New Mexico’s Haunted Locations That Are More Than Just Legends
In the deserts of New Mexico, vast landscapes stretch endlessly under a wide sky, where tales of sorcery and prophecy are embedded in the architecture, casting a spell over the enchanting expanses. Known for its rich history and cultural fusion, the Land of Enchantment also boasts a darker allure: its reputedly haunted locations and its past just too unwilling to be forgotten.
Many of these tales are based on the region’s turbulent history, from Native American legends to Wild West dramas. The ghostly lens through which we view the state’s complex past. Here are ten of New Mexico’s most famously haunted locales that will send shivers down your spine.
The St. James Hotel in Cimarron
So peppered with gunfights is the history of the St. James Hotel in Cimarron that its ceiling still has some 22 bullet holes as enduring mementos. This historic hotel was established in 1872 and has hosted notable guests such as Jesse James and Buffalo Bill. Staff and visitors often say they have seen a figure in period clothing, believed to be the ghost of Thomas James Wright, who was shot and bled to death in Room 18. In 2010, a paranormal investigation here recorded unexplained voices and shadows that continue to draw thrill-seekers and ghost hunters to its doors.
The KiMo Theatre
Albuquerque’s Pueblo Deco KiMo Theatre is home to performers and a resident spirit. In 1951, a water heater exploded, killing Bobby Darnall, a six-year-old boy. Since then performers and staff have followed a tradition of leaving doughnuts backstage to placate Bobby’s playful spirit, which has been blamed for technical difficulties at shows. It’s a quirky ghostly demand that shows the meeting point between cultural reverence and modern superstition.
The Luna Mansion
The Luna Mansion in Los Lunas is reputedly haunted, by a spirit named Josefita Otero. Her former bedroom is often the site of spectral sightings, as a descendant from Luna-Otero family. Visitors say they’ve seen her apparition dressed in Victorian garb, and that they smell her lavender perfume in the air. A study here in 2017 found a huge drop in temperature and EVP, making the mansion’s storied halls all the more intriguing.
Dawson Cemetery
Dawson, a now abandoned coal mining town, suffered twice with mining disasters in 1913 and 1923 that killed hundreds. Rows of white crosses marking the miners’ graves are what the cemetery is known for. The miners who perished in the catastrophic events are said to visit, leaving visitors with strange reports of figures in the shadows and hearing whispers in the wind. Dawson’s sorrow is encapsulated in this site.
Fort Stanton
Fort Stanton stands out for being established in 1855 and has served various roles overtime, including as a military base and a tuberculosis sanatorium. The museum is now said to have the spirits of consumptive patients still roaming around, with many reports of unexplained noises, sightings, and feeling watched.
La Posada Hotel in Santa Fe
La Posada de Santa Fe, once the 1882 abode of Abraham Staab, a wealthy merchant, retains the grace of a bygone era and perhaps Mrs. Staab herself. The most famous ghost of the hotel is said to be its former residence haunted by Julia Staab in a black Victorian gown. Julia’s presence is so well accepted that the hotel even offers tours of her story and her afterlife’s continued proximity to her lovely home.
Old Bernalillo County Courthouse
The old Bernalillo County Courthouse now turned over to county offices, in Albuquerque is an area of numerous ghostly visitations. Employees say they hear footsteps and voices in empty rooms or see figures disappear around corners. The emotional turmoil left behind from this building’s past as a courthouse where life and death decisions were made daily is thought to be the source of these apparitions.
The Double Eagle Restaurant in Mesilla
The Double Eagle Restaurant in Mesilla makes for an unforgettable experience. Guests and staff say objects move unaided in the Carlotta Room, named for one of the doomed lovers, and that the air is melancholy. In 2018, a paranormal research team recorded fluctuations in electromagnetic fields here that match up with these ghostly narratives.
Taos Mabel Dodge Luhan House
The Mabel Dodge Luhan House in Taos, where D.H. Lawrence and other esteemed guests once visited while Mabel Dodge Luhan was her owner — is now a historic inn said to house the spirits of both former owner and guest. Many visitors have said they feel watched, especially in the attic and old living room where Mabel used to entertain her fabulous friends.
The Shaffer Hotel in Mountainair
The Clem ‘Pop’ Shaffer built Shaffer Hotel in Mountainair in the 1920s the hotel is said to be haunted by Shaffer himself. Pop’s spirit still has a protective watch over the hotel, known for its eccentric art and architecture. Guests have said they’ve seen apparitions and heard unexplained noises while staying there, which suggests that Pop still likes to play host in his one-of-a-kind creation.
Disclaimer: This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information.
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