The Crescent Hotel

Arkansas · United States · Hospital

An Irish stonemason called Michael died during construction. Decades later a conman ran the building as a cancer hospital and killed a great many more.

The Crescent Hotel at Eureka Springs, Arkansas is among the most reported buildings in America, and its history explains why.

Michael was an Irish stonemason who fell to his death while the hotel was being built. Room 218 is his, and it is the room guests ask for.

The worse history came later. In the 1930s the building was bought by Norman Baker, who had no medical training whatsoever and ran it as a hospital claiming to cure cancer without surgery. Patients paid, patients were told they were recovering, and patients died. Baker went to federal prison for mail fraud. Human remains and specimen jars were later found on the property.

The accounts include a nurse pushing a bed on the second floor, a businessman in the lobby, a man pushing a woman down a flight of stairs, and a schoolgirl going from a window.

The hotel is open and does not hide any of it.

FAQ

Where is The Crescent Hotel located?

The Crescent Hotel is in Arkansas, United States.

Image: CMFRIESE / CC BY 2.0 via flickr