Hauntings Of The Ellis Hotel
Located in the heart of downtown Atlanta, the Ellis Hotel is a boutique, eco-friendly hotel with decades of history etched within its walls. Guests walking through its sleek lobby would never guess the building was initially built in 1913 or that it was once known as the Winecoff Hotel before tragedy saw it gutted and renovated to pave the way for a brighter future. But hidden within the Ellis Hotel’s luxurious interior and top-of-the-line amenities is a dark history of death, pain, and multiple hauntings that are just as much a part of the building as the crisp white linens that greet guests as they walk in.
For a city rich with ghostly history, what exactly happened within the walls of the Ellis Hotel for it to earn its reputation as one of the most haunted locations in Atlanta?
What happened at the Ellis Hotel?
On December 7, 1946, the Ellis Hotel, then known as the Winecoff, experienced the deadliest hotel fire in United States history. The blaze claimed 119 lives before burning out, forever staining the legacy of the building. The loss was so profound that the hotel became a hotspot for haunted activity, with some locals and guests claiming the spirits of the dead still linger within the renovated hallways.
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History of the Ellis Hotel
Built by the William A. Fuller Company of New York and standing 15 stories high, the Winecoff was known as the “jewel of the Atlanta skyline.” A steel foundation supported the brick exterior, leading authorities to deem the hotel as fireproof by the safety standards of the time. This claim led to several oversights that would see many people lose their lives.
In the early hours of December 7, 1946, a fire broke out on the hotel’s third floor. Since the building was deemed fireproof, officials didn’t install fire alarms or sprinklers. With no proper warning, guests only realized they were in danger once it was too late. Smoke and flames spread through the single escape stairwell, trapping many people. Guests faced the horrifying choice of braving the inferno or jumping to the street below. The situation was so dire that one survivor told his son they’d need a miracle to get out.
While the fire department responded with force, sending nearly 400 firefighters and 12 ladders to the rescue efforts, they weren’t equipped to work with the hotel’s height. This prevented them from helping anyone above the 8th floor. With no help on the way and limited options to escape, those trapped began to desperately make ropes out of bed sheets and clothes, while others jumped out windows, hoping to be caught by the nets below.
Unfortunately, ropes snapped, and many who jumped landed on wires or missed the nets completely. Among those lost were the hotel’s original owner, W.F. Winecoff, his wife, and four high school students attending a YMCA Youth Assembly that weekend.
The unimaginable losses led to reforms in fire safety regulations nationwide. But for the 119 lives lost, the reforms came too late and allegedly trapped their spirits in the location where they died.
The Haunted Halls of the Ellis Hotel
In 2017, the Ellis Hotel opened its doors to a waiting public, but while its lavish new design was far removed from its predecessor, the echoes of its devastating past refused to fade.
Construction workers complained about their tools mysteriously being moved or going missing while renovating the Ellis, and some even reported hearing footsteps and voices coming from empty rooms. Reports of strange occurrences continued to escalate until it wasn’t just noises catching the attention of guests and staff. The elevators in the building are said to operate on their own, moving between floors without being summoned. Staff members have also noted that the hotel switchboard sometimes receives calls from unoccupied rooms.
The most chilling experiences directly echo the night of the fire. Guests have reported waking up to the acrid odor of smoke in their rooms, only to find no source for the smell. Even without smoke, the fire alarms are said to go off at 2:48 a.m., the same time the fire was believed to have started. Others have described hearing heart-wrenching screams and the sound of running footsteps within empty hallways as if someone is reliving the panic they experienced that horrible night.
Unexplained encounters aren’t only experienced by those inside the property. Multiple people outside the Ellis Hotel have seen faces frozen in terror or crying out at the windows. Sightings also included the heartbreaking image of women and children, their expressions of fear matching those of the mothers who desperately threw their children out of windows only to become trapped and succumb to the flames within.
The ghostly encounters within the Ellis make it clear that the hotel’s turbulent history deeply marks it.
Haunted Atlanta
Today, the Ellis Hotel is a beautifully renovated boutique hotel, but there’s no way of detaching it from its tragic history. While the ghostly activities reveal the pain of the past, they represent only part of Atlanta’s haunted history. For a chance to delve deeper into the spirits that linger throughout the city, book a ghost tour with Atlanta Ghosts today. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, and keep reading our blog for more real Georgia hauntings.
Sources:
https://www.firehouse.com/operations-training/article/10545550/the-winecoff-fire-50-years-later
https://my.firefighternation.com/profiles/blogs/historic-loss-of-life-the#gref
https://www.southernspiritguide.org/phantoms-from-the-fire-atlanta-georgia/
