Crested Butte
Crested Butte - 1890 ~ (www.photoswest.org)
Welcome to Crested Butte, one of the most beautiful mountain towns in the country! First incorporated in 1880,
Crested Butte was a new frontier for miners searching for precious metals.
Often called "The Last Great Colorado Ski Town", Crested Butte is a small resort town located in Gunnison County,
Colorado. A former coal mining hub, Crested Butte is now a destination for skiing, mountain biking, and a variety of
other outdoor activities.
The Town of Crested Butte, a registered National Historic District and turn of the century Victorian mining town, is
located 28 miles north of the City of Gunnison and south of the famous Kebler Pass.
In 1990, Crested Butte was designated The Wildflower Capital of Colorado by the State Legislature.
This National Historic District is blessed with block after block of quaint shops, excellent restaurants and exquisite
galleries. Charming facades line the streets of Crested Butte—testament to a rich and unique history. To this day,
visitors make their own bits of personal history—cherished moments that last a lifetime.
Walk around our rustic and friendly town with its Victorian ambiance and reflections of turn-of-the-century mining life.
The downtown business district is like a western movie set come to life in the 90's. Colorful buildings, shops, movies,
and local watering holes make for a terrific Old West welcome.
Photo from http://www.skicb.com
Photo from http://www.visitcrestedbutte.com
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The best of...... Sharing Space with the Undead
Story from: The Crested Butte News
Editor’s note: Each Halloween, we publish a real-life ghost story from the Crested Butte area. This year, in our “Best
of Sharing Space With the Undead” series, we offer you some of our favorite stories of years past.
Ghosts Among Us
by Edward Stern
2000
… Before it was the new Gunnison Savings and Loan and even before it was the dining room of Angello’s Pizza,
there was a home at 501 Elk Avenue. In 1983, local resident Lynda Jackson-Petito lived in that home with her son
Jackson who was then four years old.
“ There was chimney fire there one night,” Jackson-Petito explains. “It was no big deal really. I called the fire
department and I grabbed Jackson and we went outside while they went in to put out the fire.”
Seven years later, in recalling the incident, Jackson revealed a clear memory of the evening including the presence
of an unidentified woman. “I asked Jackson when he was about ten or eleven if he remembered the fire,” says
Jackson-Petito. “He said that he did and that as I carried him out he saw over my shoulder that there was a woman
standing in the doorway, a woman who looked like a settler wearing a long skirt. He said that after he saw her she
walked back into the house.”
Several years later the house, unofficially known as the “home for wayward girls,” was torn down and was replaced
by the dining room of Angello’s pizzeria. Kirk Osterling worked at Angello’s from 1992-1999. Osterling says that while
working there he experienced activity that he believes could be attributed to the paranormal.
“ There was nothing visual,” he says. “But on that side of the building I would sometimes feel a chill and I got the
feeling that someone else was in there. It happened fairly regularly, particularly when I’d be in there early in the
morning or late at night.” Former Angello’s employee Rob Carney recalls more specifically haunting details.
“ Oh yeah,” he says. “I would sometimes see things out of the corner of my eyes. Even in the dark. It was like a mist
and I could see something moving around. Things would sometimes just fall off of shelves or off of hooks. They
would just fall for no reason. Nothing touched them. I’d be in there early in the morning or late at night and I would
feel like someone else was there and then I’d get the feeling that I should just get out of there...Sometimes I’d hear
voices out back or a door would just slam shut. I’d go and check and there was never anyone there.”
Local resident Jill Hickey had a similar experience while working at Angello’s. “Sometimes I’d be cleaning the mirror
and I’d see the reflection of someone moving, but no one was there,” she explains.
Glo Cunningham also worked at the restaurant for several years. “There was a ghost there,” Cunningham says.
Cunningham knows the layout of the house that used to stand at 501 Elk Avenue and believes that the former home’
s kitchen was the source of much of the spiritual presence. “Most of the activity would take place where the kitchen
used to be,” she explains. “Back near the tables next to the bathroom...There was definitely something there,
something to be reckoned with. I think it was a woman.”
“ Her name is Kay,” explains Karine Webb. Webb not only worked at Angello’s, but lived in the home at 501 Elk.
Webb explains the haunting experiences she had in the house and the course of action she took to resolve them.
“ It was in 1988 or ‘89 and I’d been living in the house for about six months,” she explains. “My roommate and I both
started feeling sick. I wandered around with headaches and she had nausea.”
Soon the housemates began to notice more than just an unusual presence within themselves. “It started with my cat,”
says Webb. “The cat would just wake up and hiss and then would watch something walk across the room...One night
I was up late reading and I saw her walk past my doorway. I called out to my roommate and found that she was
sleeping.”
As Webb stayed in the home, the experiences became more frequent and more personal. “I would wake up at night
and I could feel her stroking my hair,” she says. “It was weird.”
It was so weird that Webb looked into the history of the home. There, she discovered the identity of the woman
whose spirit roamed her halls. “I talked with some old timers and I found out that her name was Kay,” she explains.
“She had lived in the house and was in love with a married man. She was his mistress and then one day he decided
to stop seeing her. It broke her heart. She turned to drinking and drugging and one night she passed out face down
in the front yard. She died of hypothermia.”
In addition to the old timers, Webb talked to a family that had previously lived in the home. “There was a tiny
bedroom in the house and that’s where she lived,” says Webb. “Pam Doxie and her two little girls had lived in the
house. The girls were three and five when they lived there and they said [of the room], “That’s where the girl lives, in
that room.”
In an effort to remove the spirit from the house, Webb and her housemate called in a psychic to free the woman’s
spirit.”
“ It was Halloween,” explains Webb. “We did a clearing to have her leave the house. Kay was very upset and angry.
After that the headaches and the nausea went away and the cat stopped seeing things and hissing.”
Webb says that while she did feel a presence while working at Angello’s in later years it was different presence. “I
didn’t pick up any maliciousness or anger,” she reports.
As of press time the new occupants of 501 Elk Avenue have reported nothing out of the ordinary.
Crested Butte News
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For sale: The haunted Forest Queen Hotel building!
http://www.crestedbutterealestate.net/page.cfm?pageid=1417&propertyid=2112
129 Elk Avenue-Forest Queen, Town of Crested Butte
Type: Commercial
4000 square feet
0.2 acres
Listed at $ 850,000
Listed by Gary Garland garland@rmi.net
Don’t miss this great opportunity to own a commercial building on Elk Avenue in Crested Butte. The Forest Queen
currently has several businesses leasing spaces and the sale of this building includes the lot beside it which includes
the creek.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Marcie Telander’s Forest Queen Poltergeist
The haunted Forest Queen Hotel
129 Elk Avenue
Marcie Telander, local psycho-therapist is a collector of stories and legends. Preferably those that are spun by the
elders about the early settlers here in our valley. One story of particular interest to me was about a lady of the night
named Elizabeth or more commonly known as Liz. Liz had purportedly fallen in love with a transient gambler, and
gave him her life’s savings for an all-night gambling event. The story goes that he won big, and left town with his ill-
gotten booty and all of Liz’s savings. Soon afterwards, she threw herself from a hotel window into the icy waters of
Coal Creek. Marcie told me about reports of Liz banging around and slamming doors in the Forest Queen Hotel, and
even keeping hotel residents company late at night. But Marcie’s own experience is perhaps, the most entertaining-
and she didn’t even see Liz.
One morning while indulging in the Forest Queen’s former and famous breakfast plate, The Baggins, a man came
running down the stairs screaming “I’m gettin’ outta here!” Later, Marcie found out that he was a Poltergeist hunter.
“He must have gotten up Liz’s nose,” she said. Nevertheless, he was scared away by something. I don’t know if the
girl’s spirit had been hushed by time or some other force, but keep your eyes and ears open in the Forest Queen. A
lovelorn lady could be roaming the halls.
Source: Crested Butte Weekly
Ghosts: By Chris Kelly
www.cbweekly.com
Back to home page
Crested Butte - 1890 ~ (www.photoswest.org)
Welcome to Crested Butte, one of the most beautiful mountain towns in the country! First incorporated in 1880,
Crested Butte was a new frontier for miners searching for precious metals.
Often called "The Last Great Colorado Ski Town", Crested Butte is a small resort town located in Gunnison County,
Colorado. A former coal mining hub, Crested Butte is now a destination for skiing, mountain biking, and a variety of
other outdoor activities.
The Town of Crested Butte, a registered National Historic District and turn of the century Victorian mining town, is
located 28 miles north of the City of Gunnison and south of the famous Kebler Pass.
In 1990, Crested Butte was designated The Wildflower Capital of Colorado by the State Legislature.
This National Historic District is blessed with block after block of quaint shops, excellent restaurants and exquisite
galleries. Charming facades line the streets of Crested Butte—testament to a rich and unique history. To this day,
visitors make their own bits of personal history—cherished moments that last a lifetime.
Walk around our rustic and friendly town with its Victorian ambiance and reflections of turn-of-the-century mining life.
The downtown business district is like a western movie set come to life in the 90's. Colorful buildings, shops, movies,
and local watering holes make for a terrific Old West welcome.
Photo from http://www.skicb.com
Photo from http://www.visitcrestedbutte.com
``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
The best of...... Sharing Space with the Undead
Story from: The Crested Butte News
Editor’s note: Each Halloween, we publish a real-life ghost story from the Crested Butte area. This year, in our “Best
of Sharing Space With the Undead” series, we offer you some of our favorite stories of years past.
Ghosts Among Us
by Edward Stern
2000
… Before it was the new Gunnison Savings and Loan and even before it was the dining room of Angello’s Pizza,
there was a home at 501 Elk Avenue. In 1983, local resident Lynda Jackson-Petito lived in that home with her son
Jackson who was then four years old.
“ There was chimney fire there one night,” Jackson-Petito explains. “It was no big deal really. I called the fire
department and I grabbed Jackson and we went outside while they went in to put out the fire.”
Seven years later, in recalling the incident, Jackson revealed a clear memory of the evening including the presence
of an unidentified woman. “I asked Jackson when he was about ten or eleven if he remembered the fire,” says
Jackson-Petito. “He said that he did and that as I carried him out he saw over my shoulder that there was a woman
standing in the doorway, a woman who looked like a settler wearing a long skirt. He said that after he saw her she
walked back into the house.”
Several years later the house, unofficially known as the “home for wayward girls,” was torn down and was replaced
by the dining room of Angello’s pizzeria. Kirk Osterling worked at Angello’s from 1992-1999. Osterling says that while
working there he experienced activity that he believes could be attributed to the paranormal.
“ There was nothing visual,” he says. “But on that side of the building I would sometimes feel a chill and I got the
feeling that someone else was in there. It happened fairly regularly, particularly when I’d be in there early in the
morning or late at night.” Former Angello’s employee Rob Carney recalls more specifically haunting details.
“ Oh yeah,” he says. “I would sometimes see things out of the corner of my eyes. Even in the dark. It was like a mist
and I could see something moving around. Things would sometimes just fall off of shelves or off of hooks. They
would just fall for no reason. Nothing touched them. I’d be in there early in the morning or late at night and I would
feel like someone else was there and then I’d get the feeling that I should just get out of there...Sometimes I’d hear
voices out back or a door would just slam shut. I’d go and check and there was never anyone there.”
Local resident Jill Hickey had a similar experience while working at Angello’s. “Sometimes I’d be cleaning the mirror
and I’d see the reflection of someone moving, but no one was there,” she explains.
Glo Cunningham also worked at the restaurant for several years. “There was a ghost there,” Cunningham says.
Cunningham knows the layout of the house that used to stand at 501 Elk Avenue and believes that the former home’
s kitchen was the source of much of the spiritual presence. “Most of the activity would take place where the kitchen
used to be,” she explains. “Back near the tables next to the bathroom...There was definitely something there,
something to be reckoned with. I think it was a woman.”
“ Her name is Kay,” explains Karine Webb. Webb not only worked at Angello’s, but lived in the home at 501 Elk.
Webb explains the haunting experiences she had in the house and the course of action she took to resolve them.
“ It was in 1988 or ‘89 and I’d been living in the house for about six months,” she explains. “My roommate and I both
started feeling sick. I wandered around with headaches and she had nausea.”
Soon the housemates began to notice more than just an unusual presence within themselves. “It started with my cat,”
says Webb. “The cat would just wake up and hiss and then would watch something walk across the room...One night
I was up late reading and I saw her walk past my doorway. I called out to my roommate and found that she was
sleeping.”
As Webb stayed in the home, the experiences became more frequent and more personal. “I would wake up at night
and I could feel her stroking my hair,” she says. “It was weird.”
It was so weird that Webb looked into the history of the home. There, she discovered the identity of the woman
whose spirit roamed her halls. “I talked with some old timers and I found out that her name was Kay,” she explains.
“She had lived in the house and was in love with a married man. She was his mistress and then one day he decided
to stop seeing her. It broke her heart. She turned to drinking and drugging and one night she passed out face down
in the front yard. She died of hypothermia.”
In addition to the old timers, Webb talked to a family that had previously lived in the home. “There was a tiny
bedroom in the house and that’s where she lived,” says Webb. “Pam Doxie and her two little girls had lived in the
house. The girls were three and five when they lived there and they said [of the room], “That’s where the girl lives, in
that room.”
In an effort to remove the spirit from the house, Webb and her housemate called in a psychic to free the woman’s
spirit.”
“ It was Halloween,” explains Webb. “We did a clearing to have her leave the house. Kay was very upset and angry.
After that the headaches and the nausea went away and the cat stopped seeing things and hissing.”
Webb says that while she did feel a presence while working at Angello’s in later years it was different presence. “I
didn’t pick up any maliciousness or anger,” she reports.
As of press time the new occupants of 501 Elk Avenue have reported nothing out of the ordinary.
Crested Butte News
````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
For sale: The haunted Forest Queen Hotel building!
http://www.crestedbutterealestate.net/page.cfm?pageid=1417&propertyid=2112
129 Elk Avenue-Forest Queen, Town of Crested Butte
Type: Commercial
4000 square feet
0.2 acres
Listed at $ 850,000
Listed by Gary Garland garland@rmi.net
Don’t miss this great opportunity to own a commercial building on Elk Avenue in Crested Butte. The Forest Queen
currently has several businesses leasing spaces and the sale of this building includes the lot beside it which includes
the creek.
`````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
Marcie Telander’s Forest Queen Poltergeist
The haunted Forest Queen Hotel
129 Elk Avenue
Marcie Telander, local psycho-therapist is a collector of stories and legends. Preferably those that are spun by the
elders about the early settlers here in our valley. One story of particular interest to me was about a lady of the night
named Elizabeth or more commonly known as Liz. Liz had purportedly fallen in love with a transient gambler, and
gave him her life’s savings for an all-night gambling event. The story goes that he won big, and left town with his ill-
gotten booty and all of Liz’s savings. Soon afterwards, she threw herself from a hotel window into the icy waters of
Coal Creek. Marcie told me about reports of Liz banging around and slamming doors in the Forest Queen Hotel, and
even keeping hotel residents company late at night. But Marcie’s own experience is perhaps, the most entertaining-
and she didn’t even see Liz.
One morning while indulging in the Forest Queen’s former and famous breakfast plate, The Baggins, a man came
running down the stairs screaming “I’m gettin’ outta here!” Later, Marcie found out that he was a Poltergeist hunter.
“He must have gotten up Liz’s nose,” she said. Nevertheless, he was scared away by something. I don’t know if the
girl’s spirit had been hushed by time or some other force, but keep your eyes and ears open in the Forest Queen. A
lovelorn lady could be roaming the halls.
Source: Crested Butte Weekly
Ghosts: By Chris Kelly
www.cbweekly.com
Back to home page
