Little Rock's landmark 1870s hotel, where guests and staff report a ghost on the fourth floor and a young woman whose fatal fall from an upper story still echoes through the building.
111 W Markham St, Little Rock, AR 72201
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Hotel room rates vary; public areas (lobby, restaurant) accessible without booking a room
Access
Wheelchair OK
Full-service historic hotel with elevator access throughout
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1872 · Little Rock landmark hotel since the 1870s · William Denckla railroad-era expansion · Cast-iron facade, National Register of Historic Places · Reconstruction-era Arkansas commercial history
The original building at 111 W Markham Street dates to the Reconstruction era, with William Denckla's 1872 expansion cementing its status as Little Rock's premier hotel. Denckla was a railroad financier whose investment in the Arkansas rail network made Little Rock a regional hub, and the Capital Hotel served as the social center for the business and political class that rail development brought to the city.
The hotel's cast-iron facade is among the surviving examples of that architectural form in Arkansas, a construction technique common in commercial districts of the 1870s that provided both fire resistance and decorative versatility. The structure underwent significant renovation in the 1980s, when it was restored to a luxury property after a period of decline.
Over the hotel's roughly 150-year operating history, the building has accumulated accounts of deaths on the premises — the specific incidents underlying the paranormal tradition have not been documented in named newspaper archives, and the hotel does not publicly discuss the accounts.
Sources
The most consistent account at the Capital Hotel involves a young woman who allegedly fell from an upper-floor window or balcony to her death — the period of this incident is given variously as the early or mid-twentieth century, and no named victim or corroborating newspaper account has been identified. The fall account is the origin story that employees and paranormal accounts attach to the building's primary presence.
The fourth floor is the site most frequently cited for the bellhop apparition — a figure in period hotel livery seen in the corridor who disappears before being engaged. A child apparition, described as a girl in a pink dress, is placed in the lobby area by multiple independent visitor accounts collected by Spirit Seekers in their 2013 documentation.
HauntedRooms.com lists the Capital Hotel among Arkansas's notable haunted lodging, drawing on the same witness pool. None of the accounts identify the name of any figure, and the hotel itself does not promote or confirm the haunting tradition.
Book a room at the historic Capital Hotel. The fourth floor is the most frequently cited location for reported activity. No formal ghost-hunt program; overnight guests may explore the building independently.
Visitors may enter the lobby and public dining areas without a room reservation. The iron-clad facade and restored Victorian interior are accessible during business hours.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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