Monday, April 4, 2011

Haunted Hotels: The Shaffer



The Shaffer Hotel in Mountainair New Mexico is reported to be haunted by its original owners’ Clem (Pop) Shaffer and his second wife Lena (Ma) Shaffer. 

Pop built the hotel in 1908 in his version of the Indian motif style. Today the hotel is a Registered National Historic site.



Paranormal activity that has been reported in the past by guests who have stayed at the hotel include: personal items being moved in their rooms, lights turning on and off, water taps turning on by themselves, and dark shadows lurking in the second-floor hallways and in the first-floor conference room. 

People have also reported feeling they were being watched.




The owner Joel told us a story of a dark presence that accosted him and his girlfriend in the hallway outside the Wedding Suite. This presence was so forceful it literally flattened his cheeks back against his face in a kind of wind tunnel or bobsled effect. 

He also told to us that at least one of the entities in the hotel had followed him all the way home to Albuquerque shortly after his hallway experience.

My group had several personal experiences at the Shaffer last year when Joel was kind enough to close the entire hotel to the general public so we could investigate the property without interruption.

One of the first experiences we encountered was the distinct smell of chocolate in the handicapped room off the conference center on the first floor. This room had been empty for the winter with no linens on the beds etc. 

Two of my investigators also sensed a presence in this same area at the back door of the conference center that leads out to the fire pit and park.

We also captured some interesting activity on the second floor. We caught a spirit taking his “last breath” in the Abo Suite on one of our digital recorders. 

It was in this room the former owner died before Joel bought the hotel. We caught several EVP’s in and around the second Cowboy Room, which is located at the front of the hotel. 

We also picked up a meter dropping to the floor off an end table on one of our DVR cameras in this room when no one had been in it for over an hour.



We experienced high EMF’s (electromagnetic field) readings on our Kll’s and Mels in the two guest rooms directly above the kitchen storage room; there were no high power sources in these areas. 

These two rooms connect to the hall that we captured an interesting black bat-like shape on the ceiling with another of our DVR cameras. 




Pop Shaffer and his son created the concrete fence and gate that runs along the side of the hotel. This structure alone creeps me out.



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