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The Hotel Del Coronado is located in Coronado, California. It was opened in the late 1880's and soon became popular as a refuge from the problems that plagued San Diego, and many other cities, at the time. Gambling, drunken brawls, etc. were not uncommon, and E.B. Babcock sought to build a place to get away from it all. His dream became the Hotel Del Coronado, a splendid 399 room mecca of relaxation. Why, then, do the rumors persist that this hotel is haunted?
Well, to answer that we have to go back in time and tell the sad tale of young Kate Morgan, who is the hotel's main, and some say only, specter. Kate was the wife of Tom Morgan, and together they made a living riding the trains and scamming people out of money. They were quite good at it and made a very decent living. They used false names and pretended to be siblings. Kate was very attractive, and she used her womanly charms to get men interested in her. When they expressed this interest, she would inform them they needed her "brother's" approval if they wanted to woo her. The way to gain this approval was to play cards with Tom, who would swindle every bit he could out of the hapless suitor. Kate would then move on to the next victim. They went on like this for a time until Kate discovered she was pregnant and decided she wanted to settle down. Tom did not wish to do this. They had a fight when Tom dicovered she was pregnant, and he left the train, while Kate continued on to San Diego. Tom was to meet her at a later time, around Thanksgiving.
Kate checked into room 302 at the Hotel Del Coronado, which is now room 3312. Thanksgiving came and went, but her husband never came. Around this time she began looking ill. She was probably suffering the effects of quinine poisoning, as a bottle was found in her room after her death. Quinine was a substance commonly used to make a woman miscarry. Kate had probably wanted to abort the baby to please her husband.
She reportedly made a trip to San Diego to buy a gun, and shortly after the 24-year-old beauty was found dead on the steps of the hotel that lead to the beach from a gunshot wound to the head. The death was immediately ruled a suicide, but in 1990 Alan May published a book with evidence to the contrary. In The Legend of Kate Morgan: The Search for the Ghost of the Hotel Del Coronado, he claims that she was shot by her husband. One of his key pieces of evidence is that the bullet found in her head was not the same caliber of the gun that she bought, which was a .44.
There is the story behind the haunting, but what of the haunting itself? It's pretty basic haunting stuff. Electrical devices with odd quirks, cold spots, odd feelings, phantom whispers and even some claims of seeing Kate's ghost comprise the majority of experiences. The light over the steps where Kate's death, suicide or otherwise, occurred will not stay lit, according to an electrician's report to Alan May.
Room 3502 is also considered haunted, with events similar to Kate Morgan's room occurring on a smaller scale. It apparently belonged to a maid who might have lived there around the same time as Kate Morgan. I'm not sure of the details, but if you know of any information, I'd appreciate it if you would E-mail me.
If anybody has ever stayed at the hotel and has had an experience, or knows of further details in the haunting, I'd appreciate it if you would E-mail me. Thanks!
Address:
Hotel Del Coronado
1500 Orange Avenue
Coronado, CA 92118
Telephone:
(619)435-6611 (Actual Hotel) If you want to make a reservation, you should
call (800)HOTELDEL (Cute, huh?)
Website: Hotel Del Coronado
