Whether or not you believe in
ghosts, some places you go can be quite eerie. The popular television shows
such as Ghost Hunters, amongst others, brought curiosity into those who viewed
the television shows. Whether fake or not, that’s beyond the point, what is
true is some people believe and some do not. I used to watch Ghost Hunters for
the architectural history of the buildings they went into and to see inside the
buildings. Some of the places they went to were quite interesting and could be
haunted, if there really is such a thing. Sometimes people say they see ghosts,
figures, or even apparitions, but often-times, just a unique experience can create
a ghostly tale – such as mine at the Jerome Grand Hotel.
Jerome, Arizona is a former
mining town that once had a peak population of nearly 5,000 residents in 1930
(some even say 15,000) but today has less than 500. Much of the town’s original
architecture remains today such as many buildings down main street as well as
the Jerome Grand (Hotel). The Jerome Grand was the town’s fourth and final
hospital. As the population continued to increase, the need for a larger and
more modern hotel was needed amongst the citizens and workers around the mines,
mills, and town for those who had injuries, came down with black lung due to
the smelters polluting the air around town, as well as tuberculosis. The
hospital, named the United Verde Hospital, was built in 1926 and in 1930 was labeled
the most modern hospital in Arizona, if not the entire Western states. The
hospital closed in 1950 and was watched over by a caretaker. The last caretaker
committed suicide in the building in the 1980s and the former hospital was
boarded up. The building was purchased in 1994 and renovated to become the
Jerome Grand.
The first self-service elevator
in Arizona was installed in the hospital. A very slow ride up or down today,
the original 1926 Otis Elevator still works in the hotel. In 1935, a
maintenance man was found dead, pinned beneath the Otis elevator. His spirit is
one of many who are rumored to continue to occupy the building. There are no
known exact numbers of hospital deaths during the years the building was a
hospital, but one estimated number is as many as 9,000 people – on average more
than one death per day.
I spent a weekend in Jerome ten
years ago – staying at both the Hotel Connor and my second night at the Jerome
Grand. Hotel Connor was very historic and fun but to share a possible ghostly
experience, I’ll tell about my second night. I had spent the day checking out
the area and other nearby ghost towns and historical areas and came to the
hotel and walked around before going to my room. I sat in bed, going over maps
and papers for the next day before I went to bed. It was a typical, hot summer
day in Arizona and I had the overhead ceiling fan on. I turned it on with a
switch on the wall next to the light switch. There was also a small cord
attached to the fan I could pull on to turn it on or off. I went and got ready
for bed in the bathroom a bit later and returned to lie down in bed. With the
small television on in the background, I noticed I was kind of hot. I looked up
and noticed the fan had been turned off. I didn’t remember turning it off so I
was a little confused, stood up and walked over to the switch. The switch was
still in the ‘on’ position. I flipped it anyway off and on but nothing
happened. I kept it in the on position and stood on the bed to reach up and
pull the cord on the fan itself and it started again. I’m not an electrician by
any means, but I find it curious as to how that could have happened and if
something actually did pull the cord to turn the fan off.
I started to think about what the
room that I stayed in used to be or how many people had died there. One thing I
do know, I slept great that night and woke up feeling refreshed. It’s not the
most exciting tale of a ghost story or sighting, but the small things make you
wonder if you are indeed alone or if there is something there. I have had a
couple of other strange occurrences that make me think that something else
might be out there, such as one in the ghost town of Winfield, Colorado’s
cemetery and another in an old mine in the middle of nowhere in Arizona. More
tales to be told…
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