Hauntings at the Banff Springs Hotel

My daughter and I decided to take a girls trip in the Canadian portion of the Rocky Mountains. Our first stop, Banff. Why Banff? All you need to do is look up the name and the images will call to you. Regardless of the season it is a little treasure held within the heart of the Rocky Mountains. It also resides in the first National Park in Canada. Banff is unique in that it was setup solely as a tourist destination after the discovery of Cave and Basin hot springs. If tourists were to explore the exquisite park and spa, they needed somewhere to stay. It was then, Sir William Cornelius Van Horne had the idea to built the Banff Springs Hotel. It is the hotel that my daughter and I were truly interested in. Not because of its history, so much as the history of its inhabitants.

If we can’t export the scenery, we’ll have to import the tourists.

Sir william cornelius van horne (1843-1915)

When traveling, we pick up local books of folklore, fairytales, and my daughters favourite, ghost stories. This time it was a collection called Great Canadian Ghost Stories, Legendary Tales of Hauntings from Coast to Coast, by Barbara Smith. This book spoke of several ghosts who have been seen and even interacted with guests. The most well know, The Dancing Bride, whose death on her wedding day does not stop her from dancing her wedding waltz at the base of the grand staircase where she died. The most loved, the ghost of Sam Macauley, a bellman who continues to help guests at the hotel, well after his death. He is held responsible for moving elevators and helping guests in need.

Although we wished we saw those ghosts and others, the best we could do was find the bottom of our tea cups after enjoying afternoon tea. It was our first foray into exploring the ghostly past of the Canadian Rockies, but it won’t be our last.

Have you found any interesting local ghost stories on your travels? If so, I would love to hear about them!