Three incarnations on one site since 1883 — the current tower carries reports of a mustachioed bar regular, a woman in white, and a prom-night apparition
4 S Cascade Ave, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Room rates vary by season; check website for current pricing
Access
Wheelchair OK
Modern 14-story downtown hotel; fully accessible common areas
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1967 · Founded by Colorado Springs' founder Gen. William Jackson Palmer · Destroyed in 1898 fire; rebuilt 1901 in Italian Renaissance style · Third building on same site since 1883 · Downtown Colorado Springs anchor property
The Antlers owes its name to General William Jackson Palmer's collection of deer and elk trophies, which lined the walls of the original hotel he opened in June 1883. Palmer, who had founded Colorado Springs in 1871 as a planned resort city along the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway, contributed $125,000 to the construction. The first building featured 75 guest rooms, a billiards room, a Turkish bath, and early amenities including a hydraulic elevator, central steam heat, and gas lighting.
On October 1, 1898, a fire ignited at the adjacent D&RGW freight depot and spread to the hotel, destroying it completely. No guests died in the evacuation. Palmer, cabled the news while in England, reportedly responded with a promise to rebuild it grander than before. The second Antlers, designed by Varian and Sterner in Italian Renaissance style, opened in 1901 with 200 rooms, the Rose Ballroom, mosaic floors, tapestries, and fireproof construction throughout.
The 1901 building operated until September 20, 1964, when it was demolished to make way for a modern replacement. The current structure, built by Western International Hotels, opened March 20, 1967. Standing approximately 170 feet tall with 14 floors and 272 rooms, it remains the dominant hotel in downtown Colorado Springs. Wyndham Hotels assumed the branding in September 2016.
The site has hosted presidents, celebrities, and the regional business community across all three buildings. Its location at the center of downtown, one block from the Colorado Springs Convention Center, has kept it the city's primary civic gathering point for more than 140 years.
Sources
The three spirits most often described at The Antlers occupy distinct areas of the building. The most consistently reported is a man with a prominent mustache, seen by staff and guests in Judge Baldwin's Bar on the ground floor. His appearances are brief — standing near the bar, then gone — and multiple independent accounts describe the same figure.
A second apparition, a woman in a long white gown, has been seen descending a rear staircase. The accounts are consistent on the white dress and the direction of movement; the figure reaches a lower landing and disappears. No identification has been established.
The third reported presence carries a documented origin claim. In the 1970s, a high school student reportedly died by suicide on prom night at the hotel. Staff accounts describe seeing the apparition of a young woman in the rooms and hallways where the incident allegedly occurred. The hotel has not publicly confirmed or documented this claim, and independent verification of the specific incident has not been established. The story circulates primarily through local oral tradition and regional ghost-tour accounts. Per the sensitivity of the subject, no method or additional detail is reported here.
Guest reports of a figure standing over occupied beds at night add a fourth category of experience, less localized but recurring across multiple accounts over the years.
Notable Entities
The Antlers has occupied this corner of downtown Colorado Springs since 1883 — through a fire, a rebuild, and a mid-century replacement. The current 14-floor tower opened in 1967 and offers 272 rooms and suites. Judge Baldwin's Bar on the ground floor is the reported territory of one of the hotel's better-known apparitions.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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