a heavy set man, roaming the halls at night, wearing an old suit. Is this the ghost of Al Capone? It is disputed that he stayed on the 8th floor of the North Tower. Our investigation leads us to believe that Capone may have made an appearance or two but he did not live at the hotel like many have reported. It’s more accepted that Capone’s thugs were at the Congress dealing with “business.” If you’re hunting for Capone’s ghost, try the haunted Arlington Hotel in Arkansas where he stayed on the 4th floor.

Say the word Georgetown and many paranormal enthusiasts and horror hounds are quick to respond with “where The Exorcist film took place.” By a rather large margin, they’d be correct in this factual assertion. However, there is another Georgetown approximately 2,708 miles away sitting in the middle of California. It is precisely in Georgetown, California where the eerie Georgetown Hotel and Saloon is located and it is most definitely haunted.

Is the Georgetown Hotel Haunted?

El Dorado County is home to Georgetown which was originally founded in 1849 by a wealthy prospector named George Phipps. At the time, this area was a burgeoning gold miner’s dream as chunks of it were being pulled from local mines. Naturally, to keep up with the flow of prospectors the Georgetown Hotel and Saloon was eventually built in 1852. Details on original owners and builders haven’t survived the ages and this was reinforced by the hotel suffering two devastating fires with one in 1856 and the other in 1896. One such casualty not of the fires was said to be that of a prostitute with the name of Myrna. She was a regular at the hotel’s saloon looking for prospectors who were down on their luck from not finding any gold. One night she was caught between two brawling clients and fell from the hotel’s second-floor window to her death in a freak accident. Myrna may have been buried long ago, but is she responsible for the paranormal activity at the Georgetown?

One of the more fascinating aspects of the Georgetown Hotel is that the decor is still best preserved over these many decades. Wood trim, flooring, and certain antiques are wholly original to the time period of the saloon’s heyday. With simple lighting fixtures, there’s a natural dimness to the hallways and rooms which of course is a great contrast to the presence of light orbs! Orbs have been seen in rooms all throughout the hotel, and from guest reviews, they’re not in any malicious red or solid black colors. Aside from light orbs, rooms number five and nine are both believe to be haunted by the spirit of Myrna.

Guests have reported seeing the faint apparition of a frail-looking woman, in period piece clothing, who looks to be in great distress. There have been any negative reports of her ghostly spirit being malicious or violent, but with a sighting she brings about a ghost of cold air to the room area. Another sort of activity comes up in the form of EVPs (electronic voice phenomena) where people have either purposely or inadvertently caught a disembodied woman’s voice on tape. The responses that have come across include, “yes”, “help”, “hey you pssst” and the mysterious name of “Lulu.”

Today the antiquated and popular Georgetown Hotel and Saloon operates on the town’s main street area and is a fixture for tourists and locals who come in to enjoy a cold drink at the bar, some hearty southwestern cuisine, and a possible sighting of Myrna in their room!