Utah State Historical Society

The building that houses the Utah State Historical Society is haunted. This is not surprising for their offices are in the old Denver & Rio Grande Railroad Depot.

Denver and Rio Grande
Railroad Depot

This building constructed in 1910, is a Salt Lake City landmark. At the turn of the century travel by rail was still at its height. So the depot at one time was a bustling center of activity.

Many who work or have visited the old building claim it is full of interesting energy. Mostly this energy is just felt from a distance but some of the ghosts actively make their presence known.

One such ghost is a lady that is seen wearing an old fashioned purple gown. Witnesses often see her near the Rio Grande Café that is located within the depot.

One tourist coming out of the ladies room spotted this ghost as she made her way back to the café. When she mentioned this odd sight to the waitress this woman told her casually, “Oh, don’t you know about our ghost?”

Haunted ladies restroom.

One legend connected to this haunting mentions that this lady in the early 1900s arrived at the station in order to meet her fiancé. Once on the platform the two lovers began to quarrel. Their argument became so heated the pair broke their engagement off.

The man then threw the ring he intended to give her onto the tracks. The lady, heedless of her own safety, ran out on the tracks to retrieve the ring. A train streaming into the station hit and killed her.

Years later a female working with a construction crew at the old depot reported hearing this lady ghost singing in the ladies room near the café on a regular basis.

There has also been an assortment of over apparitions spotted at the old train depot. One janitor, Bob Bowls remembers the time he was called to go check out the station late at night. There had been reports that people were seeing the lights going on and off in the historical societies offices.

When he arrived he went down into the basement to check on the fuses. He rounded a corned and spotted a group of people partying. They and he were startled. As he watched they all vanished in front of him.

One security guard heard someone walking in the balcony every night around the same time. He would go up to check it out but never spotted anyone so one night he went up to balcony before the appointed time.

Balcony where footsteps heard.

Sure enough, he heard the footsteps but he saw no one. He even heard the footsteps coming closer and closer until they passed right by him. He stood frozen as he felt something brush his arm and then he heard the footsteps walk down the stairs.

One restaurant worker busy mopping a floor was engulfed in darkness suddenly. He went to check on the switch but he never got that far. He felt someone standing close by him and then he heard a voice that told him to leave the building immediately. He did.

The old depot is located at 300 Rio Grande at the corner of 300 South and 440 West Streets.