Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains

Ghost House Books

by Barbara Smith

These haunting tales from the high country include mysteries surrounding many well-known buildings and landmarks, some of which might be inhabited by restless spirits to this day! Features over four dozen stories from Little Bighorn, Cheyenne, Santa Fe, Denver, Butte, Salt Lake City, and more.With 27 b/w photographs.

Genres: Nonfiction, Paranormal, Horror, Ghost Stories, Ghosts

240 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

About the author

Barbara Smith is a Canadian author celebrated for her captivating collections of ghost stories steeped in folklore, history, and national identity. Since leaving her job as a school secretary in 1988, she has published numerous books exploring Canada’s most enduring supernatural legends. Her passion for the paranormal was sparked as a child in Toronto and grew into a lifelong pursuit, fueled by a background in social history and mystery. With titles like Great Canadian Ghost Stories and Great Canadian Campfire Stories, Smith shares eerie tales from coast to coast, entertaining readers while preserving Canada's rich storytelling tradition.

Reviews

[Manybooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have recently been kind of on a (mostly) Canadian ghost stories reading binge (which often happens when I get one particular theme into my head, and yes, I thus also am happy that Open Library and Internet Archive are online again after their recent security breaches, as I certainly am finding interesting ghost story collections there but am at least at present not all that interested in purchasing said books either).

And although Barbara Smith's selection of tales of supposedly true, of actual and authentic hauntings, of the paranormal set in the Rocky Mountains (and pretty nicely balanced as well, so that neither the United States nor Canada comes up short so to to speak), while her 1999 Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains (and of which there also seems to be a sequel) is pretty standard and as such nothing spectacular or extraordinary (in other words typical of "true" ghost story collections in general), I really do appreciate that Smith is grouping her collected accounts in Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains according to physical settings and not simply by country, province and state (mines, hotels, highways, haunted houses, theatres, hitchhikers, ghost trains, skiing areas, woods etc.) and that all of the tales are presented with no sensationalising, with no wilful exaggeration. For in my opinion and fortunately so, Barbara Smith is obviously considerably more interested in writing down the presented stories as she has found and collected them for Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains than she is in sensationalising, dramatising, and that I and personally speaking do hugely and majorly enjoy this, as well as appreciating Smith including a nicely detailed bibliography for Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains as well. And just to say that Barbara Smith certainly knows how to tell a story, how to pen a more than decently engaging text (even with a few awkward syntax and grammatical issues) which keeps reading interest fresh and flowing and equally knows how to portray and describe scenes and environs in Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains that are of course and naturally so a bit creepy, a bit chilling but never using either gratuitous violence or horror (which is not only something I enjoy but also something I actually require, that I need with ghost stories in general, as textual graphic violence and horror are and always have been rather majorly a turn-off).

Now do I actually believe in ghosts? Not sure, and I would have to actually experience a bona fide haunting (and also with absolute proof) to no longer be at least somewhat skeptical (although I do think that especially Alberta's Banff Springs and Waterton Lakes Prince of Wales Hotel, both of which are prominently featured in Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains and both of which I have stayed in with my family as a teenager definitely have an aura of creepiness and uncanniness to them). But indeed, what really makes Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains solidly four stars for me (and not the high three stars I was originally considering) is that Barbara Smith for one just presents her collected tales without judgement and without demanding that her readers believe her stories to be true, to be actual reality, and that for two, except for one or two minor exceptions, Smith has deliberately not included Native Canadian and Native American ghost stories and ghost lore in Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains (and explains that because she is not of Native American or Native Canadian background, she does not feel she is qualified including the latter). And yes, I do warmly recommend Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains for readers from about the age of twelve or so onwards with a reading interest for the Rocky Mountains and the paranormal (that is if they can find a reasonably priced copy or have an account on Open Library, for as much as I have enjoyed Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains, it is also true that in my humble opinion Ghost Stories of the Rocky Mountains is not worth spending a huge amount of cash on).

[Allison Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best for people living in the Rockies!

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review to come.

[NinjaMuse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve read enough collections of ghostly folklore over the years to say this is one is very typical. The stories are grouped by setting (mines, inns, highways, etc.) and relayed with seriousness. Smith’s more interested in writing down the stories than she is in sensationalising them or passing judgement, which I appreciate, but she also knows how to tell a story, pique interest, and give the reader chills.

Also typical, in my experience, are the historical tidbits and figures that flesh out some of the stories, the range of ghosts from “I felt a presence” to “a ghost fixed my flat tire” to “we don’t book people into that room anymore”, and the general quirkiness of the collection. I also liked that the book feels pretty comprehensive and that a lot of the history and stories were new to me. Smith’s done a lot of research, from interviews to reading biographies to scrolling through newspaper archives, but she’s also good about picking and choosing the encounters that will appeal most to readers.

You can also tell, though, which stories came from which sources, because there are some disappointingly short snippets that clearly came from a single column-inch in an old newspaper, where Smith can’t say more than “it was reported that”. At least she shares in the disappointment. Her connections between stories can also feel a bit forced at times but I don’t think I’d be able to do much better in her shoes and I’d rather that than utterly disjointed reading.

And fortunately, like I said, I’ve read a lot of true ghost stories—including other collections by Smith—so this was exactly what I wanted when I picked it up. It’s quirky, it’s easy reading, it’s entertaining, and I finished the book satisfied. But as it’s a totally average book for its genre, it gets a totally average rating.

To bear in mind: Occasionally has an … interesting … definition of what constitutes the Rockies.
5/10

[Tomi Alger · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of stories of ghosts, apparitions, smells, sounds, and actions seen and heard and felt by people in mostly Alberta, Canada, and in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and New Mexico in the US. Places include homes, theaters, hospitals, mines, towns, and highways. Some places have more than one ghost and many have several people who have experienced the presences of those no longer living. Most fascinating are the people who have eaten meals in restaurants that no longer exist. Barbara Smith has written numerous books on ghosts, mostly in Canada.

[Ericka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting stories, many from Canada, would have liked to have seen more Wyoming, but then I'm prejudiced. This is also more of a Young Adult book. Nothing was really frightening and I do question some of the presented research.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

These were some of the more interesting and entertaining ghost stories that I’ve read in a very long time.

[Terri Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book if you love history or ghost stories. I wasn't expecting to learn so much from this book. There is alot of history and it is also very entertaining. I hope to find more like it.

[Kennedy Stubblefield · Rating 4 out of 5]

The ghost stories in this book had so many details, you could practically see the the ghosts. Overall a great book with tons of history and stories about the Rocky Mountains.

[Jhumby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love her style of writing and as a huge fan of the supernatural her books are a great intro to the sub-genre

[Chelsie Mulholland · Rating 1 out of 5]

To "cut-n-dry" - there's no story-telling, just "this happened and may or may not have been a ghost." Very boring.

[Reba · Rating 2 out of 5]

There I was, heading to a conference in Denver, Colorado. So, it seemed only fitting that this book come along with me. I started it on the plane, with the best of intentions, however, conference and tourist duties took over. So, now I am back home, and I'll just have to finish up this collection off location.

So, I am about halfway through this, taking forever to finish. I think my main problem with this collection is that they have no staying power for me. They are enjoyable enough to read, but as soon as I am done, I couldn't tell you any details about what I had just read...

Finally finished. Man, that took way too long! But it was an OK read.

[Stacy Kingsley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I now have places to visit but not because the creepiness factor, they just sound like interesting places to visit. Now I'm sorry but if you're going to write a book about hauntings and ghosts you should at least make it a little scary. If you have no idea who a ghost is or why it's haunting a place, basically having no back story, it's not really an interesting story. Sorry. I really would like books like this to delve a little more into the background of a haunting. Some of these stories were little more than two paragraph blurbs. It was annoying and not as interesting as it could have been, plus the writing was dull, dull, dull. If your going to set a story up you need to be more descriptive with the surroundings and the tone. I'm not going to be scared if you just tell me a dead nun makes lights in an old school flicker, sorry but that just doesn't do it for me.

[Bbenjam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ghost stories of the Rocky Mountains is about you guessed it ghosts of the Rocky Mountains. The stories are broken down into sections like mansions or ghost encounters. Personally I find the stories to be rather boring and aren't really scary. This is not like American chillers in anyway because these stories are "real". The author just basically put together a collection of these stories from the Rockies. I don't like it case and point it's not scary or interesting and doesn't appeal to me.

[Brianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even though I don’t really believe in ghosts, I still found this entertaining. The writing itself isn’t the best, sporting a few gramatical errors and its fair share of choppy sentences. The photos in the book were rarely helpful and sometimes weren’t even entirely relevant. I also found it a little strange that the chapter on haunted hotels didn’t even mention the Stanley Hotel, despite bringing up The Shining twice. Overall, it was generally enjoyable to read, even with its flaws.

[Yasmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another in the series of Ghost Storied complied by Barbara Smith, which is well done. Very worth while if you want to spook yourself a bit and a bit more at Halloween. For me this time I read the book before Halloween and do enjoy a little thrill of being spooked, so long as the writing is good.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know why I picked this up from my parents' house, I knew it was going to be terrible. I guess I was just curious if I'd been to any of the towns that were talked about. Anyway, this is a totally generic book of ghost stories. It's not particularly well-written or researched, and in general it's pretty cheesy. But I read all of it.

[Michael McQueen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. The majority of these stories I really enjoyed. Some were so short they were almost pointless. I really wish the photographs were color- so much is lost in poor black and whites. My biggest disappointment was that there was not one story in Cody. The Irma is haunted, and so is the Hart Mountain Relocation Center, from experience.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well-researched collection of stories. The stories were well narrated by the author, though at times it could get repetitive, as many of the stories share common elements. It was very interesting to learn about places that I could pick up and go visit if I desired.

[Marifer Ibarra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This books are so good. WHY?

[Cynthia · Rating 2 out of 5]

just not my thing

[Ann S · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just your normal Haunted house, ghost appearances book. Nothing special.