In summer of 2011, I accompanied my Uncle back to the US. He now lives in Dubuque, IA. I spent a week with his family before returning back to Cebu, the Philippines. On my return trip, I decided to take a few more days off and see the sights of Chicago. I have been to the US on numerous occasions but this was my first to Chicago. I was so looking forward to baseball and food! I booked a room at the Congress Plaza Hotel because of its accessibility and reasonable rate. It was close to subways where I could go with ease to a Sox's game at Comiskey Park and to O'Hare for my flight home.
The hotel is quite old and it looks old, you can hear it creak in some areas. The room I was assigned to was on the 4th floor I think. It was on a corner and you could see Roosevelt University on E. Congress Parkway when you look out the window. The hallway outside leading up to my room was always eerily quiet. The first night after I got back from eating out, the room became really cold. I thought it was really strange because it was nice and warm outside. Also, it got cold suddenly not gradually. I ended up sleeping with the bed sheet, blanket and bed cover on top. It was cold just that one night, the rest of my stay there was quite warm.
I would be out during the day to explore the city and get back after dinner. Every time I get to my room, some of my stuff would be moved. I initially thought it was the cleaners so I hung a do-not-disturb sign outside my door. I would still get back to my room with my stuff moved. Nothing was missing though, all my stuff were accounted for.
What validated the rumours I've heard that this place is haunted was when I saw a shadow figure. There was a dresser at the foot of the bed with a biggish mirror. While in bed one night, recalling my visit to Chicago's Field Museum that day, I saw reflected on the mirror a shadow. It was peeking out from the bathroom door that was slightly ajar. The lights were off inside the bathroom but I could still make out a distinct human shape. It was darker than the dark bathroom but it was solid. I stared at the reflection for I don't know how long. I couldn't really tell if it was staring back at me as it had no face (but somehow I had the feeling that it was espying me). There was just solid blackness where a face should have been. I blinked to make sure I wasn't just seeing things and sure enough, it was still there. I got out of the bed to confront it (honestly, I'm not sure what I was thinking then) but it had vanished. I went back to bed, looked at the mirror again, it was no longer there.
Has anyone been to this same hotel and experienced these?
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Also
One of the hotel's most famous apparitions is Peg Leg Johnny, the ghost of a hobo who was murdered there. Hotel staff have reported sightings of a ghost with one leg in the south tower.
If you ever find yourself staying at the hotel, avoid room 441. Security is called there more than any other room. Objects move, strange sounds are heard and guests have even seen the shadowy outline of a woman.
There's a legend of a worker who was walled up in the drywall during the hotel's construction. This 'hand of mystery' can actually be seen in the closets behind the balcony in the Gold Room.
Many of the house staff have reported seeing the ghost of a little boy playing in the north tower of the hotel. Legend has it that the boy's mother threw him and his brother off a balcony before she jumped herself.
The scariest part about the hotel is that on the 12th floor there is supposedly a room so horrifying that the door was screwed shut from the outside.