The Haunted Angebilt Hotel
While it is understood that the grand and expansive theme parks of Orlando, Florida, are its primary attraction for those drawn to the darker stories and legends of history, the entire area is rich in strange and terrifying lore that dates back to the city’s origins in 1838. An example of that can be found at the Angebilt Building, formerly the Angebilt Hotel, located in the Downtown Historic District. It’s no longer a hotel, but the dead may not know that!
Who Haunts the Angebilt Building?
Though not all of the identities of the spirits are known, it’s believed that the activity comes from the underground tunnels located directly underneath the building. Some of the spirits are said to be demonic. Want to learn more about haunted Orlando? Book an Orlando ghost tour with Orlando Haunts!
Haunted History
Not surprisingly, many spirits are said to freely roam the streets and buildings by night in the historic part of the metropolis nicknamed “the City Beautiful.” Notable amongst these eerie locations is the office building formerly known as the Angebilt Hotel, set in the Downtown Orlando Historic District.
Called “a unique gem in the setting of Orlando’s downtown beauty,” it was built by its namesake, Joseph Ange, and designed by Murry S. King, famous for being “Florida’s first registered architect.” It was once Orlando’s tallest building and was even considered “Orlando’s only fireproof building.”
Envisioned as a “million-dollar hotel” for movie stars and the wealthy, it was plagued by difficulties and disastrous events throughout its history, including its original owner’s departure soon after it opened and bankruptcy in its first six months. It suffered hurricane damage in 1944 that destroyed its rooftop level, and also survived a visit from celebrity actress Joan Crawford in 1961.
Ironically, a fire in 1993 seriously damaged the top two floors and ended its reign as a hotel. The Angebilt, which had enjoyed a long-time rivalry with the San Juan Hotel across the street, emerged as the only survivor following the demolition of the San Juan in 1980, despite unsuccessful attempts to have it declared a historic building as well.
You’re Never Alone in the Angebilt
But you didn’t come here to read a history lesson. At least not the kind that sits safely within the words of dry books and dusty registry buildings. You want to hear about what goes *Bump* in the middle of the Angebilt’s walls at night and in its dark and secreted places, even by day.
The common theory is that the building and many places where the otherworldly manifests are located at nexus energy points and are portals to… what? We don’t know for sure. The afterlife? Alternate dimensions? So many theories and hypotheses speak to one or the other conclusion, but they all rely on many of the same stories for their evidence.
Like many hotels and other places of luxury, indulgence, and gaiety—such as the also-haunted Beacham Theater located across the street—the Angebilt often seems to echo with whisps of that gaiety. Workers and visitors alike have reported the sounds of distant laughter and energetic parties in the Angelbilt building, which is now a mix of offices, shops, and a restaurant. One of the more famous stories contains a warning of the perils of being on-call at your job.
“They Don’t Pay Me Enough”
An employee of one of the many offices in the building came in over the weekend to solve some terrible, time-sensitive problem. She was the only person in the office, secured by a system requiring keycard access. Despite being sure she was the only one in her space, she still couldn’t ignore that eerie, back-of-the-neck feeling of being watched.
While working, she would stop several times, sure that she heard the sound of excited voices and other sounds of a party in full swing, sounds that would vanish as she stopped her work and tried to concentrate on them. She told herself that it must be the sounds coming from other floors or outside in the streets, but the explanation felt hollow to her, even as she considered the thought.
Then, she said she distinctly heard the muted sounds of voices whispering, “Shhhh….” just outside her office. Then, it felt like her heart stopped after a series of sharp knocks at her door! Terrified but not frozen in place, she pulled her door open suddenly to behold an empty office filled only with a deafening silence.
She made a thorough (and rather courageous under the circumstances) search of the office; she left no space unsearched that was large enough in which someone might be able to conceal themselves but found no one anywhere. It is an inevitable and yet unsurprising epilogue to this story that the manager in question never went back into the office alone again, weekend emergencies be damned.
Ghosts Furnished on All Floors
And the spirited spirits do not limit their cheeky rudeness to the office spaces, either. Many employees from multiple businesses within the building have reported strange bathroom occurrences. Doors that refuse to unlock, followed by a violent shaking of the walls of the stall itself!
One witness described the harrowing (and unsanitary) tale of having to crawl under the door of her stall to escape and that, as she fled in terror, she heard multiple loud banging noises behind her. Unsurprisingly, she did not stop to look to see what the cause of the violent noise might have been.
However, according to paranormal investigators and employee reports, the largest share of strange events and sightings occur in the tunnel that runs under the hotel. It has been the site of extremely powerful readings using multiple paranormal research tools. Various apparitions have been reportedly seen down there, as well. Multiple investigators and psychic sensitives have described a very dark, even demonically evil, presence in the tunnel.
The Angebilt was briefly used as a temporary courtroom in the 1980s when the nearby Orange County Court underwent asbestos removal. Between the two buildings, reports of the ghosts of criminals, jurists, judges, and even children have been reported.
And, while infamous serial killer and multiple-time prison escapee Ted Bundy was held for trial there in the late 1970s, his spirit has not been reported to have been seen. So far as we know. Of course, it could be that anyone who did might not have been lucky enough to survive such an encounter!
Haunted Orlando
So, while you cannot stay in the Angebilt, it has shops and a restaurant you could visit. And while you are there in the Downtown Orlando Historic District, you are just a hop, skip, and paranormal jump from the previously mentioned Orange County Regional History Center (formerly the courthouse) and the Beacham Theater with its infamous “Lady in White.”
To learn more about Orlando’s most haunted attractions, keep reading our blog or book an Orlando ghost tour with Orlando Haunts!
Sources:
https://www.thehistorycenter.org/homegrown-haunts/
https://www.hauntedrooms.com/florida/orlando/haunted-places
https://www.classicvacations.com/tours-and-activities/viator/tour/272075P1
https://expansive.com/locations/florida/orlando/angebilt-building/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0t9qebHnYwE
https://www.orlando.gov/Our-Government/History
https://citydistrictorlando.com/the-angebilt-hotel/
https://www.frommers.com/destinations/orlando/in-depth/history
https://www.yourcommunitypaper.com/articles/the-way-we-were-7/
https://www.yourcommunitypaper.com/articles/patronized-by-the-highest-class-orlandos-san-juan-hotel/
