HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
Jackson's 1923 grand hotel — abandoned for 40 years, restored in 2009, and now notorious for whatever occupies room 623
235 W Capitol St, Jackson, MS 39201
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Hotel rates vary by season and availability. Room 623 can be requested but is not guaranteed. Ghost tours of the property may be available through third-party operators.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Full-service hotel with elevator access to all floors
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1923 · Edwards Hotel — Jackson's Premier Social Venue 1923–1967 · 38-Year Abandonment and 2009 Restoration · Confederate House Site — Burned by Union Forces 1863
The building that now operates as the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown opened in 1923 as the Edwards Hotel, named for its developer. With nine floors and a prime location on Capitol Street, it served as Jackson's social center through the first half of the twentieth century — hosting political events, banquets, and prominent visitors.
The hotel closed in 1967, a casualty of suburban flight and urban disinvestment. It sat empty for 38 years, slowly deteriorating while the surrounding downtown struggled. According to Wikipedia's entry on the King Edward Hotel, the restoration was a significant local redevelopment event: the project cost approximately $23 million and involved the restoration of the original architectural details of the building.
The restored hotel reopened in 2009 under the Hilton Garden Inn brand and is now one of downtown Jackson's anchor properties. The site has additional historical depth: Wikipedia notes that the original Confederate House hotel, which occupied the same block, was burned by Union forces during the 1863 occupation of Jackson — one of several downtown structures destroyed during the campaign.
The hotel's long period of abandonment and its Civil War-adjacent site history have contributed to its paranormal reputation, which concentrates on room 623 and the upper floors.
Sources
The King Edward Hotel's paranormal reputation centers on a single room: 623. Ghost tour operators and visitor accounts describe a concentration of reported phenomena on the sixth floor, including cold spots, sounds without apparent source, and a sense of being watched or accompanied in the room.
The specific origin of the room 623 haunting tradition is not documented in historical records — no death or incident on that floor is confirmed in primary sources. The US Ghost Adventures Jackson tour, which includes the hotel as a featured stop, frames the building's long abandonment as formative: decades of vacancy and deterioration before the 2009 restoration left the building in a condition that locals associated with lingering presences.
The hotel's site history adds another layer. The Confederate House, which occupied the same block, was burned by Union troops in 1863. Whether that history connects to the reported phenomena is speculative.
Visitors seeking the room 623 experience should request it at check-in; the hotel does not guarantee specific room assignments.
Guests report unexplained activity concentrated in room 623, including cold spots, sounds, and sensed presences. The room can be requested at booking; availability is not guaranteed. No organized investigation program is offered by the hotel itself.
The King Edward Hotel is a featured stop on US Ghost Adventures' Jackson ghost tour, which departs from downtown Jackson and covers the hotel's history and paranormal claims.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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The building at 226 N State Street in Jackson was constructed in 1952 as a YWCA facility. It operated in that capacity until the 1990s, when it was renovated between 1996 and 1999 and reopened as the Old Capitol Inn, a small luxury hotel. The property sits one block north of the Old Capitol and two blocks from Capitol Street, placing it at the center of the downtown area that Union General William T. Sherman ordered burned during the July 1863 occupation of Jackson.
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