All the leaves are brown, and the sky is gray.
You know the tune...
All the leaves are brown, and the sky is gray.
You know the tune...
From the mighty redwoods in northern Cal to the fish taco stands of southern Cal, and everyplace in between - one thing anyone who has visited can say is : there's a lot to do in California. A lot of restless individuals have migrated here from all over the world. Some stayed and became famous. Some left, dejected, and headed back for Iowa and Kentucky. Some died here.
Here are some haunted destinations that will have you California Dreamin'
Sorry if you can't find your town - California is a HUGE state, and it will take me a few (dozen) weeks to get it up to par... I'm updating this page about once a week, so check back! ~ed.
hotels & inns restaurants roads & bridges taverns theaters tourist spots
paranormal books on California
Armagosa -
Armagosa Opera House and Hotel
Said to be haunted by the borax miners who
used to be residents here.
Benicia - The
Union Hotel
A young lady who hung herself decades ago is said to peer out onto the street
from a hotel window. Voices and crying are heard and the lights turn themselves
on and off.
Coloma
- Sierra Nevada House Hotel 
Like most Gold Rush era hotels, the building served the miners
not only as a hotel, but as a tavern and whorehouse. Room 1 is the former
Madame's abode (Miss Isabelle, as it were) and she is said to still haunt. After
her death, when the room was rearranged, the new tenants fount the curtains to
be tied in knots and found the furnace to be suddenly malfunctioning on a
regular basis. At one point, they claim a nightstand that was moved to another
room reappeared in room 1. Today, bar staff says that strange noises come from
the upper floor, things "disappear" and shot glasses have slid across the bar
without any help. A "playful" spirit is said to move around kitchen equipment, and
a malevolent ghost is said to haunt #4, psychic Jean Smith said that when she
"channeled him", she found that he had shot his lover in the room.
and
here's an interesting website about
the building's history ~ed.
Coronado
- Hotel Del Coronado
This unique hotel has been a landmark in California for decades. In the late
19th century, a con artist named Kate Morgan visited here. She was pregnant and
awaiting the arrival of her equally charming con artist of a husband. Her
husband, it seemed, wasn't ready to give up his lifestyle for a child, and he
never came to meet Kate. Distraught, she wandered the hotel, pasty and sick
looking. (It was later speculated that she had aborted her fetus in her
bathroom.) Not long after, she bought a handgun in town and she or someone else
blew her brains out all over some steps that led to the beach. It was later
theorized that she was probably murdered by her estranged husband, as the bullet
that was lodged in her grey matter was of a different caliber than that of her
own gun.
But, as they say, that's ancient history. Today, visitors say that Kate makes
busy by haunting guest room 3312, her former accommodations. Electrical
anomalies, objects that move about the room, and curtains that blow up when no
breeze can seem to be located all are reported. Room 3502 also experiences these
odd occurrences, but was formerly a maid's quarters. Creative minds have linked
a former maid to Morgan, weakly theorizing that she mysteriously disappeared
days after the shooting, as she had befriended the doomed Morgan during her
stay. The light above the aforementioned steps won't stay lit, says maintenance
men. Kate has been spotted walking the hallways and looking out from windows.
Crystal
Bay - Cal -Neva Resort and Casino
(click for stories)
Dorrington
- Dorrington Hotel
This gold rush era hotel boasts the likes of Rebecca Dorrington, long dead
former owner, who walks about the dining room and sets off the motion detectors.
During the Christmas season, the decorated fake Christmas trees were found every
morning, tipped over off of their bases. The ghosts of children are reported
also. Southwest of lake Tahoe on hwy 4
Downieville
- Downieville River Inn Resort
In room #1 the ghost of a former boarding house resident is said to turn the
water spigots on and creep into bed with unwitting guests.
Downieville is located in the Sierras northwest of Lake Tahoe. 121 River Street
800-696-3308.
Fort
Bragg - The Grey Whale Inn
This Mendocino County Inn is said to have ghostly visitors in
the form of a woman who wanders in the garden and a man who looks out from the
windows. Formerly a small hospital.
Georgetown
- Georgetown Hotel
During the gold rush, a forlorn woman killed herself by jumping from the
balcony. She is said to haunt the upstairs areas. 6260 Main St
(530) 333-2848 Located between Lake Tahoe and Sacramento.
Grass
Valley - The Holbrooke Hotel
Another remnant of the gold rush, this, like many was once both a pit stop for
the elite and also a brothel. The Arletta Douglas dining room is said to be
haunted by it's namesake, as is the downstairs reception hall. Chairs drag
themselves across the room, turn off and on the lights, and whisper in the empty
rooms and corridors.
Groveland
- The Groveland Hotel
A grizzled old miner named "Lyle" who died while boarding at the hotel in the
gold rush days is said to haunt his old digs. Lyle reportedly has a thing about
women's cosmetics and will throw any makeup left out on the dresser onto the
floor. The showers sometimes turn themselves on, and kitchen staff says that
things move around by themselves there also.
Healdsburg
- Madrona Manor
This beautiful Victorian Inn in Sonoma houses the ghosts of a little girl in one
of the rooms on the 1st floor.
Hollywood
- Chateau Marmont
?
This hotel, famous for such a clientele of Hollywood elite that it would be
pointless to list them, and infamous for such events as the untimely
1982 death of John Belushi, has
reportedly had countless paranormal occurrences. However, you'll be hard pressed
to find any actual accounts of documented activity.
I finally found one account at "ghostvillage.com" of a 2 year old child
who was staying with his parent's in the Belushi death room (bungalow 3,
although I've also seen it reported as bungalow 2) for about a year while their
home was being renovated. According to that account, the child kept waking
his mother up at night, sitting in his room and giggling at an invisible "funny
man". A few years later the kid reportedly saw a picture of Belushi while
looking at a book with his grandmother, and said "look, it's the funny man!"
Here's a story I snagged from a newsgroup awhile back....
Hollywood
- Roosevelt Hotel
The full length mirror that is adjacent to the lower level elevators is said
to show the misty apparition of bombshell Marilyn Monroe, who used to use the
mirror in a guest room she frequently used (suite 1200). (This is in conflict
with another article I read which placed the mirror at the defunct Knickerbocker
Hotel (below), and more recently it has reportedly been
moved to the Vogue Theater) Montgomery Clift (From Here to Eternity) is
also said to haunt, playing a trumpet and rehearsing lines in room 928. A
perpetual cold spot is said to exist in the Blossom Ballroom, where the Academy
Awards first took place.
Lafayette
- Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa
A little girl jumps on guest beds then vanishes. Soda machines spew their
contents sans payment. paintings fall from the walls, door slam and there are
cold spots.
Lake
Forest - Best Western Laguna
The ground floor makes staff "uneasy". Apparently a paranormal group recorded
EVP's here. A kitchenette of one of the rooms is said to have cold spots
23702 Rockfield Blvd
Los
Angeles - Ambassador Hotel
?
The legendary hotel, the place where RFK was assassinated among
other notable events, has been the rumored site of many hauntings. Oddly enough,
like the Marmont, everyone says it's haunted but there's not one lousy story to
be found!! There is a well documented case of
stray kitty overload, however. Now long closed, the jackals (or,
developers, if you will...) are closing in. There remains a website for those
who support saving it from the wrecking ball.
Los
Angeles - Figueroa Hotel
Elevator malfunctions, TVs that turn themselves on and then wont shut off, and
odd sounds in the corridors are all blamed on ghosts.
Los
Angeles - Los Angeles Airport Marriott
Strange "beings" are said to make cameos in the 18th floor lounge and parking
garage (Steve Buschemi, perhaps Courtney Love...?) Odd smells and sounds
accompany them (Courtney, is that YOU?) It is whispered among staff that six
separate employees have killed themselves in the office since 1972.
5855 W Century Blvd.
Modesto
- Red Lion Hotel
The kitchen seems to be the center of such activity as sounds of loud talking in
the empty room, and the sounds of crashing plates and trays. A murder may have
happened in the kitchen, said one longtime employee. Rooms 152, 206, and 420 are
said to have odd electrical anomalies. 1612 Sisk Rd
Mokelumne
Hill - Hotel Leger 
Yet another gold rush era hotel, the original owner and namesake was killed over
a gambling debt. Current owners say that the smell of cigar smoke is alwys
eerily present in the man's upstairs room.
Murphys
- Murphys Historical Hotel
This Calaveras County hotel is reportedly haunted by a accountant who was said
to have been murdered here. The second floor is said to be the most haunted
area. East of San Francisco on Hwy 4.
Nevada
City - The National Hotel
Recently restored, this 130+ year old structure has had reports of flickering
lights, cold spots, and feelings of unease in the wing that has yet to be
remodeled.
Ontario
- Beverly Hotel
The 2nd floor is haunted by footsteps and phantom shadows, and lights flicker,
fire alarms are set off. 112 S Euclid Ave
Placerville
- Cary House Hotel
A former desk clerk named Stan (who's, of course, dead) likes to pinch the
kiesters of both men and women. He was reportedly stabbed to death on the
stairway in the hotel. Room 212 is said to have the most activity.
Riverside
- Mission Inn 
Said to be haunted by the wealthy Gilded Age family that built the structure
(the Millers). A blue spook light has been seen in 215, the SE corner of the 4th
floor ("Alice Miller's Room") has cold spots and actual apparitions, the bridal
suite reportedly has a malevolent spirit that shoves people who are on the
spiral staircase, the underground catacombs (formerly a museum, now closed) has
had reports of apparitions, and the Spanish Patio is said to have a clock which
malfunctions. The Spanish Dining Room has also had an apparition, which is seen
near the patio. In the halls, visitors have seen guests that vanish into thin
air, especially on the "Author's Row" corridor, the corridor that runs along the
pool, and the dining room hallway. A singing woman has been heard in an upstairs
guest room.
Santa
Cruz - Brookdale Lodge
An architectural anomaly, the Brookdale is built over a running brook. It has
been the
subject of paranormal investigations for many years. Nestled in the majestic
redwood forests of
northern California, it is a popular tourist spot. The most frequently spotted apparition is
of a little girl who drowned in the brook in
the 1940's. She seems to gravitate toward a bridge in the Brook Room. The tavern
of the Lodge,
called the "Mermaid Room" because it boasts a bar that looks into the
transparent side of the
lodge's swimming pool above, also is haunted by the cries of a whimpering little
girl, who the
regulars and staff have dubbed "Sarah". She has been seen dancing in the
ballroom "twirling"
like a small girl would when dancing alone. Things go awry at the lodge - things are
found disturbed and thrown to the floor by staff
that left it orderly the previous night
Placerville - Cary House Hotel
This former gold rush town shares a haunted fate with many of the former gold
rush town.
The town boasts 7000 hangings in a three year period, and was named "hang town.
In the1850's a
desperado named Richard Crone took up residence at the Cary House. When he
mistook a local
miner for someone who had recently cheated him at cards, he jumped up from his
poker table and
stabbed the man to death. The next day he was the guest of honor at a "neck tie
party" on main
street, where he was hung by the neck until dead - right in front of the hotel.
Crone is seen walking in the corridors and the lobby, skulking about as if he is
trying
to hide or escape without being seen. Stan is a ghost well known by staff. A
former desk clerk, who was a bit of an obnoxious
drunk who was always striking out with women. One day Stan approached the wife
of a guest, and
the insulted husband stabbed him to death on the spot. Stan is said to rattle the door knobs, as
if he's making sure they are locked like he did
on his rounds at night. Similarly, the elevators inexplicably go up and down at
night by
themselves. He still "supervises Staff", and still likes to visit the occasional
lovely lady in
her room. One woman was somehow locked out one her balcony - when she called for
help, she saw
Stan, in his 1800's purser outfit, smiling at her from inside the room.
San Diego, CA -
The Horton Grand Hotel
Wyatt Earp called the Horton home for
seven years of his life. However, a lesser known outlaw is the celebrity
there now. This stately old hotel is eternally the host of gunslinger Rodger
Whittaker, who died in one of the rooms after a fatal gunshot to the chest put
him permanently out of the cowboy business. Room 309 remains to be haunted
by poor Rodge, thus far. A camera crew recently visited room 309 to
document the activity there - all they left with was film with a green
distortion throughout.
Night's
Landing, CA - Snowball
Mansion Inn -25 min
from Sacramento
Facing the Sacramento river, this Italianate brick mansion is haunted by Lucy Snowball, wife of the builder of the mansion. After the birth, and soon thereafter untimely death of her daughter in the late 19th century, Lucy blamed herself of the child's death. Living into her 70's, the remorseful Lucy was a recluse most of her remaining life.
Today the mansion is known for it's rattling windows, that rattle in a pattern across the entire home. Guests have been awakened by rattling doors, also, and Lucy is blamed for setting off smoke detectors and ringing the doorbell. A former owner said he moved because he grew weary of seeing the apparition of the young mother, and hotel guests have claimed to see the spirit caring for a phantom child in the rooms of the stately manor.
From the upstairs ballroom, old fashioned music is at times heard drifting
through the home.
Palm Springs
- Korakia Pencion
- Built in 1924, Moroccan style bungalows entice guests to the busy tourist community. Fashion photographers often use the interestingly designed resort to shoot their models.
Built by a artist who was enamored with Morocco, the resort was once a single family home. The artists' wife, an artist's model named Gertrude, was widowed shortly after they moved to the home. She then fell in love with her dead husband's good friend.
The couple threw grand parties, and one night at one of the grand soirée's, Gertrude walked in front of an oncoming car near Korakia, and met her death.
Now a popular bed and
breakfast, Korakia gusts report cold chills on hot days, and ripples on the
surface of the pool that seem to blow against the wind. When photographer's
models have posed there, they say that their clothes are rearranged after they
return to the room after a shoot. Some have claimed to have seen a figure of a
woman walking along the road on the anniversary of her death.
Rosemead -
Doubletree Hotel Los Angeles
Visitors report that the lights turn themselves on in the middle of the night.
888 Montebello Blvd.
Ventura
-
Bella
Maggiore Inn
- Prostitutes and loose women seem to never want to leave their hotel rooms, especially in death, and such is the case of room 17 of the Bella Maggiore Inn. Sylvia was a prostitute who worked the nearby pier during WWII, scouting for sailors to take back to her room. Found one day bloated and hanging from the rafters of room 17's closet, Sylvia's death has been speculated on by hotel guests and management ever since. One theory was that a violent sailor had strangled her in a sick sexual fit of rage. Being a large man, he was able to lift her up and hang her to cover up his deed. The other is that she took her life because of a sailor whom she had fallen in love with, only to be left broken hearted and pregnant after he returned home to his wife after the war. Either way, Sylvia is still hanging around.
The scent of roses is often said to be wafting through the cursed room. Hotel guests, especially lone men, have reported Sylvia's icy cold legs, unshaven since 1946, brushing up against them at night. Others report a phantom "do not disturb" sign that flips about on a doorknob then disappears, and still others say they have seen Sylvia in all of her glory waving from across the room. 67 S California St tel: 805-652-0277
Lake Arrowhead
- Bracken Fern Manor
- This Alpine style inn was a ski resort for the wealthy in the 1930's. "Club Arrowhead" was the brainchild of Chicago mobster Bugsy Siegel, who would later go on to exploit the small village of Las Vegas, Nevada into the bustling cesspool of sin that it is today. Illegal drinking, gambling, and prostitution was a hallmark of mob establishments, and this isolated resort was no exception.
One prostitute named Violet became enamored with a minor criminal who was employed there also. The small potatoes mobster decided to take Violet away from a life of prostitution. Before that could happen, Violet's bosses, none too happy to lose a working girl, snuffed the horny young thug out. Violet killed herself weeks later, believing her lover had just left her behind to rot.
Today guests report the scent of violet perfume wafting through the halls.
The ghost of a small child keeps violet company. Tiny footsteps in
the snow are left behind, some say perhaps by the ghost of one of the children
of a prostitute. Rodney Rankin led a short and unhappy life at the
brothel. Left to run about and entertain himself, the four year old was
chasing after his ball one day and was trampled by a team of horses on the road
outside. Rodney likes to hide car keys on the staff.
Ft
Bragg, CA -
The Lodge at Noyo River
-Haunted by the spirits of a young honeymooning couple who died in a
tragic car accident near the hotel. Immediately after the accident the ghost of
the man, who obviously died instantly, was said to cry out for help outside the
lodge. His ghost is said to still play out this scene, as his bride, dressed in
red, paces within the lodge. People hear voices, laughing and the lights flip
on and off. The honeymooner's room was room 5.
Long
Beach, CA
- Queen Mary Hotel
Haunted sites
on the dry docked ship include: The Queen's Salon, haunted by a lady in
white; The 1st Class Swimming Pool, and the Tourist Class Swimming
Pool , haunted by 3 women who drowned in them; The First Class Suite,
by a dark haired man in 1930's attire; the Forward Storage Room, which is
haunted by the phantom laughter of children; cabin B340, which is no longer
rented out because of paranormal activity in it related to a murdered purser of
the ship; and of course, the morgue - which housed at least 16 dead
people in it's day. The most interesting ghost story may be of the chef
who haunts the kitchen - his bad cooking incited a riot which got out of
hand, and he died after being shoved in an oven. (THAT is some BAD cookin!) His
shrieks are heard through the kitchen. Hatchway door #13 is haunted
by the ghost of a crewman who was crushed to death there during a watertight
drill. Pier J in the Port of Long Beach
San Francisco -
Mansions Hotel 
Basically 2 mansions hooked together, the older of which is haunted. Unashamed of it's reputation, the hotel boasts a "haunted gallery" that includes a photograph taken during a séance at which an apparition was seen by a roomful of witnesses. One reported visitor's toilet seat flew menacingly across the room. 2220 Sacramento St
San Francisco -
Queen Anne Hotel
1
t at Octavia
Said to be haunted by the headmistress of this former finishing school, this bed
and
breakfast is home the the spirit of Miss Mary Lake. The 4th floor seems to be
specifically a
target of the malevolent ghost, who has covered guests with blankets at night.
The area was her
office.
One visitor watched his shaving kit fly off of the sink for no reason.
Santa Monica - Georgian Hotel
Formerly a speakeasy, visitors hear odd whispers and sighs when no one is there.
La Jolla- Grande
Colonial Hotel
Two rooms below the North Annex were rented out to a group of four who threw
loud parties years ago. Now dead, the two men and two ladies still whoop it up
in the middle of the night, as the people in the guest rooms above the old
vacant apartments (now a bakery) report. It's always
empty and locked up at night.
Groveland -
Groveland Hotel
A former resident of the hotel named Lyle, who died there in the 1920's, likes
to toss ladies makeup off the nightstand, flip the lights on and off and turn on
the shower
Hollywood-
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Montgomery Clift is said to haunt room 928, playing his bugle; Cabana 246 was
Marilyn Monroe's personal room, and her mirror hangs in the lobby - and is
supposedly visited by her image on occasion
Carmel - La Playa
Hotel & Cottages
Angela Ghirardelli, heir to the San Francisco chocolate fortune, lived here. Her
cousin drowned in the Carmel Bay. It is theorized that it is either her or her
cousin who haunt this now hotel.
San Jose - Hyatt
Hotel St. Claire
The odd smell of cigarette smoke has been smelled in one room - in the middle of
the night with no one around, and it fades as fast as it came.
Healdsburg -
Madrona Manor
A ghost nicknamed Elsie haunts the dining room, and the spirit of a little girl
is said to haunt room 101 of this beautiful Sonoma Valley Bed and Breakfast.
Mendocino-Mendocino
Hotel And Garden Suite and Restaurant
A "Victorian" lady haunts tables 6 and 8 in the restaurant, her image appearing
in nearby mirrors; She has also been seen in the rooms.
Paso Robles Hot
Springs - Paso Robles Inn
Room 1007 mysteriously dials the front desk and even 911 when no one is in the
room - the hotel staff theorizes it is the spirit of a long dead clerk who
called the fire department to report a fire there in 1940, saving the guests,
then dropped dead of a heart attack himself.
Ventura - The
Pierpont Inn
The ghost of a former manager has been seen near the bookkeeping office in a
dark suit, then vanishes. Ghostly activity has been kicked up a notch since
renovation a few years ago
Haunted
Haight (San Francisco) Walking Tour
Hollywood
Graveline Tours $44 per body
(o the theatrics!). The famous tour of the haunts of the dead and famous of
Hollywood. Reservations are suggested. Call 800 797-3323 for reservations or
213 469-4149 for more information.
Vampire
Tour of San Francisco
8:00 PM every Friday and
Saturday night in front Grace Cathedral at 1100 California Street. Call (650)
279-1840 for reservations or email
sfvamptour@yahoo.com.
Dress warm. Yes, even in August.
Gothic
Limos Hearse Tours (LA)
Dearly
Departed Tours: not necessarily a ghost tour, but interesting tours of
infamous Hollywood deaths
Morbid
Tourist Tip:
Hollywood Death Sites
Morbid
Tourist Tip: Visit the James Dean Death Site
at Cholame (Shandon) CA. A big piece of metal is wrapped around a tree
in the parking lot of the Jack Ranch Cafe, where the heartthrob plowed his car
into eternity. 19215 E Highway 46; 25 miles east of Paso Robles. A supposed
curse
befell anyone who came into contact with the remains of the car, a
1955 silver Porsche Spider
(nicknamed 'the little bastard'). Car customizer George Barris bought the
totaled car for parts, and reportedly it fell from a hoist, breaking both legs
of a mechanic who was beneath it. Later, parts were put into two race cars
from the "bastard". Both crashed, one driver, a Beverly Hills physician,
dying and the other receiving serious injuries. A boy who tried to steal
the steering wheel suffered a gash on his arm before he succeeded, and a man who
bought two of the tires claimed that both mysteriously blew out as he drove - he
narrowly averted a horrible accident. Barris ended up loaning the accursed
wreck to the California Highway Patrol in order to promote highway safety.
A few days later, the garage that it was in burnt down, destroying every car in
the garage - except the little bastard. Finally put on display in
Sacramento, it fell from it's display and broke a high school kid's hip.
The last known casualty of the bastard was a truck driver who was hauling the
wreck on a flatbed, when he crashed and was ejected. The Porsche
reportedly landed on him, killing him. The car vanished from existence in 1958
after being displayed in Florida.
Alameda, CA
; Aircraft
Carrier USS Hornet - National Landmark
Commissioned on Aug 30th, 1943 after the sinking of the 7th "Hornet", Hornet number
8 is unleashed on the Japanese at the height of WWII. Serving as the main
carrier in southeast Asia for almost 25 years, the first encounters
occurred
before ship was even opened for public view. Naval workmen were painting in
preparation for the ships opening as a monument, and they saw an officer in his
Navy khakis above on a catwalk talking to a crewman in his dungaree blues. Upon
investigating the scene, the crewmen that had been painting couldn't find
anyone. Since then, hundreds of sightings of phantom seamen and unexplained
moving objects have arisen from visitors. Paranormal investigators to the ship
have been overwhelmed by the sheer number of "hotspots" or areas of intense
paranormal activity, on the aircraft carrier.
This aircraft carrier has had a rich past. Having the military honor of having
shot down
the most enemy aircraft in WWII, it also had the honor of retrieving the
floating space capsule
and astronauts from the first manned moon mission in 1969. Now a national
landmark, the Hornet
has a few crewmen still aboard. Known as "The Grey Ghost", tourists have
reported disembodied
voices, as well as phantom sailors in WWII dress. A phantom in khaki WWII
overseas uniform
appeared on the Admiral's Bridge to a Navy officer.
The forward section of the ship is said to be the most active. Sailors in work
blues and officers
have been seen there. One day a a large crash was heard near the captain's
ladder in a well
locked area, with a freshly painted floor - no footprints were left in the wet
paint and no
person was in the locked room. The junior officer's birthing area is used by
volunteers who sleep
in the ship at night -one reported that he was awakened by a hand that shook
and tugged at him.Oddly enough, the curse of the "haunted ladies room" has struck a place known
for it's
lack of women. Women who use the ladies "latrine" say they can hear men's voices
in the room
when no men are there, and feel a presence near the sinks.
Calabasas -
Leonis Adobe Museum
The "King of Calabas", Miguel Leonis, once controlled much of the San
Fernando Valley and part of Ventura county. In 1889 he died when his wagon
overturned. Miguel, as well as some of his family members are said to haunt the
estate - now a museum.
Long
Beach, - The Queen Mary (click for story)
Devore
- Treehouse Fun Ranch
A first
for ghosttraveller.com... a haunted NUDE BEACH!
The clubhouse, er... Treehouse in this case, is said to be haunted. A truck
driver whose urn was under the bar is said to pull such tricks as turning on the
firepot and messing with the lights. They didn't say if he left his clothes on
for this... 17809 Glen Helen
Newbury
Park - The Newbury Park Stagecoach Inn Museum
A 35 year old guest named Pierre was killed here in 1889.
A man has been seen from the windows, and an "oddly dressed" man seen within the
building. The current structure is, however, only a reproduction made
from original blueprints - as the real inn burnt down many
years ago. A photograph in the
Inn of the original building aflame depicts a "hazy apparition" coming from the flames
that proprietors claim to be poor old Pierre. A few eyewitnesses claim to have
spotted him, also.
Orange County -
Mission San Juan Capistrano
Built by the hard labor of local Juaneno Indians for the
Spaniards, the mission reportedly has the spirits of those Indians that appear
at dusk. One photographer claims he saw a ghostly peasant being whipped , the
apparition of a monk shaking his finger at a otherworldly group of
schoolchildren, the sounds of a woman sobbing, and bells that toll for unknown
reasons.
Sunnyvale - Toys
R Us
Chalk up another strip mall haunting... The Toys R Us in Sunnyvale boasts some
strange poltergeist type of activity - including bathroom sinks that would turn
themselves on, toys that flood the clean uncluttered aisles at night, toys that
fall from above seemingly out of nowhere, frisbees that float without support in
space, odd footsteps, the sensation of something brushing against or shoving
staff, and even a foggy cloudlike apparition. The building sits on the site of a
orchard, and was formerly a grocery store in the 1960's. The farmer who owned
the orchard would peg children who stole his fruit with a rock salt shotgun. One
person's account on Obiwon's site said that the woods where the Toys R Us now
sits on were always extremely creepy and that no one wanted to venture too far
into them; the writer said that there were rumor's among the baby boomer era
kids in the area that there used to be a kind of skid row in the woods, where
vagrants and prostitutes hung out. There is a theory that the spirit haunting
the Toys R Us (no, not Geoffrey the giraffe) is an orchard worker who lost
his arm at the vindictive hand of Mr. salt pellet farmer...130 E El Camino
Real
San Francisco -
Alcatraz Island (click for stories)
San
Jose, CA; The Winchester Mystery House
Built by the guilt ridden widow of the creator of the Winchester
rifle, The Winchester house is a maze of rooms. Sarah Winchester was a
frequenter of clairvoyants, and she believed that the only way to keep the mad
spirits of those who died on the wrong end of her late husband's artillery away
was to never stop building rooms. (My theory is that the psychic who led her
this way had a carpenter for a husband...) Sarah built and built until she died,
leaving this bizarre maze of a home with stairs that lead nowhere and doors that
lead to a three story drop. A few staff say she's still hanging around,
haunting the place.
West
Hollywood - The Comedy Store
Formerly the hip Hollywood restaurant Ciro's, the comedy store has had a long
history of odd, unexplained phenomena. As Ciro's the building was the hang out
of Hollywood's film industry (especially in the 40's and 50's), and a few
mafiosos as well. Mobster Mickey Cohen reportedly "shook down" the club weekly,
and also used the basement as a place to beat the snot out of anyone who he felt
had it coming. Rumors imply that a few ended up as part of the building's
basement floor, buried beneath a fat layer of concrete. Mitzi Shore (mother of
worst comedian in the universe Pauly) bought the place in the 1970's and turned
it into the comedy mill that it is today.
Most of the activity today is theorized to be from the club's Mafia era. (Must
they always blame the cosa nostra? Oh well...) Comedian Sam Kinison (may he rest
in peace, poor guy...) seemed to be the center of odd activity during his days
there in the 1980's. Perhaps Kinison's stint as a fire and brimstone southern
preacher prior to his comedy career fueled it. During his act, many equipment
malfunctions and problems with the lighting took place. Once when he
"challenged" the "ghosts" on it during the act, the lights went out completely
and without explanation. One longtime employee claimed to have seen a chair
glide itself along the showroom floor while he was cleaning up, and heard voices
saying "it's him, it's him" during Kinison's act. The same gentleman saw a 7'
tall, coal black, featureless, malevolent looking figure that made a "low,
guttural growl" behind a locked wire gate in the basement. Prior to appearing,
he had seen the gate bulge out as if someone was leaning up against it. Just
afterward he said he could see his breath all of the sudden, and a piece of
black cardboard with his name written on it fell from the ceiling onto his arm.
That freaked him out enough that he never went back into the basement.
As far as apparitions go, a man wearing a WWII era "bomber" jacket has been seen
in different areas and by different witnesses at different times. I can't
remember the details exactly, but I know I saw a TV show about the Comedy Store
in which Mitzi Shore said she had heard two women laughing and talking in the
club's ladies room (I think that's where she said she heard it), and I believe
she said they were using sort've archaic language - kind of like 1940's slang
that sounded goofy today. Anyway, there was absolutely no one in there or
anywhere else close by. 8433 Sunset Blvd.
Hollywood
- Mann's Chinese Theater
The sidewalk out front is haunted by the ghost of Victor Killian (left), a character actor (All In The Family; Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman)
who was brutally beaten to death in his Hollywood apartment in the late 1970's.
A stagehand named Fritz who hung himself behind the movie screen in the old days
of Hollywood. Fritz has been known to shake the velvet curtains when his
backstage area is disturbed.
6801 Hollywood Blvd
Moorpark
(Ventura) - the Theater on High Street
A 17 year old immigrant from Hungary named Zola was brutally murdered on the
spot where this theater now sits. Her spirit is said to appear in the lighting
booth at times. A worker named Frank who supposedly died while refurbishing the
theater is reported by actors to haunt the dressing rooms.
Diamond Springs:
Diamond Springs Hotel
No longer used as a hotel, it is now a restaurant (though it retains it's
confusing moniker) that openly claims to be haunted. Proprietors say it is
located on a "natural vortex" and dare visitors to stand in the middle of the
dining room with their eyes closed. They don't say what will happen, but let's
just hope no pick pocket is involved... Said to be built near a Miwok Indian
Crematorium, apparitions include a man who sits in the back booth along with a
"big black lab(rador retriever)", often accompanied with the smell of pipe
smoke. Wait staff says there are bizarre noises from the restrooms prior to
opening in the mornings, and there are crashes from the unused upstairs floor.
Others say that they could hear children laughing and footsteps in the upper
floor.
Hollywood - Sweet
Lady Jane
Orson Welles is said to sit at his favorite table on occasion, and it is
reported that the smell of his cigar and brandy are sometimes present.
8360 N. Melrose Ave.
Hollywood - El
Compadre Restaurant
This long popular Mexican restaurant is known both for it's "flaming margaritas"
and for two ghosts who are seen by the piano. The large mirror is also said to
harbor otherworldly energy. 7408 Sunset Blvd
Jamestown -
Willow Steakhouse & Saloon
The former hotel has reportedly been haunted since the 19th century. A nearby
mine cave in took the lives of 23 men, and they are said to cause bizarre things
to happen around the building. 18275 Main St (209) 984-3998
Mendocino-Mendocino
Hotel And Garden Suite and Restaurant
A "Victorian" lady haunts tables 6 and 8 in the restaurant, her image appearing
in nearby mirrors; She has also been seen in the rooms.45080
Main Street
Moorpark
(Ventura)- Cactus Patch Restaurant
The flirtatious ghost of wealthy hotel manager Charlie Dorn is said to appear at
times in this restaurant. High Street
Anaheim -
Chain Reaction
Empty bathrooms are reported to have the sounds of laughing and talking, as is
the back alley. Locals say that the building, now a club that features live
performances, used to be a Mexican restaurant and a biker bar that had a
reputation for being very rough. 1652 W Lincoln Ave
Bakersfield
- Club Paradise
Reports of apparitions and a malevolent force that locks employees in the
storage room and grabs or shoves people in the hallway near the bathrooms.
902 19th St
Tracy -
The Banta Inn
A former owner who died while bartending there is said to open the doors, knock
pictures from the walls and stack the coins neatly within the cash register.
Neat-o pic on this site. S 7th & W.G
Fort Bragg
- Old Coast Hotel Bar and Grille
Bartenders here say that bar glasses move themselves without the help of anyone
living.
Half
Moon Bay - The Moss Beach Distillery
The Moss Beach Distillery
is haunted by a "lady in blue" who liked to make phantom prank phone calls to
staff. A husky low woman's voice would hiss "I want you" when a particular
manager would answer the (out of order) payphone. Insiders say the manager was
the "spitting image" of a piano player who worked there in the 20's. The piano
player had a lover who had a liking for blue clothing, and who also died
tragically and young in a car accident. The phantom flapper likes to knock the
chandeliers around, and also to haunt the ladies room. A ghostly face in the
mirror appears, and footsteps are heard when no one else is in the room.
25 miles south of San Francisco
Hanford -
Bastille
Formerly the county jail (until 1964), the building saw the standard variety of
suicides, murderers and general bad karma. Now made into a sort of mini mall of
the damned, businesses within say that doors open and close themselves, insane
cackling emerges from empty rooms, furniture moves itself about, and apparitions
appear. A bathroom is even haunted by a spirit that will (nooo!) unlock and
fling open your stall door. The steps that lead to the bathrooms will turn from
their present state to creaky and old, locals say. Cooks are said to complain of
a spirit that frightens them at a dining establishment there. I can't seem to
find an address for this venue, but I did locate a phone number
(559) 584-4644 Update: Diane at
Invisible Realms
was nice enough to let me know that there is currently only a bar at the former
Kings County Jail...
Morbid
Tourist Tip: Visit the deserted Spahn Movie
Ranch, off of Santa Susana Pass Road west of
Topanga Canyon Road in LA, where the Manson Family frolicked and cavorted prior
to and during the infamously bloody summer of 1969. All of the movie buildings,
however, have long since burned down. The buildings where the LSD crazed hippy
murderers lived were located roughly between Santa Susana Pass Road and
Stagecoach Road. There might possibly be a church or Christian grade
school on the site at this point.
Bakersfield -
Target Distribution Center
Read Patrick's unusual experiences in this warehouse near Bakersfield here.
Calabasas -
Los Angeles Pet Cemetery
Said to be haunted by such notables as Kabar (Rudolph Valentino's Great Dane),
Petey from The Little Rascals, and Hopalong Cassidy's horse. Phantom panting is
heard, and people report "phantom licking" near Kabar's grave.5068
N. Old Scandia Lane
Delano -
Interstate 5
The ghost of a young Hispanic woman has materialized to drivers.
Diamond
Bar - Brea Canyon Road
Said to have frequent fatal car accidents. Phantom hitchhikers and automobiles
that are along the road disappear as you pass.
Hollywood
- The Knickerbocker Hotel
This
hotel has enough glamorous history to write not just a book, but a whole volume
of books, about. For one, it is the original "heartbreak hotel" that Elvis sung
about (apparently singer Hoyt Axton's mother wrote the tune about the
Knickerbocker). On one memorable day, bystanders in the lobby were treated to
naked starlet Frances Farmer, wrapped only in a shower curtain and being drug
off kicking and screaming to the looney bin (where she later received a lobotomy
for her trouble). One unfortunate costume designer, distraught over the
recent passing of "the only man she'd ever loved", Gary Cooper, decided to
commit suicide at the hotel in 1962. After cutting her wrists proved too
slow a death, she leapt from a window, successfully killing herself.
Unfortunately for the coroner, the corpse laid undetected on the building's
awning for 'several days'. Eww. Don't you think at least ONE person
would have noticed? Anyway, the stories could go on forever. Now the
building is reportedly a high rise apartment building for the elderly, and the
only vestige of Hollywood-dom that had remained - a "Golden Age of Hollywood"
themed bar and cafe (that stood in the formerly crumbling hotel bar) has been
booted down the street by the owners. (I smell a real estate developer...). The
Marilyn Monroe haunted mirror, as mentioned in the "Roosevelt Hotel" listing,
was also reportedly here (could there possibly be two?) before being relocated
with the cafe to the Vogue Theater. Marilyn was also reportedly haunting
the ladies room. Rudolph Valentino was said to have made an appearance or
two. The ghost of "Fred Mertz" (William Frawley of I Love Lucy
fame) is said to haunt the lobby, where he was drug into by a passing nurse,
after he suffered a fatal heart attack on the street outside. Oddly enough,
Frawley had lived at the Knickerbocker for decades, only just prior to his death
moving up the street. 1714 Ivar St., West of Vine, North of
Hollywood Blvd
Private Residences
Hollywood
- Hollywood Forever Cemetery (formerly Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery)
A "lady in black" is said to haunt the
tomb of Rudolph Valentino. In life she came on the anniversary of his death
yearly in a macabre black dress and laid flowers on his grave. The ghost of
actor Clifton Webb is also said to haunt the Sanctuary of Peace wing of the
Abbey of the Psalms mausoleum here. Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle is said to be heard
sobbing next to the grave of long dead starlet Virginia Rappe. Arbuckle's career
was ruined after he was tied into the girl's death . She died of peritonitis
caused by a ruptured bladder after a booze fueled party at San Francisco's St.
Francis hotel, and even though, medically speaking, it was highly unlikely the
cause, Arbuckle was accused of causing the bladder rupture by forcing rough sex
on her (he was accused of raping her vaginally with a coke or champagne bottle).
Although later acquitted after a much hyped trial fueled by sleazy,
opportunistic "witnesses", Arbuckle's career was left in shambles.
6000 Santa Monica Blvd (free maps of the huge cemetery are
reportedly available at the administration building)
Hollywood
- The Hollywood Sign
Reportedly spook lights and apparitions are seen above and around the once
popular leaping off point.
Hollywood
- Runyon Canyon Park
Formerly a grand estate and mansion built by the son of the A & P dime store
empire, the Pine Estate is now a crumbling ruin. (only the tennis court remains
since a massive fire) Once a popular visiting spot of Errol Flynn, the mansion
is said to reappear in it's entirety on summer nights, complete with the sights
and sounds of a party worthy of Jay Gatsby. 2000 Fuller
Avenue, near what is now the southern entrance to the park.
Hollywood
- Hollywood and Vine
Bela Lugosi has been known to make afterlife appearances along this path of his
usual daily walk.
Los
Angeles - Mullholland Drive
The ghosts of two people killed by a serial killer in the 1960's are reported
here, among others.
Los
Angeles - Corner Laurel Canyon Blvd and Lookout Mountain Road
A phantom carriage with white horses is said to race across the intersection at
midnight, then vanish into air.
The area surrounding the Pacheco Pass has
a tragic history. The native Indians who originally carved the pass were
forced
into servitude when the Spanish arrived in the area. When they revolted, a
bloody massacre of the Indians was the result. From 1860 - 1880 two highwaymen
murdered, raped and robbed travelers along the pass. Drivers along this
stretch of highway 152 are said to become "possessed", overcome with terrible
visions and emotions, and overwhelming feelings of impending doom.
Pacheco Pass begins a couple of miles west of Los Baños on Highway 152, at
approximately the junction with Interstate 5. Follow 152 west past the San
Luis Reservoir, and a few miles beyond. The byway does not terminate in a town
or at any other definite stopping point. (*see
Texas -
US Hwy 70 )
Pasadena - "The
Suicide Bridge"
This bridge, a recently renovated concrete structure that is on the National Register, crosses the Arroyo Seco (dry) river bed. As the story goes, when it was being built in 1913, a construction worker fell into the concrete and was left inside the hardening mass of goo to die. His restless soul is said to "cry out" to others, tempting them to jump from the bridge. In 1937, a young mother tossed her toddler from the bridge then jumped to her own death. The young girl miraculously survived after landing in some brush. Colorado Street
Placerville
- Hidden Passages Books
Formerly a tavern, the building has a resident ghost who they theorize to be an
(long dead) illiterate employee of the nearby hotel who would spend his free
time drinking there. The disgruntled spirit is said to toss books from the
shelves. Strange noises of footsteps as well as noises of a phantom "party" have
been reported, and the noise of a woman's voice. 352 Main
Street
Placerville
- Empire Antiques
In the old days this building was a theater, and during that time an actor was
accidentally killed when a "prop" gun was loaded with a real bullet. The actor
has appeared to the living on occasion, it is said. 432 Main
Street
Playa
Del Rey - Fatty Was Here
Silent screen star Fatty Arbuckle is said to haunt the area.
San Francisco - The Eucalyptus Grove lining Knob Hill
This story gives New Orleans' Marie Laveau
story a run for it's money. Mary Ellen Pleasant was a
former slave who had married wealthy out east and had a stint as a voodoo
priestess in New
Orleans. She came to San Francisco at 30 to make her fortune - as a Madame to
several "boarding
houses". She pimped out "soiled doves", who were trained to pick up their client's inside
business and political conversation. Miss Mary was just thought of as the black
cook by these
clients, but she used their loose conversation to propel her forward financially
and politically.
Accused of murdering her lover late in her life, she was acquitted of the crime
but her
reputation and checkbook were both ruined by the scandal. She died a pauper. The
"Voodoo queen
of San Francisco" is said to be alive in the crows that sit in the Eucalyptus
trees that line the
street her bordellos once prospered on.
The proprietor of a local ghost tour claims a woman on his tour was making fun
of the
story of Mary Ellen when they were passing the trees. Something unseen shoved
her down from
behind. Another local business woman claims she scoffed at the story after
reading a book about
the legend of the crows. The next morning, she said, two crows swooped down from
the trees and
clamped onto her hair.
Ukiah
- Mendocino County Courthouse
A few bad things happened here, including
an execution by hanging on the roof, a suicide, and a judge who was shot and
killed by an irate defendant. The janitors have known something was odd here
during the night for years. An apparition in a long dress and heels walked
passed them in the janitor's room on night, then vanished. The elevators would
go from floor to floor unprovoked.
In 2004, Mendocino County popped for a state of the art security system,
including cameras, metal and motion detectors. Janitors are not surprised that
the motion and metal detectors are always detecting their dead friend who comes
around at night. The cameras keep picking up a white mist that floats about from
time to time.
(Disclaimer: it is upon the reader of this site to use good judgment in frequenting the places listed herein; it is not the responsibility of the proprietor of ghosttraveller.com if a reader commits an illegal act, such as trespassing, based upon what he or she reads here. It is the reader's responsibility to research the given areas discussed in this forum prior to visiting, and to ensure that it is not illegal to visit said place prior to visiting, or to obtain permission from the owner prior to visiting)
Bibliography
The Shadowlands : an invaluable resource on the net for ghost hunters !!
Weird Travels, The Travel Channel
Travel Channel Secrets, The Travel Channel
http://www.buyalcatraztours.com/tours/alcatraz_travel_sf_info.html
http://theshadowlands.net/famous/alcatraz.htm
http://www.ghosts.org/
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http://cityguide.aol.com/orangecounty/halloween/?page=ghoststories2004
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