Gold, Gambling, and Ghosts in Central City, Colorado

Gold, Gambling, and Ghosts in Central City
Source of the article: www.thefencepost.com Story by Becky Talley

His name is Billy. He is a resident of Central City, Colo., and has been the caretaker of the Opera House in this one-time mining village, turned ghost town, turned gambling berg, high in the Rocky Mountains. Billy has seen his fair share of actors, gold seekers and visitors come through the town. He enjoys a good chew, and is, in fact, never without his can of dip. Billy always likes to meet new people, in fact, he insists on introductions and if you don’t comply, like any gentleman, he does not consider it polite. There is only one thing about Billy that sets him apart from other men: when you introduce yourself his handshake may be a bit cold and clammy, that is if you can actually see or feel the hand of a dead man!

Billy is one of the many spirits that still roam the historic buildings and streets of Central City. According to the Gilpin Historical Society Web site (http://www. coloradomuseums. com/gilpin.htm), in “1859, John Gregory discovered ‘The Gregory Lode’ in a gulch near
Central City ... Within two months the population grew to 10,000 people seeking their fortunes.” This one-time booming mining town played out many dramas within its city walls with a cast of players from miners to soiled doves and even famous outlaws who strolled the bustling 1800s streets. However, like many boom towns, Central City eventually went bust with only the memories to replay themselves within the quiet buildings and deserted streets. Or was it only the memories that were alive in the town? It appears that this berg was never quite abandoned by its original residents. The people of this historical town have been celebrating the big haul,
drowning their sorrows after going bust, gambling and carousing since the mining days, though very few of them have been living for
several decades.

I found myself strolling through this piece of Colorado history in search of another story for some exciting reading for the Fence Post Halloween issue. The mysterious and eerie have always held a fascination for me, so, of course, I jumped at the chance to scare something up in the former mining town.

I was able to view some of the town’s most haunted locations thanks to the Haunts of Central City Tour 2004 put on by the Farrout Penndragon Investigations and The Sweet Shop.

The tour began in the Central City Opera House, a grand building that has hosted the likes of Mae West and Christopher Reeves.  However, on this October evening, the Opera House played host to a very different crowd.

Once in the house, the tour group was asked to introduce itself to “Billy,” only one of the house ghosts we were to be introduced to in the Opera House.

As mentioned before, Billy was the caretaker of the Opera House. The young man, who was known to always carry Copenhagen chew, suddenly and mysteriously disappeared. However, no matter the fate he met, his spirit returned to protect the Opera House. Billy is a stickler for introductions and doesn’t appear to take kindly to those who do not comply. The guide related that a man once adamantly refused to introduce himself to the spirit. While walking around the opera house, the man claimed he was tripped by something, which resulted in a broken nose for this brazen soul. When the investigation into the accident occurred, nothing was found to explain the mishap, nothing, that is, except for a smashed, empty can of Copenhagen chew!

Two other spirits are reported to have also made the Opera House their favorite haunt, or at least they used to. One still thought to be around is the builder of the house who has mysteriously shown up once to make repairs to the roof. The other entity apparently hitched a ride down to a new home with a family that visited the Opera House. His name is John and he was easily recognized by the smell of cigar smoke that would waft through the air whenever he appeared. The family came to the Opera House and decided to try to initiate contact with John. When they went home, they found that many strange things started happening in their house. This family didn’t pay a second thought to the occurrences until they began to smell the pungent odor of cigar smoke in their home. John has not been seen at the Opera House since.