The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum

The United States got its first railways during the early 1800s, and train travel has come a long way since then. At first, trains were just used to shuttle commodities, but by the 1830s, they saw their first human passengers.

The first train “cars” were actually more like carriages, “coupled together with chains or chain-links.” Though rides were short, they were extremely hazardous. In 1831, passenger trains looked like the one sketched below.

The first real rectangular cars, installed in 1834, were extremely crude. As a result, rides continued to be uncomfortable, unreliable, and pretty dangerous.

Traffic control was limited, so frequent wrecks and crashes were not unexpected. And forget cushioned seats, air conditioning, and food – passengers had to sit on hard wooden benches, endure the heat during hot summers, and gobble meals down quickly in station cafeterias.

By the time of the Civil War (1861-1865), things had somewhat improved, at least when it came to avoiding collisions. Schedules ran smoother thanks to the invention of the electric telegraph – traffic controllers used it to communicate with one another.

The wealthy, in particular, began to enjoy more pleasant rides – the idea of segregating cabins by class had been introduced in the 1840s. But for everyone else, trains were still a miserable means of travel.

Thus, in major railroad towns, little hospitality establishments known as exchange hotels began to spring up. They catered to weary passengers who needed somewhere to stay while they waited for their trains to be refueled.

One of the most important and famous exchange hotels is located in Virginia. Today, it is known as The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum. Just from its title, one can see the variation in its history.

Why Is The Exchange Hotel In Gordonsville Haunted?

The Exchange Hotel in Gordonsville would tell stories of war, heartbreak, and restless spirits if walls could talk. Once a thriving tavern, this historic site became a Civil War hospital, where countless soldiers took their last breath. Virginia haunted hotels are known for their eerie pasts, but few can rival the Exchange Hotel’s dark history.

This place is a hotspot for paranormal activity, from fallen soldiers wandering the halls to the ghost of a cook still tending to his duties. Some claim to see a troubled couple in the shadows, while others report hearing the voices of former slaves who once worked here.

Over time, the Exchange Hotel in Gordonsville has transformed, yet its ghosts refuse to leave. Its chilling history has drawn the attention of paranormal investigators and filmmakers, all eager to uncover its secrets.

Could this be one of the most haunted locations in Virginia? Read more to find out!

The Exchange Hotel’s Eerie Evolution

From 1860 to 1862, it served travelers in desperate need of a warm meal and a good night’s sleep. From 1862 until the end of the Civil War, it was where Union and Confederate soldiers were treated for battle wounds or perished because of them.

During the Reconstruction Period, it was turned into a healthcare and educational compound for freed slaves. It then resumed its original function for a while until it became a complex for private homes in the 1940s.

Finally, in 1971, Historic Gordonsville, Inc. acquired it, transforming it into what it is today: a place where tourists go to see Civil War artifacts, learn some American history… and encounter ghosts.

To understand what affords The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum to boast “80 recorded incidents” of ghost activity, you need to learn some more specifics about its past.

The Tavern Beside the Railways

The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum stands where a tavern once operated. This lively pub was opened in the 1840s, right around the time the Gordonsville Depot was built.

It served as a great watering hole for thirsty travelers until it burned down in 1859. Perhaps the hotel’s current roster of spirits includes those who perished in that unfortunate fire.

The depot serviced two major railways: the Alexandria & Orange Railroad and the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad. Thus, like the hotel, it was also in the path of many Civil War battles.

No wonder it, too, is believed to be haunted. When Spirit Search Paranormal Investigations visited the abandoned station, for instance, they recorded many EVPs and photographed several eerie shadows.

Gordonsville’s first depot.
Image Source: Historic Gordonsville

After the tavern’s demise, Richard F. Omohundro, the owner of the property at the time, decided that the next best thing to open on it was a hotel.

A Hotel Turned to Hospital

The hotel included a three-story main building and an older, two-story dependent structure. It is believed to have been the work of master architect Benjamin F. Faulconer.

For about two years, The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum drew in many travelers. Its elegant, late Greek Revival design and excellent accommodations made it a luxurious (though pricey) place for passengers to get a much-needed respite along their journeys

Those who were checking in were greeted by “shady porches” and a well-groomed lawn. After dumping their bags in a decoratively furnished, high-ceilinged room, they could head downstairs to enjoy some good food in the hotel’s tavern.

In March 1862, hotel operations were abruptly halted. A name change captured its new function: The Gordonsville Receiving Hospital. Within just one year, over “23,000 sick and wounded” were brought to its doors.

By the end of the Civil War, its total number of patients reached more than 70,000. Around 700 of these men would not be saved and had to “be buried on its surrounding grounds.” All the pain and agony experienced by soldiers taken to the hospital made it a prime breeding ground for unhappy spirits.

Slaves’ Sanctuary

The North would emerge from the Civil War as its victors. As a result, in January 1865, the Thirteenth Amendment was added to the Constitution, abolishing slavery in the United States.

Congress’s next step was to figure out what to do and where to place these four million emancipated African Americans. The Freedmen’s Bureau was thus established. For freed slaves, it “provided food, housing and medical aid, established schools and offered legal assistance.”

The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum temporarily became a Freedmen’s Bureau hospital. In 2002, it was recognized as an African-American memorial site. This explains why many of the ghosts seen at the museum are African-American.

Paranormal Hotspot

Historic Gordonsville, Inc. has been restoring and maintaining The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum since 1971. However, haunted activity has disrupted their efforts on more than one occasion.

Strange occurrences, such as doors closing on their own and eerie orbs appearing suddenly in rooms, have led many employees to avoid night shifts at the museum. In its hotel days, guests also experienced spooky phenomena.

They’ve awoken to screams and moans (perhaps of soldiers enduring painful amputations in operation rooms), for instance. Others would encounter nurses, garbed in black, wandering the halls.

Today, one of the hotel’s most famous spirits is known as Anna, a slave and close friend of Margaret Crank, the second wife of one of the hotel’s early owners. Frequent sightings of Anna in the museum’s dependency, known as the Summer Kitchen, have made it a favorite for ghost hunters.

“Anna the cook” has been seen and recorded,’ said Christopher Stephens, HGI Vice President.  ‘When she was asked ‘What are you cooking Anna?’ her response was, ‘I cook fried chicken.’”

When NightQuest Paranormal visited the Summer Kitchen, they might have encountered Anna, too. A photo they took from outside the side building contains what suspiciously looks like a face, though no one [living] was in the structure at the time.

Chasing Spirits at the Exchange Hotel in Gordonsville

The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum thus quickly got the attention of a team of paranormal filmmakers, The R.I.P. Files. In fact, their 2010 investigation was so successful that they took a second trip in 2014. When asked about round two, founder Patricia Marin states:

“On our earlier visit, we experienced being touched by several spirits as well as cold spots, especially in the kitchen building. […] I understand that the paranormal activity has increased considerably since athen, nd we’re hoping to capture even more evidence this weekend.”

2010 was also the year Biography Channel’s My Ghost Story featured The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum in one of its episodes.

The Face in the Window opens with the museum’s president, Tim Burnett, and volunteers recounting some of the scary experiences they’ve had at the property: being pushed by invisible forces, hearing footsteps and loud banging, seeing shadows and strange lights, and so on.

One woman had an especially frightful run-in with one of the museum’s most hostile spirits, Major Quartermaster Richards. According to local lore, Richards’ wife had been cheating on him with a surgeon.

Upon discovering this betrayal, the Major took the poor woman into the woods, murdered her, and then hung himself. Before taking his own life, he vowed to “hold her spirit hostage there for eternity.”

More Paranormal Evidences

Keen to understand (and prevent further) hauntings, HGI has welcomed many paranormal groups to the museum. The team behind Spirit Search Paranormal Investigations has become one of its go-to.

SSPI has done over 20 investigations at the Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum, and a lot of the evidence they have gathered – such as “EVPs and green mist photos” – are shown in the My Ghost Story episode.

Black Raven Paranormal has also visited the museum twice. During their investigations, they encountered a “shadow person“, as well as Emma, the ghost of a little girl who is frequently photographed at the property.

Another child who haunts the museum is a little boy who worked at the museum when it was a Civil War hospital. Apparently, he couldn’t handle the torment-filled environment—it is said that he hung himself from one of the upstairs windows.

Of course, you can experience scares at The Exchange Hotel Civil War Medical Museum for yourself. HGI sponsors annual ghost walks at the museum around the Halloween season.

The Trail of Terror at Halloween Scarefest will take you through the museum and then to the Depot of Death. Along your trek, actors and real spirits will certainly interact with you.

Haunted Virginia

The Exchange Hotel in Gordonsville holds more than just history within its walls—it holds the restless spirits of those who met tragic ends. From the ghosts of Civil War soldiers to tavern guests who perished in a fire, the hotel has no shortage of haunting tales.

The ghost of Anna, a former cook, still lingers, perhaps unwilling to abandon her post. The spirits of patients who died when the hotel served as a hospital are said to roam the grounds, many of them buried nearby.

Whispers of suicides and murders add another chilling layer to this already haunted site, and ghostly children have been caught in photographs, their figures seemingly blending into the very walls.

Paranormal investigators have captured eerie evidence of these lingering souls, proving that the Exchange Hotel is not just one of Virginia’s haunted hotels—it may be one of its most active.

If you want more Williamsburg spooky stories, check out our blog. Or, if you dare to hear the tales firsthand, book a ghost tour with Colonial Ghosts. Don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for even more spine-chilling content!

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For those with an appetite for the terrifying, our extended tour will take in an additional haunted locations.

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Sources

1. https://www.lindahall.org/experience/digital-exhibitions/the-transcontinental-railroad/05-rail-cars/
2. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=170667
3. https://theexchangehotelmuseum.org/
4. https://www.hallowedground.org/site-locations/exchange-hotel-civil-war-museum/
5. https://www.virginiahauntedhouses.com/real-haunt/civil-war-medical-museum.html
6. https://blackravenparanormal.com/exchangehotel.html