Oddity of the Week: The Haunted Hotel
Created | Updated Apr 12, 2015
Don't ask for room service – you might not like what you get.
The Haunted Hotel
In Beaumont, Texas, there's a hotel. Below the sign that says 'Haunted', there's another one that says, 'Once You Check In, You May Never Check Out.' And, of course, our favourite Library of Congress photographer, Carol M Highsmith, just couldn't resist.
There's not a lot of information available about this hotel, originally called the New Rosemont. It was built in 1893. It's part of Beaumont's historic commercial district, a registered landmark area with an eclectic mix of historic buildings. And two stately – and, no doubt, more expensive – hotels.
Yeah, but do they have their own ghosts? Let's get our priorities straight here. What do you want, a good night's sleep, or turndown service from a spectral chambermaid?
Okay, there was another historically important hotel of the same vintage in Beaumont: the Dixie Hotel, run discreetly by Miss Rita, who only employed the nicest young ladies of negotiable affection, and who used the money to send her daughter to Catholic boarding school, put a priest through seminary training, and keep a wing of the house as a retirement home for elderly, indigent former customers. Alas, the Dixie was closed down in 1961 by outraged citizens bent on cleanup. Maybe they didn't approve of charity.
Anyway, nobody seems to know who, or what, is haunting that ruined hotel. But at $1.00 a night, the price is sure right.
