Hauntings of the Drake Hotel
Posted: 11.23.2024 | Updated: 12.31.2024
For more than a century, the Drake Hotel has been a staple of what it means to live in the high life. Opening its doors during the dawn of the Roaring 20s, the Drake has glitzed and glammed with some of society’s biggest household names. People like Walt Disney, Frank Sinatra, and even Queen Elizabeth herself have made their way through those doors.
But don’t let all the decadence and decorum fool you. There are dark spots in the limelight. High society knows how to hide them well. Adultery, greed, cruelty, things the newsreels and magazine covers don’t want you to see. Things that might just keep you on this earth long after you’ve gone.
Let us roll out the red carpet and greet the legends and truths of the 1920s with a wave and dazzling smile. Don’t miss out on all of the other haunted places Chicago has to offer. Make sure to book our haunted Chicago ghost tour, Windy City Ghosts.
Join us as we examine the spookier side of Chicago, where shadows move in the darkest corners of the city and the dead rule the night.
Why is The Drake in Chicago Haunted?
The Drake Hotel came about during an odd point in American history. Society was eager to forget the atrocities and turmoil of World War I. Inhibitions were wild. Crime was growing. The lavish bubble was destined to burst. The Drake, despite its appearance, couldn’t escape the dark side of human nature.
The hotel has seen its fair share of violent deaths, suicides, and crimes. You can cover it up, but the stain will always be there. The memories linger. The spirits remain.
History of The Drake Hotel
Brothers John and Tracy Drake financed the hotel in 1919. In less than a year, the Drake was ready for its grand opening on New Year’s. More than 2,000 denizens showed up to celebrate what was already becoming a Chicago landmark.
The Drake boasts itself as the first urban resort in America, able to accommodate the whims and wants of any guest at any given time. Another first for the hotel was the Cape Cod Room, America’s first-ever themed restaurant.
Though no longer with us, the Cap Cap delivered delectable seafood unlike anywhere else in the city. The restaurant also immortalized newlyweds Joe Demaggio and Marylin Monroe, whose carved initials could be seen on the wooden bar.
The Palm Court has been a favorite mid-day haunt ever since the hotel opened, hosting afternoon tea for the guests and citizens of the city. Afternoon tea has had such a longstanding tradition and popularity at the Drake that even Queen Elizabeth and Princess Diana had made their way to the Windy City.
In 1980, Hilton International bought the Drake. They refurbished the hotel to resemble its Roaring 20s days while also retrofitting it with modern comforts. Today, the Drake has 535 rooms and is the only hotel in Chicago with direct access to Lake Michigan and Oak Street Beach.
The Drake has many stories to tell, as well as some it would rather wish to forget. The ones who have remained for more than a century are the ones who are still telling them.
The Ghosts of the Drake Hotel
There are reported to be three main spirits that roam the halls of the Drake Hotel, each one dealing with the darker side of humanity: heartbreak, greed, and cruelty. Sooner or later, the party ends. The dazzling highlife is much dimmer than we think.
The Lady in Red
This legend comes from the very beginning of the hotel’s lineage, that faithful New Year’s grand opening. No one knew that night, filled with laughter and champagne, would be stained with blood.
The story goes that a woman in a red dress was at the grand opening, enjoying the extravagance with her newly engaged fiance. At some point in the night, the couple lost one another.
The clock was nearing midnight, and she was determined to be with her love to celebrate the new decade that was to come. She searched and searched for her groom-to-be but could not find him anywhere.
She managed to find her way back to her room on the 10th floor, only to find it unlocked. Opening the door, she was shattered to see her fiance in bed with another woman. With all hope lost and her heart in pieces, she flung herself out of the window to her death.
Many residents have seen glimpses of a lady in a red dress all over the hotel, from the 10th-floor hallway to the Palm Court. One woman even believes she managed to capture a picture of the heartbroken apparition in the ballroom where the New Year’s gala took place.
The Woman in Black of The Drake Hotel
While the story of the lady in red is full of sorrow and regret, the woman in black is a tale seeped in hatred and spite. In a bizarre twist, the titular woman is not the victim of this story but rather the criminal.
This legend is mixed with a true crime case that happened at the Drake Hotel in 1944. Adele Born Williams was a Chicago socialite. Her husband, Frank, worked for the U.S. State Department.
Adele was spending the day visiting with her daughter Patricia when both decided to return to Frank’s 8th-floor suite at the Drake Hotel. Not too dissimilar to the Lady in Red story, they found the door unlocked. Except they didn’t find a man in bed with a woman. They didn’t find anyone at all.
At least until the woman appeared.
From out of the bathroom, a woman in a black dress and black fur coat rushed in, holding a pistol. She fired several shots. Two missed Patricia, but two other ones struck Adele. The woman fled down the hall, never to be seen again. 24 hours later, Adele died.
To this day, the crime remains unsolved. No one discovered who the woman was or her reason for being there. Theories range from an assassin bent on taking out Frank Williams to a jewel thief caught in the act.
Whatever the reason, rumor has it that the woman in black roams the hallway of the 8th floor. Perhaps she was an assassin and can no longer pass on until she takes out Frank Williams once and for all.
That might be a lot trickier than she thinks, and lord knows where she’s headed after is not the pearly gates.
Jacob and Flora Frank
Though not the immediate victims of a crime, Jacob and Flora Frank did suffer from a horrendous murder. Their grief has kept them tied to this earth for decades, and it’s not hard to understand. It’s almost impossible to recover from the loss of a child.
Bobby Frank was only 15 when he died in 1924. His death was needless; it was cruel, and it was soul-crushing. He was the result of a monstrous thought experiment by Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb. They believed they could commit the perfect crime and never be caught.
The two young men, only a few years older than Bobby himself, saw the teen taking a stroll. They then drove a chisel through his head and dumped the body.
The crime was, in essence, perfect. There were no witnesses, no true motive, and no pieces of evidence. Well, there was one piece of evidence: a pair of glasses. It was a specific pair of glasses with a very specific frame. There were only three glasses like this in the entire city of Chicago.
Nathan Leopold owned one of the three, and he had accidentally left them near Bobby’s body. The case was quickly closed.
However, Bobby’s parents never recovered from the loss of their son. They sold off their estate and moved to a suite at the Drake Hotel, where they would spend the rest of their lives. Some suspect that they still haunt the suite to this very day.
Haunted Chicago
The spirits of the Drake are as integral to the hotel’s history as the movie stars and royalty that once roamed its lobby. They show that even paradise can sometimes be imperfect. The Windy has plenty more haunted locations, including other haunted Chicago hotels.
Book our Windy City Ghosts tour to see what lurks around the corner.
Keep yourself updated on more spooky Chicago locations with our blog. Don’t forget to also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok for even more hauntingly good fun.
Sources:
https://chicago.eater.com/2016/11/22/13719384/cape-code-room-drake-seafood-closing
https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/chidhhh-the-drake
https://files.thedrakehotel.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/5332085_HIL_DRAKE_MidRes.pdf
https://www.choosechicago.com/blog/chicagos-most-haunted-hotels
https://www.newspapers.com/article/pittsburgh-sun-telegraph-adele-swabacker/33186243/?locale=en-US
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-hauntings-drake-hotel
https://www.hauntedrooms.com/illinois/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/the-drake-hotel-chicago
Book A Windy City Ghosts Tour And See For Yourself
For over 200 years, Chicago has endured the Great Fire, Al Capone, Prohibition, Violent Riots, and Shipwrecks. These events led to Chicago’s mysterious hauntings, often experienced by locals – and even our guests. The third most populous city in the nation has become a hotbed for ghostly encounters.
Join us for a ghost tour with stories and visits to sites of old asylums, cults, and haunted bars next to dark alleys that harbor the spirits of gangsters and bootleggers. Whatever the weather, join Windy City Ghosts to walk in the footsteps of Chi Town’s Ghosts. We’ll give you a chill that cuts to the bone.
