Sometimes the best part of going on vacation is the people you meet while you’re enjoying your trip. Just be warned when checking into these New Jersey hotels, it may not just be living you meet during your vacation. The hotels in today’s post talk about ghosts that have stayed at the hotels long after they died.
Flanders Hotel
The Flanders Hotel was built in 1923 on the Ocean City boardwalk. The hotel was built to appeal to business men and wealthy families with its luxury suites and expensive touches throughout the hotel. It originally opened with 215 luxury guest rooms. The building was built out of concrete and steel girders which the architect said would make the building fireproof. The architect was proved correct when just four years after the hotel was opened, the boardwalk would catch on fire and 12 blocks of the boardwalk would be destroyed. The owners at the time of the fire decided to take advantage of the boardwalk being rebuilt a block closer to the ocean by making the hotel even larger. The name of the hotel came from the American cemetery in Belgium for World War I soldiers called Flanders Fields. The hotel was also known as The Jewel Of Jersey Shore.
During Prohibition, another crowd was attracted to the hotel. The local Mafia would use the basement of the hotel (also called the Catacombs) for a speakeasy and to conduct their “business meetings”. While there are no deaths in the Catacombs on record, a psychic medium named Joseph Tittel claims to have come in contact with two spirits that were murdered in the Catacombs and that the Mafia was involved in their deaths. Tittel said that one person was hung down there while the other victim was either killed with a knife or strangled to death.
The main ghost reported in Flanders Hotel is a young woman who is often called Emily. Emily is very much a social butterfly. She has been know to appear to large crowds usually at a wedding or other large parties. She is described as appearing to be in her 20’s, with long brown hair, and often seen barefoot. She is said to wearing a long white dress with a train. Often people will see the train of her dress disappearing around the corner but when the person turns the corner, there is no one there. Visitors and staff report that Emily is a happy spirit that loves to sing and dance in the hallways. Staff say that they have seen doors opening and closing by themselves or had to deal with door locks either locking or unlocking themselves. They have also mentioned that lightbulbs have a tendency of unscrewing themselves from their light fixtures. Emily has surprised guests by randomly walking through walls in front of them.
While Emily’s story isn’t known, she seems happy to be at the hotel. Local ghost tours claim that Emily was waiting at the hotel for her love to return from overseas during World War I so that they could be married but unfortunately he died in battle. Whether this is truly why she is there, the staff and visitors to the hotel love the happy atmosphere her spirit brings with her. If you are there for a wedding or a party, be sure to check the background of your photos. She has been known to appear in the background of photos.
Union Hotel
The Union Hotel in Flemington, New Jersey isn’t as glamourous as the Flanders Hotel but it is rich in paranormal activity. The hotel was built in 1878 on Main Street. In 1935, the hotel’s location proved to be ideal when the court case of the century happened across the street. The jury for the kidnapping and murder of Charles Lindbergh’s baby was sequestered at the hotel. All the journalists following the case used the hotel for their base of operations. The hotel stopped taking in overnight guests in the 1950s. The building was still used as office space, a bar and a restaurant. Some of the previous guests never got the memo that they should have checked a while ago.
Staff at the hotel have reported various different types of paranormal activity in the past few years. One manager who was working late in one of the offices on the third floor said that she was interrupted one night by a presence. While she couldn’t see anything, she could feel a strong pressure on her chest that made it difficult to breathe. She said that she didn’t feel threatened and that when she requested the presence to please leave her alone, the pressure immediately left her and she felt like she was alone in the office again. A former bouncer said that he once saw a pair of children’s patent- leather shoes walk up the stairs one night after he closed up the bar. The same bouncer claimed that the front doors would often unlock themselves and the doors would blow open after he had locked the bar up. A waitress said that one night as she carried the cash drawer up to the manager’s office, she heard humming on the stairs but she was the only one in the building. Other people have reported hearing people talking in the dining room but when they stick their heads in the room, it is empty. A young girl has been seen playing in the dining room after everything had been cleaned up for the evening. She was described as being about 8 years old with long, dark hair and wearing a fancy dress. A different little girl has been seen playing on the third step of the stairs. She is often seen playing with a doll and is known to trip people who rush past her.
The current owner of the hotel is fighting to be able to restore this old hotel and to reopen it as the hotel it use to be. I hope they are successful because I would love to have a chance to check out this property and see if I can experience some of the activity that is reported there. I would love to connect with the little girls that are there and find out what their stories are.
What are your theories on why these little girls or Emily stay at these hotels? Clearly they are happy and enjoy being at these locations. Let me know your thought in the comments below.
Paranormal Housewife 