HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
An 1886 Manitou Springs railroad boarding house where a Victorian-era coachman and child spirits reportedly share the rooms with guests
711 Manitou Ave, Manitou Springs, CO 80829
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Bed and breakfast room rates; check website for current pricing
Access
Limited Access
Victorian-era multi-story structure; stairs required to upper guest rooms
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1886 · 1886 Railroad-Era Boarding House · Manitou Springs Victorian Commercial Architecture · Pikes Peak Gold Rush Era Tourism
Manitou Springs grew rapidly in the 1880s as the Pikes Peak region drew two distinct streams of visitors: tourists and health-seekers attracted to the town's natural mineral springs, and prospectors and workers tied to the Colorado gold rush economy. The railroad connection to Colorado Springs made Manitou Springs accessible to travelers from Denver and points east, generating demand for lodging along Manitou Avenue.
The building at 711 Manitou Ave was constructed in 1886 as a boarding house serving this railroad-connected traffic. The structure's Victorian architecture reflects the design conventions of the period—bay windows, decorative woodwork, and the multi-story layout typical of commercial lodging in mountain resort towns.
A local historian later researching newspaper archives from the 1880s and 1890s reportedly uncovered documentation connecting the property to specific figures from Manitou Springs' early history, including a coachman whose identity became associated with the building's paranormal lore. The details of this research have not been independently published or archived in accessible public collections.
The property transitioned to its current use as a bed and breakfast, a conversion common among Victorian boarding houses in Manitou Springs as the town's economy shifted from mining-era traffic to heritage tourism. Today it operates as a small inn on the main commercial corridor of downtown Manitou Springs.
Sources
The haunting narrative at the Avenue Hotel is unusually structured for a small B&B: it reportedly originated not from spontaneous staff accounts but from a local historian who researched old newspaper archives and identified specific individuals connected to the property's 19th-century history. The coachman figure, associated with the gold rush-era operation of the property, is described as appearing primarily in the common areas, while three child figures have been reported on the upper floors.
A separate female presence, described by staff as friendly, is most often reported in the kitchen—a zone of the building where her energy is felt as benign and familiar rather than alarming. This figure has no identified historical counterpart in available records.
Physical phenomena reported by guests and staff include tapestries and wall hangings shifting or falling without apparent cause, sounds suggesting movement in unoccupied rooms, and occasional visual encounters—brief glimpses of figures in doorways or at the end of hallways. No guest has reported threatening or violent phenomena.
Regional news coverage from 9News, Denver's NBC affiliate, included the Avenue Hotel in a segment on Colorado's haunted accommodations, giving the property's reputation a degree of mainstream exposure beyond paranormal enthusiast circles.
Notable Entities
Book a guest room at this 1886 Victorian bed and breakfast to experience the atmosphere and reported paranormal activity firsthand. Staff have accumulated accounts of a friendly female spirit in the kitchen, children on the upper floors, and a coachman figure associated with the property's gold rush-era history. Book directly through the Avenue Hotel website.
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