Hauntings in St. Charles?

For years, some of St. Charles’ most prominent landmarks have been rumored to be haunted.

And for every creepy occurrence that takes place, there’s often a story to back it up.

Of course, not everyone believes in ghosts. But for those St. Charles residents who do, many have conducted research, according Natalie Gacek, director of the St. Charles Heritage Museum.

And Halloween may be the time of year that rumors of ghosts and spirits circulate the most.

Here are some of tales about a few places in St. Charles that have been the subject of haunted happenings.

Hotel Baker, 100 W. Main St.

The tale
Legend says that a chamber maid of the hotel killed herself in the Fox River after her fiancé abandoned her at the altar, or after he disappeared following a disappointing night of poker. There are also claims that she and other hotel employees lived on the hotel’s sixth floor, where cries of despair are still rumored to be heard today.

The facts
Hotel managers declined to comment, but according to Gacek there are actually no rooms on the sixth level of the hotel, just an observation deck.

However, the hotel’s founder, Col. Edward J. Baker, lived in a penthouse on the fifth floor for 31 years until he died in 1959, according to documents at St. Charles Public Library.

While Gacek hasn’t heard of employees ever living at the hotel, she said she believes some of the staff had quarters in the hotel’s former garage that was demolished in the 1970s. Carroll Towers, a retirement facility, was built in its place and still stands there today.

If there was a suicide in the Fox River, newspapers likely would’ve have reported it, too. However, Gacek said no recorded evidence of the tale has been found.

Nonetheless, the Hotel Baker has seen its fair share of weddings both past and present. In the ‘30s and ‘40s, it even gained national attention and the nickname “Honeymoon Hotel.”

In 1968, Baker’s niece, Dellora Norris, gave the hotel to the Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, and it opened as a residence for the elderly in 1971. But in 1996, the site was converted back into a hotel again following a $9 million renovation, according to St. Charles Public Library documents.

Arcada Theatre, 105 E. Main St.

The tale

Ghosts of movie stars and others who lost their jobs at the end of the silent film era are rumored to haunt the theater with the hope that they will scare away customers and close the theater. Other legends say the theater is haunted because of activity in the basement, where there was reportedly a brothel and/or someone was murdered.

The facts

Originally designed for silent films in 1926, the theater began showing films with sound, or “talkies,” starting with “The Jazz Singer” in 1927, according to Ron Onesti, president and CEO of the Arcada. He also said the Arcada was one of four theaters in the area to show talkie films that eventually killed the silent film industry.

While there’s not much evidence about a brothel, the Hotel Baker and the Arcada led downtown St. Charles to be considered “the cat’s meow” for locals in the ‘20s and the perfect place for a night out, according to St. Charles library documents. Tunnels beneath the downtown area that were once used for the Underground Railroad were also reportedly used for bootlegging at the time.

The reports

Onesti has been in the theater at night and has witnessed some strange occurrences first-hand.

“I never believed in this stuff until I got here,” he said. “There’s a lot of feelings that you get.”

Along with lights that turn off and on by themselves near balconies, the fixtures have also been known to swing — even when there’s no wind.

“Something’s got to be going on,” he said.

About three years ago, the crew of a paranormal television show for Showtime even came to the theater to test out the grounds themselves.

“They told me there definitely is some activity and a lot of presence,” he said.

Dunham-Hunt Museum, 302 Cedar Ave.

The tale

Jane Dunham is believed to have lost some of her personal items while the house operated as a museum. As a result, her ghost is believed to haunt the home, along with other members of the Hunt family, who lived in the mansion in the past.

The facts

The museum was originally built as a home around the 1840s by Bela T. Hunt, a successful businessman and one of St. Charles’ first settlers. Hunt also established the mayor’s office during the Civil War and was later elected Kane County treasurer. Six generations of the family lived in the home until 1984, according Julie Bunke, who worked as the director of the St. Charles Heritage Museum until this past May.

In the 1980s, Jane Dunham bought the house and turned into a museum to display her family heirlooms. Bunke said Dunham lost some of her childhood photos while operating the museum before her death in the 1990s.

Bunke also said a 12-year-old boy in the Hunt family died in the home. Since there were no funeral homes in St. Charles at the time, the funeral was held in the home.

After some funding issues, Bunke said the city closed the museum earlier this year and the site is now up for sale.

The reports

While giving tours of the museum, Bunke said she and other employees have felt a strong presence.

“When I worked in the house, there was always that sense that something’s right behind you,” she said.

Others report seeing faces appear in the home’s windows at night — particularly that of a little girl — along with lights turning on in the middle of the night after they’ve been unplugged, she added.

Bunke’s said she also once felt something dust her arm when she was wearing short sleeves.

However, Bunke said she’s never felt scared or threatened.

“The only thing that I can explain is that with many historic homes, people lived and died in their homes,” she said.