{"id":64519,"date":"2019-11-07T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2019-11-07T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/seen-by-some-and-not-others-ghosts-said-to-haunt-area-hotels\/"},"modified":"2019-11-07T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2019-11-07T12:00:00","slug":"seen-by-some-and-not-others-ghosts-said-to-haunt-area-hotels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/seen-by-some-and-not-others-ghosts-said-to-haunt-area-hotels\/","title":{"rendered":"Seen by some and not others, ghosts said to haunt area hotels"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"Shay
Shay Calhoun, an employee at the Rochester Hotel, sits by the window in Room 204, which is said to be haunted. The Rochester is listed as one of the 100 Most Haunted Hotels in America.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

A little girl runs down the hall, disappearing into thin air. A man with a bushy mustache, top hat and agonized eyes appears at the door to ask about the health of the sleeper. A friendly presence and invisible helping hands assist a harried desk clerk.<\/p>\n

Ghouls and ghosts are thought to move more freely among us as around Halloween, when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. But you don\u2019t have to wait for Halloween to see spirits at several area historic hotels, which have specters roaming their rooms and halls year-round, according to guests and staff.<\/p>\n

The ghostly stories are recounted in a new book, \u201cHaunted Hotels of Southern Colorado,\u201d by Nancy Williams, which includes the Strater and Rochester hotels in Durango and the Grand Imperial and Wyman hotels in Silverton.<\/p>\n

The book mostly focuses on the histories of the towns and hotels, with a nod to the reported sightings. Much of the material is from secondhand reports \u2013 other books and newspaper articles, including several from The Durango Herald<\/em> \u2013 but it\u2019s a good way to learn some Colorado history regardless of whether you\u2019re interested in the allegedly haunted side of things. Other towns and their supposedly haunted hotels include Dolores, Telluride, Ouray, South Fork, Del Norte and Creede, as well as Colorado Springs and Grand Junction.<\/p>\n

Durango\u2019s grande dame, the Strater Hotel, had 112 years to accrue some uninvited visitors, which have alternately terrified and exhilarated guests, Williams quoted Rod Barker telling the Herald<\/em> in 1999, although Barker now says he never would say something in that vein.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have seen no evidence whatsoever of ghosts in the Strater,\u201d he said. \u201cWe like to think our hotel is full of the positive energy of the 8 (million) or 9 million people who have passed through since we opened in 1887. The only stories that sound somewhat credible are things that go bump in the night, and those can usually be explained by ice machines and such.\u201d<\/p>\n

That won\u2019t stop the rumors and tales. Some locals say they have seen a ghostly woman sitting in an upper story looking down on Main Avenue, and guests report a man dressed as a railroad engineer walking through the lobby, a little girl running around and photographs of mysterious orbs.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople like suspense and like to create an aura of suspense,\u201d Barker said. \u201cOne summer, my daughter worked at the Stanley Hotel, which is supposed to be really haunted. Thinking about it being haunted really diminished guests\u2019 experience at a beautiful old hotel.\u201d (Architectural Digest<\/em> listed the Stanley as the most haunted hotel in America.)<\/p>\n

Kirk Komick, co-owner of the Rochester Hotel, however, revels in the ghostly doings at his establishment. The Rochester has been featured in a \u201cGhostbusters\u201d episode, and in November will be Episode 8 in a new series called \u201cFrontier Tastes and Tales,\u201d which describes the hotel as a place \u201cwhere ghosts and tourists still mingle every day.\u201d It is listed as one of the 100 Most Haunted Hotels in America.<\/p>\n

\"Room
Room 204 at the Rochester Hotel, known as the John Wayne Room, is said to be haunted. In November, the Rochester Hotel will be featured in Episode 8 of a new series, \u201cFrontier Tastes and Tales,\u201d which describes the hotel as a place \u201cwhere ghosts and tourists still mingle every day.\u201d<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cWe mostly get comments from Room 204, the John Wayne Room, or the rooms adjacent,\u201d Komick said. \u201cIt\u2019s usually a woman in heavy Victorian wear or a woman in Victorian lingerie.\u201d<\/p>\n

They get a lot more comments from the adjacent rooms, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHousekeeping says they get a strange feeling there,\u201d Komick said. \u201cWe once had the hairdryer in 204 go on by itself, and we had to go in and turn it off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Laine Johnson, who runs history tours in Durango, including one about haunted locales, told Komick she once had a medium on a tour and took her up to the second floor.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe picked up on the lady in white who stands at the top of the stairs,\u201d Johnson said, \u201calong with Mary Finn, the little boy and a man who might be mistaken for John Wayne. Hmmm \u2026\u201d<\/p>\n

The Rochester runs a Halloween week giveaway of a night in Room 204 on Four Corners Broadcasting\u2019s stations, and the room is always booked with guests from around the country for Halloween night itself, Komick said.<\/p>\n

\"Room
Room 204 at the Rochester Hotel, known as the John Wayne Room, is said to be haunted. \u201cHousekeeping says they get a strange feeling there,\u201d says hotel co-owner Kirk Komick. \u201cWe once had the hairdryer in 204 go on by itself, and we had to go in and turn it off.\u201d<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

There\u2019s no word on whether the recent refurbishment of the Grand Imperial banished its ghosts, most of whom seem to congregate around the old saloon. The most common sighting, though, is one known by name, Dr. Luigi Regalia, who immigrated to the U.S. in 1880 and died by suicide at the hotel in 1890. He has been seen inquiring about the health of guests.<\/p>\n

Barker wonders why ghosts are always in old hotels.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow old does a hotel have to be before it gets a ghost?\u201d he asked. \u201cDoes a hotel have to attain a certain age before it has a ghost? When will the DoubleTree Hotel have a ghost?\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither Barker nor Komick have ever seen an apparition themselves, although Komick thinks he just doesn\u2019t have the extra sense that would allow him to see one.<\/p>\n

Barker has a last word on the subject.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe like to keep our spirits in the Diamond Belle,\u201d he said, \u201cbecause that\u2019s a good place for them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Readers can reach Ann Butler at annbutler2@icloud.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

More information<\/h4>\n

\u201cHaunted Hotels of Southern Colorado\u201d by Nancy Williams is available at Maria\u2019s Bookshop, 960 Main Ave.
\n \u201cFrontier Tastes and Tales\u201d will be available on Roku, Amazon Fire and AndroidTV.
\n Horsefly History Tours offers Durango Underground Halloween and Murder & Mayhem tours. A haunted Durango tour includes a stop at the Rochester Hotel. For more information, visit www.horseflyhistory.com.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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