Laredo's twelve-story 1923 landmark and former tallest building in the city, long associated with ghostly children's voices and persistent 6th-floor lore.
815 Salinas St, Laredo, TX 78040
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
Free
Exterior is publicly viewable; interior access depends on current building use.
Access
Limited Access
Downtown historic high-rise; sidewalk access only for exterior viewing
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1900 · National Register of Historic Places (1992) · Formerly tallest building in Laredo · 1923 twelve-story expansion · Texas-Mexico border commercial history
The Hamilton Hotel's origins trace to 1900, when the original structure rose on Salinas Street in downtown Laredo. The building underwent significant expansion in 1923, growing to twelve stories and claiming the title of tallest building in the city — a distinction it held for years along the Texas-Mexico border.
The Library of Congress documents the building as NRHP-listed in 1992, recognizing its architectural significance and its role in the commercial development of Laredo's downtown core. During its operational hotel years, the Hamilton served travelers, businessmen, and border-crossing visitors moving between Laredo and Nuevo Laredo across the Rio Grande.
The hotel's downtown position on Salinas Street placed it within a few blocks of the historic city center and San Agustin Plaza, the civic heart of what was once the colonial Villa de San Agustín de Laredo. The building has gone through various uses and ownership since its peak hotel era, and its current interior status requires local verification.
Visit Laredo's tourism office identifies the Hamilton as one of the city's major haunted landmarks, including it in ghost tour content alongside other historic downtown sites.
Sources
The Hamilton Hotel's paranormal reputation centers on two recurring accounts. The most consistent report, catalogued by Haunted Places and repeated on Laredo ghost tour commentary, is the sound of children running and playing in the hallways — footsteps, laughter, and the noise of play — when no children can be found on the floor.
The 6th floor carries a separate, darker reputation tied to an alleged occult ritual said to have taken place there at some point in the building's past. Accounts of unusual cold, unexplained sounds, and heightened unease on that floor circulate in Laredo paranormal circles, though documented first-person accounts are sparse and the ritual origin story has not been independently verified in historical records.
Visit Laredo includes the Hamilton in its ghost tour content as one of the city's anchor haunted sites, suggesting the building's reputation is embedded in local tourism identity.
The Hamilton Hotel's twelve-story brick facade dominates the Laredo skyline in the city's historic downtown. Ghost tour groups include it as a stop on walking routes. Exterior photography is the primary activity available to the public.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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