Historic Oklahoma City Hotel with Legendary Effie Story
1 Park Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73102
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Standard Hilton hotel rates
Access
Wheelchair OK
Urban hotel, elevators throughout
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1911 · Oklahoma City's premier hotel for much of the 20th century · Birthplace of Perle Mesta connection · Listed on National Register of Historic Places · Major early-2000s historic restoration
The Skirvin Hotel opened on September 26, 1911 as a 224-room, two-winged, ten-story tower built by oilman William Balser "Bill" Skirvin. A third twelve-story wing was added in 1925, and in 1929-1930 all three wings were raised to thirteen floors with 525 rooms, establishing the Skirvin as Oklahoma City's premier hotel. The hotel's founder W.B. Skirvin was father to Perle Mesta, the celebrated diplomat and society hostess later appointed United States Minister to Luxembourg under President Truman. Following changes of ownership and gradual decline, the original Skirvin Hotel closed in 1988 and stood vacant for nearly two decades. After a major restoration the property reopened in 2007 as the Skirvin Hilton, a full-service luxury hotel in downtown Oklahoma City.
Sources
The most famous Skirvin legend involves a maid called Effie who, in the popular telling, was either pregnant by W.B. Skirvin or confined to a room and ultimately jumped from a window with her child. Writers Steve Lackmeyer and Jack Money, who researched the hotel for their book Skirvin, found no archival evidence of an Effie incident; the only confirmed suicide on hotel grounds was a salesman who jumped from a window. The legend nonetheless took on a national profile in 2010 when members of the New York Knicks blamed a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on the hotel's haunting, and Chicago Bulls players in subsequent years reported doors slamming and sounds outside their rooms. Guests over the decades have reported the cries of a child on upper floors and disturbances commonly attributed to Effie. The hotel openly engages with its haunted reputation but does not market itself as a paranormal destination.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Book a room at the restored 1911 Skirvin Hilton in downtown Oklahoma City. Guests sometimes share stories tied to the hotel's haunted reputation, but the venue operates as a full-service luxury hotel.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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