"Georgetown has a haunted house," proclaimed the December 26, 1868, issue of the Rocky Mountain News:
The Ghost of Bainbridge, who was hung by a vigilance committee, has returned to earth to vex and worry the people who lived in a house hard by the fatal tree. It opens doors that are locked and slams them in a way supposed to be natural to a house breaker. One citizen of keen perception has seen him with the rope still around his neck. The family has moved away. The Miner tells all about it.
This article led me to question who Bainbridge was and just what he had done to have been lynched by a vigilante group.
By looking in the Western History Subject Index and then the Rocky Mountain News on microfilm, I learned that Edward Bainbridge was a murderer:
We learn from Mr. J. P. Waterman, who has just arrived from Georgetown, that a man named Ed. Bainbridge shot another by the name of Martin, yesterday evening. A dispute arose over a game of cards, when Bainbridge drew his pistol and deliberately shot Martin through the head, the ball penetrating his forehead. Martin died instantly. It was reported in Central that the murderer would be lynched, and our informant thinks he has been strung up ore [sic] this. —Rocky Mountain News, April 25, 1867, page 3
Reports of Bainbridge's gruesome hanging by an angry mob appeared in the Rocky just a few days later on April 29. This article also mentioned that Martin was actually still alive, but was not expected to recover.
Many books and web pages have been written about the ghost of Edward Bainbridge haunting Georgetown, but few can point to documented evidence about Bainbridge's life. Where was Bainbridge from? Was he a miner? Did he have a history of violence?
Can YOU fill in the details of this ghost story using the Western History/Genealogy department's genealogy resources?
Want to hear a ghost story? Several iterations of the Edward Bainbridge ghost story can be found in these DPL titles:
- From the grave : a roadside guide to Colorado's pioneer cemeteries by Wommack, Linda
- Georgetown : a quick history : including the Georgetown Loop by Jessen, Kenneth Christian
- Haunted places : the national directory : ghostly abodes, sacred sites, UFO landings, and other supernatural locations by Hauck, Dennis William
- Lynching in Colorado, 1859-1919 by Leonard, Stephen J.
Comments
Hi, Giselle, I don't know if
Hi, Giselle, I don't know if you can access this comment so many months since your post regarding the Bainbridge ghost of Georgetown Colo. I just wanted to comment when we drove up above Georgetown a mile or two, towards Guanella Pass which was closed for the winter, we had stopped to see a waterfall (melting snow cascading down the rocky slope), and although it has been since late January of 2020 since we were there, I remember feeling an uncomfortable presence, like a feeling of dread, otherworldly knowing, after exiting the car to walk around a bit in the fresh air and sunshine. The area felt unsafe as though someone wanted to push me off the side of the path. Since we were on a switchback at high elevation, it was a bit dizzying and we left. There was definitely an odd and assuredly evil feeling there. I did not see anything evil. I seem to be protected from seeing and usually can only feel and sometimes hear evil spirits. I'm like you, I get away from it and do not ever open doors to it through curious delving or over interest. You are not crazy. The path was nowhere near an edge to fall from so it was odd I had a sense I could be shoved. Creepy but Georgetown itself is a beautiful mountain town, albeit full of history.
Honestly, I’ve always been
Honestly, I’ve always been very sensitive to energies. I’ve picked up on spiritual energy since I was a child. My mom always tells me of this experience: I was 3 when my grandpa passed. It was my first memory, but only pieces. My mom did say that in his hospital room, I said “it’s very crowded in here.” But it was just me, her, my dad, and my grandpa. The way I said it spooked her.
Flash-forward. I’m now 27. I’m from Wisconsin, live in Denver, and my parents came to visit. We booked an airbnb in Georgetown. I hadn’t done research on the town, except to look for good nearby hikes that would be easy for them, and the Georgetown Loop train ride. I didn’t really know the history of the mines, though. I first got an eery feeling when we arrived at the house. At first, I thought of sleeping on the first floor. But it was too close to the basement. I settled with the solo bedroom on the second level.
I always struggle sleeping, but especially at night. Since I can remember. I hear creaks, I’ve kind of “seen” things, but I hide under my blanket. Sometimes, when I close my eyes, I see random images. I get feelings of dread and fright. This is the only place where I’ve heard several voices all at the same time, clear as day. In the middle of the night, I kept hearing someone on the stairs to my room, or by the front door. My mom came to check, because she also heard something. She normally doesn’t perceive the same things I do.
Lately, I’ve been trying to find more information about places I’ve been that I suspect are haunted. I finally looked up Georgetown, and found a lot of information I was unaware of. And that creepily align with things I experienced…when I mentioned hearing voices, I had my window cracked since it was summer, and I heard voices in the street outside. On a weeknight, in Georgetown at 2 AM…lol. I heard people that sounded like they were chanting or going after someone. Like in Beauty and the Beast, when they go after the Beast. Then, I saw the information about the lynching, and it aligns. Creepy as shit.
Add new comment