What I consider to be one of the best places in Mobile, Alabama to rest your head and to go back in time to experience the extravagance and artistic beauty of Mobile’s oldest hotel is The Battle House Hotel dating back to 1908. It replaces an earlier Battle House that was originally built in 1852, but unfortunately burnt down in 1905. The first Battle House was originally built by James Battle and his half-nephews, John, and Samuel. In its heyday it was known as Mobile’s Living Room. The current Battle House reopened in 2007 with major renovations after being closed for 30 years. This full restoration of the hotel and the construction of the RSA Battle House Tower made this building the tallest in Alabama. It stands at 745 feet with 35 floors. The Battle House was named America’s best historic hotel by the Historic Hotels of America, an online booking website in 2020. It is located on 26 North Royal Street in the heart of downtown Mobile, Alabama. A hotel this old holds some colorful history, folklore, and murder and a ghost or two.
The site on which the hotel was built was a former military headquarters for Andrew Jackson during the war of 1812. I also discovered that the first Mardi Gras ball was held at the Battle House in 1852 called the Strikers Ball. Another fun fact is that the Mobile’s oldest radio station broadcasted from this hotel on February 7, 1930. Its call sign was WODX before they changed it to WALA in 1933. The hotel has seen some famous guest such as Oscar Wilde, poet and playwright known for writing such works as The Importance of Being Earnest and The Picture of Dorian Gray and two U.S. Presidents: Millard Fillmore (13th President) and Woodrow Wilson (28th President). It was also popular with the Hollywood folks when they were in town filming their movies. Nicolas Cage and Robert De Niro have been spotted in the hotel. Spying on guest’s conversation is easy in the lobby with its Whispering Arches. Just ask the hotel staff on where to stand to hear the conversation on the opposite end.
But what about murder you ask? Did you know it was the site of Mobile’s most infamous honor killing? It was called the “Battle House Honor Killing.” Mr. Henry Butler, a former Mardi Gras King, had been caught fooling around with Mrs. Raymond Dyson, his Mardi Gras Queen. They were both in the same Mardi Gras court of King Felix III of 1929. Mrs. Dyson’s husband, Raymond and his brother found out about the affair and wanted revenge. They talked Mr. Butler into following them to room 552, where they eventually beat him to death. It was the top news story in 1932 by the Mobile Press Register. Raymond and his brother were acquitted of this crime of passion. It is said that Mr. Butler’s ghost has haunted the hotel’s fifth floor ever since. I will not be staying in that murder room.
Another ghost story I have heard at The Battle House Hotel involves a young newlywed. In 1910, shortly after the young woman’s wedding, her husband was called away on business and he never came back. She became very depressed and hung herself in the hotel’s Crystal Ballroom. Guests and hotel employees have reported seeing apparitions and hearing strange voices. Lights and faucets have also been known to turn on and off by themselves and some guests have experienced feelings of someone sitting on their bed. I hear that the fourth floor is the place to be to encounter such a haunting. I stayed on the 7th floor in the historic section but did not experience anything out of order other then our missing cocktail glasses. Hmmm. When construction workers were working to restore the building, they reported missing tools. Some specters have sticky fingers.
When I step into the lobby of this grand hotel, I feel like I stepped back in time. It is very elegant, and the artwork and details are beautiful. It is my hope that you visit the Battle House or if you are on the street, then step inside and check out this beautiful lobby and the Crystal Ballroom. I was thrilled to stay for a couple of days after Christmas when it was decorated in grand fashion for the Holidays. Also, ask one of the employees to share stories of their most notorious guests that have walked these corridors if you dare.
https://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/mobbr-the-battle-house-renaissance-mobile-hotel-and-spa/