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For those women who
didn’t do so well, or weren’t pretty enough to work in one of the more
”respectable” brothels, they plied their trade from small shacks that
lined the alley, referred to "cribs.” Both "high class” brothel
operations and cribs remained a mainstay in
Jerome long after they were made illegal, continuing to operate
into the 1940’s.
Today, when visitors
wander through this historic alley, it is easy to imagine hearing the
voices of "soiled doves” calling from their long vanished cribs. For
some; however, they are sure that a number of these "old girls”
continue to linger here.
In this alley many
have reported paranormal phenomena including the feeling of being
watched, the sounds of phantom footsteps, a persistent odor of
perfume, and strange shadows that move around at night.
The life of a
prostitute during Jerome's heydays was
difficult and dangerous and a number of women lost their lives to the
men they "entertained,” one of which was a stunningly beautiful girl
named Sammie Dean who was strangled by a customer. To this day, her
murder remains unsolved. Whether it is the beautiful Sammie Dean or
any number of other nameless girls who lost their lives in this alley,
some are said to continue to haunt this once ribald street.
You can find this
area across the street from the English Kitchen, the oldest
continuously operating restaurant in the state of
Arizona.
More Phenomena
Just below the hotel
on Cleopatra Hill is an abandoned building that was once a clinic. It
was here that many of those killed in the 1917 flu epidemic lost their
lives. The building has long since had a reputation for being haunted
over the years, as numerous tales are told of former patients being
seen in the windows of the abandoned building. Further down the slope
stands the old Episcopal Church, where a white misty figure has often
been seen.
Beneath the streets
of Jerome, the mountain is still filled
with several abandoned mine shafts and tunnels. These too are said to
be haunted, especially by a miner dubbed "Headless Charlie.”
Decapitated in a mining accident years ago, "Charlie's” head was found
but his body was never discovered. Almost immediately after his death,
miners began to report hearing unexplained footsteps, seeing
unexplainable footprints, and seeing and a shadowy headless spirit.
Many believe his spirit continues to stalk the dark tunnels beneath
the city.
With all the other apparitions
wandering about this historic town, the cemetery of course includes
its own paranormal activity. Visitors here have made numerous reports
of dark figures moving about, the sound of ethereal footsteps, and the
sounds of distant voices. The old cemetery includes graves dating from
1897 to 1942.
Jerome is allegedly filled with so many
spirits of the past that it affectingly known as "Ghost City” and has
made many a visitor and resident, who were previously skeptics,
believers in the paranormal.
©
Kathy Weiser/Legends
of America, updated July, 2010.
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