1 00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:06,400 Speaker 1: Happy Saturday. We talked about ghosts and hauntings this week 2 00:00:06,400 --> 00:00:10,039 Speaker 1: in an installment of six Impossible Episodes, and we mentioned 3 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:13,400 Speaker 1: that we were not including any haunted hotels in that episode, 4 00:00:13,480 --> 00:00:16,520 Speaker 1: so we thought we would revisit a haunted hotel for 5 00:00:16,680 --> 00:00:21,880 Speaker 1: today's Saturday Classic, and that's the Crescent Hotel of Eureka Springs, Arkansas. 6 00:00:22,600 --> 00:00:24,960 Speaker 1: As a note, there is a moment in this episode 7 00:00:25,079 --> 00:00:27,480 Speaker 1: that caused me to laugh out loud when I listened 8 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: to it ahead of choosing it for a Saturday Classic. 9 00:00:30,440 --> 00:00:33,640 Speaker 1: It is when we compare the cost of building the 10 00:00:33,680 --> 00:00:37,279 Speaker 1: Crescent Hotel in eighteen eighty six to the cost of 11 00:00:37,360 --> 00:00:40,239 Speaker 1: buying a house at the time that we recorded it. 12 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:43,479 Speaker 1: I just want to say, we are definitely aware of 13 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:46,519 Speaker 1: how much the average home price in the US has 14 00:00:47,680 --> 00:00:52,960 Speaker 1: risen since that episode came out on March ninth, twenty sixteen. 15 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:56,480 Speaker 1: Like it's an amount of money that was already much 16 00:00:56,560 --> 00:01:00,480 Speaker 1: lower than hous's costs in a lot of places the time, 17 00:01:00,480 --> 00:01:03,280 Speaker 1: but it was roughly in line with the median at 18 00:01:03,320 --> 00:01:06,640 Speaker 1: that time and it is not anymore. Also, just please 19 00:01:06,680 --> 00:01:15,800 Speaker 1: excuse how I said the word penitentiary. So enjoy. Welcome 20 00:01:15,880 --> 00:01:25,080 Speaker 1: to stuff you Missed in History Class a production of iHeartRadio. Hello, look, 21 00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: welcome to the podcast. I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy V. Wilson, 22 00:01:30,080 --> 00:01:33,319 Speaker 1: and today's topic is a request by our listener Jordan. 23 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:36,280 Speaker 1: We're talking about a hotel with a fascinating history and 24 00:01:36,319 --> 00:01:40,200 Speaker 1: allegedly some lingering spirits who never checked out. And what's 25 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:42,679 Speaker 1: really kind of interesting is that this is a hotel 26 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:45,440 Speaker 1: that has had many identities in its one hundred and 27 00:01:45,480 --> 00:01:48,360 Speaker 1: thirty two years since it first opened, but the most 28 00:01:48,400 --> 00:01:53,080 Speaker 1: colorful phase involved some quackery and incredibly misleading medical claims 29 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:55,720 Speaker 1: on the part of a particular gentleman. So we're talking 30 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:58,840 Speaker 1: about the Crescent Hotel and Norman Baker, and we're just 31 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:01,320 Speaker 1: going to jump right into kind of talking about how 32 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:03,919 Speaker 1: the hotel got made, and then we'll talk about Norman Baker, 33 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:07,320 Speaker 1: and then we'll also talk a little bit about the 34 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:09,680 Speaker 1: ghosts that are allegedly there, So it'll be a little 35 00:02:09,720 --> 00:02:14,520 Speaker 1: early springtime ghost story to start at the beginning. In 36 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:17,960 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty two, the Eureka Springs Improvement Company was founded 37 00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:22,560 Speaker 1: in you guessed it, Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Carpetbagger and former 38 00:02:22,639 --> 00:02:25,960 Speaker 1: Arkansas Governor Powell Clayton founded the company, which was focused 39 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:28,440 Speaker 1: on bringing the railroad to the town and also on 40 00:02:28,480 --> 00:02:32,960 Speaker 1: developing some infrastructure, housing attractions that would serve people once 41 00:02:33,000 --> 00:02:36,240 Speaker 1: they arrived by the railroad. So from eighteen eighty two 42 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:39,160 Speaker 1: to eighteen eighty four there was construction going on at 43 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:42,880 Speaker 1: just a breakneck pace, and the town was actually a 44 00:02:42,919 --> 00:02:46,560 Speaker 1: popular destination for travelers before all that development, though, and 45 00:02:46,639 --> 00:02:49,079 Speaker 1: even before it was even officially founded as a city 46 00:02:49,080 --> 00:02:52,359 Speaker 1: in eighteen seventy nine, and all that tourism was due 47 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 1: to the fact that the springs for which the town 48 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:59,000 Speaker 1: was named were believed to have curative properties. The magical 49 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:03,640 Speaker 1: healing reputation was started when a doctor allegedly cured his 50 00:03:03,720 --> 00:03:07,160 Speaker 1: son's blindness with spring water there in eighteen fifty six, 51 00:03:07,960 --> 00:03:10,400 Speaker 1: and throughout the Civil War and after it, more and 52 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:13,560 Speaker 1: more stories emerged from people who claimed to be cured 53 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,320 Speaker 1: or know someone who had been cured by the water 54 00:03:16,400 --> 00:03:20,160 Speaker 1: from these springs. In eighteen eighty four, construction started on 55 00:03:20,240 --> 00:03:22,520 Speaker 1: the Crescent Hotel, and it was part of the larger 56 00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:25,880 Speaker 1: effort by the Eureka Springs Improvement Company. It was also 57 00:03:25,919 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: in collaboration with the Frisco Train company. The site for 58 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:32,080 Speaker 1: the resort was chosen at the top of West Mountain 59 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:34,680 Speaker 1: above Eureka Springs proper, and it was on twenty seven 60 00:03:34,720 --> 00:03:39,440 Speaker 1: acres that overlooked the valley. In eighteen eighty five, while 61 00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: the hotel was still being built, an Irish stone mason 62 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,920 Speaker 1: is said to have lost his balance and fallen several 63 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:50,280 Speaker 1: floors into the second floor area, and he died there. 64 00:03:50,600 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 1: In hotel lore, this mason is named Michael. I was 65 00:03:53,960 --> 00:03:56,480 Speaker 1: not able to verify the accuracy of this tale, one 66 00:03:56,520 --> 00:03:58,320 Speaker 1: way or the other. I spent a lot of time 67 00:03:58,360 --> 00:04:02,240 Speaker 1: combing through the Arkansas Free Public Records directory online, and 68 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:04,800 Speaker 1: without a last name attached to it, just the name Michael, 69 00:04:04,800 --> 00:04:07,480 Speaker 1: Eureka Springs and the year of death really did not 70 00:04:07,560 --> 00:04:10,920 Speaker 1: churn up anything that corroborated this, one way or the other. 71 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:14,680 Speaker 1: Despite this purported death, the work continued on a hotel, 72 00:04:14,760 --> 00:04:17,560 Speaker 1: and the Crescent opened its doors for business the following year, 73 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: on May twentieth of eighteen eighty six. At this point 74 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:24,440 Speaker 1: it was a sumptuous, well appointed Victorian resort, and it 75 00:04:24,480 --> 00:04:28,000 Speaker 1: was intended to cater to the wealthy with every possible luxury. 76 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:32,559 Speaker 1: The hotel had cost an exorbitant two hundred and ninety 77 00:04:32,560 --> 00:04:35,560 Speaker 1: four thousand dollars to build. That is a massive amount 78 00:04:35,560 --> 00:04:38,240 Speaker 1: of money for the time, even though today that would 79 00:04:38,240 --> 00:04:41,440 Speaker 1: buy you a lovely house and a medium neighborhood in 80 00:04:41,480 --> 00:04:44,600 Speaker 1: many cities. There was a galla ball and a banquet 81 00:04:44,680 --> 00:04:46,960 Speaker 1: serve to launch the hotel's life as part of this 82 00:04:47,040 --> 00:04:49,760 Speaker 1: big opening, and it was lauded as the utmost in 83 00:04:49,880 --> 00:04:53,600 Speaker 1: luxury in all of the newspaper coverage. Guests were offered 84 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:57,039 Speaker 1: all manner of amenities to enjoy, including a spa. Of course, 85 00:04:57,080 --> 00:04:59,080 Speaker 1: the spring waters were still a big part of the draw. 86 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:02,479 Speaker 1: There was cro Okay, a walk in beautiful gardens could 87 00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:04,880 Speaker 1: be taken at any time. There was a stable of 88 00:05:04,880 --> 00:05:07,839 Speaker 1: one hundred horses from which guests could choose a ride. 89 00:05:08,240 --> 00:05:11,320 Speaker 1: There was an in house orchestra that they retained there 90 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,360 Speaker 1: at the resort that played regularly. There were picnics and 91 00:05:14,440 --> 00:05:17,680 Speaker 1: open coach rides for guests who wanted to relax outdoors. 92 00:05:18,480 --> 00:05:22,240 Speaker 1: To the great delight of Powell Clayton and his business investors, 93 00:05:22,279 --> 00:05:25,800 Speaker 1: the venture really succeeded in drawing a wealthy clientele. People 94 00:05:25,839 --> 00:05:28,800 Speaker 1: traveled from all around the country to enjoy these dazzling 95 00:05:29,279 --> 00:05:32,800 Speaker 1: parties and to take dips in the healing waters. In 96 00:05:32,839 --> 00:05:36,279 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty eight, the train lines directly into Eureka Springs 97 00:05:36,320 --> 00:05:39,240 Speaker 1: were completed, and that made accommodations at the luxury resort 98 00:05:39,360 --> 00:05:42,120 Speaker 1: even more accessible for the people who could afford to 99 00:05:42,160 --> 00:05:47,000 Speaker 1: stay there. In eighteen ninety six, William Jennings Bryan delivered 100 00:05:47,000 --> 00:05:49,160 Speaker 1: one of the orations for which he was famous at 101 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:52,160 Speaker 1: the Crescent Hotel. This was the year when he made 102 00:05:52,200 --> 00:05:55,039 Speaker 1: his famous Cross of Gold speech and was the Democratic 103 00:05:55,080 --> 00:05:58,000 Speaker 1: Party's presidential nominee, so this really was a pretty high 104 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:02,840 Speaker 1: profile appearance. The hotel was expanded in nineteen hundred and 105 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,719 Speaker 1: running water was added throughout the facility, and additional quarters 106 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:09,200 Speaker 1: were built for servants and staff as sort of an annex. 107 00:06:09,680 --> 00:06:12,640 Speaker 1: But even then the hotel's popularity was starting to wane. 108 00:06:12,720 --> 00:06:15,719 Speaker 1: People had realized that the rumors of the water's seemingly 109 00:06:15,800 --> 00:06:20,000 Speaker 1: magical powers were not really substantiated, and the hotel's bookings 110 00:06:20,040 --> 00:06:23,840 Speaker 1: were starting to drop off. And as the prosperity of 111 00:06:23,880 --> 00:06:28,799 Speaker 1: the Crescent Hotel was on this downward trajectory, Powell Clayton 112 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:31,560 Speaker 1: decided to leave behind his venture, and in nineteen oh 113 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,480 Speaker 1: two he left Eureka Springs behind, and he started a 114 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:37,320 Speaker 1: new job as the US Ambassador to Mexico. There were 115 00:06:37,640 --> 00:06:40,600 Speaker 1: connections that he had made through his position as head 116 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:42,800 Speaker 1: of that company that kind of gave him the end 117 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,000 Speaker 1: to that position, and from the time of Clayton's departure, 118 00:06:46,360 --> 00:06:50,960 Speaker 1: the hotel really just slowly fell into disrepair. In nineteen 119 00:06:51,040 --> 00:06:53,080 Speaker 1: oh eight, a new business plan was launched to try 120 00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:55,000 Speaker 1: to fill the empty rooms of the hotel and to 121 00:06:55,040 --> 00:06:57,839 Speaker 1: bring in more money. The hotel opened up as the 122 00:06:57,920 --> 00:07:02,120 Speaker 1: Crescent College and Conservatory for Young Women. In the summer, 123 00:07:02,160 --> 00:07:04,159 Speaker 1: it was still the Crescent Hotel and was open for 124 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:06,320 Speaker 1: resort guests, but for the rest of the year it 125 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:10,520 Speaker 1: was a ladies educational institution. The hope was that the 126 00:07:10,600 --> 00:07:13,360 Speaker 1: same families who were drawn to Eureka Springs as a 127 00:07:13,400 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: vacation locale would also be happy to send their daughters 128 00:07:16,680 --> 00:07:20,440 Speaker 1: there for school, and this kind of worked for a while, 129 00:07:21,080 --> 00:07:23,160 Speaker 1: actually for a pretty decent amount of time, but by 130 00:07:23,200 --> 00:07:25,920 Speaker 1: the nineteen twenties, remember this was launched in nineteen oh eight, 131 00:07:25,960 --> 00:07:29,480 Speaker 1: so more than a decade, but by the nineteen twenties, 132 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:32,360 Speaker 1: the income from enrollment was not really keeping up. It 133 00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:34,480 Speaker 1: wasn't enough to make up for the lack of guests 134 00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:37,880 Speaker 1: that they had, and in nineteen twenty four, the Crescent 135 00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:41,680 Speaker 1: Hotel closed as both a hotel and as a woman's college. 136 00:07:42,520 --> 00:07:45,120 Speaker 1: There was a brief gasp of life again in nineteen 137 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:47,600 Speaker 1: thirty when the Crescent reopened again, this time was a 138 00:07:47,680 --> 00:07:51,200 Speaker 1: junior college, but once again it couldn't sustain itself as 139 00:07:51,200 --> 00:07:54,720 Speaker 1: an educational facility, and the school closed just six years later. 140 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:59,480 Speaker 1: And we're about to get to what's considered the most 141 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:02,000 Speaker 1: colorful and kind of c d part of the Crescent 142 00:08:02,040 --> 00:08:05,000 Speaker 1: Hotel's history. But before we do, we're going to pause 143 00:08:05,040 --> 00:08:18,640 Speaker 1: and have a word from one of our sponsors. Before 144 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:21,040 Speaker 1: we talk more about the Crescent Hotel, we'll have to 145 00:08:21,040 --> 00:08:25,920 Speaker 1: talk about its next owner, who was Norman Baker. Norman 146 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:28,920 Speaker 1: was born on November twenty seventh of eighteen eighty two 147 00:08:29,120 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: in Muscatine, Iowa, and his parents, John and Francis Baker, 148 00:08:33,120 --> 00:08:36,160 Speaker 1: had ten children. Norman was the youngest. I also saw 149 00:08:36,240 --> 00:08:40,000 Speaker 1: it listed once as nine children, but a large herd 150 00:08:40,040 --> 00:08:42,720 Speaker 1: of children, and he was the youngest. And the Bakers 151 00:08:42,720 --> 00:08:46,040 Speaker 1: were pretty industrious people, but before becoming a wife and mother, 152 00:08:46,520 --> 00:08:49,760 Speaker 1: Francis did a good bit of writing, and John owned 153 00:08:49,800 --> 00:08:52,720 Speaker 1: and ran a manufacturing company, and he had more than 154 00:08:52,720 --> 00:08:56,360 Speaker 1: one hundred patents to his name. But Norman was different 155 00:08:56,400 --> 00:08:58,480 Speaker 1: from his parents. He would turn out to have drive 156 00:08:58,559 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: of his own, but it manifest in very different ways. 157 00:09:02,120 --> 00:09:04,240 Speaker 1: He dropped out of school after his sophomore year and 158 00:09:04,280 --> 00:09:07,440 Speaker 1: then spent several years drifting around picking up machinist work 159 00:09:07,480 --> 00:09:12,680 Speaker 1: here and there. Then he found inspiration in a Vaudeville act. 160 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:17,040 Speaker 1: Believing he could put together a similar and lucrative act 161 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:19,080 Speaker 1: to the one that he had seen that inspired him, 162 00:09:19,559 --> 00:09:23,120 Speaker 1: Norman started his own traveling act that featured various actresses 163 00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:26,120 Speaker 1: in the role of Madame Pearl Tangly, who is a 164 00:09:26,160 --> 00:09:29,000 Speaker 1: mind reader and a mystic. And he toured the mind 165 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:31,720 Speaker 1: reading show for a full decade, including making one of 166 00:09:31,720 --> 00:09:34,440 Speaker 1: the Madame Pearl Tanglies his wife briefly before having that 167 00:09:34,480 --> 00:09:39,040 Speaker 1: marriage annulled before he wrapped that particular project, just because 168 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:41,960 Speaker 1: I know that mentioning Vaudeville will probably bring in emails 169 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:44,040 Speaker 1: from people saying, hey, you should do a podcast on 170 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:48,880 Speaker 1: the history of Vaudeville. They're already two in the archive. Yeah. So, 171 00:09:49,240 --> 00:09:52,280 Speaker 1: once he was done with this entertainment enterprise, Baker went 172 00:09:52,320 --> 00:09:54,800 Speaker 1: back home to his hometown in Iowa and turned his 173 00:09:54,840 --> 00:09:58,160 Speaker 1: hand to other business ventures. He ran a correspondence school 174 00:09:58,160 --> 00:10:01,200 Speaker 1: that taught art lessons and mail order business, and he 175 00:10:01,280 --> 00:10:05,319 Speaker 1: invented a device called the air calliophone. This caliophone was 176 00:10:05,360 --> 00:10:07,720 Speaker 1: an organ that ran on air pressure and it could 177 00:10:07,760 --> 00:10:11,680 Speaker 1: carry it sound really incredible distances. He patented this device 178 00:10:11,720 --> 00:10:14,480 Speaker 1: in nineteen fourteen, and he opened a factory to produce them. 179 00:10:14,480 --> 00:10:19,160 Speaker 1: In nineteen sixteen, After almost another ten years of running 180 00:10:19,200 --> 00:10:23,000 Speaker 1: his various small businesses, Norman Baker decided to get into 181 00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:25,720 Speaker 1: radio and he started his own radio station with the 182 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:30,280 Speaker 1: call letters KTNT that stood for No the Naked Truth, 183 00:10:30,640 --> 00:10:33,000 Speaker 1: and he used his broadcast to talk about the issues 184 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:36,160 Speaker 1: of small town life, some of it things like agriculture 185 00:10:36,240 --> 00:10:39,360 Speaker 1: and sort of basic need to know type things, but 186 00:10:39,480 --> 00:10:42,800 Speaker 1: also to comment and participate in larger issues, such as 187 00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:45,599 Speaker 1: the nineteen twenty eight presidential race, in which he was 188 00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:50,000 Speaker 1: a very vocal supporter of Republican candidate Herbert Hoover. Baker 189 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:53,560 Speaker 1: would also broadcast attacks on anyone who criticized him or 190 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:56,520 Speaker 1: any of his work, and he seemed to really have 191 00:10:56,679 --> 00:11:00,000 Speaker 1: a grind against Catholicism because he would attack the Catholic 192 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:05,160 Speaker 1: religion on the regular, KTNT became something of a branding juggernaut. 193 00:11:05,320 --> 00:11:08,280 Speaker 1: Baker produced a magazine called The Naked Press that served 194 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:11,319 Speaker 1: as a supplement to his on air editorials. He opened 195 00:11:11,360 --> 00:11:14,680 Speaker 1: a gas station and a restaurant under the KTNT name, 196 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:17,400 Speaker 1: and while he was broadcasting from what you might think 197 00:11:17,440 --> 00:11:20,600 Speaker 1: of as a local station, he wound up with incredible reach. 198 00:11:21,160 --> 00:11:23,520 Speaker 1: Allegedly he could be heard at times as far away 199 00:11:23,520 --> 00:11:27,040 Speaker 1: as Hawaii. Baker had been so devoted to the Hoover 200 00:11:27,160 --> 00:11:30,240 Speaker 1: campaign that once the election was over and Hoover had won, 201 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: Norman was invited to meet the President, and this connection 202 00:11:33,559 --> 00:11:36,520 Speaker 1: would later pay off with yet another business venture, as 203 00:11:36,559 --> 00:11:39,600 Speaker 1: Hoover supported Baker in his launch of The Midwest Free 204 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:44,000 Speaker 1: Press in December of nineteen thirty. As this publishing empire 205 00:11:44,040 --> 00:11:47,040 Speaker 1: began to expand, Baker also started to be really vocal 206 00:11:47,120 --> 00:11:51,000 Speaker 1: about another group doctors, claiming that he knew better than 207 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:53,720 Speaker 1: they did, so much so that he claimed he could 208 00:11:53,720 --> 00:11:58,360 Speaker 1: cure cancer. This is like just the thing that quack 209 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:01,679 Speaker 1: doctors always seemed to jump to you, So, I mean, 210 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:05,280 Speaker 1: never mind that he had zero medical training. Baker opened 211 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,240 Speaker 1: up his own curative facility, which was the Baker institute 212 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:11,360 Speaker 1: which had one hundred beds, a whole out of staff, 213 00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 1: with really dubious certifications, and the promise of curing cancer. 214 00:12:16,000 --> 00:12:21,560 Speaker 1: Hospital slogan was cancer is curable and to prove his 215 00:12:21,720 --> 00:12:24,840 Speaker 1: claims that he had the cure that the medical establishment 216 00:12:24,880 --> 00:12:27,160 Speaker 1: did not. And here is a brief warning that things 217 00:12:27,160 --> 00:12:29,480 Speaker 1: are about to get a little dicey if you're squeamish. 218 00:12:30,160 --> 00:12:32,679 Speaker 1: Although I believe it to have been a theatrical thing 219 00:12:32,760 --> 00:12:37,160 Speaker 1: and not an actual thing, Baker staged a festival, drawing 220 00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:40,560 Speaker 1: a massive crowd of thousands. Estimates, depending on what you read, 221 00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:44,400 Speaker 1: put the number of attendees everywhere from between seventeen thousand 222 00:12:44,480 --> 00:12:47,360 Speaker 1: and thirty thousand, so in some ways this was a 223 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:50,199 Speaker 1: callback to his days running the Madame Pearl Tangley Show. 224 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:53,600 Speaker 1: There were entertainers and testimonials, and then Baker went on 225 00:12:53,679 --> 00:12:57,720 Speaker 1: stage to extol the virtues of his miracle elixir. It 226 00:12:57,840 --> 00:13:00,640 Speaker 1: was magic in a bottle, according to him, and just 227 00:13:00,720 --> 00:13:04,080 Speaker 1: the contents of one bottle could cure twenty five people 228 00:13:04,240 --> 00:13:08,160 Speaker 1: according to his pitch. And the grand finale to all 229 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:11,720 Speaker 1: of this, with these many thousands of onlookers, was kind 230 00:13:11,720 --> 00:13:15,720 Speaker 1: of a grizzly spectacle, A farmer named Mandis Johnson, who 231 00:13:15,800 --> 00:13:20,080 Speaker 1: was sixty eight, was broad on stage his head bandage. Mandis, 232 00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:23,640 Speaker 1: according to Baker, had cancer in his head, and Baker 233 00:13:23,720 --> 00:13:27,160 Speaker 1: and his surgeon assistant removed the man's bandages and then, 234 00:13:27,480 --> 00:13:30,959 Speaker 1: according to witnesses, peeled back a portion of the man's 235 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:33,800 Speaker 1: scalp and a part of his skull to show the 236 00:13:33,840 --> 00:13:37,240 Speaker 1: cancer riddled brain beneath. Baker made a big show of 237 00:13:37,520 --> 00:13:41,079 Speaker 1: quote treating the cancer with a powder form of his elixir, 238 00:13:41,480 --> 00:13:43,920 Speaker 1: and then the skull, fragment and the skin were replaced. 239 00:13:44,240 --> 00:13:47,480 Speaker 1: Johnson's skull was rebandaged, and then the farmer, seeming to 240 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:51,920 Speaker 1: be aoka and totally fine after this treatment, shook Baker's 241 00:13:51,960 --> 00:13:55,920 Speaker 1: hand and left cured, according to Norman Baker. Unsurprisingly, this 242 00:13:56,040 --> 00:13:59,480 Speaker 1: demonstration drew a lot of attention. So did Baker's continued 243 00:13:59,520 --> 00:14:02,520 Speaker 1: broadcasts from KTNT, which had taken on a more and 244 00:14:02,559 --> 00:14:07,800 Speaker 1: more anti medical establishment tone. This included denouncing vaccinations. The 245 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:12,199 Speaker 1: American Medical Association, concerned that he was disseminating dangerous information 246 00:14:12,280 --> 00:14:14,920 Speaker 1: and telling people not to see doctors, went to the 247 00:14:14,960 --> 00:14:18,520 Speaker 1: Federal Radio Commission with its concerns, and nineteen thirty one, 248 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:23,120 Speaker 1: Baker lost his broadcast license, and Baker sued the American 249 00:14:23,160 --> 00:14:27,080 Speaker 1: Medical Association for libel in nineteen thirty two, claiming that 250 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:30,840 Speaker 1: the organization had ruined his hospital business because people stopped 251 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:33,240 Speaker 1: checking in for the cure once he no longer had 252 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:37,840 Speaker 1: his free radio advertising. But Baker lost that case. His 253 00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:40,880 Speaker 1: cancer cure had been found to be nothing more than clover, 254 00:14:41,360 --> 00:14:46,520 Speaker 1: watermelon seed, corn, silk, and water. This didn't stop him, though, 255 00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:49,040 Speaker 1: He built a new radio station in Mexico, which started 256 00:14:49,040 --> 00:14:52,480 Speaker 1: broadcasting in nineteen thirty three. But he really wasn't willing 257 00:14:52,520 --> 00:14:54,600 Speaker 1: to give up his place in the sun back in Iowa. 258 00:14:55,720 --> 00:14:57,840 Speaker 1: He returned back to his home state to run for 259 00:14:57,880 --> 00:15:00,960 Speaker 1: the United States Senate in nineteen thirty seve He had 260 00:15:00,960 --> 00:15:03,440 Speaker 1: already lost a run at being governor, and he lost 261 00:15:03,480 --> 00:15:06,440 Speaker 1: a Senate race as well. He was arrested briefly for 262 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:09,160 Speaker 1: practicing medicine without a license, but it appears that he 263 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:13,000 Speaker 1: only spent one night in jail. After an RKO newsreel 264 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:18,000 Speaker 1: rand that discredited the Baker Institute, Norman with paying patients 265 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:20,680 Speaker 1: really slowing down to a trickle at best, shut down 266 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:24,640 Speaker 1: his hospital, and in nineteen thirty six, Norman also paid 267 00:15:24,640 --> 00:15:28,280 Speaker 1: to have his biography written, and this, like so much 268 00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:32,040 Speaker 1: of his other enterprises, was pure theater. The introduction to 269 00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:35,600 Speaker 1: that biography reads, quote, this is an inspiration book for 270 00:15:35,680 --> 00:15:38,400 Speaker 1: young and old, a fact story of how a man 271 00:15:38,480 --> 00:15:42,960 Speaker 1: fought his enemies, How he faced gunman dynamiters and enemy doctors. 272 00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:46,000 Speaker 1: How he fought the medical racket, the radio trust, the 273 00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:49,600 Speaker 1: aluminum trust, and others. He did it for you. There 274 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:52,680 Speaker 1: has never been a book prepared so carefully. This makes 275 00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:55,880 Speaker 1: it the most important book ever written. Read the life 276 00:15:55,880 --> 00:15:59,560 Speaker 1: story of Norman Baker, the greatest one man battle ever fought. 277 00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 1: He continued to spread his distrust of traditional medicine, Catholic Jews, science, 278 00:16:05,680 --> 00:16:09,760 Speaker 1: and basically anything that contradicted him by his Mexican radio station. 279 00:16:10,240 --> 00:16:13,680 Speaker 1: In nineteen thirty seven, he was convicted for shipping gramophone 280 00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: recordings out of the country to broadcast them in Mexico, 281 00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:19,320 Speaker 1: which was in violation of the Federal Communications Act of 282 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:22,960 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty four, but this ruling was later overturned in 283 00:16:23,040 --> 00:16:26,560 Speaker 1: appeals court. And this brings us to the point in 284 00:16:26,600 --> 00:16:29,400 Speaker 1: the timeline where Norman Baker's story meets up with the 285 00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:33,680 Speaker 1: Crescent Hotel. So after his legal battle and presumably in 286 00:16:33,720 --> 00:16:37,240 Speaker 1: search of a new enterprise suitable to his goals and personality. 287 00:16:37,720 --> 00:16:40,720 Speaker 1: He made his way to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, and he 288 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:45,280 Speaker 1: bought the Crescent Hotel. Baker renovated the rundown buildings, painting 289 00:16:45,280 --> 00:16:49,080 Speaker 1: them his favorite colors lavender and purple throughout, and he 290 00:16:49,160 --> 00:16:53,040 Speaker 1: reopened it as the Baker Cancer Hospital. We're going to 291 00:16:53,040 --> 00:16:56,320 Speaker 1: talk about the Crescent incarnation and Norman Maker and the 292 00:16:56,400 --> 00:16:59,040 Speaker 1: claims that it's now haunted. But first we're going to 293 00:16:59,040 --> 00:17:01,240 Speaker 1: take another brief break from the history to have a 294 00:17:01,240 --> 00:17:14,120 Speaker 1: word from our sponsor. Just as he had been doing 295 00:17:14,160 --> 00:17:17,720 Speaker 1: in Iowa, Baker promised patients he could free them of disease. 296 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:21,320 Speaker 1: Once he was in Eureka Springs. It's estimated that Norman 297 00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:24,399 Speaker 1: Baker was making half a million dollars a year from 298 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:28,200 Speaker 1: the hospital. Desperate patients, hoping that his claims were true, 299 00:17:28,440 --> 00:17:31,040 Speaker 1: would often hand over their life savings to receive the 300 00:17:31,080 --> 00:17:34,640 Speaker 1: Baker cure, which often involved lots of poking with needles 301 00:17:34,640 --> 00:17:39,080 Speaker 1: and prodding, occasionally subverbal treatments, but no real medical treatment. 302 00:17:39,840 --> 00:17:42,399 Speaker 1: By this time, Baker, who was still a showman, was 303 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:46,720 Speaker 1: appearing in crisp white suits with lavender and purple ties 304 00:17:46,720 --> 00:17:50,280 Speaker 1: and shirts, and he had also become really paranoid. His 305 00:17:50,440 --> 00:17:53,760 Speaker 1: office at the new hospital in Eureka Springs was walled 306 00:17:53,760 --> 00:17:57,280 Speaker 1: with bulletproof glass, and he kept guns within reach at 307 00:17:57,320 --> 00:18:01,000 Speaker 1: all times while he was there. As part of his 308 00:18:01,160 --> 00:18:05,240 Speaker 1: advertising campaign for the facility, Baker started mailing out pamphlets 309 00:18:05,280 --> 00:18:08,479 Speaker 1: in literature extolling the virtues again of the treatments that 310 00:18:08,560 --> 00:18:12,400 Speaker 1: patients could receive in his care. I believe their tagline 311 00:18:12,520 --> 00:18:16,359 Speaker 1: was where Sick People Get Well. And despite all of 312 00:18:16,400 --> 00:18:18,560 Speaker 1: his other seed doings that we've talked about up to 313 00:18:18,560 --> 00:18:21,239 Speaker 1: this point, this was the thing that really got him 314 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:25,280 Speaker 1: into trouble. Postal inspectors spotted his mailings and believed them 315 00:18:25,320 --> 00:18:28,560 Speaker 1: to be fraudulent, and in nineteen forty Norman Baker was 316 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:32,200 Speaker 1: arrested for mail fraud. The hospital at the once Grand 317 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:36,240 Speaker 1: Crescent Hotel shut down. Baker was found guilty, and he 318 00:18:36,280 --> 00:18:39,600 Speaker 1: spent March nineteen forty one to July nineteen forty four 319 00:18:39,640 --> 00:18:44,240 Speaker 1: at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas. He had defrauded 320 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:47,640 Speaker 1: patients in Eureka Springs of as much as four million dollars. 321 00:18:48,119 --> 00:18:49,919 Speaker 1: Unlike some of the other quacks that have come up 322 00:18:49,960 --> 00:18:52,359 Speaker 1: on a podcast. None of his patients died as a 323 00:18:52,359 --> 00:18:55,400 Speaker 1: direct result of his treatments, but they were missing out 324 00:18:55,440 --> 00:18:59,600 Speaker 1: on actual medical care, which you could have made it. 325 00:19:00,200 --> 00:19:02,800 Speaker 1: They've died faster than if they would if they had 326 00:19:02,840 --> 00:19:07,119 Speaker 1: gotten actual treatment. Yeah, we don't know if any of 327 00:19:07,119 --> 00:19:10,160 Speaker 1: those desperate people could have potentially even you know, had 328 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:12,240 Speaker 1: improved health and lived for a long time because they 329 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:17,680 Speaker 1: weren't seeing doctors. Two years after his release, Baker attempted 330 00:19:17,720 --> 00:19:21,040 Speaker 1: to reopen his hospital in Muscatine, Iowa, but he never 331 00:19:21,080 --> 00:19:23,359 Speaker 1: managed to do so, and he ended up living his 332 00:19:23,480 --> 00:19:26,920 Speaker 1: last twelve years on a yacht in Florida. He died 333 00:19:26,960 --> 00:19:29,680 Speaker 1: on September eighth of nineteen fifty eight of cirrhosis of 334 00:19:29,720 --> 00:19:32,560 Speaker 1: the liver, and he was actually buried back in Muscatine 335 00:19:32,560 --> 00:19:36,480 Speaker 1: at the Greenwood Cemetery, next to his sister. The hotel 336 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:40,840 Speaker 1: sat abandoned for six years after Baker closed the operation down, 337 00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:43,199 Speaker 1: and then in nineteen forty six it was purchased by 338 00:19:43,200 --> 00:19:47,679 Speaker 1: a group of businessmen from Chicago A Byfield, John R. Constantine, 339 00:19:47,800 --> 00:19:51,879 Speaker 1: Dwight o' nicholas, and Herbert E. Shutter, and they intended 340 00:19:51,920 --> 00:19:54,480 Speaker 1: to restore it back to being a hotel. They did 341 00:19:54,520 --> 00:19:56,840 Speaker 1: get it up and running, even offering a special tour 342 00:19:56,880 --> 00:20:00,119 Speaker 1: package which included travel from Chicago to the resort, a 343 00:20:00,160 --> 00:20:03,600 Speaker 1: six day stay, and meals, all for the low price 344 00:20:03,640 --> 00:20:06,960 Speaker 1: of sixty two dollars and fifty cents. The business did 345 00:20:07,040 --> 00:20:10,199 Speaker 1: really pretty well under their stewardship for two decades, but 346 00:20:10,280 --> 00:20:14,159 Speaker 1: in nineteen sixty seven, a bellman burning boxes in the 347 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:18,200 Speaker 1: lobby fireplace started a fire that completely consumed the fifth 348 00:20:18,240 --> 00:20:22,200 Speaker 1: floor and partially destroyed the fourth floor. For the next 349 00:20:22,240 --> 00:20:25,480 Speaker 1: thirty years, the Crescent would pass from owner to owner, 350 00:20:26,080 --> 00:20:29,679 Speaker 1: restoration project to restoration project. At one point it was 351 00:20:29,720 --> 00:20:32,280 Speaker 1: bought by two married couples, the Fenians and the Corries, 352 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:35,480 Speaker 1: who reopened it and gave a cat name Morris the 353 00:20:35,520 --> 00:20:38,600 Speaker 1: title of hotel manager. But they eventually sold the hotel, 354 00:20:38,680 --> 00:20:42,160 Speaker 1: which was then owned by several banks and businesses until finally, 355 00:20:42,359 --> 00:20:45,959 Speaker 1: in nineteen ninety seven, Marty and Elise Ronik bought the 356 00:20:45,960 --> 00:20:48,800 Speaker 1: Crescent and restored it over the course of five years 357 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:51,800 Speaker 1: to be the grand Lady of the Ozarks. They voted 358 00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:54,359 Speaker 1: ever since, and they've turned it into a vibrant vacation 359 00:20:54,480 --> 00:20:58,680 Speaker 1: destination once again. So now we're going to talk about 360 00:20:58,760 --> 00:21:01,439 Speaker 1: the ghosts that a leg hang out there at the 361 00:21:01,440 --> 00:21:04,919 Speaker 1: Crescent because for years the Crescent Hotel has held this 362 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:07,720 Speaker 1: reputation of being one of the most haunted hotels in 363 00:21:07,720 --> 00:21:10,879 Speaker 1: the United States. So we're going to talk about a 364 00:21:10,880 --> 00:21:13,480 Speaker 1: few of the ghosts who are alleged to wander the halls. 365 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:16,600 Speaker 1: We remember the story of Michael the Mason from the 366 00:21:16,600 --> 00:21:19,920 Speaker 1: beginning of the Crescent Hotel's construction. Where he fell is 367 00:21:19,960 --> 00:21:23,560 Speaker 1: allegedly where room two eighteen now exists, and it's long 368 00:21:23,600 --> 00:21:27,679 Speaker 1: been rumored to be a hotbed of paranormal activity. The 369 00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:30,040 Speaker 1: people who claim to have been visited by Michael while 370 00:21:30,040 --> 00:21:33,360 Speaker 1: staying in the room report doors opening and closing, pounding 371 00:21:33,359 --> 00:21:37,000 Speaker 1: on the walls, even hands coming out of the bathroom mirror, 372 00:21:37,680 --> 00:21:42,480 Speaker 1: which is pretty freaky. Yeah. Uh, there's a nurse that 373 00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:45,280 Speaker 1: allegedly appears on the third floor pushing a gurney with 374 00:21:45,280 --> 00:21:48,560 Speaker 1: a deceased cancer patient on it. Of course, that also 375 00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:52,880 Speaker 1: comes with the creepy sound of squeaking wheels. Some lower 376 00:21:52,960 --> 00:21:55,760 Speaker 1: lovers like to believe that even Norman Baker himself has 377 00:21:55,800 --> 00:21:58,400 Speaker 1: come back to the Crescent Hotel in the afterlife, appearing 378 00:21:58,400 --> 00:22:00,480 Speaker 1: in his signature white suit with a per sure and 379 00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:04,560 Speaker 1: tie and There's even a ghost that some claim introduces 380 00:22:04,600 --> 00:22:08,119 Speaker 1: herself as Theodora and tells whoever she's speaking with that 381 00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:10,960 Speaker 1: she's receiving cancer treatment, usually right before she kind of 382 00:22:11,000 --> 00:22:14,280 Speaker 1: vanishes before their eyes. There's another who has been dubbed 383 00:22:14,280 --> 00:22:16,600 Speaker 1: Doctor Ellis, who is a man that wears a stovepipe 384 00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:20,320 Speaker 1: hat and sometimes gives people advice. There are so so 385 00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:23,280 Speaker 1: many more ghosts that are rumored to appear at the Crescent, 386 00:22:23,359 --> 00:22:25,800 Speaker 1: and they come from all points of the hotel's history. 387 00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:29,359 Speaker 1: Because it's had such a tumultuous history of shifting ownership 388 00:22:29,400 --> 00:22:32,040 Speaker 1: and identities, the history of the hotel is pretty fertile 389 00:22:32,080 --> 00:22:34,960 Speaker 1: soil in which to grow ghost stories. It's got all 390 00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:38,320 Speaker 1: the best options for spirit characters. There are rich victorians, 391 00:22:38,640 --> 00:22:41,959 Speaker 1: there are college kids, they're ailing patients who have been 392 00:22:42,040 --> 00:22:47,119 Speaker 1: duped by this flim flam man. Yeah, so it's you know, 393 00:22:47,280 --> 00:22:49,760 Speaker 1: I think I've said before the podcast, I'm not a 394 00:22:49,800 --> 00:22:52,520 Speaker 1: ghost believer myself, but it seems like if you're into 395 00:22:52,520 --> 00:22:54,800 Speaker 1: that sort of thing, this is a super fun and 396 00:22:55,040 --> 00:22:58,200 Speaker 1: very beautiful place to go kind of play in that 397 00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:01,840 Speaker 1: sort of arena if you wanted to do so. And today, 398 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:04,720 Speaker 1: the town of Eureka Springs in its entirety is on 399 00:23:04,760 --> 00:23:08,560 Speaker 1: the National Register of Historic Places, with approximately two thousand 400 00:23:08,720 --> 00:23:12,760 Speaker 1: historic buildings included that have been restored and are carefully maintained. 401 00:23:13,320 --> 00:23:16,360 Speaker 1: You can get ghost tours of the Crescent Hotel. They're 402 00:23:16,400 --> 00:23:18,840 Speaker 1: available for anyone who wants to visit with the spirits 403 00:23:18,880 --> 00:23:21,520 Speaker 1: that are rumored to haunt its halls, and it does 404 00:23:21,560 --> 00:23:23,600 Speaker 1: look like an absolutely lovely town. I would love to 405 00:23:23,640 --> 00:23:25,800 Speaker 1: go visit at some point, so it's now on my list. 406 00:23:25,920 --> 00:23:27,800 Speaker 1: It was not before I did this episode because I 407 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:30,119 Speaker 1: didn't know about it, but now I think maybe we 408 00:23:30,160 --> 00:23:34,720 Speaker 1: go to Eureka Springs. It's not that far from well 409 00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:36,560 Speaker 1: from where you are. It's not that far from where 410 00:23:36,600 --> 00:23:40,880 Speaker 1: I am. It's really far. Yeah. I like how now 411 00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:43,480 Speaker 1: that you live in Boston everything feels really fun. It 412 00:23:43,520 --> 00:23:47,639 Speaker 1: really does. Whenever we get invitations to go somewhere, I'm like, 413 00:23:47,680 --> 00:23:50,080 Speaker 1: this flight is two hours longer than it would have 414 00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:54,040 Speaker 1: been from Atlanta. Yes, So thank you listener Jordan for 415 00:23:54,080 --> 00:23:56,520 Speaker 1: suggesting this episode. It was one that ended up being 416 00:23:57,160 --> 00:23:59,280 Speaker 1: really fun. When I first thought, oh, I'll look into 417 00:23:59,280 --> 00:24:01,720 Speaker 1: the haunted hotel thing, and then the Norman Baker Angle 418 00:24:01,840 --> 00:24:04,760 Speaker 1: was so sort of fertile and fascinating that it ended 419 00:24:04,800 --> 00:24:13,239 Speaker 1: up being lovely. Thanks so much for joining us on 420 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:16,199 Speaker 1: this Saturday. Since this episode is out of the archive, 421 00:24:16,240 --> 00:24:18,560 Speaker 1: if you heard an email address or a Facebook RL 422 00:24:18,640 --> 00:24:20,920 Speaker 1: or something similar over the course of the show, that 423 00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:25,160 Speaker 1: could be obsolete now. Our current email address is History 424 00:24:25,280 --> 00:24:29,800 Speaker 1: Podcast at iHeartRadio dot com. You can find us all 425 00:24:29,840 --> 00:24:33,040 Speaker 1: over social media at missed in History, and you can 426 00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:36,760 Speaker 1: subscribe to our show on Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, the 427 00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:43,240 Speaker 1: iHeartRadio app, and wherever else you listen to podcasts. 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