Old hotel hosts famed ghosts

Arizona History

Old hotel hosts famed ghosts
BY FRANK LOVE, WHEN ARIZONA WAS YOUNG
Feb 3, 2007

Yuma travelers on their way to Laughlin, Nev., seldom pass through Oatman these days. Using Highway 95 to get to the Nevada gambling town, they avoid the old village of Oatman, which is about 11 miles east of that route.

But Oatman was a thriving mining camp in the early 1900s. A 1915 gold discovery there is said to have been worth $10 million. The town boomed for several years afterward with it claiming to have once had a population of more than 3,000. Several fires destroyed original buildings and when United Eastern Mines ceased operation in 1934, Oatman almost became a ghost town.

If travelers are interested in seeing places visited by celebrities of past years, they are missing a good site if they skip Oatman. The old village once hosted movie stars Carole Lombard and Clark Gable. The year was 1939 and the two stars had been married in Kingman earlier on that day of March 29. They spent their honeymoon night in the Oatman Hotel.

Once married, the two movie stars often returned to Oatman to spend nights in the hotel. Gable frequently used the visit to play poker with the area miners. Both stars are now dead. Lombard was the victim of a plane crash in 1942 as she was returning from a drive to sell war bonds. Gable joined the Air Force afterward and flew combat missions in Europe. He eventually married again and died in 1960.

Some believe spirits of the two stars haunt the old Oatman Hotel. A Web site this writer found on the Internet claimed that both staff and guests at the old hotel sometimes hear the movie stars laughing and whispering to one another. If this is true, it seems likely the couple had such a great time there that their spirits refuse to vacate the building. Another Web site about the village of Oatman claims that when a photographer once took a picture of the couple's honeymoon room and developed it, the outlined figure of a ghost appeared on his print.

But Gable and Lombard aren't alone among the hotel's spirit population if an Oatman Web site is correct. The second floor of the building has a theater room museum. It is claimed that when the beds there become dusty, the figure of a sleeping person can be seen upon them. One theory about this mystery is that it is the spirit of a former chambermaid who worked at the old hotel.

Another room is believed to house the ghost of an Irish miner who once roomed in the hotel. Migrating to America from his native land years earlier, he had lost members of his family on the voyage to this country. After arriving here, he became an alcoholic and settled in Oatman.

After an evening of heavy drinking, according to the story, he passed out behind the old hotel and died there. His spirit, now known as "Oatie," is said to haunt the room that he once occupied. His ghost is said to perform pranks such as playing the bagpipe, which has been heard by some who occupy the hotel. He is also believed to frighten hotel employees by opening windows in his old room. In addition, some claim that on a hot, summer Arizona day, the room he occupied often seems very cool.

Whether "Oatie" was the cause of other strange happenings at the old hotel isn't known. They include claims that customers in the hotel's saloon have seen money and glasses mysteriously raise themselves off the bar. Other strange reports are that toilets flush themselves without human help, footprints suddenly appear on floors that were just cleaned, lights turn off and on without anyone using a switch, and strange voices are heard when no one else is present.

The hotel's historic past has been recognized by the National Historic Building registry. It is the only adobe structure in Mohave County that is two stories. Its historic past has been recognized by present owners who have acquired objects from earlier eras for display. On exhibit are hundreds of $1 bills that have been signed by hotel visitors. The owners also recognize the significance of the room once occupied by the two movie stars. It is furnished to suggest the era when Lombard and Gable were there.

Knowing something about the past of the old Oatman Hotel can make a visit there worthwhile.

Frank Love is a Yuma historian.