The Horton Grand Hotel
This 132-room Victorian-style hotel located in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter has at least one room that is alleged to be haunted. The building that houses the hotel was built in 1986 using building materials salvaged from the Grand Horton and the Brooklyn-Kahle Saddlery Hotel, both of which were knocked down in the 1970’s. One ghost is said to be that of Roger Whitaker, a scoundrel and gambler who haunts room 309, although accounts of the man's life seem to be apocryphal at best. The hotel's website coyly hints at the presence of other ghosts as well.
US Grant Hotel
The US Grant is an extremely high-end hotel built in 1910 and named for our 18th president. Size and unique architecture make this 270-room Kumeyaay-owned behemoth stand out on Broadway Avenue. As they cater more to the luxury crowd and less to the curiosity seeker, they are a little more tight-lipped about hauntings than most, but it is rumored that at least one room has a ghost as a permanent resident
Villa Montezuma
This elaborate Victorian mansion was built in 1887 for musician and author Jesse Shepard. After Jesse Shepard left San Diego in 1889, the house went through a succession of owners, due to the severe downturn in San Diego’s economy. Nevertheless, the poor fortune of many of the house’s owners was chalked up to a curse of some sort. Shepard held seances here in which he was known to "channel" famous composers and musicians while playing the piano. Docents have stated that there are secret passages throughout the house that might have been used to trick his audience. Currently owned and maintained by the San Diego Historical Society, public tours of the Villa have temporarily been discontinued.
The Star of India
A San Diego landmark just blocks away from the airport, this steel-hulled ship is officially part of the San Diego Maritime Museum. Christened the Euterpe in 1863, she has served as a cargo ship, a transport for New Zealand emigrants, and a support ship for the Alaskan fishing fleet. As the world’s oldest active ship, she’s seen her share of misfortune and tragedy, including the death of her captain while onboard in 1868. Witnesses report cold spots, phantom smells, and apparitions
1925 K Street, San Diego, CA 92102, (619) 239-2211
311 Island Ave, San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 544-1886
1492 North Harbor Drive San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 234-9153
326 Broadway, San Diego, CA 92101 (800) 237-5029
Downtown San Diego is a lively area with a mix of hip new condo developments and tarted-up old Victorian homes. Our city center is vibrant thanks to the Padres’ home, Petco Park, the always-active Convention Center, and the trendy Gaslamp district with its clubs, bars, and boutique hotels. It might be cleaner and safer than many other downtown areas, but it still has quite a reputation for ghostly happenings.
Copyright 2008 Paul Chickowski
About the Site
After running a public group for a few years, I decided to call it quits and focus on research and writing. Supernatural San Diego is my attempt to correct some of the worst untruths about San Diego ghosts and give you guys a chance to see photos of the sites before planning an investigation.
I've deliberately gone with a brighter, daylight approach - I was getting a little bored with everyone else's black background and clip-art ghosties. Hope that's OK with you!
I've deliberately gone with a brighter, daylight approach - I was getting a little bored with everyone else's black background and clip-art ghosties. Hope that's OK with you!
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