Underrated Ghost Stories And Mythical Creatures All Over The World: Seventy-seventh Stop – Eureka Springs, Arkansas

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Underrated Ghost Stories And Mythical Creatures All Over The World: Seventy-seventh Stop – Eureka Springs, Arkansas

A map of Eureka Springs, Arkansas marked with a push pin.

Eureka Springs, Arkansas is one of the tourist destinations in the U.S. state because of its waters. Overtime, however, many people have become interested with the preserved Victorian buildings located in its Historic District.

Eureka Springs swamped with tourists

Eureka Springs swamped with tourists. (Link: https://blog.nationallife.com/main-streets/eureka-springs-ar-main-street/)

To name a few, these architectural wonders are the Palace Bath House, the Basin Park Hotel, and the alleged haunted Crescent Hotel. Are you ready to know more about this haunted place? Read on!

The History Of Crescent Hotel

The Crescent Hotel was completed in 1886. After it was built, it also became a luxury resort, a conservatory for young women, and a junior college. The hotel had to be changed to the Crescent College and Conservatory for Young Women in 1908 because it became unmanageable since it was originally planned to cater to the rich and the famous. The hotel was a conservatory until the year 1924. It was converted to a junior college by 1930 and it continued to be so until 1934. The Crescent Hotel was later leased as a summer hotel.

A photo of the Crescent Hotel in the past

A photo of the Crescent Hotel in the past. (Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crescent_Hotel_(Eureka_Springs,_Arkansas))

In 1937, a man named Norman G. Baker became the owner of the hotel and turned it into a health resort. Baker was a billionaire and a radio personality so when he posed as a doctor, no one suspected him of being a fraud. He had no medical training but he claimed that he discovered the cure for diseases and illnesses like cancer. Initially, he practiced medicine without a license in Iowa but was run out by the citizens so he went to Arkansas to continue his unlawful dealings.

Norman Baker, the former owner of the Crescent Hotel, in an undated photo

Norman Baker, the former owner of the Crescent Hotel, in an undated photo. (Link: https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/177470041545160948/?lp=true)

The cure that Baker talked about was basically drinking from the area’s natural spring water. By 1940, Baker was charged with mail fraud and spent four years behind bars.

In 1946, Crescent Hotel had new owners namely Herbert Byfield, John R. Constantine, Dwight Nichols, and Herbert E. Shutter. It continued to operate until a huge fire on March 15, 1967 almost burned the hotel to the ground. By 1997, Marty and Elise Roenigk purchased the Crescent Hotel and restored it for six years. Marty died in a car crash in 2009 so Elise is the only current owner of the Crescent Hotel. Free tours are offered in the Crescent Hotel ever since it was coined as America’s Most Haunted Hotel. Why do you think the Crescent Hotel is dubbed as such?

Martin and Elise Roenigk, the currrent owners of the Crescent Hotel

Martin and Elise Roenigk, the currrent owners of the Crescent Hotel. (Link: http://www.livinginarkansas.net/post/370/meet-the-neighbors-martin-and-elise-roenigk-of-eureka-springs)

The Portal To The Other World At The Crescent Hotel  

Many hotel owners did not want to publicize the fact that their hotels were haunted but the owners of the Crescent Hotel wanted to take a different approach. They then hired to mediums, namely Ken Fugate and Carroll Heath, in order to understand and know more about what makes the Crescent Hotel the Most Haunted Hotel in America.

A hotel manager at the Crescent Hotel, Jack Moyer, shared in a statement that Heath discovered a portal “to the other side” right inside the Crescent Hotel. Initially, Moyer just laughed it off but after so many years of working at the Crescent Hotel, he has experienced a lot of paranormal activities.

A hotel manager at the Crescent Hotel, Jack Moyer

A hotel manager at the Crescent Hotel, Jack Moyer. (Link: https://eurekaspringsmediacenter.com/2014/02/24/jack-v-moyer-honored-for-accomplishments-in-hospitality/)

One of these activities included the supposed portal identified by Heath. Moyer said that he was told by one of the hotel tour ghost managers that during the night tours, people have been briefly passing out. This has happened a number of times so the manager was concerned enough to tell Moyer about it. When Moyer asked where the visitors usually passed out, Moyer was taken to the exact spot where Heath said the portal to the other world was located.

That spot is said to be directly below Norman Baker’s morgue. When Baker was the owner of the hotel and he turned the Crescent Hotel into a health hotel, he had a room where his dead patients were placed.

A photo of the morgue and the walk-in freezer at the Crescent Hotel

A photo of the morgue and the walk-in freezer at the Crescent Hotel. (Link: https://eurekaspringsmediacenter.com/2017/10/02/children-morgue-americas-haunted-hotel/)

Room 218 Of Crescent Hotel

Another ghost said to be haunting the Crescent Hotel belongs to a mason who plunged to his death while they were constructing the skeleton of the Crescent Hotel. Allegedly, the man jumped from the room that is now identified as room 218.

Outside Room 218 of the Crescent Hotel

Outside Room 218 of the Crescent Hotel. (Link: https://www.tripadvisor.co.za/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g31582-d1214511-i270779007-Crescent_Hotel_Ghost_Tour-Eureka_Springs_Arkansas.html)

This room is also said to be very spiritually active because it has attracted a lot of television film crews. Allegedly, hands are seen coming out of the bathroom mirror in this room and the cries of a falling man can be heard. The doors in this rom also open and shut on its own and once it is closed, you can no longer open such door. Many have since requested to be placed in this room during their stay so they can witness themselves these paranormal activities that are wildly talked about.

The Crystal Dining Room At The Crescent Hotel

The Crystal Dining Room of Crescent Hotel is also another hotspot for paranormal activities. Most of the employees at the Crescent Hotel have claimed that they have seen playful spirits here wearing Victorian dresses. Employees claim that there was this one Christmas season when the Christmas tree and the packages underneath the tree were moved from one end of the room to the other. Also, many have claimed to have seen ghostly figures dancing at the dining room when it is already closed and dark.

The Crystal Dining Room at the Crescent Hotel

The Crystal Dining Room at the Crescent Hotel. (Link: https://www.familytravelgo.com/breakfast-at-the-crescent-hotels-crystal-dining-room/)

Another creepy incident at the Crystal Dining Room of Crescent Hotel involve a female employee who looked at herself in the huge mirror. To her surprise, she saw a man and a woman wearing Victorian clothing as if they were getting married. The groom then turned and made eye contact to the female employee. That employee quit right after the ghostly incident.

The most common paranormal activity at the Crystal Dining Room of Crescent Hotel includes that of a man sitting at a table near the window. He could be heard saying, “I saw the most beautiful woman here last night and I am waiting for her to return.”

A ghost of a boy skipping around the Crystal Dining Room was also spotted by the chef of the Crescent Hotel while he was working on some food.

Norman Baker Frequents The Crescent Hotel

Although Baker left Arkansas after his sentence, he allegedly made his way back to the Crescent Hotel. Many employees and visitors have seen his ghost and he is said to be wearing a purple shirt and a white linen suit. Aside from that, a nurse pushing a gurney could be seen in the former morgue area of Baker. His morgue still contains his autopsy table and walk-in freezer.

Employees have also met a woman named Theodora and she frequents room 419 of the Crescent Hotel. She has introduced herself as one of the cancer patients of Baker and then she vanishes after the exchange of introductions with the people she meets.

Room 419 of the Crescent Hotel

Room 419 of the Crescent Hotel. (Link: https://www.tripadvisor.co.nz/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g31582-d76931-i126173533-1886_Crescent_Hotel_Spa-Eureka_Springs_Arkansas.html)

The Scent Of Cherry Tobacco At The Crescent Hotel

Many visitors and employees have smelled the smell of cherry pipe tobacco. Allegedly, it comes from the ghost of Dr. John Freemont Ellis. He was the hotel’s in-house doctor during the 19th century. The office of Ellis back in the day was room 212. During a tour, the tour guide shared, “We all simultaneously experienced that olfactory sensation for well over a minute.  And let it be understood that our entire hotel is a ‘no smoking’ property and has been for years.”

The Ghost Of A Little Girl That Fell To Her Death At The Crescent Hotel

Another ghost roaming around the Crescent Hotel is said to belong to a little girl. The girl reportedly fell to her death from the fourth floor railing. During a tour, a group of women exclaimed that the girl was there. They stopped at the exact spot where the little girl reportedly landed. One man from the same group reportedly claimed shortly thereafter that he took a photo of the ladies and it showed a foggy mist in the shape of a little girl standing right next to the women.

 

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