Nevada Lore Series: the Infamous Hauntings of the Goldfield Hotel

In the heart of the semi-ghost town of Goldfield, Nevada outside Tonopah rests the decaying beauty of the Goldfield Hotel, which, as it happens, is one of the most haunted places in America.

Goldfield was a traditional Nevada boomtown. Gold was discovered in 1902, and like the rest of the boomtowns, swelled seemingly overnight into, at one time, the largest city in Nevada.

However, when the mines ran dry, people moved on, but not before massive projects were undertaken such as the Goldfield Hotel. Over the course of twenty years, the population went from 0, to 35,000, to 1,500.

As is the way in most of Nevada’s history, a massive fire in 1923 devoured the town, and 27 blocks were destroyed in its wake.

The Goldfield Hotel opened its doors in 1908 at the peak of the gold rush, and it was a perfect representation for the lavish and prosperous times the early gold rush of the 20th century was known for.

It cost over $300,000 to complete — an insane amount, which is the equivalent of almost $9 million today.

Designed by Architect George E. Holesworth, the hotel included 154, each equipped with telephones, electric lights, and heated steam.

Some of the Gatsy-esque designs included crystal chandeliers, gold-leaf ceilings, black leather upholstery, and mahogany paneled walls.

It also included one of the very first elevators west of the Mississippi.

After completion, it was sold to mining titan George Wingfield, who was the majority owner of the Goldfield Consolidated Mining Company. It was purchased for $200,000 in cash and stocks worth $250,000 — a total of over 12 million in today’s dollar.

However, as we’ve seen from all boomtowns, by the 1930s the gold was waning and so too was the population of Goldfield. In 1923, the hotel was sold to Newton Crumley, who ended up digging two mine shafts beneath the hotel in 1925, which resulted in a major loss when no gold was found in either.

During World War II, the hotel, now practically in shambles, housed Army Air Corp soldiers from the Tonopah Air Base, and in 1945 when they officially left, the hotel shut its doors, and they remain shut today.

It is currently owned by a Carson City rancher by the name of Edgar “Red” Roberts, who purchased the hotel during a 2003 auction for $360,000, along with a few hundred acres of land.

However, just because the hotel is shut up, doesn’t mean it’s unoccupied.

Though there are many ghosts and specters that are said to haunt the lavish hotel, the most well known is a woman known as Elizabeth.

The legend goes that George Wingfield, the second owner of the hotel, was Elizabeth’s most prolific customer — as a lady of the night that is, a popular career for women during the boomtown years. It’s said that Elizabeth became pregnant with Wingfield’s child, which would have been a major scandal for a titan such as Wingfield who was not only a multi-millionaire, owning properties all over Nevada, but was a major politician during the day as well.

Wingfield paid Elizabeth off for some time, but as she began to show, she wanted him to do his part in taking care of their child.

So, instead, Wingfield kidnapped Elizabeth and stashed her away in room 109, chaining her to a radiator until she gave birth. For months, she begged for mercy and called out for help, but was never released from her imprisonment.

Some people say she died in childbirth; others say Wingfield murdered her shortly after the baby was born.

Afterwards, as the legend goes, Wingfield took the newborn babe and tossed it down a mine shaft to hide the evidence of his scandal.

People say Wingfield was forever cursed by the terrible deed, leading to the ruin of his fortune. In 1932, twelve of his banks collapsed, which almost led to the complete economic ruin of Nevada.

Visitors and thrill seekers who tour the hotel often report seeing Elizabeth wandering the halls looking for her lost child. She is said to be wearing a white gown, with long flowing hair, and a miserable expression.

During the night, you can hear her calling for her child as she searches the rooms of the dilapidated hotel.

In Room 109, in which she spent the last, agonizing months of her life, it is said to be intensely cold, and no amount of heat can warm it.

A baby’s cry can often be heard from the mine shafts beneath the hotel.

In addition to Elizabeth, there are said to be an array of additional spirits that make themselves known to visitors.

Two of them are said to be hotel occupants who committed suicide on the third floor, who have been spotted by dozens of people.

The first is said to be a woman who hanged herself in one of the rooms, and the second, a man who jumped from the window of his room.

In the “Gold Room,” the main dining room, there is said to be an evil spirit known only as “the Stabber,” who attacks trespassers to the dining hall with a large kitchen knife.

There are also three trickster child spirits who are said to haunt the lobby beside the staircase, who sneak up behind people, tap on their backs, before giggling and running away.

There’s also a story that miners would be thrown down the mine shafts beneath the hotel to their deaths by Wingfield who would take their gold for himself.

One of the owners in the 1980s supposedly found human remains in the basement of the hotel near the elevator shaft, after hearing rattling coming from the basement when no one was in the building.

And finally, George Wingfield is said to haunt to hotel, and people say they can still smell his cigar smoke through the hotel, and people have said to have found fresh cigar ashes in his room on the first floor.

In 2017, according to one of the Goldfield tour guides, a man drove from the East Coast to the hotel, stood outside, and shot himself, with a note stating he wanted to be the next ghost to haunt the hotel.

The hotel is a favorite amongst ghost hunting shows, psychics, and independent thrill seekers who hope to catch a glimpse of something paranormal.

There are several videos on Youtube showing the inside of the hotel today, as tours are still given by townsfolk who love to share the history of their town with visitors!

— The Nevada Lore Series focuses on the legends of Nevada and the surrounding areas that help build our culture, from ancient Washoe stories, to Old West ghostly visions, to modern day urban legends.

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