Est. 1920 · Original Home of the Lexington Clinic · Gratz Park Historic District · Adaptive Reuse Medical-to-Hotel · Tapestry Collection by Hilton
The four-story brick building at the corner of Upper and Second streets, in the Gratz Park Historic District, opened in July 1920 as the home of the Lexington Clinic. The clinic was central Kentucky's first multi-specialty medical practice and was co-founded by Dr. Waller O. Bullock — the same Dr. Bullock whose wife Minnie haunts the Bodley-Bullock House two blocks away — alongside other Lexington physicians.
The clinic operated out of the building for several decades. The structure included examination rooms, operating theaters, and, per multiple haunted-place writeups, a basement morgue space used by the clinic's pathology operations. The Lexington Clinic later moved to a larger campus, and the Second Street building cycled through other uses before being substantially renovated and reopened as the Gratz Park Inn in 1988 — a 44-room boutique hotel positioned to serve travelers visiting the surrounding historic district.
The property was acquired and rebranded as The Sire Hotel Lexington, Tapestry Collection by Hilton, in the mid-2020s, joining Hilton's collection of independent boutique properties. The renovation retained the building's historic exterior and many of its interior public spaces while updating guest rooms. Operational status remains active as of 2026; both the Gratz Park Inn and The Sire Hotel names appear in current Lexington listings.
Sources
- https://frightfind.com/gratz-park-inn/
- https://www.kentuckyhauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/gratz-park-inn.html
- https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/lexkyup-the-sire-hotel-lexington-tapestry-collection/
ApparitionObject manipulationCold spotsDisembodied voices
The Gratz Park Inn / Sire Hotel lore identifies three named resident spirits, all traced in published accounts to the building's earlier life as the Lexington Clinic. According to FrightFind, KentuckyHauntedHouses, and the Southern Spirit Guide coverage of the Gratz Park district, these spirits are believed to be former patients who died at the clinic.
'Little Annie,' sometimes called 'Lizzie' in older writeups, is the most active reported entity. She is described as a quiet young girl heard laughing in the third-floor hallway, often with the sound of a small object — said to be a doll — being moved or rolled across the floor. Several guest accounts describe items being moved from one location in third-floor rooms to another, including dolls or small personal effects being briefly relocated.
'John' is described as a middle-aged male spirit with a sense of humor; his reported activity centers on the lobby and lower floors and tends toward harmless pranks rather than alarming phenomena. The 'Lady in White' is described as a woman in a white dress and hat seen walking the upper-floor halls, apparently searching for someone or something — guests have reported encountering her on staircases late at night.
Additional lore references the former morgue space in the basement, where staff have reported cold spots and uneasy sensations. The hotel does not actively market itself as a haunted property, and management generally allows the stories to circulate through guest word-of-mouth and the standard Lexington haunted-place coverage rather than producing dedicated paranormal programming. Visitors who wish to encounter the lore should ask the front desk and consider third-floor rooms; staff are generally willing to share what they know.
Notable Entities
Little Annie / LizzieJohnThe Lady in White