A 1929 Spanish Revival hotel where a 1970 Christmas-season fire killed 29 people — Arizona's deadliest building fire
100 N Stone Ave, Tucson, AZ 85701
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Exterior viewable from public sidewalk; building interior is private offices and apartments
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Wheelchair OK
Urban sidewalk; building exterior only
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Photos OK
Est. 1929 · Arizona's Deadliest Building Fire · Wrongful Conviction Case (Louis Taylor) · Spanish Colonial Revival Architecture · Downtown Tucson Landmark
The Pioneer Hotel opened in 1929 as one of Tucson's first high-rise buildings. Designed by Roy Place in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, the 203-room structure at 100 N. Stone Avenue housed a ballroom, restaurant, and cocktail lounge, and served as the address for visiting dignitaries and the city's business elite for four decades.
Shortly after midnight on December 20, 1970, fire broke out on the fourth floor while a Hughes Aircraft holiday party filled the building. Firefighters arrived within minutes, but the aerial ladder trucks could not reach floors above the eighth. Guests trapped on the upper stories had few options. Twenty-nine people died — including members of the Steinfeld family, whose firm had developed the building, and the wife and children of Sonoran Police Chief Francisco Luken. The dead ranged from hotel staff to party guests to guests who had simply booked a room for the night.
A 16-year-old named Louis Taylor was arrested, tried by an all-white jury, and sentenced to 28 consecutive life sentences for arson murder. He served 42 years before being released in April 2013 after pleading no contest, with credit for time served. New evidence presented in 2013 raised serious questions about whether the fire was in fact arson; the Arizona Republic and the CBS program 60 Minutes both reported extensively on the case. The cause has never been definitively re-established.
The building was converted to offices and apartments after the fire. In May 2024, Pioneer Tucson LLC acquired it and announced plans for renovation. The upper floors, where the fire burned hottest, are where workers and tenants have reported the most persistent anomalies.
Sources
The Pioneer Building's paranormal reputation is tightly localized to the upper floors, which is consistent with where the 1970 fire caused the most deaths. Office workers and long-term tenants have described the smell of smoke appearing in rooms with no fire source, often during winter months near the anniversary of the December 20 fire.
Footsteps running through otherwise empty corridors and stairwells are among the most frequently reported phenomena. Multiple workers have described hearing what sound like screams or cries for help originating from behind walls. A professor of parapsychology documented unexplained footfalls on a vacant floor during an early 2000s investigation.
The Pima County Public Library's local history archive records witness accounts of a figure in 1970s clothing seen moving rapidly through the building, calling out. A woman's apparition, described as still performing what appear to be housekeeping duties near the light fixtures, has also been reported by multiple independent witnesses over the years.
The building's current status as private offices and apartments limits public access and formal investigation. Freaky Foot Tours and several other Tucson ghost tour operators include the exterior as a stop, recounting the fire history and collected accounts from the building's occupants.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
The Pioneer Building's 11-story Spanish Colonial Revival facade is visible from the corner of Stone and Pennington. The building is now private offices and apartments; no interior access. Several Tucson ghost tour operators include it as a stop on walking routes through downtown.
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