Episode Transcript
[00:00:24] Speaker A: Welcome back to the final spooky episode of Colorado Crime, the podcast where true crime meets the supernatural. I'm Amanda, and joining me, as always, is Corey.
[00:00:37] Speaker B: And today we're diving into topics that are guaranteed to send a chill down your spine. We're talking about some of the most haunted places in Colorado and Illinois, where I currently live. We are going to start off with Colorado and end with Illinois.
[00:00:53] Speaker A: That's right, Corey. Colorado may be known for its stunning mountain ranges and rich history, but beneath the surface, it's also home to some of the creepiest, most haunted places in the country.
[00:01:06] Speaker B: And what a better time to talk about these haunted spots than spooky season, ghost stories, ear encounters, and even a few places tied to true crime. Today, we've got it all. So grab your blanket, turn down the lights, and let's jump right in.
[00:01:24] Speaker A: So let's start with one of the most infamous locations in Colorado, the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. If you're a horror fan, you already know this place. It's the inspiration for Stephen King's the Shining Red Rum.
[00:01:41] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, the Stanley Hotel. This place has a reputation.
King stayed there back in the 1970s, and the eerie atmosphere supposedly gave him nightmares. But this place was already haunted long before King showed up.
[00:01:56] Speaker A: It's said that the hotel's founder, Freeland Oscar Stanley, and his wife Flora, never really left. Guests have reported seeing Mr. Stanley's ghost wandering around the hotel, especially in the lobby. And Flora, she's said to still play the piano in the ballroom, her delicate music floating through the air even when no one's at the Keys.
[00:02:20] Speaker B: Ooh, that's spooky. I've even heard some guests have woken up in the middle of the night to see figures standing at the foot of their bed, only to vanish a moment later. And let's not forget room 217.
People have reported lights flickering, furniture moving, and ghostly apparitions of a former housekeeper who died in an explosion there. Sounds like the perfect spot for a haunted getaway. Amanda, are you up for a trip?
[00:02:47] Speaker A: It's a no for me. Let's just keep this virtual for now.
[00:02:51] Speaker B: Okay, let's move on to the Boulderado Hotel in Boulder.
[00:02:58] Speaker A: Ah, yes, the Boulder Auto. It opened in 1909. It's one of Boulder's most iconic hotels and one of its spookiest.
Legend has it that a woman named Maggie committed suicide by jumping from the third floor balcony, and her spirit still lingers. Guests have seen a woman in white wandering the hallways late at night, her face pale, her eyes Distant, creepy.
[00:03:23] Speaker B: And there are reports of cold spots. Lights turning on and off by themselves, and doors slamming shut when no one's around. It's like the entire hotel has a life of its own.
[00:03:35] Speaker A: But there's more. Some say the hotel's basement is the most haunted part. Employees have heard disembodied voices and footsteps when no one else is down there. Imagine being alone in a dim basement and hearing a voice call your name. Sarah.
[00:03:52] Speaker B: No, thanks. Let's get out of the basement and head to the mountains. Next up is Gold Camp Road tunnels in Colorado Springs.
[00:04:01] Speaker A: Yes, these tunnels have a dark history. Built for the railroad in the early 1900s, one of the tunnels collapsed, killing several workers. Ever since, people have reported hearing phantom voices, the clinking of metal tools, and even feeling unseen hands pushing them while walking through the tunnels.
[00:04:22] Speaker B: Not only that, but some folks say they've seen shadowy figures darting in and out of the darkness. Car windows have been shattered mysteriously, and there are even reports of car engines failing near the tunnels without any explanation.
[00:04:37] Speaker A: Legend says that the spirits of those trapped inside are still trying to escape. Would you dare to walk through those tunnels alone at night, Corey?
[00:04:46] Speaker B: No, thanks. I'd rather take my chances at the Stanley.
Let's take it up a notch. What's next?
[00:04:54] Speaker A: How about we head to Central City? This old mining town has a reputation for being one of the most haunted places in the state. One spot in particular gives me the creeps.
The Central City Masonic Cemetery.
[00:05:12] Speaker B: Oh, I have heard of this place. It's the resting spot of several early settlers. But it's known for a specific haunting. The spirit of a woman in black who leaves flowers on the grave of a young man named John Edward Cameron. She has been spotted several times, dressed in Victorian clothing, always disappearing into thin air after placing her flowers.
[00:05:35] Speaker A: And it's not just the lady in black. Visitors have reported strange mists, unexplainable cold spots, and even hearing the sound of mournful cries echoing through the cemetery long after dark.
[00:05:52] Speaker B: There's just something about an old cemetery that's just unnerving. The weight of history and all the lives lost lingering just below the surface.
[00:06:02] Speaker A: Exactly. And speaking of lost lives, let's finish with a place tied to both true crime and the supernatural. The Molly Brown house in Denver.
[00:06:14] Speaker B: Molly Brown, the unsinkable Titanic survivor? Correct.
[00:06:18] Speaker A: That's the one. The house is said to be haunted, not just by Molly herself, but also by several other spirits.
Guests have reported seeing ghostly apparitions of both men and women wandering the halls, hearing footsteps and feeling Sudden chills.
[00:06:35] Speaker B: I read that investigators once recorded an eerie voice in the house saying, help me. Could it be someone connected to Molly's past? Or maybe a spirit tied to Denver's darker history?
[00:06:48] Speaker A: Whatever the cause, the Molly Brown house remains a hotbed of paranormal activity, drawing ghost hunters and curious visitors alike.
[00:06:58] Speaker B: Well, Colorado's got no shortage of haunted spots, that's for sure. I don't know about you, but I think I'll sleep with the lights on tonight.
[00:07:07] Speaker A: I don't blame you. These stories give a whole new meaning to the term Rocky Mountain chills.
[00:07:14] Speaker B: Maybe we should check out one of these places for ourselves. For research purposes, of course.
[00:07:19] Speaker A: Let's just keep it to research for now. But for our listeners, if you ever find yourself in Colorado, just remember, you might not be alone.
[00:07:31] Speaker B: And if you feel something watching you while you listen to this podcast, you're probably not alone.
Now we're going to move on to the most haunted places in Illinois.
[00:07:43] Speaker A: Our first story comes from the small town of St. Charles, about 40 miles west of Chicago. There's a place there known as the St. Charles School for Boys, which opened in 1867 and closed in the 1980s.
It was an institution meant to reform troubled young boys. But as with many places like it, the darker stories often go untold. The school sits on a hill surrounded by thick trees, casting an eerie shadow over the town. In the 1970s, an employee named Thomas was said to have died mysteriously while working late in the building.
People say his ghost still roams the halls.
Former employees and locals claim to have heard footsteps echoing through the empty rooms. They've seen strange apparitions through the windows and even felt a cold hand brush against them in the dark.
One former staff member recalls walking down a hallway late at night when a shadowy figure suddenly appeared at the end of the hall before disappearing into thin air. But it's not just Thomas that lingers there. Some people report hearing the faint cries of boys who never made it out, who never got the chance to escape the horrors of the school. Perhaps most chilling of all is a photograph taken by a group of Ghost Hunters in 2003. In it, a dark, misty figure can be seen near the entrance, staring directly at the camera. Some say it's Thomas. Others say it's the ghost of a former resident. What's clear, though, is that something still lingers in the shadows of St. Charles.
[00:09:34] Speaker B: Next, we head over to Elgin, a town with a rich history of ghostly lore. Elgin is the home to one of the most famous urban legends in Illinois, the tale of The Headless Man.
The story goes that in the 1800s, a man was brutally murdered by a gang of outlaws who, after killing him, decapitated his body to ensure that no one would recognize him. The legend says his ghost now roams the streets of Elgin, searching for his missing head. Some claim to have seen him wandering the back roads at night, his face obscured by the darkness and his body in a state of decay. But his eyes are filled with vengeance.
Locals have reported seeing the figure of a man in a tattered coat, his head wrapped in a cloth, appearing suddenly on the road before vanishing into thin air.
Those who have encountered him say he looks lost, as if he's searching for something, perhaps his head.
Several visitors to the Elgin cemetery have also reported seeing a tall figure wandering between the gravestones at night, pacing as if waiting for something or someone. Could it be the restless soul of the Headless man still trying to find his final resting place?
[00:10:49] Speaker A: For our next ghost story, we venture out into the forest. Robinson woods, located in the northwestern suburbs of Chicago, is not just an ordinary forest. Locals believe it is one of the most haunted spots in Illinois.
The legends date back to the 19th century, when it was rumored that a Native American tribe was massacred in the woods by settlers. The spirits of the tribe, some say, still roam the area.
In most recent times, hikers and park goers have reported strange occurrences. Disembodied voices, shadowy figures moving between the trees, and the feeling of being watched. One woman recounted her experience.
She and her friends were walking along the forest trail when they heard what sounded like chanting in the distance. As they approached, the noise suddenly stopped, and they saw a figure standing between the trees. Illuminated by moonlight, the figure was tall and indistinct. The feeling of terror was unmistakable. It vanished before they could blink. Another account comes from a park ranger who swears she once saw a figure, an old man in tattered clothes, standing by a creek in the woods. He never spoke, just stared at her before dissolving into the mist.
Is Robinson woods truly haunted by the spirits of the past? Or is the home of something far darker? Either way, you'd be wise to be cautious if you ever find yourself walking through these woods at night.
[00:12:32] Speaker B: Now let's move on from the woods to the city, where hotels can hold as much mystery as the forest. Illinois is home to some of the oldest and most haunted hotels in the US One such place is the Eagle's Nest Hotel in Chicago. Originally built in 1886, it has been the site of many deaths, including a tragic suicide of a young Woman who jumped from the balcony of the main hall in the 1920s.
To this day, guests claim to see her ghostly figure standing on that very balcony, staring out over the city, her face filled with sorrow. Some say you can hear her faint sobs echoing through the hotel late at night. And others report hearing the soft tapping of her footsteps, as if she's pacing the hallways.
There's also the famous Baker Hotel, Another hotspot for paranormal activity. People who have stayed there report sudden drops in temperature, Mysterious knocking sounds from the walls, and strange, unexplained shadows moving through the halls. But perhaps the creepiest story comes from a woman who was staying there alone. She woke up in the middle of the night to find her bed shaking violently. She rushed out of the room in a panic, and when she came back in the next morning, the bed was still trembling, as if something had been trying to get out.
[00:13:49] Speaker A: Next up, the Congress Plaza hotel in downtown Chicago. Built in 1893, this hotel has seen its share of infamous guests. But the most famous ones, they are not alive anymore.
Guests have reported seeing a little boy in the hallway, believed to be the spirit of a young child who tragically died in the hotel. But that's just scratching the surface.
Room 441 is known as the most haunted room in the hotel. The cleaning staff refuses to go in alone, and guests have been woken by the sensation of something or someone sitting on the edge of the bed. People have reported seeing full bodied apparitions, including a man with a gunshot wound, roaming the halls.
Some say he's one of the many mobsters who used to frequent the hotel back in the early 1900s. So the creepiest story that would be of Peg leg Johnny, A drifter who was murdered there whose spirit still haunts the place. The lights flicker, objects move on their own, and cold spots appear out of nowhere. And if you're brave enough to stay there, make sure to sleep with one eye open. Many guests have left in the middle of the night, refusing to ever return.
[00:15:15] Speaker B: Finally, we venture into the south suburbs of Chicago, To a place where the line between the living and the dead is razor thin.
Bachelors Grove cemetery is one of the most haunted graveyards in the country.
This small abandoned cemetery is notorious for ghostly encounters. People claim to have seen phantom cars driving down the nearby road, only to disappear into thin air.
And then there's the famous white lady, A spectral woman often seen walking through the cemetery at night, cradling an infant in her arms.
But that's not all. Strange glowing orbs have been captured in photographs shadowy figures move among the tombstones, and there are reports of a ghostly farmhouse that appears out of nowhere, only to vanish as you get close. And if you're brave enough to walk through the grounds at night, some visitors claim they hear footsteps behind them even when they're alone. Bachelor's Grove may be small, but its haunted reputation casts a long shadow.
[00:16:14] Speaker A: So what do you think? Could these spirits still be clinging to the place where they met their tragic ends?
Illinois is full of haunted sights, and these are just the beginning.
[00:16:28] Speaker B: And if you're brave enough, you can always visit.
But beware, you might not leave alone. Spirits have been known to follow people home.
[00:16:37] Speaker A: That's it for this spooky season. Happy Halloween. We hope you guys have enjoyed these spooky episodes.
Stay safe, stay curious, and remember, sometimes it's not just the living you have to fear.
[00:16:54] Speaker B: Until next time, Podcastians. Keep one eye on the shadows. And don't forget to check under the bed.
