Is the Stanley Hotel Haunted?

The Historic Stanley HotelIf you’ve never heard of The Stanley Hotel we assume that you’ve never watched or read The Shining or done any research on haunted hotels because this is, perhaps, one of the most famous haunted hotels in America because of its association with famed horror writer, Stephen King, and it’s role as the muse for the book (and subsequent film) The Shining. The Stanley Hotel is a Georgian-style hotel located in Estes Park, Colorado, roughly 90-minutes from Denver. Georgian architecture style, for those that are curious, is marked by the “symmetry and proportion-based on [the] classical architecture of Greece and Rome.”  The Stanley Hotel is an “elite, 420-room retreat” that offers panoramic views of Lake Estes and the Rockies with ample old-world charm and exceptional service. It was built by investor and entrepreneur, Freelan Oscar (AKA “FO”) Stanley, who was the owner of the Stanley Motor Carriage Co., in 1909, and his wife Flora travelled west from Chicago and fell in love with the area. FO Stanley is best known as the inventor of the “Stanley steam engine” which was essentially a steam-powered horseless carriage (AKA a car). FO had tuberculosis and was given six months to live. His doctor recommended that he and his wife seek out fresh air as treatment and arranged for the couple to travel to the Denver area. Surprisingly, his health did, in fact, start to improve and they loved the area so much that they decided to open up a little retreat there. Construction on the hotel started in 1906, and the hotel officially opened in 1909. The Stanley Hotel was a grand, top-of-the-line hotel equipped with running water, electricity and telephones. The only amenity that the hotel didn’t have was heat because it was intended to be a summer-only resort. The Stanley’s build their own private residence a half-mile west of the hotel. Famous guests include The Unsinkable Molly Brown—who was the American socialite and philanthropist who survived the Titanic, the Emperor and Empress of Japan, John P