The Haunted Dunhill Hotel

Posted: 01.09.2025 | Updated: 01.09.2025

The city of Charlotte is a perfect example of when modernity meets a deep-rooted past. Its lit skyline adorns the night as the stories of its past echo through the streets. Some are filled with such sadness and tragedy that Charlotte has become a safe haven for spirits. 

Part of what makes up Charlotte’s towering skyline is the Dunhill Hotel. It was an architectural magnificence of its time, impressing all who walked through its doors. Today, its grandiose appearance is rumored to be a facade for the tiptoeing chill lingering in its halls and rooms, dating back to one of America’s darkest periods. It’s why the Dunhill Hotel is considered one of Charlotte’s most haunted hotels. 

Spirits skulk around every corridor of Charlotte, NC.  Ready to meet them yourself? Book a ghost tour on our website today with Charlotte Ghosts for a chilling experience you can talk about for years to come! Be sure to check our blog for more unsettling stories surrounding some of North Carolina’s most haunted locations.

Is the Dunhill Hotel Haunted?

Dunhill Hotel holds a special place in the heart of Charlotte, marked for its architectural significance and unyielding in its devotion to hospitality. Even the most extravagant buildings and dwellings are subject to a ghost story or two, however. The Dunhill Hotel is no different, with its rocky past dating back to the Great Depression. 

History of the Dunhill Hotel

The Dunhill Hotel was conceived in 1926 by doctors J.P. Matheson and C.N. Peeler. Together, the two men saw the potential in the building’s proximity to the city square and the number of high-end storefronts. A vision blossomed as they set out to create the most sought-after holiday destination throughout North Carolina. 

Matheson hired architect Louis Asbury Sr. to bring their vision to life two years later. Indeed, he did, with a tasteful blend of various neoclassical influences making the 10-story building stand out against the Charlotte skyline. The building opened on November 15, 1929 as “Mayfair Manor.” 

Guests were captivated by its luxury, with half of the hotel’s original 100 guest rooms becoming permanent residences. The hotel was off to a great start, even being praised in the newspapers for its architectural ingenuity despite the crippling economic effects of the Great Depression. 

Ironically, harder times didn’t hit the hotel until Dr. Matheson’s death in 1937. A series of ownership and name changes subsequently followed over the next two decades; each attempt to bring the hotel to its former glory was worse than the last. Its fate seemed as though it was sealed after its deterioration in the 60s and 70s. It sat abandoned for several years, with its only guests being squatters. 

Dunhill Hotel Associates stepped in and purchased the hotel in 1987, however. The building and its surrounding shops underwent a thorough $6 million, year-long renovation. Today, the hotel, now named the Dunhill Hotel, is owned and run by The Dunhill Hotel Group and the Summit Hospitality Group. A member of Historic Hotels of America since 1991, Dunhill Hotel remains one of the most historic hotels in Charlotte, NC.

Hauntings Overview

Reported hauntings at the Dunhill Hotel go as far back as its opening. It was a towering architectural gem for Charlotte, even wading the rocky waters of the Great Depression. Others weren’t so lucky, however. Once standing as the city’s tallest building, many looked at the Dunhill Hotel as the perfect spot to leap to their death. 

While the Great Depression may have ended, many have since believed these suicides have left a residual ghostly stain on the hotel. Feelings of unsettling sadness have been felt in several of its rooms, along with specific areas. There are additional experiences in the hotel that have attracted the attention of several paranormal research teams. 

Drastic temperature differences and phantom smells have been experienced, along with electromagnetic field detectors going off. One team member decided to spend the night in the room reputed to be the most active: 906. He reported that a lot of his equipment had been randomly shut off during the night. What’s more unsettling is he could hear the sound of someone wrapping their fingernails around the nightstand several times into the night. 

A couple had a similar experience every night during their stay at Dunhill Hotel. The wife reportedly woke up in the middle of the night, feeling as if someone was staring at her. She woke up her husband, who claimed he also felt a presence in the room. The husband also claimed that at another time, he heard what sounded like little girls laughing coming from the vent, while he brushed his teeth in the bathroom. 

Dusty

The most well-known spirit to reside at the Dunhill Hotel is who staff have named Dusty. Knocking on doors when no one is around, moving objects around, opening and closing the blinds: he’s developed a reputation for truly being a prankster to the living. 

Dusty has a more disturbing trademark: He is known to open the elevator door quite often. What makes this so? It has to do with a gruesome discovery made during the hotel’s renovation in the 1980s. 

Human remains were found at the bottom of the elevator shaft. However, DNA evidence and forensic genealogy weren’t as advanced back then. The abandoned hotel became a hideout for numerous squatters with no information on them, making identifying the remains impossible. The discovery consequently became one of Charlotte’s most talked-about mysteries for decades. 

That is until 2023 when a team of forensic investigators finally got answers; his name was Oliver Doc Mundy, a homeless World War II veteran. Closure was finally given to Oliver’s family, but whether it’s enough to put Oliver’s soul to rest remains to be seen. 

Haunted Charlotte

There is something for everyone in Charlotte: entertainment, history, the exuberant city nightlife. Another world hides underneath it when the air is still, and the noise dies down, however. It becomes replaced with stories of the dead, echoing tragedy and despair, so great that Charlotte has become home to some of the most haunted locations in the U.S.

One of them is Charlotte’s historic landmark, the Dunhill Hotel, located right in the heart of the city. Its towering beauty stands in stark contrast to the tragedy it has witnessed in the last 100 years. Now, a spine-chilling aura lingers with many of the hotel’s dearly departed haunting its rooms to this day.

Come and see Charlotte’s ghosts up close and personal! Be sure to visit our website today for a ghost tour like nothing you’ve ever seen with Charlotte Ghosts. You can also check out our blog, where you can read up on more chilling stories connected to Charlotte’s most haunted sites.  Be sure to also stay connected with us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

Sources:

1. https://charlotteghosttour.com/
2. https://www.historichotels.org/us/hotels-resorts/the-dunhill-hotel/history.php
3. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-charlotte-observer-charlottes-littl/50443632/
4. https://www.hauntedrooms.com/north-carolina/haunted-places/haunted-hotels/dunhill-hotel]
5. https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/crime/seeking-solutions-charlotte-cold-case-solved-remains-found-in-dunhill-hotel-elevator-shaft-identified-missing-army-veteran/275-dd1c177c-3a8c-4dc0-9ceb-67ac3866e2a8