Creepy Cowboy Chronicles: Headless bride haunts historic hotel hallways

Although primarily renowned for its plentiful natural splendor, America’s first national park also boasts some fantastic history on the supernatural side. 

A ghost story dating back more than a century marks the hallways of Yellowstone National Park’s historic Old Faithful Inn, where the spirit of a young bride met by a murderous end is rumored to roam. 

The story

Yellowstone’s most notorious ghost story dates back to 1915. It begins in New York City, where the daughter of a wealthy shipping company owner was arranged to be married to the son of another well-to-do family.

The daughter rejected the arranged marriage, as she had fallen in love with a much older man who worked as a servant in the family home and planned to marry him instead. Enraged, her father threatened to cut the woman and her new husband out of any shred of inheritance.

Undeterred, the young bride went through with the marriage despite her father’s warning.  As a wedding gift, the father sent his daughter into her new life with a sizable dowry on the condition the couple leave New York and never return. 

Shortly after their union, the newlyweds set off for a honeymoon in Yellowstone. 

Early into the 2,000-mile journey, the woman realized she had made an awful mistake. Much to the young bride’s dismay, her new husband spent money recklessly, drinking and gambling at several stops along the way. 

Tensions were running high and cash was running low by the time they reached Yellowstone. The young couple checked into Room 127 at the Old Faithful Inn – and the bride never checked out. 

The stay

Several sources report the couple’s brief stay at the inn was troubled from the start, plagued by loud arguments overheard by staff and other guests. By the end of their stay, there was not even enough money left to cover the hotel bill. 

The young woman placed a long-distance call to New York City to beg her father for a loan. He refused her request and hung up the call, not knowing it would be the last time he would ever hear his daughter’s voice.

That night, the shouts and sounds of struggle from Room 127 were louder than usual. Finally, they came to an end, followed by a slamming door and heavy footsteps of the enraged husband as he fled the Old Faithful Inn, never to be seen again.

The same cannot be said of his bride, whose headless body is said to have been discovered by hotel staff in the bathroom of Room 127 a few days after the couple’s final argument. 

The horrific tragedy was exacerbated once again when a foul odor drifting from the crow’s nest of the inn’s extravagant dining room led to the discovery of the young woman’s missing head.

The sightings

Reports of a ghostly woman in white carrying her head under her arm have since surfaced a handful of times, and the legend of the headless bride of the Old Faithful Inn remains one of Yellowstone’s most famous. 

The best-known sighting of the nameless, headless bride is said to have occurred nearly 70 years after the alleged murder. 

In the early 1980s, a bellman named George Bornemann was up late when he heard strange noises coming from a hallway. Upon investigation, he found nothing out of the ordinary – the first two times.

During his third venture, however, Bornemann allegedly saw something which would remain in his mind – and in the minds of curious visitors – for years to come. 

As the clock struck midnight, he wandered into the balcony overlooking the inn’s lobby. 

Here, Bornemann reportedly saw “a white, sort of ghostly figure coming down the stairway of the crow’s nest,” according to a 1991 interview with the former bellman published by Deseret News. 

“She was walking down the stairs, and the weirdest thing about her was she didn’t have a head,” Bornemann told Deseret News. “Or she did have a head, but it wasn’t on her neck. She was carrying it under her arm.”

Several sources report similar sightings in years since, but whether they are legitimate or simply informed by the legend birthed by Bornemann’s account remains uncertain. 

The truth?

While the tale of the teenage bride’s tragic fate is certainly entertaining, there are several questions surrounding the story’s authenticity. 

For one, factual evidence regarding the grisly account is nonexistent. No newspaper clippings report a murder or a marriage of similar description circa 1915 or any other time period.

Additionally, further details about the bride and her relatives who remain nameless in every account are sparse despite of the family’s alleged wealthy, well-to-do background.

Even the most famous sighting was admitted to be exaggerated. In the same 1991 Deseret News article, Bornemann admitted to fabricating the story’s details in order to add intrigue to the inn and appease curious visitors.

“People always come in here expecting a ghost story,” Bornemann told the Deseret News reporter. “I made up that story about the woman without a head. I’ve heard people who I’ve never met tell it back to me, so it’s made the rounds.”

Still, Bornemann claims he only embellished the story after actually hearing strange, footstep-like sounds coming from the hallway. 

These noises have also been reported by other visitors, leading many to maintain the possibility of paranormal activity at the historic hotel is not entirely unfounded.  

Grace Skavdahl is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.