Today we’ll travel back to my home state of Texas and the City of Galveston for this month’s Legends and Lore post.
Located on Galveston and Pelican Islands, the City of Galveston was once the largest in Texas. The 1900 Galveston hurricane changed that. Still known as the deadliest natural disaster in United States history and the fifth-deadliest Atlanta hurricane, the storm claimed between 6,000 and 12,000 fatalities. Official counts cite around 8,000 dead. After the storm, investors grew alarmed and turned inland to Houston which is now the largest city in the state.
Today Galveston is a coastal resort city with an economy consisting of tourism, shipping, financial, and medical industries. It’s the home of the University of Texas Medical Branch which has an average annual enrollment of 2500 students.
(Public Domain Photo)
Galveston is rich in history. As you might expect along with that history comes tales of haunted places, one of which is the Grand Galvez Resort and Spa.
The historic hotel has 226 rooms and opened to the public in 1911 as the Hotel Galvez. Once referred to as the “Playground of the Southwest,” celebrities such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Jimmy Stewart, and Duke Ellington were frequent visitors. American Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, and Lyndon Johnson also stayed in the hotel, as did General Douglas MacArthur.
CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7975723
But the Hotel Galvez is also known for some permanent tenants. Guests who checked in but have never checked out. The hotel is ripe with paranormal activity. Who are some of its permanent inhabitants?
The Love Lorn Lady
Audra is the most famous ghost that resides in the Galvez. In the mid-fifties, she was a twenty-five-year-old bride-to-be. Her fiancé was a mariner who often sailed in and out of the port of Galveston. She would often rent room 501 which was close to the elevator. Audra used the elevator to access a ladder that led to the roof.
Audra would climb to the red-tiled roof to await her fiancé’s ship, sitting inside the hotel’s rooftop turret. After a devastating storm, Audra received word the ship had capsized and “all hands were lost.” Inconsolable, Audra hung herself in the hotel’s west turret.
Sadly, her fiancé arrived in Galveston a few days later, having survived the storm. Visitors to the hotel claim Audra frequents the fifth floor, although she’s most often seen in her matrimonial room.
Some claim to feel a sudden chill before Audra’s specter appears. Others say there is an inexplicable slamming of doors, televisions turn on and off, and lights flicker back and forth. Front desk staff say they have a difficult time making electronic keys for the room.
Sister Katherine
Sister Katherine is another spirit who haunts the hotel. She belonged to the Sisters of Charity which oversaw the St. Mary’s Orphans Asylum. During the 1900 hurricane, the asylum was ravaged by the storm.
Trying to save as many orphans as possible, the sisters made rope out of cloth, tied them to the children and their waists, in hopes of withstanding the storm’s devastating winds. Some believe the ropes were counterproductive, leading to the deaths of ninety children and ten sisters. They were found still attached to one another along the beach where the Galvez is now located.
Their bodies were buried on-site, which lead some to believe the Galvez stands above their mass grave.
Phantom Children
A small girl, dressed in nineteenth-century clothing often frequents the hotel gift shop, lobby, and staircase. She’s often seen bouncing a ball. Other phantom children are said to run throughout the hotel, laughing and often playing the piano. Visitors can hear the sounds of their laughter, but the children remain unseen.
Would You Visit?
I have not stayed in the Galvez, but I wouldn’t be opposed to doing so. What about you? Would you book a room in a haunted place?
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39 Responses
Wow! What a fantastic post!
I love learning the history behind people, places, and buildings like this. No matter where you go.. There’s always a story.
Thanks so much for sharing have a beautiful week!
I love stories like this. There are supposedly lots of haunted places on Galveston Island. Hope you have a great week as well, Sheri!
I agree. These kinds of stories are fascinating. It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if the whole island were haunted.
Honestly.. Where can you go anymore that hasn’t been touched by some kind of horror or tragedy?
That a great post. I wouldn’t mind staying there.
Me either, Craig. I think it would be exciting.
I’d book a room in a haunted place. I figure most ghosts are working out their issues and would leave me alone as long as I didn’t try to interact with them.
I’ve stayed in a couple of supposedly haunted hotels, Priscilla. Didn’t see a thing.
I think it could be fun to stay there … just not on my own! Lols. Great share, Joan 💕🙂
I think it would be fun too, Harmony.
What a fascinating history! I wouldn’t be opposed to staying there.
I’d be right there with you, Liz.
🙂
I guess I’m the chicken of the group, Joan. I’d have to take a pass on staying at that hotel. It’s beautiful though.
You and Mae are alike in that respect. It is a beautiful building.
I love reading about stuff like this, but I’ll bow out when it comes to visiting. The hotel is beautiful and I love its rich history. The stories about Audra and Sister Katherine and the children are particularly sad. If they’re there, no wonder they can’t move on.
Great share, Joan!
Those are sad stories, Mae. You and Jill are both hesitant about staying.
Shes like me 🙂
I would absolutely stay there. And I’m sure I wouldn’t see a thing. There’s a supposedly haunted hotel near here. Ghost Hunters filmed there, I believe. I know people who have gone and never saw a thing. I was supposed to stay there several years ago during a writing conference, but I ended up at a different hotel. Still, I’d check it out.
There are some sad stories attached to the hotel you featured. Such tragedies. I hope any restless souls find peace.
Thanks, Joan.
I’ve stayed in two “haunted” hotels nearby. Nothing happened either time.
The stories about the Galvez are sad.
A big YES, in answer to your question about whether or not I’d book a room there. I am fascinated by haunted hotels and have stayed at a supposedly haunted hotel in the New Orleans French Quarter twice. I didn’t see or feel any paranormal activity during my stay. Thank you for sharing this fascinating history of the Hotel Galvez. I haven’t stayed there YET, but I certainly would like to. Thanks for sharing, Joan!
I’ve stayed in two different haunted hotels in Jefferson. Nothing happened at either place. I’d definitely stay at the Galvez.
I would love to stay there. The idea of maybe running into a specter is very appealing. Good stories, Joan.
I think so too, John!
😊
Absolutely!
Way to go! Me too.
I stayed in the haunted St. James Hotel in Cimarron, New Mexico!
That’s cool! I’ve stayed in a couple of haunted hotels. Didn’t see anything.
I haven’t either. Something did happen at the St. James, but it’s not concrete enough to rule out other explanations, probably.
What a great share, Joan! Thank you! I haven’t heard about the Galvez but sounds like a fascinating place. I, personally, would have no problem staying at a haunted hotel. I have a few on my bucket list.
We’ve stayed at a couple of them nearby but didn’t see anything. I’d certainly stay in the Galvez!
Sign me up! I’d love to stay there – and it’s on the beach! Hubby and I have stayed in a couple of haunted hotels, but I didn’t have any experiences. Ironically, he’s a nonbeliever, but did have an experience. Changed his mind about ghosts.
I keep “hoping” to see something (we’ve stayed in a couple of haunted hotels) but I never have. That’s interesting about your husband.
What a fun post! I waffle back and forth about ghosts, but what a gorgeous hotel! I’d be tempted to stay there.
I would stay. Probably wouldn’t see anything, but I would stay.
I would absolutely stay there. Like most, I doubt that I would see anything. Such tragedies. Hopefully, the ghosts will find peace and be able to move on. Loved the post, Joan.
Thanks, Michele. I’d definitely stay there!
I would stay there, with that many rooms it wouldn’t be like staying by yourself in a haunted house! I didn’t know about that devastating hurricane. Such a sad story about Audra.
I would definitely stay there! Audra’s story is a sad one. The 1900 Hurricane was long before they started giving them names. There was a book and a documentary made a few years ago called Isaac’s Storm, named for Isaac Cline who was with the weather bureau and downplayed the notion the storm could do a lot of damage.