Nothing about the Del Coronado Resort made me suspect it was haunted. On the contrary, it seemed quite untroubled with its crowd of visitors and bright crimson roof. But all places, even places like sunny San Diego, hide their secrets.
I was visiting the state of California for spring break with my family in 2009. It was our second stop in San Diego, and my mom enthusiastically mentioned that the famous Hotel del Coronado was haunted, or so many claimed. The idea of a potential ghost roommate was intriguing to me.
Upon arrival, we were greeted by palm trees, friendly employees, and the sound of the ocean. I took a stroll around the lobby as my parents checked in. I stopped at the small gift shop and immediately a book on display (a book my mom would purchase later) caught my eye. The hotel's professional historian wrote a novel titled "The Beautiful Stranger: The Ghost of Kate Morgan and the Hotel del Coronado." The brief description on the back concluded that Kate Morgan was the supposed ghost and that her first visit to the hotel in 1892 was her last, for she died on the property.
I began to learn more once my mom and I struck a conversation with a front desk employee a couple days later. We heard many of the hotel workers had stories of their own in witnessing the ghost, so we felt it was only appropriate to ask for her story.
"I have never actually encountered Kate nor know a ton about her history," she said. "But If you are really interested in learning about the hauntings, you should talk to Andrew. Andrew is our oldest employee here and he knows everything about this hotel."
She points behind us and I turn to discover the oldest looking elevator attendant I have ever seen. This man had to be in his 90s, and my guess was that he worked here his whole life. With a wrinkled face, hunched back, and old-fashioned bellhop uniform, it was like he came straight out of a horror film! His somber demeanor intimidated me when my mom and I approached him, but it didn't stop him from letting us know about who the ghost was.
Kate Morgan, an attractive young woman in her mid-20s, visited Hotel del Coronado after an argument while traveling with her husband. Nevertheless, he was to meet her at the hotel a few days later for Thanksgiving. She suspiciously checked in under the name Lottie Anderson Bernard and spent the days awaiting her husband's arrival, complaining of illness to the hotel's employees. One afternoon, she was discovered dead on the steps leading to the beach with a bullet in her head. Questions remained. Did she kill herself? Was it her angry husband? Perhaps an obsessed hotel employee? While her demise has been accompanied with many plausible theories, her death still remains a mystery.
Andrew went into further detail, saying that the room 302 (now 3312), the same room that Kate Morgan stayed in, is a popular resident for paranormal activity. People who stay in room 3312 claim to hear unexplained murmuring, see drawers opening and shutting on their own and flickering lights, as well as find misplaced items, feel chills, and even on occasion witness a young woman wearing a black dress.
After graciously thanking Andrew for the information, my mom, sister, and I, being the brave souls we were, politely asked the front desk to see room 3312. To our luck, 3312 was unoccupied, so with one quick hand over of the room key, my family and I set out to take a peek at the haunted hotel room.
The room itself was nothing special. It contained a single bed, a wooden dresser, a desk, and a small bathroom. My older sister, who is squeamish over talk of the paranormal, stood in the corner of the room, her blue eyes as wide as saucers. The three of us took a brief look around, chatting and laughing as we did so.
We had been there for less than five minutes when I felt the cold. Goosebumps rose on my arm as if the room had dropped 20 degrees. I noticed the open window as soon as we entered the room, so I figured it was to blame. But when I crossed the room to place my arm outside, the California night air was warm. The cold I felt was exceptionally cold. The only way I can describe is that it was very similar to walking into a freezer kind of cold.
As soon as I asked my mom and sister if they felt the cold, I noticed the ceiling fan circle faster. I probably wouldn't have noticed a detail as small as that, but I watched and heard the clank of its dangling cords hit together. It was a noise none of us previously heard.
As my mom, sister, and I continued to discuss potential causes of the sudden change in room temperature, I started to feel weight on my right shoulder. Even though I was standing by myself away from my mom and sister, I felt myself shrug away from the pressure on the right side of my body. It felt exactly like how one would feel when they are claustrophobic, but it was odd because no one was there, obviously, and it was only on my right side. I reached my arm out to the right. The air was even colder than before. Just to make sure I wasn't fooling myself, I felt the air to my left, then to my right once again. The difference was so shocking I couldn't help by wonder if I was standing next to a ghost!
Not long afterward, us girls left the room and returned the room key. As we were walking back to our hotel room, I began to look through the pictures I took of room 3312. I can't say I was surprised to see multiple orbs in my pictures. Orbs, I was told, were suspected to be a physical form of ghost entity and they are usually spotted on camera.
Believe what you will, but what I experienced in room 3312 was definitely strange and can't be explained. I may never know for sure what happened to Kate Morgan, or if she really haunts the halls of Hotel del Coronado, but I do know I came across something so unsettling that I would prefer not to experience it again.
