The Top 10 Haunted Places in Boise

The City of Boise, Idaho, has a little something for everyone to enjoy, including a lively downtown scene, relaxing hot springs, and some of the most haunted locations in the country. 

From an eerie theater haunted by the Projector Room Ghost to a state penitentiary where the spirit of Idaho’s version of Jack the Ripper roams the cell blocks, Boise is the place to satisfy your craving for a haunting good time.

Get ready for the most chilling experience in the Pacific Northwest when you book your tour with us at Boise Ghosts. Learn about some of the most haunted places in Boise mentioned here and so much more!

What is the Most Haunted Place in Boise?

Boise, Idaho, is home to many historical locations including jails, hotels, and small business establishments that are centuries old. Within those walls is a lot of history as well as many dark secrets hoping to be revealed.

The Owyhee

The Owyhee is a large building in downtown Boise with 140,500 square feet inside used for office space, studio apartments, restaurants, penthouses, and venues. Originally built for use as a luxurious hotel in 1910, this cultural cornerstone of Boise is a familiar site that evokes fond memories for many locals.

Deemed as the city’s first skyscraper, The Owyhee holds a lot of history for Boise residents as well as a lot of spiritual energy.  Ghost sightings are frequent in this building, especially in the area that was once the hotel’s guest room, 136. 

Years ago, while a couple was staying in this room for the night, the husband woke up and reported seeing the ghost of a woman hovering over him. His wife told the staff that she saw the ghost as well, but she didn’t feel any fear and instead felt an intense feeling of calm wash over her. When she tried to ask the ghost why she was there, it vanished.

Idanha Building

The Idanha Hotel, located in downtown Boise opened its doors on New Year’s Day in 1901. It was a functional hotel hosting several distinguished figures of the time including Presidents Roosevelt and Taft. The hotel stayed open until the 1970s when it was renovated into an apartment complex, now known as the Idanha Building.

While it was operating as a hotel, multiple tragic deaths occurred at the Idanha. One of the most horrific was the death of Alexander Palmer Jacobs. As the son of a wealthy merchant, Alexander owned multiple homes and several acres of land in Boise. 

He also suffered from what his friends referred to as “fits of lunacy.” He had made multiple threats to murder his wife and to kill himself. Unfortunately, those threats were ignored by his physicians. 

One night, after checking into the Idanha Hotel alone, Alex’s family called the front desk to warn them of his mental state. A few hours later, Alex called his wife. Shortly after, his family alerted the front desk again, asking to be notified if he left the premises.

At 5:50 a.m., Alexander crawled out of his hotel room window, balanced himself on the ledge, and then hurled himself headfirst onto the sidewalk below from the fourth floor. A dark presence can be felt in the building today and is believed to be the tormented spirit of Alexander, still wrestling with his demons.

The Egyptian Theatre

Located at the corner of Capitol Boulevard and Main Street in Downtown Boise, the Egyptian Theatre is a performing arts and movie venue that opened on April 19th, 1927. It is one of Boise’s most cherished historical landmarks as well as one of its most haunted.

There are a few ghosts who haunt the old theatre including a woman who is dressed in late 1920s attire and wanders around the theatre in hopes of mingling with guests. But the most popular ghost story is about Joe, the projectionist who died in the projection room after suffering a heart attack.

Since Joe’s death, staff members have noticed strange aromas throughout the theater and the sound of a man laughing when no one is around. People have also felt as if they were touched by an invisible force while sitting in the theater.

It is believed that Joe made an appearance in 2016 during a live show featuring the band Brothers Osborne. During a song when the music and crowd were particularly loud, large chunks of stone from the ceiling crashed down and narrowly missed the band members before shattering on the stage. The band continued playing even when more pieces of the ceiling fell a second time.  

The Belmont Barbershop

The Belmont Barbershop is a retro-style location found at the northeast corner of 11th and Main Street in Downtown Boise. It has a light and welcoming atmosphere with a traditional barbershop feel although it wasn’t originally a place to get a haircut and shave.

For more than a century, the establishment was known as Hannifin’s Cigar Shop. And there’s a dark history connected to the location during that era that still haunts downtown Boise.

In 1964, Raymond Allen Snowden brutally murdered Cora Lucyle Dean inside nearby Garden City. Snowden is said to have threatened Cora with assault before slashing her throat and severing her spinal column. 

He then proceeded to stab her more than twenty times. Afterward, he threw away his murder weapon in the gutter outside of Hannifin’s and fled to the bathroom inside the cigar shop. He was later arrested, tried, and convicted of murder.

Snowden, who earned the moniker of Idaho’s Jack the Ripper, was the last person to be executed at the Old Idaho Penitentiary by hanging, however, the execution failed and instead of his neck breaking, he was strangled to death.

Footsteps can be heard walking the plank floor of Hannifin’s all hours of the night. Some say it is Snowden coming back to stalk the place where the evidence was found. Others believe it is Cora, tracing Snowden’s bloody footsteps to the bathroom where he washed away the evidence.

Fort Boise Military Cemetery

The Fort Boise Military Cemetery is seen by many locals as an abandoned piece of forgotten history. However, it is rumored that the graveyard is visited frequently, not by the living but by the spirits of those who were buried there long ago.

The cemetery was originally located half a mile south of the Boise Barracks. It was moved to its current location on N. Mountain Cove Road in 1907 after a major flood caused damage and erosion to the graves.  

Visitors have reported hearing disembodied voices saying the names of those buried there. Some have mentioned having their hair stroked or reported seeing people sitting on the benches inside the cemetery. The spirit of a small boy can often be seen wandering around the maze of tombstones, as well as a lone soldier standing courageously at his mark at the flagpole.

StrangeLove Club

The StrangeLove Club is a lively downtown establishment where you can find the dancefloor packed every weekend. But it’s after the bar closes down for the night when the real action starts. 

Security cameras inside this nightclub have captured strange and unusual behavior after hours that’s hard to dismiss as ordinary.

The establishment has gone through several different owners and names over the years. It was originally built as an athletic club in 1906 and was later a restaurant, a strip club, and even a church.

StrangeLove was once known by the locals as a violent dance club when it was named China Blue in 2003. What started as a high-end club turned into a destination for disaster after China Blue’s 15-year run.

In 2017, the club was the site of a murder, which may have stirred up some dark energy that had been dormant there for years. 

While many believe the ghostly apparition seen there at night is the victim of the recent murder, some feel the spirit is from an incident that occurred in the 1920s when a woman died there after falling down an elevator shaft. While not much is known about the woman, her spirit often shows up in photographs and overnight surveillance videos.

Basque Museum and Cultural Center

The Basque Museum and Cultural Center is a small establishment founded in 1985 located at the Cyrus Jacobs-Uberuaga House on Grove Street inside scenic Boise. It offers visitors a glimpse into the heritage of the historic Basque communities that are not just in Idaho but throughout the American West.

While it is overflowing with culture, this museum is also believed to be filled with spiritual energy and ghosts who haunt the location making strange noises and moving objects.

The locals believe there is a Lady in Black who haunts the museum, and while most say she is peaceful, her distressing appearance is enough to give you a feeling of unease. Former employees have mentioned hearing the voice of someone talking both upstairs and downstairs when no one was there. 

They said the voice would oftentimes be loud and annoying; some feel that the voice comes from a different spirit and not the more courteous Lady in Black.

Idaho State Penitentiary

Prisons and similar institutions are often a magnet for dark energy. Since it was first established in 1870, the Idaho State Penitentiary has witnessed its fair share of darkness entering and leaving the cell block. 

There have been 10 executions performed there, as well as 110 documented deaths due to murder, illness, and old age.

The most haunted spot is said to be in 5 House where Raymond Allen Snowden, the killer who is also believed to haunt the Belmont Barbershop, was executed in 1957.

Visitors have reported hearing strange noises and disembodied voices and felt the presence of dark entities throughout the penitentiary.

Dry Creek Cemetery

Boise’s Dry Creek Cemetery was established in 1865. The oldest section of the cemetery is home to many distinctive monuments that date back to the turn of the century. 

The cemetery is located along the Boise Foothills in a serene setting where you can see the State Capitol on a clear day. But at night, the atmosphere is everything but calm and welcoming.

Eerie energy in an old graveyard at night doesn’t seem too out of the ordinary as far as ghostly lore is concerned. But at Dry Creek Cemetery, the spiritual activity is extraordinary. 

As the legend goes, if you visit the edge of the cemetery on the side where the canal is located, at around 2 am, you will hear the sudden sound of a horse galloping by you. Some have even caught the image of the majestic yet translucent ghost horse before they disappear into the darkness of the night.

The Boise Murder House

The Boise Murder House, located at 805 W. Linden Street was a once beautiful two-story craftsman-style home that is now covered in soot with broken windows and boards over the doors. The home is often referred to by locals as the Chop Chop house in reference to the gruesome homicide that took place there three decades ago.

On the morning of June 30th, 1987, The home’s owner Daniel Rodgers, and his friend Daron Cox shot and killed 21-year-old Preston Murr inside the basement. The duo then used a knife and ax to dismember Murr’s corpse, wrapping the pieces in plastic bags and dumping the bags in the Brownlee Reservoir at the Idaho-Oregon border. 

As horrifying as it sounds, it is even more disturbing to learn that Murr nearly escaped. According to court records, there was an altercation and Murr was initially shot in the shoulder. 

He ran to get help at a house nearby, banging on the door but there was no answer. The neighbor, who was inside, did however contact police, unfortunately, they didn’t respond until the next morning when the same neighbor called to alert them about discovering blood on his screen door.

There are rumors claiming that fraternity brothers from the local college reported seeing blood dripping from the walls of the basement. And many of those who have frequented the location have said the energy in the house has been “off” for years.

Haunted Boise

The city of Boise is home to a lot of history, rich culture, and a wealth of haunted locations with dark tales that will haunt your nightmares for months or years after your visit. These ten most haunted places in Boise are just a sample of the lore that can be found in this Pacific Northwest city.

To keep up with all the top haunted locations in the nation, check out our blog for updates. You can also follow us on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram for more exciting tales of terror. For more local haunts and ghost stories, be sure to book your tour with Boise Ghosts today!

Sources:

• https://thisisboise.com/top-5-haunted-places-in-boise/
• https://www.hendricksgroup.net/boise-properties/the-owyhee#:~:text=The%20Owyhee%20is%20a%20140%2C500,banquet%20room%20with%20sweeping%20views
• https://fromboise.com/posts/boise-ghost-stories
• https://1035kissfmboise.com/haunted-idaho-ghost-inside-the-egyptian-theater/
• https://fromboise.com/posts/a-haunted-history-of-hannifins#:~:text=In%20this%20masculine%20place%2C%20where,confirm%20that%20guilt%20will%20out.&text=Now%20the%20Belmont%20Barbershop%2C%20the,that%20the%20haunting%20would%20cease
• https://basquemuseum.eus/visit/basque-museum-cultural-center-history/#:~:text=The%20Basque%20Museum%20%26%20Cultural%20Center%20was%20established%20in%201985%20as,but%20in%20the%20American%20West
• https://kidotalkradio.com/spooky-cemetery-in-boise-scariest-in-america/
• https://www.housebeautiful.com/lifestyle/a41059891/boise-murder-house/