In a quaint village along the Ohio River, the Rose Hotel does not stand out of the background, until the graves in the backyard come into view.

Prior to being closed in 1967, the hotel had been the longest continually operating hotel in the state. Now owned by Sue Hemphill and daily operations run by assistant innkeeper Becky Cook, the hotel continues to attract visitors more than 200 years later.

Although the hotel now has regular visitors, as apparent from the No Vacancy sign that hangs in front, it has not always had steady guests. After continually declining business, the hotel was purchased by the state in 1989. In 2003, it was renovated and reopened as a bed and breakfast.

The hotel also faced hardships after the Ohio River flood of 1937, where more one million people from Pittsburgh to Cairo were left homeless and more than 300 died. Old Shawneetown, located just up the river from Elizabethtown, had to be relocated to higher ground because of the damage.

Renovations revealed there was more to the historic property than just the three graves in the backyard. Cook said during excavations, unmarked remains of what are believed to be former slaves and guests were found under the porch and in the side yard.

“They left the bodies there where they found them,” Cook said.

The questionable history of the Rose Hotel has made it the subject of many ghost stories. Bruce Cline, director of the Little Egypt Ghost Society based out of Carbondale, has explored the hotel on multiple occasions with his group. The first trip was to investigate. After getting interesting feedback, the second trip was an attempt to recreate evidence they had gotten the first time.

“We have conducted several overnight paranormal investigations and ghost hunts there and have found evidence of the paranormal every single time we have been there,” Cline said in an interview with the website Mysterious Heartland. “On one occasion I actually captured the image of ‘Tote’ who is one of the ghosts that haunts the hotel.”

Other organizations have also looked into the hotel. Late author Jim Jung wrote about the hotel in his novel, Weird Egypt – The Case for Supernatural Geology.

“Considering its nearly two centuries of existence, it should surprise no one that the place is haunted – though not malignantly,” Jung said in an excerpt from his novel. “These spirits are supposed to be the specters and shades of former guests who departed this life without leaving the hotel … Here are the graves of James and Elizabeth McFarland, some of their children and more than a few guests who had the misfortune to die on the premises.”

Aside from a few bars that line the main road, the village of Elizabethtown appears mostly abandoned.

The decaying infrastructure of the area emphasizes the ghostly mysteries that appear to haunt the town. The town is full of empty buildings, broken storefronts and fire-damaged businesses. Streetlamps covered in cobwebs appear to not be regularly maintained. The old school building is boarded up, with plants overtaking what used to be the main stairs. An old, faded sign for the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, an organization whose mission is to promote personal and social change, can be seen hanging above a broken door on an abandoned building at the main intersection.

The Rose Hotel has 6 available rooms to rent for various prices per night, all named after someone significant to the hotels history. To learn more about planning a trip to the hotel, their website can be visited at www. historicrosehotel.com.

Branda Mitchell can be reached at [email protected]