HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
An 1857 antebellum B&B in Selma's Old Town Historic District — where Lady Bird Johnson slept and five ghosts reportedly still do
506 Lauderdale St, Selma, AL 36701
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Bed and breakfast room rates; see website for current pricing.
Access
Limited Access
Multi-story 1857 historic home with stairs; no elevator
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1857 · Contributing structure — Old Town Historic District (NRHP) · Antebellum Greek Revival architecture · Lady Bird Johnson stayed here multiple times
Grace Hall was constructed around 1857, placing it in the last years of the antebellum building boom in Selma, one of the most prosperous cities in the pre-Civil War South. The Greek Revival home sits on Lauderdale Street in the Old Town Historic District, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its concentration of antebellum residential architecture. Grace Hall is a contributing structure in that district.
The property survived Selma's turbulent history relatively intact, including the Civil War and the social upheavals of Reconstruction. By the twentieth century, the home had been converted to a bed and breakfast operation. Its reputation for gracious Southern hospitality brought it notable guests, among them Lady Bird Johnson, the First Lady during Lyndon Johnson's presidency. By local account, Johnson stayed at Grace Hall on multiple visits to Selma.
The Rural Southwest Alabama heritage network documents the home's 1857 construction date and its NRHP contributing status, placing it among the preserved antebellum residences that define the Old Town streetscape. The bed and breakfast continues to operate, offering guests the experience of staying in a working piece of the historic district rather than visiting it as a museum.
Sources
Grace Hall's paranormal tradition names five distinct presences, a higher count than most individual properties in the region. The most frequently described is 'Miz Eliza,' attributed to a woman who lived in the home during the nineteenth century. Her identity in documentary records has not been established. Accounts gathered by regional writers describe her as appearing in a white gown and as being selectively visible — most often perceived by children and younger women, less frequently by adult men.
The specificity of Miz Eliza's reported demographic selectivity — appearing predominantly to children and younger female guests — is an unusual detail in the local ghost canon and may reflect a pattern in how sightings were reported to and filtered by innkeepers over the decades.
The remaining four presences attributed to Grace Hall are less individually characterized. Accounts describe sounds without visible sources, temperature changes in specific rooms, and objects found moved from where they were left. At least two guests, according to accounts cited by regional writers, checked out before their planned departure dates after experiences they described as unsettling. The B&B staff have historically acknowledged the tradition without amplifying it as a primary marketing feature.
Grace Hall's ghost lore is part of a broader cluster of paranormal traditions in Selma's Old Town Historic District, where the density of antebellum homes and the weight of the city's history — from cotton prosperity through Civil War destruction to the 1965 Voting Rights demonstrations — has produced a rich and layered landscape of local legend.
Notable Entities
Stay in one of the guest rooms of the 1857 Greek Revival mansion, a contributing structure in Selma's Old Town Historic District. Lady Bird Johnson stayed here multiple times during her visits to Selma. Guests report unexplained encounters, most often attributed to 'Miz Eliza,' described as a 19th-century mistress of the house.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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