HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena, as catalogued
Beaux-Arts grand hotel two blocks from the White House with hospitality tracing to 1847; staff and guests have reported the lingering scent of cigar smoke linked to President Ulysses S. Grant in the lobby.
1401 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004
Research updated October 2026
Age
Minimum check-in age 21
Cost
$$$$
Luxury historic hotel; rooms typically $400+ per night. A $35 nightly amenity fee (subject to change) applies, and valet parking for hotel guests is $78 per night. Round Robin Bar and Peacock Alley are open to non-guests.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Fully accessible.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1901 · Row house built in 1816 and leased for hotel use in 1818; named the Willard in 1847 · Current Beaux-Arts building designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh, 1901 · Hosted nearly every U.S. president since Franklin Pierce · MLK Jr. completed his 'I Have a Dream' speech draft here in 1963 · Listed in the Historic Hotels of America program
The Willard's history begins in 1816, when a row house was built on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House; it was leased for hotel use in 1818. In 1847 Henry Willard took over the lodging operation and combined the buildings into a single hotel, eventually known as Willard's Hotel. During the Civil War, the Willard served as an unofficial extension of the federal government — Julia Ward Howe wrote 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic' in her Willard room in 1861, and the same year an attempted peace conference was held in its parlors.
The original buildings were demolished in 1901 and replaced with the present 12-story Beaux-Arts hotel designed by Henry Janeway Hardenbergh. The new Willard quickly became one of Washington's most prominent hotels. Nearly every American president since Franklin Pierce has either visited or stayed at the Willard, and the building's Peacock Alley corridor became the central social space for political business. In August 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. completed the final draft of the 'I Have a Dream' speech in a Willard suite the night before the March on Washington.
The hotel fell into disrepair in the mid-20th century and closed in 1968. After a decade-long preservation campaign, it was restored and reopened in 1986 as the Willard InterContinental. It is a member of the Historic Hotels of America and is one of the most-cited historic buildings in downtown Washington.
Sources
The most-cited Willard ghost story concerns President Ulysses S. Grant. According to DC Ghosts, FrightFind, and other ghost-tour sources, Grant was a regular fixture in the Willard lobby during the 1870s, smoking cigars and drinking brandy. Tradition holds that the term 'lobbyist' originated in this lobby, with petitioners approaching him as he sat smoking — a claim historians treat as folklore rather than verified etymology. The Willard is a 100% smoke-free hotel today, so the occasional staff and guest reports of cigar smoke in specific corners of the lobby, particularly late at night, attract notice (DC Ghosts; FrightFind).
A second strand of lore involves Jane Pierce, wife of President Franklin Pierce. The Pierces' eleven-year-old son Bennie was killed in a January 1853 train accident en route to Washington for Franklin's inauguration. Jane Pierce, grieving deeply, spent her years as First Lady largely in seclusion. According to DC Ghosts, she stayed at the Willard during portions of her mourning period and is reported as a presence on the hotel's upper floors. The often-repeated ghost-tour claim that she 'died at the Willard four years later of melancholia' should be treated cautiously: historical record indicates Jane Pierce died at her sister's home in Andover, Massachusetts in 1863. The Willard connection during her DC years is well-supported, but the death-at-the-hotel framing is not.
Additional figures in 19th-century evening dress have been described by guests on the upper floors. The Willard has not historically promoted itself as a haunted property; the reports come primarily from ghost-tour and Washingtonian-folklore sources.
Notable Entities
Stay at the historic Beaux-Arts Willard, two blocks from the White House, in the building that has hosted nearly every U.S. president since Franklin Pierce.
Cocktails in the lobby's storied Round Robin Bar.
Afternoon Tea is served in Peacock Alley and in the Willard Tea Room, located off Peacock Alley. Seatings are at noon and 2:30 p.m.: Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Peacock Alley, and Wednesday through Sunday in the Tea Room. Make a reservation through OpenTable or by calling +1-202-658-6218. Specialty menus and modifications must be requested at the time of booking or at least 48 hours before the reservation. Cancellations are requested 72 hours in advance; the cancellation fee is 50% of the full service amount.
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See current room rates and availability at The Willard InterContinental.
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This Washington tour includes The Willard InterContinental on its route.
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