Mineral Wells, TX is Haunted

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Way back in 1929 this 14 floor 450 room hotel opened with much fanfare. Mineral Wells was named for its mineral-rich waters and the Baker was taking full advantage of it. On the bottom floor was an extravagant pool and spa filled with the celebrated waters. This drew in the sick and the famous to its doors.

Stars like Judy Garland, Will Rogers, Marlene Deitrich, Jean Harlow, and Lawrence Welk all stayed at the hotel and took part in the “Crazy Water” fad. The water was named so because it supposedly cured a mentally ill woman.

Oh, Bonnie and Clyde stayed there too, but that’s another story.

However, the hotel went bankrupt in 1932 due to the stock market crash. It was bought and sold a few times and was even a military dependents’ residence from 1941-1944. It opened one more time in 1963 as a hotel but closed for good in 1972. It seems though, that no one told the ghosts.

The original owner, T.D. Baker is said to haunt the hotel. T.D. wanders the floors. But they say on the 11th floor you’ll know he’s there because cigar smoke permeates the air. He’s also been known to take things out of visitors’ pockets or purses. Tour guides have found the missing items left behind in the middle of the floor in Baker’s suite.

T.D.’s mistress, Virginia Brown, lived on the 7th floor in a luxury suite. It’s said she was a great beauty with red hair and piercing green eyes who became pregnant and T.D. refused to leave his wife. Because of this, she lept to her death from a 7th floor window sealing her fate to forever remain at the hotel. Guests say that if you don’t see her when her lavender perfume wafts into the hallways, then you’re just not looking in the right direction. Because she is the most often spotted spirit in the hotel by far.

Virginia wasn’t the only woman who jumped to her death there. An unknown guest staying on the 12th floor had a female companion in for the night. She decided in her inebriated state to dive off her balcony into the pool. She missed. The hotel had her body embalmed and then displayed it in their window hoping someone would recognize her. No one came forward. But it’s said on some nights you can hear her scream on her way down.

Sandy Carrolls, one of the many cooks at the Baker, was a married man having an affair with one of the maids. During an argument, the maid threatened to tell his wife. He grabbed a knife from the counter and stabbed her repeatedly, hiding the body in the pantry. If you see a woman staggering about holding her throat, run. She’s still angry.

Another ghost is that of a bellhop, Douglas Moore, who was killed in an elevator mishap where he was crushed so badly that his body had to be carried out in two pieces. It is rumored he was involved in some illegal goings on at the Baker, but no one has been able to pinpoint what. His spirit is sometimes seen on the 5th floor hopping off the elevator.

An unnamed boy died alone in the hotel. His parents had sent him there seeking treatment for his cancer. He is often seen in the company of a teenage elevator operator who passed on the premises due to unknown causes. They say the two of them together get up to some nasty pranks. So if they’re around, watch your step on the stairs.

These tours I mentioned only took place during the day as no one has stayed in the hotel past dark since the disappearance of one of the male guides in 1994. He went in with a few friends to photograph and record any paranormal activity they could find. He was dared to go down to the pool and spa area by himself and never returned. To this day, no body has ever been found.

Currently, there are plans underway to renovate the structure and return it to its glory. I don’t know what T.D. thinks as I don’t think anyone’s asked his opinion on the matter.