HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
An 1876 hotel built after Oshkosh's great fire — a second blaze in 1880 left two spirits in the kitchen that never checked out.
434 N. Main St., Oshkosh, WI 54901
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Restaurant menu pricing; no admission fee
Access
Wheelchair OK
Downtown street-level restaurant
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1876 · Post-Fire Reconstruction Era · 1880 Hotel Fire · Downtown Oshkosh Commercial History
Oshkosh burned catastrophically in October 1875, and the Beckwith House Hotel was among the buildings constructed in the rebuilding effort that followed. It opened in 1876 as a downtown commercial hotel serving travelers and business visitors to the lumber and manufacturing city.
In 1880, a second fire broke out in the building — started by a kerosene lamp in what was then the lamp storage area. Several guests were killed, among them a woman identified in local records as Mrs. Paige. The section of the building where the lamp room stood would later be incorporated into the cafe's kitchen.
The building survived and operated through multiple commercial uses across the following century. The New Moon Cafe eventually occupied the space, and cafe staff began reporting concentrated paranormal activity in and around the kitchen — the area that corresponds to the historical lamp room location. The Oshkosh tourism bureau has included the site in documented local haunted history.
Sources
Staff at the New Moon Cafe report two distinct presences, both centered on the kitchen — the area that occupies the footprint of the Beckwith House Hotel's 1880 lamp room.
The first is described as a young boy dressed in period bellhop clothing, who appears or makes his presence known primarily in the kitchen corridor. The second is an elderly woman, widely assumed by staff to be Mrs. Paige, one of the guests killed in the 1880 fire. Both are reported as non-threatening but persistent, with activity including sounds, cold spots, and occasional visual anomalies.
The Oshkosh tourism office has formally documented these claims as part of the city's haunted history, making this one of the few Wisconsin dining establishments with official civic acknowledgment of a paranormal reputation.
Notable Entities
Eat at the cafe and explore the dining room that once served as the Beckwith House Hotel's lamp room — the reported epicenter of two resident spirits. Staff have documented activity for years; guests occasionally capture anomalies on camera.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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