The story
The Olde Park Hotel in Ballinger, Texas, dates to 1886, raised in local stone as the railroad reached the new Runnels County seat, and it served drummers, cowmen and travellers through the town's frontier decades; after long spells of decline the landmark was revived in recent years as a hotel and events venue that openly embraces its haunted reputation, hosting ghost tours and overnight investigations. The building's lore has grown with each revival: guests, staff and investigators describe children's laughter and running footsteps on the upper floors, a woman in period dress on the staircase, doors opening and slamming, objects moved in the old guest rooms, shadow figures in the corridors and voices in the empty ballroom, with various identities offered in the telling and none documented. West Texas paranormal groups have made it a regular destination. These accounts should be presented as guest and investigator reports and hotel lore rather than proven phenomena, and current room, tour and event details should be confirmed from the hotel's official pages before publishing, as the operation has changed hands over the years.