Virginia City's Haunted Saloon With a Doll That Won't Change
76 N C St, Virginia City, NV
Age
21+ for bar; All Ages when dining
Cost
$$
Bar and grill pricing. Drinks and food at standard Virginia City saloon rates.
Access
Limited Access
Historic building with multiple floors; stairs required for upper levels
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1860 · Comstock Lode History · Virginia City Historic District · Old West Saloon Culture
Virginia City sits at 6,200 feet on the eastern slope of Mount Davidson in Storey County, Nevada, and experienced its defining period between 1859 and the 1880s following the discovery of the Comstock Lode — one of the richest silver strikes in American history. At its peak, the town housed 25,000 people and produced wealth that funded the Union cause in the Civil War and helped build San Francisco.
The building at 76 North C Street, one of the historic commercial structures lining Virginia City's main thoroughfare, has housed saloon and hospitality operations under several names across its 150-year history. Known as the Comstock House Hotel in earlier periods, it operated as Kitty's Longbranch in the early 1960s — around the time the television Western 'Gunsmoke' brought the Long Branch name into popular culture — then transformed into the Red Dog Saloon in 1965 when a group of San Francisco musicians and countercultural figures turned it into a folk and rock venue that hosted Janis Joplin, The Charlatans, and other early psychedelic-era acts. The building has cycled through names since.
Virginia City's historic district is one of the most intact 19th-century Western townscapes in the United States and receives substantial tourism attention. C Street, the main commercial strip, preserves dozens of original Victorian-era structures.
Sources
Two distinct stories attach to the Long Branch. The first involves Two Feathers, a Native American man who was killed in a fight inside the saloon. His apparition has been reported near a particular slot machine on the main floor that witnesses describe as occasionally operating on its own — handles moving, credits appearing — without a player.
The more prominent presence involves a young girl killed in 1870. She was playing outside the saloon on C Street when a wagon ran over her. Employees or patrons carried her inside in an attempt to help, but she died there. Since then, visitors report hearing muffled crying on the upper floors and encountering her presence in the rooms above the bar.
A doll kept on the upper level is central to the legend. The story holds that the doll belonged to the girl. Multiple visitors have reported changing the doll's clothing, only to find it restored to its original dress when they return. The doll and the slot machine are the two most frequently cited physical focal points of the saloon's paranormal reputation.
The Long Branch's haunted status has circulated among Virginia City's paranormal tourism community for decades and is referenced in regional ghost tourism accounts.
Notable Entities
A multi-story Comstock-era saloon on historic C Street in Virginia City. The doll on the upper level — said to reset to its original dress if you change its clothes — is the most tangible artifact connected to the girl who died here in 1870. The slot machine associated with Two Feathers is on the main floor.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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