Bullock Hotel- 633 Main Street-Deadwood, SD

SYNOPSIS

      The Bullock Hotel is located in downtown Deadwood, South Dakota on the corner of Main and Wall Street. Various articles and stories have been written about the hotel over the last 13 years. It was once also the subject of the popular TV show Unsolved Mysteries. The hotel was built in 1895 by the former first sheriff of Deadwood, Capt. Seth Bullock. Mr. Bullock was also a US Marshal in the Dakota territories. Mr. Bullock arrived in Deadwood Gulch on August 1st, 1876. On his second day there Wild Bill Hickok was shot to death in the number 10 saloon across the street from Bullocks claim. The rear East Side 1st floor building was built as a warehouse by Bullock in 1876 and survived fire in 1879 and in 1894. From 1876 to 1894 the front part of the property was used as a hardware store. In 1894 after fire destroyed the front building for a second time Bullock decided to build Deadwoods first hotel and built over the original 1876 warehouse. A small building adjoined on the South side of the hotel was obtained by Bullock in 1900 and now is part of the Hotel. In 1919 Seth Bullock died of cancer and the hotel has reported that the apparition of Seth Bullock still wanders the hallways of his old hotel. Since 1989 numerous accounts of paranormal activity has been reported there. The hotel was completely restored in 1990 to its former glory. WPRS member Blaschka traveled to Deadwood to investigate the haunting of this building.

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY THAT WAS REPORTED

      WPRS member Blaschka on July 30th and 31st, 2003 conducted various recorded and non-recorded interviews with members of the Bullock Hotel staff. Also information was gathered through the use of several hotel documents and copies of newspaper articles provided by the hotel management. Also some additional information was obtained by speaking with a local historian in Deadwood. The Bullock Hotel was the subject of a TV show named “Unsolved Mysteries” back in 1992 and other pertinent information was gathered from that video. Through the use of these interviews and media sources the following possible paranormal activity was obtained. All of the activity listed has occurred inside the building between 1990 and present day. This information was noted and recorded for investigation purposes.

1. Strong feelings of presence felt inside rooms and in hallway areas on 2nd and 3rd floors. Also same feelings felt in the restaurant area (Bully’s).

2. Rooms 211, 205, 209, 305, 315, 313, 207, and 302 have all had some sort of paranormal activity reported in them. The staff informed me that room 211 is where Sheriff Seth Bullock died in 1919.

3. Apparition of Seth Bullock helped a lost child in the hotel back to his room.

4. Items often moved from one place to another by unseen forces.

5. Many guests and staff members have reported hearing their name called out by a male voice when no one is visibly present. Also whistling has been heard in various rooms.

6. Lights and major appliances turn on and off seemingly by themselves.

7. Apparition identified as Seth Bullock seen by guests and staff in various areas of the hotel. A staff member saw the most complete apparition of Seth near the restaurant in 1989.

8. Reports of people being tapped on the shoulder by unseen hands.

9. Sounds of footsteps heard through out the hotel by staff and guests.

10. Some photographs that have been taken in the hotel by guests have produced anomalies. One particular photo was taken in room #211 and shows a white cloudy figure hovering over the bed. Again this room is where Seth supposedly died in 1919.

11. Plates and glasses shake and take flight of their own accord in the restaurant area.

12. The apparition of a young girl has been seen in the hotel as well.

13. A staff member witnessed movement of several barstools while in the basement dining area.

14. Paranormal activity seems to increase whenever a staff member whistles hums or stands idle.

15. Cleaning carts have moved on their own.

16. Shower turned on in room #208 by itself and sprayed a staff member.

17. An antique clock that no longer functions in room #305 will chime at times when staff members enter to clean the room. This room is named the Bullock Suite.

18. Toilet paper unrolled to floor by unseen hands right after staff had replaced a new full roll.

19. Water turned on and off by unseen hands.

20. Shadows witnessed by various people on walls or out of the corner of their eye.

21. Psychic Sandy Bullock (no proven relation to Seth) who has lived in England all his life claims to have received messages from Seth Bullock in 1991 and 92 with concerns about Deadwoods future.

INVESTIGATION RESULTS

      The investigation of the Bullock Hotel located at 633 Main Street in Deadwood, South Dakota took place on July 30th and 31st, 2003 from approximately 4:00PM July 30th to 9:00AM on July 31st. Investigator Blaschka was present. During the investigation two rolls of high-speed color film was shot in and outside all areas of the building. No unexplainable anomalies were captured on film. Several temperature readings were obtained and all seemed to be within normal range, 70 to 79 degrees Fahrenheit. The entire building was scanned with an EMF meter and only one (1) area had an unexplainable spike that registered on my equipment. That area is located on the East rear staircase which leads to Lower Main Street. The readings recorded shot from a normal static reading of .02mg to an extremely high reading of 4.0 mg. I could not recreate these anomalous readings. In theory readings such as this one may constitute the presence of paranormal activity. I could not explain reasonably how this reading occurred. I also conducted one session of EVP. That session was conducted on the West main staircase and in the lobby nearest Bully’s restaurant, both areas where apparitions of Seth Bullock have been seen. No anomalies were noted during the EVP sessions. Also an EMF and Natural EMF meter was placed in the room I stayed in (#311) and observed by myself throughout the evening for any anomalous readings. No anomalies were noted during this time. Also various personal observations were made through out the investigation. During investigation of the 3rd and 2nd floor hallways I did note that at times I could hear what appeared to sound like footsteps in the hallways behind me. However, it should also be noted that the floors of this building are 108 years old and they are very creaky. It is conceivable that hotel guests walking inside their rooms on creaky floorboards could cause that vibration in the board to transfer out into the hallway, making it sound similar to footsteps. In conclusion the WPRS has not ruled out a possible natural explanation for the anomalies that did occur on the premises. However, what has been noted, can not be dismissed at this time. Further study of this site may be conducted in the future with other members of the WPRS.

*Any use or reproduction of this documentation is prohibited without the sole permission of Shawn Blaschka.