Dinner
Dinner in the historic tavern
Sit-down meal in the main dining room of Indiana's oldest continuously operated family tavern, where the disruptive-criminal apparition is most often reported.
- Duration:
- 1.5 hr
Haunted Hotel / Inn
Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern
Established 1834 and billed as Indiana's oldest continuously operated family tavern, the Broadway Hotel still serves dinner, draft beer, and B&B rooms where ghost stories cluster around the dining room and upstairs hall.
313 Broadway Street, Madison, IN 47250
Wheelchair Accessible
Research-Backed · 7 sources
Research updated May 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Restaurant pricing typical of casual American fare; B&B rooms priced as standard small-inn lodging.
Access
Wheelchair OK
First-floor restaurant and tavern accessible from Broadway Street; upstairs guest rooms reached by historic staircase.
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1834 · Claimed as Indiana's oldest continuously operated family tavern (founded 1834) · Contributes to the Madison Historic District (National Historic Landmark district) · Long-running stop on Visit Madison's historic-business roster
The Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern sits at 313 Broadway Street in Madison, Indiana, two blocks from the Ohio River in one of the most architecturally intact 19th-century river towns in the Midwest. The business traces its founding to 1834, and the venue and local tourism marketing describe it as the oldest continuously operated family tavern in Indiana.
The building has functioned for nearly two centuries as a combined tavern, lodging house, and restaurant, evolving alongside Madison's role as a steamboat port and later a tourism destination within the Madison Historic District. Today the operation includes a full-service tavern and restaurant on the main floor and a small bed-and-breakfast component upstairs.
The site sits inside the broader Madison Historic District, a National Historic Landmark district that preserves one of the most cohesive collections of antebellum and Victorian-era architecture in the Ohio River valley. Visit Madison, the Jefferson County tourism bureau, lists the Broadway Hotel & Tavern as a longstanding stop on the city's historic-walking and dining circuits.
The venue continues to operate year-round, hosting restaurant patrons and overnight guests, and is frequently featured in regional 'most-haunted' coverage of Madison.
Sources
- https://visitmadison.org/historic-broadway-hotel-tavern/
- http://www.historicbroadwayhotel.com/
- https://www.indianahauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/broadway-historic-hotel-tavern.html
- https://www.hauntedplaces.org/item/broadway-historic-hotel-and-tavern/
- https://davidkummer.com/2017/11/23/most-haunted-places-in-madison-indiana-part-1/
- https://www.wave3.com/video/2018/11/01/scary-things-happening-broadway-hotel-tavern-madison/
- https://theseymourowl.com/9697/features/madisons-bone-chilling-broadway-hotel-tavern/
Apparition of a man in the main dining/tavern areaDisembodied woman's voice calling for help in upstairs B&B rooms between dusk and dawn
According to IndianaHauntedHouses.com, HauntedPlaces.org, David Kummer's 'Most Haunted Places in Madison, Indiana Part 1,' and a 2018 WAVE 3 News broadcast feature, the Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern is associated with two recurring entities. The first is the apparition of a man most often reported in the main dining and tavern area, described in some local accounts as a figure connected to the building's Prohibition-era illegal-liquor trade. The identity attributed to this figure in certain retellings originates from a Ouija board session conducted by a former owner and has not been corroborated in historical records; we do not name him.
The second is an unidentified woman tied to the upstairs B&B floor. Guests and staff hear a woman calling for help in the hours between dusk and dawn, though the figure herself is reportedly never seen. Additional reports from the Seymour Owl and other regional outlets describe apparitions including a woman in white and a man in older clothing, unexplained footsteps and voices, and objects moving on their own — particularly in the older sections of the hotel and tavern.
The building shows up consistently on Indiana haunted-place rosters, Madison's annual Halloween-season ghost coverage, and regional broadcast features, satisfying multi-source paranormal corroboration.
Notable Entities
Unidentified male apparition (the 'shot criminal' in local lore)Unidentified woman in distress (upstairs voice)
Plan Your Visit
2 ways to experience Overnight Stay Booking Required
Bed & breakfast overnight
Stay in one of the upstairs B&B rooms where guests and staff report a woman's voice between dusk and dawn.
- Duration:
- 12 hr
Book a room at Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern
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See current room rates and availability at Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern, and reserve your stay directly.
Check rates and bookSources & Further Reading
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
- 1.visitmadison.org/historic-broadway-hotel-tavern
- 2.historicbroadwayhotel.com
- 3.indianahauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/broadway-historic-hotel-tavern.html
- 4.hauntedplaces.org/item/broadway-historic-hotel-and-tavern
- 5.davidkummer.com/2017/11/23/most-haunted-places-in-madison-indiana-part-1
- 6.wave3.com/video/2018/11/01/scary-things-happening-broadway-hotel-tavern-madison
- 7.theseymourowl.com/9697/features/madisons-bone-chilling-broadway-hotel-tavern
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern family-friendly?
Family-friendly restaurant during normal service hours; tavern atmosphere and ghost lore make late evenings better suited to older kids and adults. Overall family fit: Moderate.
How much does it cost to visit Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern?
Restaurant pricing typical of casual American fare; B&B rooms priced as standard small-inn lodging.
Do I need to book in advance?
Yes, reservations are required.
Is Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern wheelchair accessible?
Yes, Historic Broadway Hotel & Tavern is wheelchair accessible. Terrain: First-floor restaurant and tavern accessible from Broadway Street; upstairs guest rooms reached by historic staircase..