A Haunted Tale Of A Ghost From The Gold Rush – The Zeballos Hotel

Originally published by Melissa Dawn Feb 2017. Revised Aug 3rd 2023.

Pioneers, Gold Rushes & Ghosts.

These three topics make a curious triangle of interest in ghost folklore. This ghostly tale from Vancouver Island comprises this magical mix straight from history. In this story, we will travel to the remote Village of Zeballos, located on the west side of Vancouver Island. Even today, the area is rugged and remote; you're more likely to spot a cougar than you are to see many modern comforts.

Like most gold rush towns, Zeballos once had a lively population. Between 1938 and 1943, it had an estimated population of 1500, though some say up to 5000, due to the gold mines and the riches extracted from the area. After the gold rush of the 30s died down, Zeballos depended on its forest as an economic resource, which has declined to almost none. If one ventured to this tiny village, you today would find only 125 people still living in this secluded deep-sea port.

Workers at a gold mine in Zeballos BC, Canada

Founded in the 1930s, Zebellos built several buildings to support the people flooding in to procure gold from the area. The Zeballos Hotel was one of three hotels constructed in response to the population increase, and they built it with lightning speed. The hotel would be a bustling place for gold rush transients. Upon hearing about a ghost at the hotel many years ago, I decided to visit Zeballos and stay there myself.

Almost 20 years ago, I ventured to the Island's north end with my mother to stay at the Zebellos Hotel. I had read about the ghost of Suzy Woo, who, during the 1940s, had been a maid at the hotel. Suzy allegedly died in room 1, and the current staff members and the owner reported plenty of poltergeist activity. I had never traveled this far north on the Island, I never had a reason to, and I was hesitant about telling the people at the hotel why we were there. Being suspicious, they asked, as it was rare to get many people staying in Zeballos at that time of year. I gave a vague answer of wanting to explore the Island.

When we arrived at the hotel, an odd site greeted us upon entering the doors. There was an area that looked like it might have served as an old check-in desk back in the 1940s. It was a small enclosure with a mannequin sitting in the place of an attendant. The owners may have meant it to be a historical throwback to the Gold Rush day, but it had a creepy effect rather than an educational one. At this time, we walked straight through and checked in at the bar with the hotel owner.

If I had to describe the old Zeballos Hotel in one word, I would use the word creaky. It creaked with every step that you made. It was old and built ruggedly, and our room was tiny with two single beds that, you guessed it, creaked a lot when you sat on them. If I remember correctly, we were in room 4 of the hotel. It had few modern amenities, and it felt like we were back in the gold rush using the basics they offered. After getting our bags settled in the room, we went down to have something to eat and a few drinks at the bar. The hotel had posted news articles about the hauntings on a bulletin board, amongst other nicknacks. I asked casually, and the owner did little more than confirm the stories.

Zeballos Hotel around 1998

It became apparent that there was very little to do in Zeballos, and as nighttime fell, the hotel bar became the central area of culture for the residents. After 9 p.m., we retired to our room, as the night had been relatively uneventful. I lay in my bed listening to the rowdiness of the locals echoing from downstairs until I eventually fell asleep.

I can't say what time it was, but I was awakened suddenly out of sleep with a start. I had whole-body movement but felt like someone was in the room. I looked up and saw a shadowy figure standing over me in my bed, and it caused me to scream quite loudly and jump up into a sitting position in my bed. I looked back again, and the figure had disappeared. I could still hear some of the locals partying the night away in the bar below us, which was a good thing because if they hadn't been so loud I am confident the entire hotel would have heard me scream.

My logic quickly snapped to action, telling me that I had just imagined it and everything was fine, so I laid back down and drifted off to sleep without much resistance. A few hours later, I awoke again, but I could hear this slight moaning this time. I was literally in bed thinking, wow, a fucking banshee now? I sat up and realized it was no phantom, but my mother was in bed beside me, having a bad nightmare. I got out of bed and shook her awake, told her it was okay, nothing was wrong. She was still groggy and incoherent, but my scream earlier made her feel frightened and sleep poorly.

My mother was ready to pack our bags and leave that hotel the following day. I couldn't stop laughing because I assumed it was just a case of me giving her the nerves, but she said the place was haunted. I can only say I didn't see any poltergeist activity while there, nor did I see a ghost that I could physically say looked like a Chinese maid from the 1940s. I did see a shadowy figure standing over me, and we could chalk that up to a type of sleep paralysis, except I was not paralyzed, and I don't experience sleep paralysis at home as a habit.

That was over 20 years ago and today if you go to Zeballos you'll find that the old hotel we visited no longer exists as it did. In 2004, the original hotel burnt to the ground and was replaced with a new and more modern structure. If you go to the website Living Library Blog by Shanon Sinn, a commenter there says about The Zeballos Hotel that there are no reports of Suzy still being there. Still, another hotel up the road, The Cedars Hotel, has "stories enough to curl your hair." We may have to make another visit to Zeballos soon!