The history of Shafter's Green Hotel and its ghosts.

The Green Hotel, located in Shafter, California, has a rich history dating back to the early 1900s. Originally known as the Shafter Hotel, the building was constructed in 1913 and served as a popular stopover point for travelers along the Southern Pacific Railroad. The hotel was later purchased by the Green family in 1945, who renamed it the Green Hotel and operated it as a family-owned business for over half a century. 

During its heyday, the Green Hotel was a hub of activity in the small town of Shafter. The hotel's bar and restaurant were popular gathering spots for locals and visitors alike, and the hotel's 32 rooms were almost always occupied. In the 1950s, the hotel even played host to famous guests such as Clark Gable and Carol Lombard, who were traveling through the area. 

Today, the Green Hotel still stands as a testament to Shafter's rich history. Although the hotel is no longer operational, the building has been beautifully restored and now serves as a popular venue for weddings, events, and photo shoots. The hotel's unique architecture and vintage charm continue to draw visitors from all over California and beyond, and the Green Hotel remains an important landmark in the town of Shafter.

Along with its rich history, the Green Hotel in Shafter, California is also rumored to be haunted. There have been several reports of strange occurrences and apparitions within the hotel's walls. Some guests have reported feeling a cold presence or hearing unexplained noises, while others have claimed to have seen the ghostly figure of a woman dressed in white roaming the halls. 

Legend has it that the woman in white is the ghost of a former guest who died under mysterious circumstances at the hotel. Others believe that the hotel's bar is haunted by the ghost of a man who was killed in a fight many years ago. Despite these eerie tales, however, the Green Hotel remains a popular destination for those seeking a glimpse into the history of Shafter, and many visitors still flock to the hotel in hopes of experiencing a supernatural encounter.

Former Tulare County General Hospital rumored to be haunted

While doing some research for another article I'm working on I came across the story of the Hillman Health Clinic in Tulare County.

The set of buildings located on K Street and Bardsley Ave were formerly part of the old Tulare County General Hospital center. When the hospital moved to its current location on Cherry Ave, the buildings were converted to be used as a public and mental health clinic (with other services that occupy the second floor and maintenance housed in the basement).

Most activity seems to be centered on the second floor and in the basement. The elevator will move between floors and when the doors open there is no one inside. The evening cleaning crew refuse to work past 9:00 pm as heavy footsteps can be heard on the floor even when it's empty. And apparently a staff member was once taken to the basement even though they pressed the button for a different floor.

In the basement a maintenance worker reported seeing shadowy figures several times moving around and even walking through walls. The strangest incident was when they were asked by a supervisor to check on a room for something. As they approached the room the witness came across a nurse dressed in a white uniform and had a white cap with a red cross on it. Curious as to why a nurse would be in the basement, he turned around but she had disappeared. Upon returning to his supervisor he asked if any nurses were in the basement, but was told there wasn't any. When he described the uniform, the supervisor looked confused as she said that type of uniform hadn't been worn by the nurses in decades.

I've always wondered if hospitals were haunted, given the amount of death that must occur here as well as the amount of emotions that the place had seen over the years. Perhaps the footsteps being heard are a residual haunting, were the same event is played over and over. But what of the incidents that happen with the elevator? Someone still trying to leave the hospital even after all these years?

And then there's the story of the nurse. Obviously the worker saw someone who worked there many years ago, but why was she still there? I know most people think that a person haunts the place where they die (and this is definitely possible with a hospital), but I've always been of the belief that someone may haunt where they were most happy. And in the case of the nurse, it was where she worked (which would explain the uniform).

Whatever the reasons may be, there is definitely something wandering the floors of the Hillman Health Clinic late at night.

Porterville house was site of poltergeist activity during the 1980's

For several weeks in 1984, a residence in the small town of Porterville (situated in Tulare County) was privy to poltergeist activity. The occurrences in the single story house, built in 1979, started when the resident couple's granddaughter came for a visit.

Most of the activity occurred in the hall and a bedroom closet the daughter was staying in. Tapping noises were heard coming from inside the walls as well as strange voices. The incidences continued for several days without any explanation.

Finally a group of paranormal investigators were called in to determine what was going on. They were able to conclude that the poltergeist activity was the result of the spirit of the granddaughter's twin sister, who had died at the age of five from virulent cancer.

After the granddaughter left the residence, the activity stopped and there hasn't been anything reported since. No one knows why this one visit sparked the activity in this small house in Porterville.

Fresno's Adorable Poodle Salon considered one of the oddest ghostly spots on Earth

I had posted a few months ago on The Adorable Poodle Salon, which was a dog grooming salon located somewhere on Blackstone between Gettysburg and Ashlan. It was reported that a very flirtatious ghost would interact with some of the female employees there as well as others reporting cold spots and a sense of being watched.

UK's Asylum (which appears to be a British version of Maxim or something) recently compiled a list of the most unusual haunted places in the world. Locations such as a Pizza Hut in New York and a Blockbuster in Alabama make the list. But as I scrolled down I noticed that Fresno had also made the list, with the above mentioned Adorable Poodle Saloon. Here's what they wrote:

"A series of odd activities have occurred in this dog-washing emporium, including the more usual lights-on-and-off trick, the sensation you're being watched, and cold patches. The most unusual, however, was the ghost constantly kissing one of the staff's neck, with her shooing him away and screaming. The big flirt."

Not that this list is official or anything, but it's nice to see Fresno on an international list and not be for something negative. Now if we can only work on that #55 thing...

Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson had ghostly encounter.

Oscar winning director Peter Jackson claims
he saw a ghost years ago in an apartment in
Wellington, New Zealand.

Wellington film-maker Peter Jackson says he saw a real ghost once.

In London for the premiere of The Lovely Bones - a film he has directed from Alice Sebold's story in which a murdered teenage girl gives her viewpoint from heaven - Jackson said he did not know what a real soul was like.

But he told Britain's Channel 4 TV that while he could not swear the spirit in the movie was 100 percent accurate, he had seen a real ghost.

"It was genuine," said Jackson, who made a 1996 ghost movie, The Frighteners - co-written with his wife Fran Walsh - starring Michael J Fox.

His sighting was in an apartment he and his wife had in Wellington's Courtney Place opposite the St James Theatre, when they first met 20 years ago.

"I woke up one morning and there was a figure in the room, she was very scary, she had a screaming face, very accusatory, she was a lady about 50 years old," Jackson said.

"It was terrifying actually, a very scary image and she was at the end of the bed and she glided across the room and disappeared into the wall.

"I sat in bed and thought, have I really seen that?" said Jackson.

"Then Fran came in. I told her about it and the first thing she said was: 'was it the woman with the screaming face?"' he said.

"Fran had seen the same woman in the same room about two years before."

Jackson said that when the St James Theatre was being restored a few years ago, people talked about the legend of the woman who committed suicide after being booed off the stage after a bad show in vaudeville days.

"They say she manifests herself in the theatre with a screaming face. Sometimes she's seen - the same ghost. She needs to learn to smile a little."

Original story can be found here.

Is Fresno's Kearney Park haunted?

Does the ghost of M. Theo Kearney haunt his former residence? - Photo courtesy of historicfresno.org

Several miles west of downtown Fresno, lies Kearney Park. The park was started in 1892 by M. Theo. Kearney and was to be part of a 225 acre agriculture complex. The current mansion was originally to be the caretakers quarters, unfortunately it and an adjacent servant's quarters were all that were built as Mr. Kearney died in 1906 and his dreams of an agricultural "Garden of Eden" were never completed.

Though Mr. Kearney died over one hundred years ago, there are rumors that he still walks his property at night, perhaps dismayed that his dream was never completed. There are also stories that a house maid, a Nora S., also wanders the darkened halls at night. Perhaps she feels she still needs to make sure the residence is kept in order for Mr. Kearney. Others have seen a man wandering around in the wooded area near the house. Others have felt as if someone from the house was watching them and once someone said they saw a female figure on the porch.

There is also an urban legend stating that a woman in white (some call her the White Witch) haunts the railroad tracks on the property and that anyone who is unfortunate enough to see her eyes, dies immediately. Personally, I find this highly unlikely as if she kills anyone who sees her, how can there be any witnesses to pass on this claim?

Still, Kearney Park is one of those Fresno treasures that most people know about, but may have never gone. The City of Fresno currently owns the Mansion and Park and you can tour the Mansion for a small fee. For further information on public tours of the Kearney Mansion, you can call 559-441-0862.

The ghosts of Disneyland

Disneyland is known as one of the happiest places on Earth. What is not commonly known is that it is haunted by several ghosts across the park. I had the pleasure to go to Disneyland this last weekend with a good friend of mine. And since I was there I thought I would check out each of the attractions that was reported to be haunted.




Does the spirit of a woman haunt the Matterhorn,
which can be seen in the distance?

The Matterhorn Ride
A woman named Dolly was riding in in the front toboggan-style car and turned to check her two children riding in the back of the car. For some reason she felt that she had to stand and undo her seat belt to do this. The car entered a sharp decline, (now known as Dolly's dip) she was thrown out of the car, up over the heads of her children,and onto the track behind them. She was then promptly run over by the next toboggan.



Do the spirits of two boys who died during Grad Night haunt
Tom Sawyer's Island?

Tom Sawyer's Island
It is reported that after closing for the night, there have been at least two if not three apparitions seen on Tom Sawyer's Island. The cast members who search for them always come up empty handed. It is thought that the spirits may be of some boys who reportedly drowned during Grad Night in the Rivers of America surrounding the island.


Did a young man die on the old People Mover
ride, which is now closed?

The People Mover
During Grad Night, a boy apparently jumped out of his moving car, tripped, and dragged underneath to his death. It is said that he grasped onto his girlfriends blond hair to try to pull himself to safety. From that night on there were reports from girls riding on the attraction, especially those with long blond hair, that they felt an invisible presence violently tugging at their hair.


The spirit of a man is seen on Space Mountain,
only to disappear before the ride is over.

Space Mountain
Both the ride itself and the woman's (employee) locker rooms are haunted by the ghost of "Mr. One-Way", a guest who died on the Space Mountain ride back in the 1970's when the ride first opened. On the ride, he is described as a large man with reddish hair and a red face, and has been seen by guests getting into a car with a lone rider, but he vanishes before the end of the ride.


Dolls move when there is no electricity on
It's a Small World.

It's a Small World
It is said that three cast members who loved it so much have returned to haunt this attraction. Lights are said to turn on and off by themselves, and after hours, the dolls move when the electricity for the attraction has been turned off.


The ghost of a little boy is said to roam the
Haunted Mansion.

Haunted Mansion
A woman wanted to spread the ashes of her recently deceased young son in the mansion, because it was his favorite attraction. She asked permission, but Disneyland would not allow it for obvious reasons. Nevertheless, the mother snuck the ashes in and scattered them anyways. At night the ride operators can sometimes see a lone boy riding one of the Doom Buggies on the video monitors, but when they check it out there is no one. Other people have claimed to have seen a little boy crying where you get on the Doom Buggies. It seems that perhaps it wasn't his last wish to have his ashes scattered here after all.

Unfortunately I didn't see any of these spirits (I didn't go on It's A Small World since the idea of haunted dolls terrifies me), and I'm not sure the validity of some of these stories as Disneyland does not try to hide deaths that have occurred in the park (despite an urban legend that says no one has been declared legally dead in the park). The stories are interesting none the less, and add to the history of the happiest place on Earth.

Octomom Nadya Suleman says house is haunted

She’s got fourteen kids and now the Octomom Nadya Suleman thinks she may have one more "little one" living at her home in La Habra, CA – a child ghost!

In an exclusive (and yes, bizarre) new interview with RadarOnline.com, Nadya says a few days ago, she heard a soft whisper saying “mommy.”

"There are no such things as ghosts”, Nadya says, “but that really did scare me."

Nadya also shows us the room where she thinks the spirit lives -- a room that was supposed to be quarters for her nannies -- but instead, is used only to store toys.

“It’s unusually cold in here,” she says, opening the door to the room

“I never, ever want to be alone really in this house. I don’t want the children in this house ever,” she says.

Nadya also says a friend told her she felt something pulling at her leg in the Octo-home.

And, as if that’s not strange enough, Nadya says one of her nannies heard a noise and saw a small child run into a room upstairs, but when she looked around, no one was there.

“This is something you’re not supposed to believe in if you are a believer in God, but it’s something that I’m a little worried about. But when you’re scared, you keep praying and ask it kindly to leave politely, and pray and hopefully that will work.”

Just in case it won’t leave on its own, Nadya says she’s going to place up to 20 Bibles around the home to ward off any spirits.

Original story can be found here.

The ghosts of Springville Inn

Located east of Porterville in Tulare County, nestled in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, is the small town of Springville. Since 1911 the Springville Inn has been at the heart of the town. The town itself has been around since 1849 when pioneers settled the area. The Inn itself was built with the coming of the railroad to Springville. At that time it was known as the Wilkinson Hotel. Unfortunately during construction, the owners went broke and were forced to sell the property. An addition was done to the building in 1972, which holds all the rooms of the hotel. The original building is now a restaurant on the bottom floor and a bar/ dance hall on the second.

The Springville Inn has four ghosts that wander only the original building built in 1911. They have not been seen in the hotel nor in an addition to the restaurant that was done in 1979. A local historian states that there was no coroner or morgue in Springville, so bodies were placed upstairs on ice before being transported to Porterville.

No one truly knows the identities of the ghosts as records from the area are incomplete. But the workers at the Inn have given them nicknames. There is the "Young Man" who appears to be a handsome logger in his twenties. There is the "Little Girl" who is around eight years of age and wearing an old fashioned clothes. The "Woman", very beautiful with long blond hair and wearing a dress. And finally the "Old Man".

The "Young Man" is seen mostly around the bar and what was the location of the original staircase. He is known to be a flirt, and will brush up against women to make his presence known. Not much is known about him, other that he was a logger and was said to have been shot outside the Inn. He was carried into the hotel where he bled to death. He had also been seen walking hand in hand with the "Little Girl" but not recently.

As for the "Little Girl", she was last seen by an employee who was washing dishes. The employee saw the girl watching her from a mirror. She turned around and no one was there. Frightened, she ask the owners to remove the mirror and the "Little Girl" hasn't been seen since.

The "Woman" is usually seen floating on the balcony surrounding the penthouse or seen wandering the second floor hallways in the main building. Not much is known about her.

Finally, the "Old Man" mostly keeps himself to the kitchen, but has had the most contact with past and current employees. He has been seen staring up or down into the dumbwaiter joining the lower and upper kitchens. The staff feel that he is watching over them and is not shy as he frequently makes himself seen.

I had a chance to investigate the Springville Inn several years ago with a group and had a great time there. I actually had a few experiences of my own when I was there. While having dinner in the restaurant, I noticed out of the corner of my eye a blond woman walking outside. She walked past one window, but did not appear in the second one after the three feet of wall separating the two. Not really sure what happened, but the walkway that she was on is several feet above the street and the windows where I saw her were nowhere near the stairs to get to the street. This could have been the "Woman", but I honestly didn't get a good look at her.

The other incident happened after dinner while I was waiting for the rest of the group to arrive. I was watching TV in one of the rooms, when suddenly a cabinet door swung open. I got up to investigate the door, thinking maybe the hinge was broken. I open and closed it several times but the hinge was in working order. I thought maybe someone was trying to say hi to me, but remembered that the ghosts haunted the original building only. I mentioned this later to one of the employees and they said that people have had strange experiences in the rooms. One even complained of seeing sparkling lights on the ceiling. They thought it was coming from cars outside, but upon checking there were none there. Even after closing the curtains the strange lights still were seen. The person then left the next morning after canceling the rest of their stay there.

The Springville Inn is a great place to visit and the staff was more than accommodating and if not busy will gladly tell you any stories they might know. If you are looking for a weekend getaway and want something different I'd definitely recommend taking the two hour drive to Springville and staying at the Inn. Not only is it a wonderful little town, but it's nestled in the Sierra Nevadas and minutes from the Giant Sequoia National Monument. For more info on the Inn as well as a bit of history of the surrounding area, here's the Inn's website.

Is Fresno State’s campus haunted?

Cadavers, a bloody chainsaw and a dismembered body are things that you expect from a horror movie, but little do many students know that they are actually part of Fresno State history.

Some of the upstairs practice rooms in the Music building are rumored to be haunted.

Strong winds and unexpected lightning lit the night sky as DJ Clovis, a senior music performance major, said that he heard strange noises in the music building.

“Some people say that they hear voices or whistling in the practice rooms,” Clovis said.

There are other buildings on campus that hold some surprising tools used for studying.

Some classes held in Mclane Hall require students to work with cadavers. Amanda Lopez, a junior physical therapy major, is taking one of these classes. She said the rooms are always cold and have a morgue-like feel.

Being there alone is not something that she likes to do.

“It’s the whole setting,” Lopez said. “It’s cold and you know the bodies are there and they’re dead. You see all of these movies that bring up things in your head that freaks you out. You know that they are not true, but still.”

Another building that has a creepy story is the Mckee Fisk building.

Greg Lewis, a mass communication and journalism professor, said that late one night he was showing a few people the plaque in memory of Roger Tatarian, just outside of Mckee Fisk.

He stood on the plaque and said, “Hello, Roger.” Just then, the automatic doors behind him opened and closed by themselves.

According to an article written by Donald E. Coleman of the Fresno Bee in October of 1997, there is one professor from Fresno State history who has been referred to as “Jekyll and Hyde.”

Almost 20 years ago, Max Bernard Franc, a former political science professor from Fresno State, was arrested in August of 1988 for the murder of Tracy Leroy Nute.

Police discovered Franc after he rented and returned a chainsaw that was stained with blood, still containing bits of flesh.

He was charged for shooting Nute, and then cutting up the body to get it out of his apartment in west Hollywood. Parts of the body were found in Madera County and Los Angeles County.

If you happen to be on campus and feel a cold chill or your hair stand up, remember that it may be more than just your imagination.

The original story can be found here.

Landowner sells haunted building to get rid of ghost.

In an attempt to decrease the eerie noises emanating from the dilapidated dredge, the private landowner sold part of the California land that the Dredge rested on. The purchaser agreed to move his part of the dredge to Australia immediately. The unsuspecting purchaser was not aware of the ghost sightings and loud banging noises that accompanied the Tuolumne Dredge's history.




The proposed haunted dredge.



The California man later found the ghostly apparitions refused to part ways with his portion of the dredge. Alarmingly, the sounds grew louder, especially the knocking coming from the pipes. The other part of the dredge that was dismantled, transported, and resurrected took longer than expected. When the Australian man finally completed the project, he immediately called the California man with reports of the dredge's spooky haunt and loud banging pipes. The Californian has abandoned the dredge due to fear of what he saw (but won't talk about!) and let the weeds grow around it. Instead of the weeds, the woods have taken it over. The other part of the dredge in Australia has been worked to restore its original condition. Both owners have been unable to solve where the mysterious sights and sounds are originating.

The original story can be found here.

The Adorable Poodle Salon

In the early 1970s there was a dog grooming salon on Blackstone Avenue in Fresno called the Adorable Poodle Salon. From what I can gather it was in the same area as the Wendy's that's near Blackstone and Ashlan.

As soon as the owner moved in, they knew they were not alone. When the would arrive in the morning to open the shop they would find large heavy plants, ones that required two people to move them, were be relocated to the middle of the room. Also, the workers would find that their grooming tools were moved elsewhere.

Apparently whatever was haunting the shop took a liking to one of the girls working there. One day the owner was on a break when she noticed the employee brushing her hand away from her neck, as if something was bothering her. The girl kept exclaiming "Would you please knock it off?!" Finally the owner asked her what was going on. "Your damn ghost won't stop kissing me on the neck!" replied the girl. Apparently after that the ghost stopped kissing her.

The owner would also sense cold spots, lights that would turn on and off, and doors opening and closing by themselves. A general feeling of being watched while alone in the building was also reported. According to this, the owner of the story eventually had the ghost removed or "busted" as the poster reported (who also claims to be one of the owner's children) and all activity stopped.

The Ghost of Sister Irenita

Downtown Fresno, St. John's Cathedral - present day. Photo courtesy of historicfresno.org

In downtown Fresno, at St. John's Cathedral there is the legend of Sister Irenita. Sister Irenita served the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fresno in the early 1900's. It was there she passed away, but never really left. For months her spirit could be seen wandering the halls of the rectory.

The interior of St. John's, taken sometime in the 1950's - photo courtesy of Cathedrals of California.

Finally a special mass was done to put her spirit at rest and the sightings stopped. What's really interesting is that a root from a tree had broken into the Sisters grave a few years later. When she was disinterred, her body showed no sign of decay whatsoever and it looked as she had been buried for only a few days.

My first Paranormal Experience

People ask me what got me interested in the paranormal, especially ghosts to begin with and why I used to investigate proposed haunted locations. I had always been curious about the unknown, albeit ghosts or UFO's or something else that was unexplainable. Every journey has a start and this is the story of the first ghost I ever saw. It happened to be in the house my mom owned when I was a kid.

I was up late one night watching TV when I decided to go to bed as there was nothing on. As I walked to the back of my house down the hallway to where my bedroom is at, I passed my sister's room and saw something white move from her room to the bathroom right across from her's. I also heard the rustling of fabric on the hardwood floor. I assumed it was my sister sleepwalking again so I turned on the bathroom light to make sure she was ok. Upon turning on the light I saw no one in there and figured I was just getting a bit sleepy and that maybe she just moved from the bathroom to her bedroom. I turned on the light in her room to see her fast asleep and not wearing pajamas that would make a rustling sound on the floor (she was wearing the typical pants and shirt pj's). A bit creeped out now as I knew I saw something I went straight to bed.

The next morning I told my mom what happened and she suprised me by saying that it was probably the ghost of the previous owner of the house's wife. Apparently she died in the house and my mom even said she had seen a shadowy figure several times as well as odd feelings.

Unfortunately this was the only time that anything occurred. A few years later my mom sold the house. I don't investigate any proposed haunted locations anymore as I felt I wasn't helping in any way. Though I sill am interested in the subject I don't think there are any experts out there that can really do anything to help the spirits or even the people who live with the ghost.

The Walnut Girl

This is an old story I came across years ago. I had posted it on another blog and had completely forgot about it until today. So I thought I'd repost it here for anyone who hasn't read it yet. More than likely it's another urban legend. But it's one of those strange stories that refuses to go away. Perhaps there is some truth to the legend after all.

In the small California town of Armona, there is a legend of a nine year old girl that met a tragic end and her restless ghost haunts the area to this day. Sometime in the nineteenth century the girl and a few of her friends were skinny dipping at a local waterhole outside of town. A group of boys showed up and threatened to come into the water after them. Most of the girls ran away before the boys could get them into a nearby walnut orchard. One little girl was too scared to follow the other girls. Instead she dove underwater to try and trick the boys into thinking she too had followed the other girls. Unfortunately the poor girl drowned.

Legend has it the restless spirit roamed the area for years. The townsfolk named her the Walnut Girl because she was always seen where walnuts were grown. No male has ever seen the ghost, but stories say that girls around the same age as she was have seen glimpses of her.

Why does her restless spirit only haunt walnut orchards? Perhaps she thinks she will be safe if she can get to an orchard she will be safe from the boys she thinks are still chasing her. This is obvious as she will only appear to girls near her age. It appears even in the afterlife she is still looking for safety.