Read House Hotel, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA
N 35° 02.739 W 085° 18.649
16S E 654062 N 3879409
The Read House Hotel in Chattanooga Tennessee.
Waymark Code: WM28WV
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 09/24/2007
Views: 135
The first hotel on this spot was built in 1847 and called the Old Crutchfield House, a grand hotel for the times. In 1863 it was used by the Union Army as a hospital. Then in 1867 it burned down. Dr John T. Read built a new hotel in its place. In 1926 the old hotel was demolished and the current ten story high Georgian style hotel was built. The current hotel was designed by the Holabird and Roche architectural firm based in Chicago. It went through a $10 million renovation in 2004 to restore it to a near original style, but with many modifications to update it to 21st century standards such as new room layouts, more electrical outlets, internet access, new pool, and so forth.
Many affluent visitors stayed in the hotel such as Ronald Reagan and Winston Churchill for examples. Al Capone also stayed in room 311 during his days in court that convicted him. This room had bars on the windows from that time until its renovation in 2004.
It is said this hotel is haunted from a murder committed in the hotel during the Civil War. Other deaths also occurred in and around the hotel. Some have said these ghosts still haunt the hotel today, most notably in room 311. Some guests have even left the hotel in the middle of the night claiming to have seen a shadowy figure in the mirror and in the bed of room 311.
While the stories seem to all vary greatly from murder to suicides and a broad range of inconclusive dates of when these occurred, one thing is certain and that is most paranormal activity occurs in room 311. Even the staff has seen "things" happen. It is said a guest, Annalisa Netherly, stayed in room 311 sometime during the late 1920's. The most prominent stories are inconclusive whether she was a prostitute or a wife that was caught cheating on her husband. At any rate, a man or her husband killed her in the bathtub of room 311 and slit her throat so deep that she almost lost her head. The stories say she is mostly seen in this room and that she does not like men to stay in the room.
Thanks Tumbleweed for the Text!
Name of the Hotel: Read House
Address: 827 Broad Street
Chattanooga TN 37402
Number of Rooms: 244
Height in floors: 10
Hotel since: 01/01/1847
Date Building was built: 01/01/1926
First use of building: Hotel
Historic Hotel (Historic Building, National Monument or similar): yes
Hotel website (if available): [Web Link]
Hotel Rating: Not listed
Urban Hotel (located in a village or town): Not Listed
Mountains Nearby (less than 25 Kms / 15 Mil): Not Listed
Beachs Nearby (less than 25 Kms / 15 Mil): Not Listed
Historic Place nearby (Unesco or National monument/site less than 25 Kms / 15 Mil): Not Listed
Major Pilgrimage Place Nearby (less than 25 Kms / 15 Mil. Consider any religion).: Not Listed
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