The Haunts & History of Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon

The Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon is just down the mountain from Virginia City, Nevada, and I stayed in Room 4, also known as Rosie’s Room. Here, you'll find a brief history and haunts of Gold Hill as well as my experience staying as this old ass hotel!

A Brief History

Over the last 160 years, this beautiful structure has been a rooming house, private residence, a bar, a brothel, or empty and yet...survived against all odds. The Gold Hill Hotel, the oldest hotel in Nevada, is once again a thriving full-service establishment with rooms, a bar, and a restaurant.

The Gold Hill Hotel first began as “The Riesen House.” Gold Hill’s population grew from 6340ish in August 186 to almost 1,300 in July 1861. Hotels and boarding houses were in great demand, and records show that in July of 1861, the Reisen House was under construction.

In late 1862, Horace M. Vesey acquired the hotel and added a wooden structure south of the original stone building. The popular hotel became an important part of the thriving metropolis of Gold Hill, hosting various social events such as “Vesey’s Ball,” a cotillion party in 1863.

On August 6th, 1864, miners from Gold Hill and Virginia City assembled in front of the “Vesey House” to adopt a constitution in an attempt to organize. Jabez Spencer shot and killed James Murray in front of the house on August 26th, 1871. On December 26th, 1873, Thomas Miller attempted to settle his bill by shooting proprietor James Lowery, who ducked and survived.

Gold Hill was adjacent to a larger industrial town known as Virginia. The combined population of both towns passed 15,000 in the mid-1860s, becoming one of the largest cities in the West with schools, opera houses, newspapers, trains, factories, churches, and public services.

By the mid-1870s, the combined population reached 25,000. The mining boom continued through the decades, but after 1880, a cycle of booms and busts caused the population to dwindle until the 1930s, when only a few hundred called Gold Hill home.

My Experience at Gold Hill

The Gold Hill Hotel & Saloon is just a swoop and a loop down the mountain from Virginia City, Nevada. I had the privilege of staying in the original part of the hotel in room 4, also known as Rosie’s Room, featured on the right side of the second floor in the featured image.Rosie’s Room is said to be haunted by who they obviously call Rosie, who many believe to have been a lady of the night. Guests have reported the random scent of roses when none are present and lights turning on and off on their own. While I didn’t experience anything unusual, it seems that Rosie is a playful spirit that enjoys having a room dedicated to her long after she’s “gone.”

Gold Hill also has a bar and restaurant, BUT if you book a room on Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday, be prepared for a lonely and quiet stay as the bar and restaurant are only open the remainder of the week. Gold Hill also has cabins on the property that look like little metal sheds that are said to be haunted, and many paranormal investigators come through to experience the haunts for themselves.

My road trip schedule worked out for my stay on Tuesday and Wednesday, checking out on Thursday. There were other guests with me on Tuesday, and I was completely alone on Wednesday, which is a weird feeling. Being completely alone, except for the hotel cat, in a hotel is unusual but also cool. I was allowed to check out the bar and restaurant just down the stairs from my room, regardless of operational hours, get snacks and drinks without interacting with other living humans near the lobby.

As you’ve previously read, Gold Hill has a hotel cat! This gorgeous, orange, fluffy creature is called Garfield by the hotel staff, but also called Cloud(y) by the owners who live across the road. Both names are accurate, as he is quite fluffy and very orange! If you book a no-pet room, be ready for him to sit outside your door and chirp at you because he’s a sweet, attention-loving kitty cat. Rosie’s Room has a balcony that he can easily climb to, so I had a lovely wake-up call with Garfield, first visiting my room door, then my balcony door. I wanted to cuddle with him, but Rosie’s Room is a no-pet room!

Gold Hill feels like a bed and breakfast without breakfast – a small family-owned place where the staff leaves an hour after check-in time and you see them again the next morning. If you’re passing through Virginia City and need a place to stay, book a room BEFORE three in the afternoon, or you won’t get a room, as no one will be there if you come by after four. I don’t particularly love that for a hotel, but it’s also SO quaint and peaceful that there aren’t many guests since everyone flocks to Virginia City just up the hill.

The Hauntings of Gold Hill

There's an old miner's cabin on the hotel property that is located next to an old mine shaft that has, unfortunately, unretrieved bodies of passed miners in it, meaning it's unsurprising that many guests experience the unusual in this cabin.

There are a few haunted rooms in Gold Hill, one being Rosie's Room, as I mentioned above, but the other is William's Room. People who have stayed in or visited William's Room have experienced the scent of tobacco as well as seen an unknown person smoking a cigar in the room. It's commonly believed that "William" is one of the miners lost in the Yellow Jacket Fire.

The great room, in the basement of the hotel, is also said to be haunted. Many people who have quenched their thirst in the basement, near the hotel bar, have supposedly seen or heard a spirit or two.

Stay at Gold Hill Hotel!

You can tell which part is original as it somewhat slants to one side, and the floors creak like my 32-year-old joints as you walk to your room. You won’t find the top-of-the-line hot tub or a bar that’s open 24/7, BUT you do get the unique opportunity to stay/visit the oldest hotel in Nevada with such a rich and unique history, some still hanging around today. While this is a VERY unique stay, I highly recommend staying at Gold Hill Hotel!