The Mizpah Hotel – Haunted Hotel in Tonopah, Nevada
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Full Address: 100 Main Street, Tonopah, NV 89049
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The Mizpah Hotel towers over the dusty streets of Tonopah like a sentinel from another era. This five-story landmark has welcomed guests since 1907, but not all of them ever checked out.
Silver mining brought fortune seekers to this remote Nevada town in the early 1900s. The Mizpah became the crown jewel of the region’s mining boom prosperity.
Today, visitors come seeking more than comfortable beds and Old West charm. They come hoping to encounter the Lady in Red and other restless spirits.
The hotel operates as a fully functional establishment where you can sleep among ghosts. Your room key might unlock more than just a door to the past.
Historical Background
Construction on the Mizpah Hotel began in 1907 during Tonopah’s explosive silver mining boom. George Wingfield and other wealthy mine owners financed this grand project for $300,000.
The hotel opened its doors in November 1908 as Nevada’s tallest building at the time. Five stories of elegance rose from the desert with 47 guest rooms and modern amenities.
The Mizpah served as the social hub for Nevada’s mining elite throughout the early 1900s. Businessmen closed million-dollar deals in the lobby while their wives dined in crystal-chandeliered splendor.
Howard Hughes stayed here during his mining investments in the 1920s and 1930s. The fifth floor became his personal sanctuary when conducting business in central Nevada.
The hotel’s fortunes declined as mining operations slowed after World War II. The Mizpah closed its doors in 1999 after decades of gradual deterioration and neglect.
Fred and Nancy Cline purchased the abandoned building in 2011 for restoration purposes. They invested millions to restore the hotel to its original Edwardian glory while preserving its haunted reputation.
Paranormal Activity Summary
Guests report encountering multiple spirits throughout all five floors of the Mizpah Hotel. The most common phenomenon involves the scent of roses appearing without any source nearby.
Room doors open and close on their own with alarming frequency on upper floors. Electronic devices malfunction or drain completely even when fully charged before entering certain rooms.
The Lady in Red remains the hotel’s most famous paranormal resident and star attraction. She appears primarily on the fifth floor where she met her tragic end decades ago.
Shadow figures glide through the ornate lobby and disappear into walls near the elevator. Cold spots manifest suddenly in hallways where no drafts or air conditioning vents exist.
Disembodied voices echo through empty corridors during late night and early morning hours. Guests hear their names whispered when no living person stands anywhere nearby.
Objects move from their original positions without explanation in guest rooms and common areas. Staff members report finding vintage items relocated to places they couldn’t have reached naturally.
The historic elevator operates without anyone pressing buttons or calling for its service. It often stops at the fifth floor even when guests select different destinations.
By the way, have you visited this haunted place in Nevada State? Goldfield Hotel – Haunted Hotel in Goldfield, Nevada
Ghost Stories & Reports
The Lady in Red dominates the Mizpah’s collection of ghost stories and firsthand accounts. She was a working woman named Rose who fell in love with a client in the early 1900s.
Rose conducted business on the fifth floor during the hotel’s early mining boom years. She developed genuine romantic feelings for one particular patron who visited her regularly.
Her lover grew jealous when he suspected Rose entertained other men between his visits. He confronted her in the fifth-floor hallway near Room 502 during a violent rage.
The jealous man strangled Rose to death in a crime of passion. Her body was discovered wearing her favorite red velvet dress and pearl necklace.
Rose’s spirit never left the scene of her murder or the building she knew so well. She now appears wearing the same red dress and pearls she died in over a century ago.
Guests staying on the fifth floor frequently report the overwhelming scent of roses filling their rooms. This phenomenon occurs most strongly near Room 502 where Rose met her violent end.
Some visitors encounter Rose’s full apparition standing in fifth-floor hallways watching them with sad eyes. She appears solid and real before fading away like morning mist in sunlight.
Rose seems particularly drawn to male guests staying alone on her floor. Several men report feeling invisible hands caressing their faces or playing with their hair while sleeping.
The spirit appears protective rather than threatening toward most guests who encounter her presence. She seems lonely and searching for the love that was stolen from her so violently.
An elderly prospector known only as the Senator haunts the hotel’s lower floors and basement. He lived at the Mizpah during his final years in the early 1920s.
The Senator died of unknown causes in his room and apparently decided to stay put. Staff and guests encounter him near the old boiler room and original hotel foundations.
His ghost appears as a grizzled man wearing turn-of-the-century mining clothes and boots. He carries a pickaxe and seems to be eternally searching for something he lost.
Several employees report hearing heavy footsteps and pickaxe sounds from the basement after midnight. No living person occupies those areas when the sounds occur most frequently.
Children’s laughter echoes through the second and third floors despite no young guests staying there. These playful spirits remain unidentified but seem harmless and merely mischievous in nature.
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Most Haunted Spot
Room 502 on the fifth floor holds the distinction as the Mizpah’s most haunted location. This room served as Rose’s primary working area and the site of her brutal murder.
Guests specifically requesting this room report the strongest paranormal experiences throughout their entire stays. The scent of roses becomes so overpowering that some visitors develop headaches from the intensity.
Rose’s full apparition appears most frequently in Room 502 near the antique wardrobe and window. She stands watching guests with an expression mixing sadness with lingering traces of hope.
Electronics fail completely in this room with remarkable consistency regardless of battery charge levels. Cameras, phones, and recording devices drain within minutes of entering the space.
The hallway outside Room 502 registers temperature drops of 15-20 degrees without any logical explanation. These cold spots move along the corridor as if an invisible presence walks through them.
Guest belongings mysteriously relocate within Room 502 when occupants leave for even brief periods. Items appear neatly arranged in patterns suggesting intelligent interaction rather than random movement.
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Can You Visit?
The Mizpah Hotel operates as a fully functional accommodation open to overnight guests year-round. You can book any room including the famously haunted Room 502 through their reservation system.
Room rates range from $89 to $189 per night depending on season and room selection. The most haunted rooms command premium pricing due to high demand from paranormal enthusiasts.
The hotel offers guided paranormal tours every Friday and Saturday evening at 9 PM. These 90-minute walking tours cost $30 per person and explore the most actively haunted areas.
Photography is actively encouraged throughout the property including all guest rooms and common spaces. Management welcomes paranormal investigation equipment and has no restrictions on recording devices.
The lobby, restaurant, and bar remain open to non-guests during business hours for exploration. Visiting hours extend from 7 AM to 11 PM for public areas without requiring reservations.
Best Time to Visit
Paranormal activity intensifies during late night hours between midnight and 4 AM according to staff. The Lady in Red appears most frequently during these dark hours when hotel activity quiets.
October through December brings increased supernatural encounters according to long-term employee observations and guest reports. The anniversary of Rose’s death falls in November when activity peaks annually.
Full moon periods correspond with heightened phenomena including more frequent apparitions and unexplained sounds. Many paranormal investigators schedule their visits around lunar cycles for maximum activity potential.
Weekdays generally offer quieter environments for serious ghost hunters seeking undisturbed investigation time. Weekend crowds can dilute personal experiences despite activity remaining consistent throughout the week.
First-Hand Accounts & Eyewitness Reports
Travel writer Sarah Mitchell documented her 2015 encounter with Rose in remarkable detail online. She felt invisible fingers stroking her hair while lying awake in Room 502 at 2:30 AM.
Mitchell photographed an unexplained red mist hovering near her bed that appeared on camera only. The human eye saw nothing unusual at the moment she captured the mysterious image.
Paranormal investigator David Weatherly spent three consecutive nights at the Mizpah in 2013. He recorded EVP phenomena including a female voice saying “stay with me” in Room 502.
Hotel manager Maria Santos reports weekly encounters with unexplained phenomena during her five-year tenure. She regularly smells roses in empty fifth-floor hallways while conducting evening security rounds.
A couple celebrating their anniversary in 2018 witnessed Rose’s full apparition standing beside their bed. Both guests saw her simultaneously before she faded away while making eye contact with them.
The husband attempted photographing the spirit but his fully-charged phone died instantly upon raising it. His wife’s identical phone also failed simultaneously despite working perfectly moments before.
Construction workers during the 2011-2013 renovation reported tools moving overnight to different locations. Equipment appeared organized in neat rows where workers had left them scattered the previous day.
One electrician refused to return after experiencing an aggressive shove from invisible hands near the fifth-floor elevator. He felt two distinct palm prints against his back moments before the unexpected push occurred.
Paranormal Investigations & Findings
Ghost Adventures filmed an episode featuring the Mizpah Hotel in October 2014 for their Season 10. Zak Bagans and his crew documented compelling evidence including unexplained voices and shadow figures.
The team captured thermal imaging footage showing a human-shaped heat signature moving through fifth-floor hallways. No living person occupied that area during filming according to their locked-down investigation protocols.
Multiple EVP recordings captured during the Ghost Adventures investigation revealed intelligent responses to investigator questions. One particularly clear recording said “I’m waiting” when asked why Rose remains at the hotel.
The Dead Files television show investigated the Mizpah in 2016 featuring psychic medium Amy Allan. She independently identified Rose’s presence on the fifth floor without receiving prior location information.
Allan described Rose’s death with specific details later confirmed through historical newspaper research. She accurately pinpointed the murder location outside Room 502 while experiencing the spirit’s emotional trauma.
Independent paranormal research teams conduct monthly investigations with management’s full cooperation and support. These groups consistently document unexplained electromagnetic field fluctuations concentrated around the fifth floor and basement areas.
The Southwest Ghost Hunters Association recorded over 40 distinct EVP samples during one weekend investigation. Their equipment registered temperature anomalies dropping 25 degrees within seconds in Room 502’s hallway.
Local Legends & Myths
Long-time Tonopah residents claim Rose actually died protecting a stolen silver cache hidden somewhere inside the hotel. This legend suggests her spirit guards the location of the missing fortune to this day.
Some locals believe Rose wasn’t murdered by a jealous lover but rather by competing business interests. This alternative version claims she witnessed criminal activity and was silenced before she could report it.
Another persistent legend identifies Rose as the secret lover of a wealthy mine owner’s son. His powerful family allegedly orchestrated her death to prevent a scandalous marriage that would ruin their reputation.
Old-timers whisper about a curse placed on the hotel by a Shoshone medicine woman. She supposedly condemned the building after being forcibly removed from the land during original construction in 1907.
This curse legend attempts to explain why multiple spirits haunt the location rather than just Rose. Some believe the curse trapped dying souls within the building’s walls preventing them from moving on.
Safety Warnings & Legal Restrictions
The hotel’s vintage elevator occasionally malfunctions and becomes stuck between floors without warning. Guests with claustrophobia concerns should use the main staircase located near the front desk.
The fifth floor features original hardwood flooring that creaks loudly and shows signs of age-related settling. Visitors should watch their step in dimly lit hallways to avoid tripping hazards from uneven boards.
Management requests that paranormal investigators notify the front desk before conducting late-night investigation activities. This courtesy prevents security from mistaking legitimate guests for potential trespassers or intruders.
The hotel’s basement areas remain off-limits to guests without prior management approval and escort. These restricted zones contain essential building systems and present legitimate safety hazards from mechanical equipment.
Cursed or Haunted Objects
Rose’s pearl necklace allegedly remains somewhere within the hotel’s fifth floor according to local legend. Several psychics claim sensing its presence but the actual jewelry has never been recovered or verified.
An antique mirror in Room 502 reportedly shows figures and faces that aren’t physically present. Numerous guests photograph the mirror capturing anomalies invisible to the naked eye at the moment of capture.
The original hotel register from 1908 resides in a locked display case in the main lobby. Staff report the book occasionally falls open to specific pages despite being secured in its glass enclosure.
A red velvet chair in the fifth-floor hallway once belonged to the room Rose worked from. Guests who sit in this chair report feeling overwhelming sadness and several have burst into unexplained tears.