Guests and staff have reported many otherworldly encounters at the Green Park Inn, so much so that the Front Desk has a book for visitors to write down their experiences. These experiences include strange knocking sounds from inside of locked rooms, even when the room is not occupied, cold spots, and hearing disembodied voices. Many guests have reported seeing apparitions of guests long gone. I have even had my own strange experiences there, which I will detail at the end of this article!

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One of the most notorious ghosts that haunt the inn is the spirit of a woman who died on the third floor. According to legend, she was a bride-to-be who hanged herself in room 318 after being jilted at the altar. Her name and identity are lost to time, though she is often referred to as The Pink Lady now. Some say she was a wealthy heiress who fell in love with a poor man. Her family disapproved of their union and arranged for her to marry someone else. On the day of her wedding, she received a letter from her true love, telling her to meet him at the inn. She packed her bags and rushed to the hotel, only to find out that he never showed up. Heartbroken and desperate, she decided to end her life in the room where they were supposed to spend their honeymoon.

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Ever since her death, guests and staff have reported seeing her ghost wandering the third floor, especially near room 318. She is said to be dressed in a white gown, holding a bouquet of flowers. Some have heard her sobbing or calling out for her lover. Others have felt cold spots, sudden gusts of wind, or unexplained touches. She also likes to mess with electronic devices, such as turning on and off lights, TVs, radios, and phones.

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Another apparition, known as "The Gentleman," has been spotted by guests in period clothing, often seen in the main lobby or on the second floor. His identity remains a mystery, but his spectral presence adds an air of intrigue to the inn's history.

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Guests who have stayed at the Green Park Inn have recounted numerous spine-tingling experiences. Doors are known to open and close by themselves, even when securely latched. Unexplained knocking and footsteps in the dead of night have left many visitors startled and bewildered. Some have reported feeling an unseen presence, like a spectral hand brushing against their skin. These occurrences, while unsettling, have only added to the inn's mystique and have made it a popular destination for those with a penchant for the paranormal.

The Green Park Inn is not only haunted by these two ghosts, but also by several others who have left their mark on the hotel’s history. Some are former guests who died of natural causes or accidents, while others are former employees who loved their job so much that they never left. They include ghostly children who run and laugh in the hallways, a phantom maid who cleans and tidies up rooms, a mysterious lady in red who dances in the ballroom, and a grumpy old man who complains about everything.

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The inn’s owners and staff are well aware of their paranormal residents and embrace them as part of their heritage. They also offer ghost tours and events for those who are interested in learning more about the inn’s haunted history. It is with one of these ghost tours that my own story began. 

I have always had an interest in ghosts and the paranormal, and when I lived in Boone, I decided to try to get a group of people together to start our own little paranormal group. I found some people and started O.S.I.R.I.S. Paranormal - the Organization for Scientific Research and Investigation Involving the Supernatural. Pretty cool name, right??? Around this time, the Green Park Inn was hosting a paranormal conference and ghost hunt. Several of the big name groups were there. There were several people you may have seen on certain television shows, but I'm not able to remember everyone who was there. As we sat around listening to the different speakers, anticipation kept growing for what we were really eager for - being able to pair up with some of these seasoned investigators and do an actual ghost hunt! 

We broke up into teams and set off. Some teams went to the basement area, others to the kitchens, and some to the library and records rooms to see if they could find any historical evidence. My team went to room 318, said to be the most active. As we entered the room, we had all of our equipment with us - video cameras, digital cameras, temperature sensors, voice recorders for capturing EVPs, and even one of the thermal imaging cameras that cost around $3,000 at the time. That belonged to one of the other groups and not to me, so I wasn't able to see if they captured anything on it. One of the women in my group said aloud, "Do you mind if I take your photo?", and started snapping the camera around the room, going from right to left in rapid succession - so the pictures came out like a panorama. Nothing else happened, so we moved on.

 

We went back later to look through everything and see if we were able to capture any evidence to validate the stories we had heard. When we went back and looked at the pictures, timestamps and listened to the recordings to see what we found, the sequence that laid before us was unmistakable. The group member asked about taking photos, we heard a voice on the EVP recorder saying, "No - no photographs", and the rapid picture taking captured a black mist moving from over the bed and out the door to the room! It was as if whatever was in there was trying to leave to avoid having its picture taken! This was many years ago, and I'm afraid that all of these photos and recordings have been lost to the ages, but rest assured that if I am able to find them again, I will post them here. 

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The Green Park Inn is a place where history, luxury, and mystery come together to create a unique and unforgettable experience. Whether you are looking for a relaxing getaway, a romantic escape, or a thrilling adventure, you will find it at this haunted hotel in North Carolina.