Haunting tales from the Old Stamford Inn

STAMFORD, Texas (BigCountryHomepage) – Right next to Stamford City Hall stands an abandoned building with a chilling past, the Old Stamford Inn. The current structure isn’t the original, as that one burned down in 1924, a fire said to have claimed five lives. But ever since the second inn was built, some say strange things have lingered within its walls.

“A lady said, ‘Get out.’ But it wasn’t that loud. It was kind of creepy, kind of like it was muffled. I said, ‘What?’ And I heard someone else say, ‘Help me.’”

David Holden said it’s cold and eerie walking into the Old Stamford Inn, but the chill in the air isn’t what this place is known for.

“You can hear footsteps in there,” Holden recalled. “I saw figures of ghosts, and I took a picture, and I took another one. I picked them up and was looking at them, and whatever it was was right there, and he growled. When I had done that, I turned around and he was already gone. I looked back, and there was nothing there. I saw I had that picture, and I told him [his friend], I said, ‘Look at this.’ We were looking for a minute. It faded away into black.”

Those who have visited say they can still hear echoes of footsteps, whispers and conversations throughout the halls. Holden, a former Stamford resident who has investigated the paranormal, shared that he’s seen and heard things he can’t explain.

“One young lady walked over toward the elevator. She got violently sick. They [those with him] got her and were going to take her away. Within 10 feet or so of that elevator, she said, ‘What are y’all doing? Leave me alone.’ Well, you got sick. She didn’t have any idea. Went back toward the elevator. It happened again. Happened three times like that. They all took off, and they said they wouldn’t go back.”

While Holden hasn’t gone back since, he offers a warning to anyone curious about exploring the supernatural.

“It’s not a game. It’s real… Don’t go and try to do this stuff, because you can get in trouble for it. Maybe not legally, but spiritually — and it can make you want to do ugly things. So leave it alone… You can open portals. If you don’t know how to close them, you can let demons through there,” Holden explained.

For some, the Old Stamford Inn is just a piece of local history. But for others, like Holden, it’s a place where the past may never truly rest.