When you walk through the doors of The Read House in Chattanooga, Tennessee, you may feel as though you’ve stepped back in time, the simple, quiet elegance speaking of days long since passed. And if you spend enough time there . . . and you listen carefully . . . you may also hear the echoing whispers of the spirits that many believe dwell within.
The Read House began as an enterprise of the Crutchfield brothers, William and Thomas, who opened the Old Crutchfield House across from the newly constructed Chattanooga train station in the mid-1800s. It proved to be extremely successful for the brothers, at least until the rumblings of war began—rumblings that almost cost Jefferson Davis his life. Having resigned his position in the U.S. Senate, Davis was on his way home when he stopped for the night at the Old Crutchfield. Having not yet accepted the presidency of the Confederate States, Davis was already very entrenched in the politics of the day. William, ever the Union sympathizer, declared Davis a traitor, words that led Davis to demand satisfaction in the form of a duel. Had Thomas, as much a southern supporter as his brother was for the north, not dragged William from the room, the argument might have ended in the first death related to the property. But cooler heads prevailed, and the duel never took place. William and Thomas, however, could not reconcile over the event, and the hotel sold not long after.
Over the years, it was burned, flooded, renovated, rebuilt, and eventually turned into The Read House of today. But along the way, the hotel’s history became filled with tales of specters and the supernatural, beginning with its conversion to a hospital in 1863. A hospital used to treat only Union soldiers during the Civil War. A hospital where many young men spent their last hours upon this earth—and according to those who have encountered them—a hospital they never left.
Those encounters include shadowy figures that are briefly caught out of the corner of one’s eye . . . cold breezes that seem to come from nowhere . . . strange sounds that break the silence of the night. And if you happen to be staying on the fourth floor, you might be able to count yourself among those who claim to have actually seen the ghostly soldiers who roam the hallways.
As unnerving as such sightings might be, if you truly want an encounter of the otherworldly kind, then ask to stay in Room 311. You see, it was in that room that Annalisa Netherly met her untimely end, either at the hands of a jealous lover, or (depending upon which version you favor) from a broken heart when he left her for another. But be warned. Annalisa is not particularly fond of men—understandably so—and especially the ones who smoke. Those brave enough to request Room 311 often complain of an inability to sleep and loud noises that startle them in the middle of the night. Not to mention the very uncomfortable feeling of being watched . . . always watched . . .
For all its beauty and elegance, there is a dark and tragic past that inhabits Read House. A past which seems to, on occasion, invade the present. Should you choose to be their guest, perhaps you will also experience the merging of the two.
About the author: Lisa Shackelford Thomas is a fourth-generation member of a family that’s been in funeral service since 1926 and has worked with Shackelford Funeral Directors in Savannah, Tennessee for over 45 years. Any opinions expressed here are hers and hers alone and may or may not reflect the opinions of other Shackelford family members or staff.
