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Reported phenomena — as catalogued
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1872 limestone building in the Root River valley that served as both a jail and funeral home before becoming Hotel Lanesboro (formerly Mrs. B's Inn), where guests report shadow figures sitting on beds and a sobbing woman in white in the lobby
101 Parkway Ave N, Lanesboro, MN 55949
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Nine guest rooms with king beds; check website for current pricing
Access
Limited Access
1872 limestone building; historic stairways; contact venue for accessibility specifics
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1872 · National Register of Historic Places · Former jail and funeral home · 1872 limestone construction
Lanesboro, in the Root River valley of Fillmore County, was platted in 1868 and grew quickly during the 1870s as a railroad town. The limestone building at 101 Parkway Avenue North was constructed in 1872 during that early growth period, using the local stone that characterizes many surviving structures in this part of southeastern Minnesota.
The building's history before it became an inn included use as a jail and funeral home, giving it two of the more potent dark-tourism associations a historic building can carry. Its National Register of Historic Places listing recognizes both its age and its architectural character.
For much of its recent history the building operated as Mrs. B's Bed and Breakfast Inn, the name under which it accumulated its paranormal reputation and appeared in regional haunted hotel guides. The property was subsequently rebranded as Hotel Lanesboro and updated to nine rooms, each with a single king bed. Management has acknowledged the history on its website, noting it has received 'countless stories' from guests and previous owners.
Sources
Hotel Lanesboro's paranormal reputation breaks down by room, with guests reporting distinct phenomena in at least three locations across the 1872 limestone building.
Room 1, the River Song Room, draws the most consistent reports: guests describe shadowy figures sitting at the end of the bed and furniture or objects rearranged overnight by an unseen presence. Room 5, the Rosemal Room, has a presence associated specifically with light manipulation — guests report the lights responding without anyone touching switches — and doors opening and closing independently.
Room 7, the Garden Room, carries the most vivid account: multiple guests over time have reported seeing the apparition of a child bouncing a ball. Guests in adjacent areas and in Room 7 itself have heard laughter and singing with no identifiable source. The main lobby and dining room have their own report: a woman in a white dress, described as distressed, who has been heard sobbing and sighing.
Local legend holds that Buffalo Bill Cody and Doc Powell visited Lanesboro during the hotel's nineteenth-century heyday, with some accounts suggesting their spirits remain on the property. No documentary record of those visits has been located in available sources, and the claim is repeated in haunted-hotel aggregators without primary sourcing. The building's documented history as a jail and funeral home provides a more grounded framework for understanding the site's dark-tourism appeal.
Notable Entities
Nine rooms in a 1872 limestone building that previously served as a jail and funeral home. Management acknowledges 'countless stories' from guests and past owners. Rooms 1 (River Song), 5 (Rosemal), and 7 (Garden) draw the most paranormal accounts. No formal ghost programming; the hotel's reputation draws investigators and curious guests independently.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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