Goldfield Hotel - Virginia City, Nevada

History

The Goldfield Hotel was built and opened for business in 1908 during the Nevada gold rush. Goldfield was the number one gold producing city in Nevada and the hotel itself is believed to have been built over an abandoned gold mine. Two previous versions of the Goldfield Hotel were built from wood and eventually burned down, leading to the final U-shaped version of the building which was constructed of granite and redbrick.

During its time in service, the Goldfield Hotel was believed to be the grandest hotel in Nevada, complete with pile carpets, mahogany and leather upholstery, gilded columns and crystal chandeliers. The popularity of the hotel waned with the mining of gold in the area and eventually fell into disrepair. Its last patrons were the officers and family of the Tonopah Army Air Field during the end of World War II.

Legend also speaks of an affair that occurred between a prostitute named Elizabeth and George Winfield, the original owner of the hotel. In the 1930’s, Elizabeth confessed to George Winfield that she was pregnant. Some stories have George as being the father, whereas other stories claim that another man fathered the child. At first, Winfield tried to keep Elizabeth at bay in hopes of hiding the affair. Finally, he resorted to chaining Elizabeth to a radiator in Room 109 of the hotel. She was provided with only food and water until the child was born. Again, this is where stories tend to differ. Some say that George Winfield murdered Elizabeth after the child was born; others say that she died during childbirth. However, all stories seem to agree on one detail – that the baby was thrown down a mine shaft in the basement of the hotel by George Winfield.

The Goldfield Hotel closed its doors for good in 1945. Though the hotel has undergone renovations several times, it has yet to be successfully completed and reopened.

Claims

Claims throughout the hotel include full-body apparitions, disembodied voices and shadows, moving objects and physical interactions such as people being shoved, dragged and even lifted into the air and thrown.

The George Winfield room on the 1st Floor is said to be haunted by Mr. Winfield. He makes his presence known with the smell of cigar smoke and has even been known to leave ashes in the room. Winfield has also been seen on the lobby staircase, along with the apparitions of two small children. These children have also been seen in the presence of a ghostly midget.

Room 109 is also believed to be haunted by the ghost of Elizabeth. Witnesses hear a woman’s voice and the sound of sobbing. The room is also unusually cold, even in the hot summer months and electronics are said to malfunction when brought into the room. Emotionally sensitive people have been known to break into tears unexpectedly. Animals refuse to enter that room and the door never remains closed.

The hotel dining room, known as the Gold Room, is plagued by the spirit of a man who lunges at unsuspecting victims with a large knife. He has never successfully injured anyone, but has frightened several visitors to the hotel.

A 2nd Floor elevator is haunted by the ghost of a man who either fell or was thrown to his death down the elevator shaft. His ghostly presence has been seen in and around the elevator on the 2nd Floor.

Two distinct ghosts are said to haunt the 3rd Floor; one is a woman who hung herself in one of the rooms, while the other, a man, is said to have jumped to his death from one of the windows. Neither has been identified officially, but both have been witnessed by several people.

The 4th Floor is said to be the haunting grounds of a man who was killed in a gun fight, though no records to confirm this or identify the spirit have been found.