Excelsior House (Jefferson, TX) - Ghosts and Hauntings on Waymarking.com

Located in the heart of downtown Jefferson, Texas, the 1858 Excelsior House -- a 19-bedroom hotel -- is a mid-19th-century roadside inn which has been in continuous operation since its humble beginnings. Several famous people have lodged at this site, among them past two US presidents (Ulysses S. Grant and Rutherford B. Hayes); financiers John Jacob Astor, Jay Gould, and W. E. Vanderbilt; Steven Spielberg; and playwright Oscar Wilde.

The hotel has the dubious honor of being one of most haunted hotels in the state of Texas. Many books, articles, and blogs repeatedly bring up the sightings of ghosts in several areas within the compounds and guest rooms, including a headless ghost who roams the second floor. Another ghost lives here as well: a woman who wears black and a little boy who has frightened many guests -- including film director Steven Spielberg.

Below is excerpt of Steven Speilberg's encounter, as narrated by Lisa Farwell-Matthews in "Haunted Texas Vacations: The Complete Ghostly Guide":

"The second-oldest hotel in Texas (the oldest is the haunted Menger Hotel in San Antonio), the Excelsior House is located across the street from the Jefferson Hotel. It has been in continuous operation since 1858, when riverboat captain William Perry, realizing the need for a hotel in the rowdy part of town, purchased land and constructed the Irving House. [...]

Two well-documented stories about Excelsior House haunts involve movie director extraordinaire (and one of my heros for his subject matter and sense of humor), Steven Spielberg, and retired ABC newsman, Lyndon (Dave) Adams. Spielberg was in Jefferson during the 1970s, filming his movie Sugarland Express. He told columnist John Anders of the Dallas Morning News, “We dragged ourselves upstairs after a rough day. I swear my room was haunted. I made everyone wake up, pack up, and get back in the cars at about two o’clock in the morning. We had to drive 20 miles to the nearest Holiday Inn, and everybody was hot at me. I should add that I am not normally superstitious.” Spielberg was staying upstairs in the east wing of the Excelsior in the Gould Room. It’s interesting to note that after his experience with the ghost in the Gould Room he wrote the screenplay for his classic movie, Poltergeist.

Retired newsman Dave Adams wrote to columnist Ken Biffle of the Dallas Morning News telling him of a wild night he and his wife, Carol, spent in the Gould Room on September 5, 1995. [...]

Dave Adams wrote, “After soaking up some history, Carol and I went upstairs. As I unlocked the tall door, for some unexplainable reason a tune started running through my head, ‘The Gold and Silver Waltz’ by Franz Lehar.”

Inside, the room had two double beds with big wooden headboards and antique chairs, one of them a rocker. The bathroom had an old claw-footed tub.

“We sat on the pleasant veranda, which overlooks a brick courtyard, in its center a huge iron fountain. And we had a fabulous dinner a couple of door down from the hotel at the Galley Restaurant.” (Author’s note: The Galley Restaurant’s building is also haunted.)

After dinner, they fell asleep in bed watching TV.

Adams recalled, “I awoke because I had to go to the bathroom. I turned the TV off, then shuffled sleepily to the bathroom. I noticed that the door was starting to open slowly. I shut it, and it latched firmly. Later, when I returned to the door, I found I couldn’t turn the knob. Something or someone was apparently gripping the knob on the other side, tightly. I said, ‘Come on, Carol – very funny.’ The pressure let up. The knob turned easily.

“I flicked off the light as I opened the door. Across the room, standing beside the bed was the figure of a woman dressed all in black, with a black veil. For one split second, I thought it was Carol, but she was in bed, wearing a white nightie. The apparition vanished.

“I became aware of the scent of perfume in the room. I stood for a moment, slightly shaken, but then got into bed and lay there wondering. I thought of waking Carol, but thought better of it. She would be frightened and want to leave . . . . I drifted off to sleep. I awoke to the odor of cigar smoke. I heard what sounded like someone rifling through newspaper pages. I sat up, but didn’t see anything. The sound stopped.”

Next came, “a knocking sound from the headboard near my head. Then I heard fingernails being dragged across the headboard, right above my head. My hand touched Carol, sound asleep. About 4 a.m., she woke up and asked if I was having trouble sleeping. I did go back to sleep. I had a vivid dream, a woman in black, seated at a grand piano was playing ‘The Gold and Silver Waltz.’ Returning from dinner, we’d peeked into the huge parlor off the main lobby and noticed a black grand piano.

“I was again awakened – to noises in the bathroom. I even heard the toilet flush. I reached over. Carol was still beside me. The knocking resumed, this time quite persistent. I really thought I was beginning to lose my marbles. I drifted off to sleep again. I awoke to bright sunshine streaming through the windows. I went into the bathroom, looked at myself in the mirror, and thought, ‘Nah. It couldn’t have happened.'” When Adams told his wife of his unbelievable nocturnal experiences, she did recall the knocking sounds."

Public access?: Public access on the first floor; the 2nd floor are guest rooms (which need to be reserved & paid for). Visting hours: Daytime hours: free to the public Nighttime hours: for paying guests only. Website about the location and/or story: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:

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Date Logged Log User Rating   01/07/2022 WalksfarTX visited it 09/12/2021 The Snowdog visited it 07/08/2017 Raven visited it

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