The Brown Hotel's Resident Ghost

Brown Hotel Entrance
August 2024

Last summer, a small faction of SRI members embarked on a trip to Louisville, Kentucky for an investigation of the infamous Waverly Hills Sanitorium. We decided to make the most out of our time and cram in as much spooky fun as we could, including taking a ghost tour of downtown with Mr. Robert Parker of Louisville Ghost Walks. 

Our tour met in front of the opulent old Brown Hotel. After brief introductions and an overview of Louisville in general, our spooky stories kicked off with the hotel itself. The Brown Hotel opened for business on October 25, 1923. It's owner, businessman John Graham Brown, had sunk over $4 million into making the 16 story hotel a showplace of elegance and refinement. But, with many businesses, the good times would come and go over the years. 

After several years of prosperity, the Great Depression (along with Prohibition) hit the hotel hard, and it stayed afloat thanks to staff members willing to forego their wages. The 1940's and 1950's were a bit easier, as the hotel hosted quite a few servicemen during the war, and became THE place for traveling celebrities and dignitaries to stay during the Kentucky Derby. However, the city as a whole began to decline in the 1960's and 1970's. 

Brown Hotel
August 2024

Throughout this whole time, John Graham Brown continued to live on the 15th floor penthouse suite of his beloved hotel. He frequented the on-site restaurant, where the famous Hot Brown sandwich was invented in 1926, and enjoyed gazing down on the 2-story lobby from the mezzanine, sometimes with binoculars. Always by his side was his little dog, Woozem, who he saved from a traveling circus that wished to get rid of him. 

Brown passed away on March 20, 1969, and the hotel closed two years later. For several years, it was owned by the public school board, and housed offices. That wouldn't be the end of the Brown Hotel forever, though. In the early 1980's, a downtown restoration project was underway, and the old hotel was renovated and reopened as a Hilton Hotel. In 1993, the hotel was sold again and further renovations restored it to (almost) its former glory, and since at least 2006 has once again been known as the Brown Hotel. 

As those of us in the paranormal community are all too familiar, renovations tend to stir up paranormal activity, and it seems as if Mr. Brown was definitely stirred up at the idea of his beloved hotel coming back to life. Of all the ghost sightings and reports of paranormal activity from this location, all seem to be caused directly by Mr. Brown (sometimes accompanied by Woozem) himself. It started with his old penthouse suite...

"Mr. Ghost Walker" Robert Parker

Employees noticed that the elevators would mysteriously tend to open up on the unoccupied 15th floor where Mr. Brown lived for so many years. Further, even though the room was not open to the public, footsteps would be observed tracking through the dust, even appearing when it was confirmed no one had been in the area but the witness! In addition, people on the floor below would complain that someone above them was either moving furniture or walking noisily throughout the empty suite.

Phantom cigar smoke is often smelled, especially in the days leading up to the Kentucky Derby. But, most shockingly, Mr. Brown has been seen by multiple witnesses at multiple times throughout the hotel and grounds. He tends to favor the mezzanine, where he can still keep an eye out on his hotel, but he's also been seen in and around the hotel restaurant where he'd take his daily meals, as well as other locations. Mr. Brown has a rather distinct appearance, so to those seeing him, there's no mistaking him, especially when the ghost of his little dog accompanies him. 

Mr. Brown and Woozem

So, the next time you're in downtown Louisville, stop in at the haunted and historic Brown Hotel. Have a Hot Brown sandwich, lounge for a bit in the massive lobby, and most importantly, keep your eyes open for a short, stout man accompanied by a little dog. You might just be one of the lucky visitors to meet the hotel's owner for yourself!

Sources and Further Reading:

Haunted Louisville and Haunted Louisville 2 by Robert Parker

Wikipedia: Brown Hotel

Louisville Ghost Walks, Hosted by Robert Parker

*The Brown Hotel isn't the only haunted hotel in downtown Louisville! Check out Theresa's blog on the Seelbach Hotel, haunted by a beautiful lady in blue.*