Savannah, Georgia · Haunted hotel guide
The Marshall House: Haunted History, Ghost Stories & Where to Stay
Savannah, Georgia, has no shortage of ghost stories.
But few places let you spend the night inside a building that has witnessed more than 170 years of the city’s history. The Marshall House stands on Broughton Street in the heart of Savannah’s Historic District. Opened in 1851, the building has survived epidemics, the Civil War, decades of change and multiple restorations. It has also developed a reputation as one of Savannah’s best-known allegedly haunted hotels.
Guests have reported unexplained sounds and strange sights, while stories involving former patients and other mysterious figures have become part of the hotel’s folklore. The Marshall House itself embraces the stories with what it calls “good fun and open curiosity.” And unlike an abandoned hospital or locked historic building: You can actually spend the night here.
Reported hauntings are folklore and guest accounts; a reservation does not guarantee a paranormal experience. Booking links open the named provider’s website. Read our affiliate disclosure.
Plan a stay at The Marshall House
Compare dates and room types on the official website. If a particular room or floor matters to your trip, confirm it directly, along with access arrangements and the full price, before booking.
The Marshall House at a glance
- Location
- Savannah, Georgia
- The setting
- Historic hotel — opened 1851
- Reported lore
- Ghostly children, mysterious sounds, apparitions and faucets reportedly turning on by themselves
- Famous for
- Its past as a Civil War hospital, yellow-fever history and location in Savannah’s Historic District
- Best fit
- Haunted getaways, Savannah trips, history lovers and paranormal travelers
The Real History of The Marshall House
The story begins with Mary Magdalene Marshall. During Savannah’s rapid growth in the mid-19th century, Marshall developed several properties around the city. In 1851, she opened The Marshall House on Broughton Street. Its distinctive iron veranda was added in 1857 and remains one of the building’s most recognizable architectural features. But the hotel would soon serve purposes far more serious than accommodating travelers.
Yellow Fever and The Marshall House
Savannah suffered devastating yellow-fever outbreaks during the 19th century. During epidemics in the mid-1800s, The Marshall House was used as a hospital. This part of the hotel’s history is documented by the property itself and provides an important distinction when discussing its paranormal reputation: the building genuinely did serve as a hospital during periods of disease. Over the years, that history has inevitably become intertwined with Savannah’s ghost lore. Stories involving sick or injured people, children and unexplained figures have circulated around the hotel, although individual paranormal tales should be treated as folklore unless supported by historical records.
A Civil War Hospital
The Marshall House’s hospital history didn’t end with yellow fever. In 1864, Union forces under General William Tecumseh Sherman occupied Savannah. The Marshall House was used as a Union hospital during 1864 and 1865, remaining in that role through the final months of the Civil War. That documented history is one reason the hotel features so prominently on Savannah ghost tours today. But again, it’s important to separate the two things: The hospital history is documented. The ghosts are not.
The Ghost Stories of The Marshall House
Ask whether The Marshall House is haunted and even the hotel’s own answer is essentially: maybe. The property says guests have occasionally reported mysterious sounds or sights, and it acknowledges its frequent appearance on lists of Savannah’s haunted hotels. Over the years, paranormal stories associated with the building have included unexplained footsteps, unusual sounds in guest rooms and hallways, faucets seemingly turning on without explanation and sightings of mysterious figures. Some stories have been connected to the hotel’s hospital periods. Others are simply unexplained experiences reported by guests.
As with any historic haunting, decades of storytelling make it difficult to determine where individual reports end and folklore begins. That uncertainty is part of the fun — as long as legend isn’t presented as documented history.
The Sound of Children in the Hallways
One of the more unsettling stories associated with The Marshall House involves the sound of children. Guests have described hearing what sounds like children moving or playing in the hallways, sometimes when no children appear to be nearby. On its own, that might not seem particularly strange. This is a functioning hotel, after all. Families stay here. Voices travel. Old floors carry footsteps farther than you might expect. But the stories become considerably creepier when placed alongside the building’s hospital history.
Savannah endured devastating yellow-fever epidemics during the nineteenth century, and The Marshall House was used as a hospital during periods of disease. That history has inevitably influenced the folklore surrounding the hotel. Over time, unexplained sounds of children have been interpreted by some visitors as echoes of young patients from the building’s past. There is no historical evidence proving that’s what anyone is hearing. But imagine returning to your room late at night. The hallway is quiet. Then you hear the unmistakable sound of small footsteps moving somewhere beyond your door. Perhaps there’s laughter.
Perhaps you hear movement farther down the corridor. You open the door. Nobody is there. In a modern hotel, you’d probably assume another family had just gone around the corner. At The Marshall House, you might remember the yellow-fever stories first.
Faucets That Turn On by Themselves
Not every Marshall House story involves seeing an apparition. Some of the strangest reports involve something much more ordinary: Water. Stories have circulated about faucets seemingly turning on without anyone touching them. There are plenty of mundane reasons plumbing can behave strangely in an old building. Changes in water pressure, aging fixtures and other mechanical quirks aren’t paranormal phenomena. But that’s probably not what you’ll be thinking about if you’re lying in bed and suddenly hear water running in the bathroom. You get up. Walk toward the sound. The faucet is running. You know you turned it off.
Suddenly the rational explanation has competition. These smaller experiences are part of what makes historic hotel hauntings effective. Seeing a transparent Civil War soldier would be dramatic. A faucet turning on is almost mundane. But when you’re alone in a hotel room after midnight, mundane can become surprisingly creepy.
Is The Marshall House Actually Haunted?
There is no scientific evidence establishing that ghosts inhabit The Marshall House. There is, however, something we can establish beyond much doubt: This is a genuinely old building with genuinely interesting history. Original elements remain throughout the hotel, including wood floors, staircases, fireplaces, brickwork and doors. During restoration work beginning in 1998, considerable effort was made to preserve or recreate the building’s historic character. Artifacts uncovered during restoration are now displayed inside the hotel. That means you don’t need a paranormal encounter to appreciate staying here. You’re already sleeping inside a piece of Savannah history.
The Marshall House Closes — And Returns
The hotel eventually closed in 1957. Its upper floors remained abandoned for decades, while shops continued operating at street level. Then, beginning in 1998, The Marshall House underwent extensive restoration. In 1999, it reopened as a hotel once again. Many original architectural features were preserved, while other historical elements — including the veranda and gas lights — were carefully reproduced. Today, the property combines that historic atmosphere with the amenities expected from a modern hotel.
What Restoration Workers Found
The decades when the upper floors of The Marshall House sat unused add another interesting chapter to the property’s story. After the hotel closed in 1957, the upper portions of the building remained largely abandoned while commercial businesses continued operating below. Restoration eventually began in the late 1990s. Work on a building this old inevitably uncovers pieces of its past. Artifacts discovered during restoration were preserved, and today historical objects and photographs are displayed around the hotel. For paranormal travellers, there’s something compelling about that period of abandonment.
Imagine floors that once held hotel guests and hospital patients sitting largely silent for decades. Then the doors open again. Rooms are restored. Footsteps return to the hallways. Guests begin sleeping there once more. Whether anything else remained behind is where history gives way to folklore. But the restoration means today’s Marshall House isn’t merely decorated to look historic. Parts of the history are literally built into the property around you.
What It’s Like to Stay Here After Dark
Savannah provides almost the perfect setting for a haunted-hotel stay. During the day, The Marshall House sits in the middle of a busy historic district filled with restaurants, shops, squares and visitors. After dark, the atmosphere changes. The old buildings remain. The iron balconies remain. The enormous trees and historic streets remain. But Savannah becomes a very different place when the crowds thin out. Then you return to The Marshall House. Instead of ending your ghost tour and driving back to a modern hotel somewhere outside the historic district, you’re checking into a building that has its own ghost stories.
Walk across old floors. Pass the historic photographs and artifacts. Climb the stairs. Head toward your room. Perhaps everything will be completely normal. Most hotel stays presumably are. But now you know what happened here. You know the building served as a hospital. You know Union soldiers were treated here. You know generations of travelers have passed through these rooms. And you’ve heard the stories about footsteps, children, faucets and unexplained figures. That’s when an old hotel becomes particularly effective. A noise doesn’t have to be extraordinary. It only has to happen at the right time.
Preferably around 2:00 in the morning.
Can You Stay at The Marshall House?
Absolutely. The Marshall House remains an operating hotel with 65 guest rooms and three suites, including rooms featuring original floors, doors, exposed brick and other historic architectural details. For the most atmospheric experience, take a look at the rooms connected to the hotel’s famous veranda. The hotel is located at 123 East Broughton Street, right in Savannah’s Historic District. River Street is roughly a five-minute walk away, while City Market is about nine minutes away. That location makes The Marshall House particularly useful for a Go Ghostly trip because you don’t need to choose between paranormal tourism and exploring Savannah.
You’re already in the middle of it.
Ready to Stay at The Marshall House?
Spend the night in Savannah’s Historic District and see whether The Marshall House’s Civil War-era ghost stories feel a little more convincing after dark.
A Good Base for a Haunted Savannah Trip
Savannah is one of those cities where an entire trip can easily be built around history and ghost stories. From The Marshall House, you can walk to historic squares, old homes, cemeteries, River Street and many of downtown Savannah’s attractions. The hotel says its concierge can also help guests arrange ghost tours, trolley tours and walking tours. That makes the hotel more than simply somewhere haunted to sleep. It can become the base for an entire paranormal Savannah weekend. Explore during the day. Take a ghost tour after dark. Then return to your allegedly haunted hotel for the night.
History You Can See Inside the Hotel
One particularly nice feature of The Marshall House is that the history isn’t hidden away. Historic photographs, memorabilia and artifacts are displayed throughout the property, and the hotel currently offers a weekly history talk led by a local historian. Guests also currently receive breakfast and an evening reception as part of the hotel’s amenities. For travelers who care about the history behind paranormal stories, that makes The Marshall House considerably more interesting than a hotel that simply markets itself as “haunted.”
Why Go Ghostly
The Marshall House represents exactly what we’re looking for. The building has documented history stretching back to 1851. It genuinely served as a hospital. It survived the Civil War. It spent decades closed before being restored and brought back to life. And somewhere along the way, stories began accumulating about things guests couldn’t quite explain. Maybe they’re ghosts. Maybe they’re the noises and quirks of a building that’s been standing for more than 170 years. Either way, you can check in and decide for yourself.
The Marshall House isn’t simply a Savannah ghost story. It’s a ghost story you can travel to. The Marshall House is also featured in our guide to 15 Haunted Hotels You Can Actually Stay In.
Ready to Spend the Night at The Marshall House?
Book your stay in Savannah’s Historic District and see whether one of the city’s most famously haunted hotels feels quite as peaceful after dark.
Keep planning your haunted getaway
Find another historic stay, compare the original collection, or pair your hotel with an evening tour.