HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
1913 Arizona Resort with a Hollywood-Era Guest List
1 N San Marcos Pl, Chandler, AZ 85225
Research updated September 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Resort pricing varies seasonally. Check sanmarcosresort.com for current rates.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Resort property with paved walkways and elevator access
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1913 · First Golf Resort in Arizona · Hollywood-Era Guest List · Founding-Family Property of Chandler
The San Marcos Hotel opened November 22, 1913 in downtown Chandler, Arizona, with a thirty-five-room main building and a celebration attended by approximately 500 guests. According to the hotel's Wikipedia entry, World of Arizona's history feature, and the City of Chandler's archival page, the resort was developed by Dr. Alexander Chandler, the founder of the city itself, as Arizona's first golf resort.
The San Marcos quickly became a Hollywood-era destination for figures including Fred Astaire, Joan Crawford, Bing Crosby, Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, and Gloria Swanson. President Herbert Hoover and the French couturier Christian Dior also stayed at the property during its early decades. The eighteen-hole golf course remains in operation as part of the resort.
Today the property operates as the Crowne Plaza Phoenix-Chandler Golf Resort, sometimes referenced as the Crowne Plaza San Marcos Golf Resort. The 1913 main building remains the architectural centerpiece, with later additions extending the hotel's room count and conference facilities.
Sources
The San Marcos's paranormal reputation includes one important factual correction up front: a long-circulated story tying a 1928 Leone Jensen suicide to this hotel is misattributed. According to historical-correction articles by Phoenix-area researchers, Jensen's death actually occurred at the Hotel San Carlos in downtown Phoenix, not the San Marcos in Chandler. Anyone visiting the San Marcos should treat that specific Jensen narrative as folklore that has migrated to the wrong building.
With that correction made, the lore that does belong to the San Marcos centers on a few recurring threads. Staff and guests describe a female figure seen on the upper floors and along main corridors, frequently in a pale or white gown. Calls received by the front desk from extensions that do not exist on the hotel's PBX have been a long-running staff anecdote, repeated in Phoenix Ghosts coverage and in regional Arizona haunted-tourism listings.
Additional reports include a male figure heard moaning in unoccupied parts of the resort and accounts of two blonde girls seen in the back-of-house office area. The hotel does not market itself as a paranormal-investigation venue. The lore surfaces in regional travel coverage and ghost-tour itineraries rather than at the front desk.
Notable Entities
Stay at Arizona's first golf resort, which opened November 22, 1913 and has hosted Fred Astaire, Joan Crawford, Bing Crosby, Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, and President Herbert Hoover. The hotel's reported female apparition and reports of calls from non-existent phone extensions surface in regional ghost coverage.
Resort restaurants are open to non-guest visitors. The 1913 building's atmospheric public spaces are accessible to dining patrons, including the historic lobby and main corridor.
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See current room rates and availability at Crowne Plaza Phoenix-Chandler Golf Resort (Historic San Marcos Hotel).
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