Who haunts the Menger Hotel
Reported as stories, with where each one comes from. Most reported: Sallie White.
Sallie White
Tour guides say she was shot by her husband in 1876 and the hotel paid for her funeral. Guests report a maid in an old-fashioned uniform carrying towels who vanishes and never answers.
Captain Richard King
King died in his Menger suite in 1885. Guests report seeing him in the room now called the King Ranch Suite and describe a sense of being watched there.
Theodore Roosevelt
Staff and guests say he has been seen drinking in the Menger Bar, where he recruited cowboys for the Rough Riders in 1898.
Maid in a lace apron
Texas Monthly reported late-night calls to the front desk about a maid in a lace apron who ignores guests; desk staff reply that maids have not worn lace uniforms in decades.
"There have been several reports of guests saying that they have seen Sallie roam the hallways of the Menger Hotel still carrying on with her maid duties."News 4 San Antonio, 2023
The building
Before you book
| Room to request | No room number on record. We only print numbers a source ties to a ghost story. |
|---|---|
| Does the hotel tell the stories? | ✓ Yes Hotel's packages page lists haunted history experiences among its packages; front desk shares ghost stories (News 4 San Antonio). |
| Built | 1859 |
| Historic listing | Contributing building, Alamo Plaza Historic District (1977) |
| Historic Hotels of America | ✓ Member |
| Google rating | 4.4 from 5,531 reviews |
| Address | 204 Alamo Plaza, San Antonio, TX 78205 |
| The Alamo | 390 ft (118 m), 2 min walk |
Sources
5 independent sources, quotes checked
- Legends of AmericaHistory
- News 4 San Antonio, 2023TV
- Ghost City ToursGhost tour
- RJA Ghost ToursGhost tour
- Scene in SAMagazine
Photo: The Alamo at night, A. Michael Uhlmann, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons. This is the area, not the hotel.
Around the Menger Hotel
Straight-line distances from the front door; walking times allow for streets. Places from OpenStreetMap.
Eat and drink
- Colonial Room1 min walk
- Margaritaville3 min walk
- Fogo de Chão4 min walk
- Bonham Exchange4 min walk
- On The Bend Oyster Bar & Lounge4 min walk
- Casa Rio4 min walk
See nearby
- Alamo Mission1 min walk
- Ralston Family Collections Center2 min walk
- Ripley's Believe It or Not! Odditorium2 min walk
- Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks3 min walk
- San Antonio Fire Museum3 min walk
- La Antorcha de la Amistad4 min walk
Other haunted hotels
- Crockett Hotel1 min walk
- Emily Morgan Hotel3 min walk
- Omni La Mansion del Rio7 min walk
- St. Anthony Hotel7 min walk
Cemeteries
- Independent Order of Odd Fellows Cemetery1.0 mi (1.6 km)
- Alamo Masonic Lodge Cemetery1.1 mi (1.7 km)
- Dignowity Cemetery1.1 mi (1.8 km)
- Old German Lutheran Cemetery1.1 mi (1.8 km)
Questions
Is the Menger Hotel haunted?
It is widely reported to be. Texas Monthly, Legends of America, MySA and local TV have published guest and staff accounts, most often of chambermaid Sallie White and Captain Richard King. These are reported experiences, not proven facts.
Who is Sallie White?
Sources describe her as a Menger chambermaid attacked by her husband in March 1876; Legends of America says the hotel ledger shows it paid for her funeral. Guests report a maid carrying towels who disappears.
Can you stay in Captain King's room?
Ghost City Tours says his former suite is now the King Ranch Suite and can be booked, and that guests report a feeling of being watched there.