On November 29, 1892, Kate Morgan was found dead on the exterior staircase leading to the beach, of what was believed to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. For years everyone accepted that the death was a suicide, until 1990, when Alan May (a lawyer who specializes in murder cases) published the book The Legend of Kate Morgan: The Search for the Ghost of the Hotel del Coronado. May pored through old records from the time of Kate's death. He came to the eventual conclusion that Kate did not kill herself, but was murdered by her husband. There are several pieces of evidence supporting this theory, the most compelling of which is the fact that the bullet in Kate's head was of a different caliber than the ones in the gun she bought. Also, the position her body was found in was not consistent with a suicide.
According to hotel employees, she said she was waiting for a gentleman to join her. After five days, Kate took her own life. There have been many putative ghost sightings, and other potential paranormal events at Hotel del Coronado since then. There have also been Kate sightings in hotel hallways and along the seashore. Another very “active” area is the resort’s gift shop, Est. 1888, where visitors and employees routinely witness giftware mysteriously flying off shelves, oftentimes falling upright and always unbroken.
According to hotel employees, she said she was waiting for a gentleman to join her. After five days, Kate took her own life. There have been many putative ghost sightings, and other potential paranormal events at Hotel del Coronado since then. There have also been Kate sightings in hotel hallways and along the seashore. Another very “active” area is the resort’s gift shop, Est. 1888, where visitors and employees routinely witness giftware mysteriously flying off shelves, oftentimes falling upright and always unbroken.
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| Kate Morgan |
The room Kate checked into was 302, which is now room 3312. But that is not the only haunted room. Room 3502, which was once a maid's room, is also considered haunted. Both rooms have experienced oddly functioning electrical equipment (lights turning on and off, etc) and cold breezes. Maids report that objects are moved around by unseen hands. Guests in the rooms have experienced oppressive feelings and curtains that move even though the windows are closed.
However, according to author and historian J'aime Rubio, the identity of the woman found dead on the steps of the Hotel del Coronado was none other than Charlotte "Lottie" Barnard of Detroit, Michigan. There is a Charlotte Barnard listed as living in Detroit in the 1890 & 1891 Census. Her address was at 351 High Street (West) and amazingly around the time of the death of the Beautiful Stranger, Charlotte Barnard disappears from any further listings in either the Census or the Detroit Directories. After extensive research of the Coroner's Inquest report, documentation and archived newspapers, it seems that the Kate Morgan theory does not stand up when analyzed thoroughly. Rubio's research claims that Kate Morgan may not have died, but disappeared to San Francisco and was later listed on the San Francisco Census in 1900.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Morgan
https://hoteldel.com/press/ghostly-goings-hotel-del-coronado/
http://www.ghost-investigators.com/Stories/view_story.php?story_num=1
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Actually, my blog mentioned that I found a listing of a Charlotte Barnard in the City Directory in Detroit, but further research proved that to be a dead end. I state all the facts and details surrounding this story in my book "Stories of the Forgotten: Infamous, Famous & Unremembered," as well as many overlooked clues in the Coroner's Inquest Report for "Lottie Bernard" who was later buried as Kate Morgan. This story has too many twists and turns to count and in my own humble opinion I do not feel we will ever truly know for sure if Lottie was really who she said she was, or if she was Kate Morgan. --- J'aime Rubio, Author
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