Battery Park Hotel

Battery Park Hotel - 1880s
The original Battery Park Hotel was built in 1886 by Colonel Frank Coxe in Ashville, NC. Named after Confederate soldiers using it as a site for batteries of artillery, it was the first hotel in the South with an electric elevator and lighting. Many visited for the clean Mountain air to combat illnesses like Tuberculosis and enjoyed its beautiful views. Famous families visited the hotel including Rockefeller and Lorillard. George Vanderbilt also stayed at Battery Park, viewing the land where he would soon build Biltmore Estate. The old building was torn down and a new was built in its place in 1924 thanks to Edwin W. Grove It remained in operation until 1972. In the 1980s, it was converted in to apartments for senior citizens and today, businesses operate on the first floor.

Battery Park Hotel is believed to be haunted by Helen Clevenger. She was in Ashville visiting her uncle W. L. Clevenger. On July 17, 1936, she was found brutally murdered in room 224. She was shot and savagely beaten with her face slashed. Police arrested hotel hallboy Martin Moore after interviewing numerous witnesses and possible suspects. Moore claimed he was beaten in to confessing . He died in the gas chamber in December 1936. 

On stormy nights, Helen is seen wandering the halls of the old hotel. The hotel has also been the scene of a number of suicides who would jump off the roof. On September 4, 1943 a U.S. Government Official, Clifton Alheit allegedly committed suicide in this manner. People have reported seeing "bodies" falling from the roof and a tragic suicide replaying itself over and over. A male spirit was also seen by staff members. His identity is unknown but it is believed he may have been murdered in the hotel at some point. Since the building was converted to apartments, he is no longer seen.

 Sources:

 Wikipedia

 Asheville, NC National Park Service

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