Haunted Gettysburgh - PA

Do you believe in ghosts? The 1886 Crescent Hotel in Eureka Springs is supposedly haunted, and my husband and I spent the night there just a few days before Halloween in 2021.

Eureka Springs, Arkansas, is a charming town in the Ozark Mountains, perfect for am extended weekend getaway. With beautiful scenery and quaint, historic downtown, it’s no wonder this town is a popular tourist destination. It’s also thought to be haunted!

Eureka Springs’ popularity grows exponentially during the Halloween season. Not only is the Crescent Hotel supposedly haunted, but the whole town gets into the spirit of things with decorations and celebrations. Other hotels and buildings also claim to be haunted, adding to the town’s mystery.

A historic hotel located at the top of a hill above the downtown, the 1886 Crescent Hotel offers beautiful views of the Ozark Mountains.

As you drive up the mountain, it looks like a hotel out of a movie or fairy tale. Multiple ghosts from its storied history supposedly haunt it.

The doors to the grandiose hotel first opened in 1886, ushering in an exciting era for Eureka Springs. At the time, it was thought to be America’s most luxurious resort hotel offering vacationers opulence unmatched. The magnificent structure was lighted with Edison lamps, heated with steam, and had a hydraulic elevator and electric bells. Gala balls and banquets

were held in the Grand Ballroom.

The Crescent had a Billiard’s Room, Bowling Alley, and Tennis Courts.

In 1902, the hotel was leased to the Frisco Railroad. After five years, they opened the Crescent College and provided education to females until 1934. It was a college during the winter months and a playground for the elite during the summer.

Norman Baker purchased and remodeled the hotel into the Baker Cancer Clinic in 1937. He claimed he could cure cancer at the clinic. Baker was a quack and made big bucks from people with cancer. He treated patients with fake potions and other bogus treatments. No one was ever cured, and many died under his care. In 1940, he landed in jail for mail fraud.

New owners purchased the hotel, and another renovation took place in 1946. It was once again operating as a hotel. The Crescent endured a fire and was transferred to various owners over the years. In 1972, Crescent Heights Developments, Inc. purchased and restored the property and expanded the facilities. It was during this period that people started to report supernatural occurrences.

It changed hands several times, and in 1997 the current owners, Marty and Elise Roenigk, purchased the Crescent and began to renovate it. The 1886 Crescent Hotel has been featured in films and on numerous shows such as Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures.

According to legend, some guests “checked out…but never left” and still roam the halls and rooms of the Crescent. A nurse, people who died of cancer, a young boy, the “Girl in the Mist,” “The Ghost of the Morgue,” and a cat are just a few spirits roaming around the hotel.

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Eureka Springs’ robust spirit world is rooted in a checkered history with a roll call of rogues and scoundrels. Ghost tours are offered at various hotels across the town. Whether you’re a believer or not, these excursions promise a spooky good time. The ghost tours do NOT include jump scares or make any promises about actual ghost sightings. They are fun storytelling experiences; some involve hands-on ghost hunting with meters and other gear. Some tours are even appropriate for school-age children.

The Crescent Ghost Tour guides dress in period garb for the tour. They are natural storytellers — and they have plenty to tell.