The unique proprietor of the Dorrington Lodge in California is claimed to be haunting it. One Christmas the ghost of the previous mistress of the place went pulling down each pretend Christmas Tree the present proprietor had put up.
Within the picturesque and mountainous panorama of Calaveras County, California, the Dorrington Lodge is not only an enthralling relic of the previous, but additionally a hotbed of paranormal exercise. Established within the mid-Nineteenth century, this historic resort of the Gold Rush Time in California, is claimed to be haunted by its former mistress, Rebecca Dorrington Gardner, whose stressed spirit roams the halls, notably throughout the Christmas season.
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With its storied previous and eerie occurrences, just like the very identify, Calaveras, Spanish for Skulls after the reported stays of natives, the Dorrington Lodge affords a chilling mix of historical past and hauntings within the sequoia redwoods.


The Legacy of John Gardner and his Inn
The Dorrington Lodge was in-built 1852 by John and Rebecca Gardner, on prime of the Large Valley Highway as a coach cease had been it served as a depot for stockmen in addition to a summer time resort. John Gardner, a Scottish immigrant, bought a small sheep ranch and 160 acres of land from Barnabus Smith when it was nonetheless only a path passing by the Miwok and Washoe Place of birth. Smith, a former Personal Captain within the Massachusetts Militia throughout the Battle of 1812, had been granted the land for his army service.
“That is the place!” he wrote to his new bride, Rebecca, who had remained at dwelling in Scotland, ready for his phrase. Gardner rapidly turned the property identified for its chilly springs, and he known as it first, Chilly Spring Ranch, right into a worthwhile roadside enterprise, offering refuge for numerous emigrants journeying over the Central Sierra Mountains.
The Woman of the Night time: Rebecca Dorrington Gardner
Rebecca Dorrington Gardner, the beloved mistress of the resort, sailed from Scotland to affix her husband within the Sierra Gold Nation, and the place was quickly known as Dorrington, her maiden identify. She survived her husband by a few years, nonetheless, legend has it that she met a tragic finish that left her spirit certain to the place she as soon as managed.
It’s mentioned that Rebecca suffered deadly accidents in 1870 when she fell down the rear staircase of the resort. Some additionally declare she went out in a snowstorm and misplaced her method as she froze to loss of life. Others say she was massacred by the natives. Although historic information point out she handed away on October 16, 1910, in Altaville, California when she was 83 years previous, her ghostly presence stays a fixture on the Dorrington Lodge.
Guests and employees have often reported encountering Rebecca’s spirit, peeking out threw curtains in unopccupied rooms, not likely liking how the brand new house owners retains interfering in her buisness. Her spectral actions embrace doorways mysteriously opening and shutting, lights flickering, and furnishings inexplicably shifting.
The resort’s eating room is a typical spot for sightings, with many claiming to see or really feel her presence as she glides by way of the area. Many visitors additionally declare that they’ve seen the ghost of her fall down the steps as a ghostly reenactment of her loss of life.
Rebecca’s ghost additionally appears to take pleasure in interacting with trendy expertise, usually triggering the movement detectors put in across the resort.
One time it was mentioned she warned the proprietor on the time og a fuel leak within the kitchen. Based on the stoy, she woke him up in the course of the night time to warn him.
The Christmas Tree Incident
The Christmas season brings a rise in Rebecca’s ghostly actions. One notably spine-chilling story includes the annual vacation decorations. One yr, the resort’s proprietor determined to put a man-made Christmas tree in each room. To everybody’s astonishment, every night time Rebecca would go from room to room, knocking the timber down. Each morning, the employees and visitors would discover the timber toppled over, a transparent signal of Rebecca’s nocturnal rounds.
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In one other eerie incident, the proprietor, Marc Lanthier, skilled one thing that solidified the resort’s haunted fame. One Christmas after this occasion, Marc took two photos of the resort adorned with Christmas lights. When he uploaded the images to his pc, he found one thing unsettling. One photograph was vivid and clear, whereas the opposite confirmed a vaporous determine floating over the resort. May this be Rebecca Dorrington Gardner, nonetheless overseeing her beloved institution?


Different Ghostly Residents at Dorrington Lodge
Rebecca is just not the one spirit mentioned to hang-out the Dorrington Lodge. Company have reported listening to the laughter and footsteps of youngsters at midnight, regardless of there being no kids current. May this be a few of the 4 kids of the unique house owners which are haunting the resort along with their mom?
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Many visitors visiting the Dorrington Lodge particularly hunt down the paranormal, hoping for a glimpse of Rebecca or the opposite spirits mentioned to reside there. Some in a single day guests have reported discovering a single footprint by their beds, believed to be left by Rebecca as she patrols the resort at night time.
A Night time Within the Gold Rush Nation
The Dorrington Lodge stays a fascinating mix of historical past and hauntings, with its wealthy previous and lively ghostly presence. And throughout the Christmas season, the possibilities of encountering Rebecca Dorrington Gardner will increase if we’re to imagine the tales, not happy in any respect in regards to the pretend and plastic side of the trendy Christmas traditions.
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Dorrington, CA — Antoinette Could Creator and Journalist
