HauntBound Press Fact Sheet · Updated September 2026
The Most Haunted Places in New Mexico
New Mexico has 56 documented haunted locations in the HauntBound index.
Top 10 identified after source-level analysis of the 22 strongest New Mexico candidates.
By the numbers
- Total documented
- 56
- Haunted Hotel / Inn
- 17
- Museum / Historical Site
- 6
- Haunted Dining / Bar
- 6
- Family-friendly
- 51
- Bookable
- 25
- Oldest documented site
- San Miguel Chapel (Oldest Church) (1610)
- Most-reported phenomenon
- apparitions
Ranked
- 1. St. James Hotel Henri Lambert, once personal chef to President Lincoln, built the St. James Hotel in Cimarron in 1872 along the Santa Fe Trail; at least 26 murders occurred within its walls during the town's wilder years. Room 18 has stayed locked since 1872, when its occupant, T.J. Wright, was shot in the back after winning the hotel in a poker game. An owner described being pushed inside the room and seeing a ball of orange light. 5 original accounts · documented across 8 decades, 1872-2002 · retold in 5 later publications
- 2. Plaza Hotel HauntBound identified three distinct published accounts at this working hotel, across four kinds of published source. Reported phenomena include a sensed presence and objects moving. 3 original accounts · documented across 6 decades, 1947-2017
- 3. La Fonda on the Plaza HauntBound identified three distinct published accounts at this working hotel, across five kinds of published source. Four later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include apparitions and shadow figures. 3 original accounts · documented in 1867 · retold in 4 later publications
- 4. KiMo Theatre HauntBound identified two distinct published accounts at this working theater, across four kinds of published source. Four later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include apparitions and electrical anomalies. 2 original accounts · documented across 5 decades, 1951-2014 · retold in 4 later publications
- 5. Shaffer Hotel HauntBound identified five distinct published accounts at this working hotel. Three later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include electrical anomalies and objects moving. 5 original accounts · documented across 3 decades, 2004-2021 · retold in 3 later publications
- 6. Church Street Cafe (Casa de Ruiz) The adobe at 2111 Church Street, built around 1706, stayed in the Ruiz family for nearly three centuries, until the last resident, Rufina Ruiz, died in 1991 and it became Church Street Cafe. Staff attribute occurrences to Sara Ruiz, mother of that last resident: thrown silverware, slammed doors, and keys that vanish and reappear. One employee got his keys after apologizing to her, and staff tell guests to say 'Goodnight, Sara' on the way out. 3 original accounts · documented across 3 decades, 1991-2022 · retold in 6 later publications
- 7. Double Eagle Restaurant & Peppers Restaurant The adobe housing the Double Eagle Restaurant on Old Mesilla's plaza dates to the 1840s and is the oldest building in town; the Maes family occupied it after relocating from Santa Fe after the Mexican-American War. Legend holds that a violent 19th-century tragedy in the Carlotta Salon is the source of the restaurant's hauntings, though the restaurant's own account says the story was pieced together from multiple versions. Staff report worn chairs, perfume scents, whispered names, and glassware breaking untouched. 2 original accounts · documented across 1 decade, 1983-1988 · retold in 2 later publications
- 8. Former College of Santa Fe (Midtown Campus / Bruns Hospital Site) This campus began as Bruns General Hospital, a World War II Army hospital that treated wounded soldiers, including survivors of the Bataan Death March. The Christian Brothers opened St. Michael's College on the grounds in 1947, renamed the College of Santa Fe, which closed in 2018. Legend for years named 'Nurse Medina,' said to have died at the hands of a patient, but no one by that name appears on the hospital's 1944 duty roster. 2 original accounts · documented across 2 decades, 1944-2007 · retold in 2 later publications
- 9. The Old St. Vincent Hospital (Marian Hall Complex) HauntBound identified three distinct published accounts at this working hotel. One later publication retells those accounts. 3 original accounts · documented across 2 decades, 1977-1983 · retold in 1 later publication
- 10. Fort Union National Monument HauntBound identified two distinct published accounts at this military site. Three later publications retell those accounts. Reported phenomena include apparitions. 2 original accounts · documented across 3 decades, 1896-1971 · retold in 3 later publications
By city
- Albuquerque: 10 documented sites
- Santa Fe: 10 documented sites
- Taos: 6 documented sites
- Lincoln: 5 documented sites
- Las Vegas: 3 documented sites
- Mesilla: 2 documented sites
- Socorro: 2 documented sites
- Madrid: 2 documented sites
- Ruidoso: 1 documented site
- Fort Sumner: 1 documented site
- 14 more across the rest of New Mexico
Press images
- St. James Hotel Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St._James_Hotel.jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/st-james-hotel/hero.jpg
- Plaza Hotel Camerafiend, CC BY-SA 3.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Plaza_Hotel_Las_Vegas_NM.jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/plaza-hotel-las-vegas/hero.jpg
- La Fonda on the Plaza Familypapers hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/la-fonda-hotel/hero.jpg
- KiMo Theatre Daniel Schwen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:KiMo_Albuquerque.jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/kimo-theater-central-ave-nw/hero.jpg
- Shaffer Hotel MRobison, CC BY-SA 3.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shaffer_Hotel.JPG hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/shaffer-hotel/hero.jpg
- Church Street Cafe (Casa de Ruiz) Jordan Meeter, CC BY 3.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Church_Street_Cafe_-_panoramio.jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/church-street-cafe-casa-de-ruiz/hero.jpg
- Former College of Santa Fe (Midtown Campus / Bruns Hospital Site) Adsedit, CC BY 3.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SFUADcampus.jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/college-of-santa-fe/hero.jpg
- Fort Union National Monument Chris M Morris, CC BY 2.0, via https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fort_Union_(4120011427).jpg hauntbound.com/images/locations/new-mexico/fort-union-national-monument/hero.jpg
Images listed here may be republished with the credit shown; all other HauntBound images are not offered for press use.
Superlatives
- Oldest documented site: San Miguel Chapel (Oldest Church) Documented since 1610.
- Most documented: St. James Hotel 5 distinct published accounts.
- Top haunted stay: Plaza Hotel Overnight stays bookable.
- Most family-friendly: Church Street Cafe (Casa de Ruiz) Family Comfort rating: High.
Methodology
For purposes of the HauntBound Index, "most haunted" means the location with the strongest documented record of reported haunting phenomena. We evaluate the quantity, independence, persistence, and documentary quality of published reports. We do not attempt to determine whether paranormal phenomena are real, and we never count a source that only establishes a building's history as evidence of haunting claims. Repetitive coverage is subject to diminishing returns, so a story retold many times does not outrank a story independently documented. Rankings never consider commercial relationships.
The 2026 Index reflects sources identified and classified as of September 15, 2026.
Updated September 29, 2026: documented totals now exclude the private homes, operating hospitals and venues with nothing left to visit that were withdrawn on September 25 and 26. The ranked ten are unchanged.
This is a documentation ranking, not a visitation guide; sites not open to visitors are marked on their entries.