The Copper Queen is a vintage hotel, dating from 1902, and was built to offer accommodations to mine management back in the Bisbee mining heydays.  Bisbee is terraced into the hills, and so is the Copper Queen.  After stepping up the stairs into the hotel, you immediately feel that you’ve entered the past.  The old lobby desk, with large old-fashioned keys leads to their old, plush sofa- decorated parlor off the lobby.  An impressive staircase, curving at the top, leads to a second floor with a comfortable sitting area and an old dining table with flowers everywhere.

Parlor and staircase

We took the elevator, a venerable old, wooden machine, to the third floor where our room was located.  Room 315.  We headed down the hall to the left, passed the Grace Dodge Room (named after the family member of the mining family) and continued down to the last room on the left.  The old-fashioned door opened to our key and we entered, not sure what we would find.  On the inside, there were three locks.

We were a little nervous and my husband wasn’t really excited about staying in a haunted room. With the DVD the front desk had given us of the TV show that supposedly recorded the haunting, we brought in our luggage and looked around.

The Julia Lowell Room

The vivid sateen bedspread in a magenta shade had elaborate gathers and covered the comfortable queen-sized bed.  Over the bed was a framed “License for Prostitution,” signed by Marshal Virgil Earp and a somewhat risqué photo of the lady in question. (We’ve cropped the photo – after all, we’re appealing to a family audience.)

License for prostitution - signed by Marshal Virgil Earp

The bedside lamp had one of the gaudiest fringe lamps we’ve ever seen and the entire look of the room did say “bordello.”  You see, the room was supposedly occupied by the ghost of Julia Lowell, a lady of the night, who had taken her life in the room.  According to the DVD, she liked to whisper in the ear of occupants and move the bedding.

More of the Julia Lowell Room

We watched the DVD of the ghost hunters. Their experience was unconvincing.

Finally, time for bed after dinner and sightseeing, we turned off the light and waited.  I was prepared to have a visit from Julia, but we were both nervous about our potential night visitor.

Tossing and turning, I finally slept.  I awoke several times, but never heard Julia whispering in my ear.  My blankets were not disturbed.  If the room was haunted, Julia chose not to visit us.

As far as accommodations, the hotel is an old-fashioned experience that meets the needs of most travelers.  There is even an outdoor solar-heated pool.  We didn’t try the pool, since the air was rather chilly, even if the pool was heated.

I must admit to being let down by not seeing Julia.  Perhaps my willingness to have her visit scared her away.  There were supposedly other haunted rooms at the hotel, but we didn’t investigate them since they were occupied.

So, although we didn’t have the haunting experience we expected, we will remember our stay at the Copper Queen Hotel.  The experience was welcoming, even if Julia chose not to greet us.  The staff was cheery and professional.

Technology alert:  Although they have wireless capability, we were told that the connection was not guaranteed.  And, it didn’t work.  But, you know, maybe sometimes it is better to enjoy where you are and forget about connecting elsewhere.

http://www.copperqueen.com/

Travel with us on Monday when we visit the Copper Queen Mine. Down below we go!

Bisbee - terraced into the hillside

The first thing noticeable driving in is the array of buildings terraced into the hills.  They are a holdover from the early mining days, with a few newer homes scattered about.

The Copper Queen Hotel sits majestically, centered in the terraced historic part of town.  Some old mining equipment sits in front of the museum, which fronts Main Street.  Bisbee has some narrow, one-way streets that are an adventure to explore, with the vintage architecture adapted as shops, restaurants, and hotels.

Americana on Main Street - notice copper colored hills

Head down Main Street and your authentic experience is less like Disney and more like really seeing the world of the early 1900s.  Travel a bit further and you’ll pass several colorful shops with pottery, crafts, hats, and an artisan chocolate shop.

Chocolate - exceptional chocolate made here

Chocoláte is a small shop with chocolate made on the premises from fair trade cocoa beans.  The flavors, of which they offer samples, are rich, complex and delightful.  Although pricing is not in the Hershey – or even Ghirardelli – price range, they are a special splurge well worth trying.  We purchased bars and truffles, which were packaged attractively. (spiritedchocolate.com)

We poked in and out of several shops with gorgeous pottery, both functional and decorative.  Finally, we decided on a multi-hued, red Native American bowl that we couldn’t resist.  Gorgeous!

Ya’ gotta eat –

If we had been inclined to eat five meals a day, we could have indulged with irresistible aromas wafting from doorways we passed.  Everything from an old-fashioned 1950s diner to grilles and restaurants harkening back to the early 1900s gave us lots of options.

Copper Queen lobby - entrance to a more gracious experience

Angela’s at the Copper Queen Hotel

For dinner, we decided to try the Copper Queen’s new incarnation, Angela’s, now an Italian restaurant after many years of being Winchester’s, with traditional favorites.  Angela’s was a new venture, with signs stilling covering the old Winchester signs.

Copper Queen Hotel & Restaurant - the sign

Adam, general manager of the Copper Queen Hotel, alerted us that the restaurant was having a challenge with their chef taken ill the day before.  The owner gamely had stepped into the kitchen to handle cooking.

We entered the old-fashioned dining room and were treated to attentive service and an unhurried dining experience.  The meal began with warm rolls and Caesar salads with real flavor.  Choosing Italian menu options, Chicken Marsala and Mediterranean Grilled Salmon, we sat back to enjoy our dinner.

Portions were generous, the accompaniments were flavorful, and the wait staff made certain we lacked for nothing.  The only less-than-perfect part of the meal was the watery sauces.  They tasted good, but were not thick as expected.  We were later told that this was the owner’s first effort at making this menu and he was a little shaky on sauce-making.  He did well for a first-time effort.

And, the piece de resistance was the bread pudding.  We shared the most enormous serving of bread pudding!  I had five mouthfuls and could not eat another morsel – rich, very sweet and tender, it was amazing!  My husband finished the rest, as it was very hard to leave any.

Come back later this week for some quirky dining experiences in Bisbee – and the possibility of seeing ghosts!  We’ll also take the mine tour – deep within the old Copper Queen Mine.

As you drive into Bisbee from the north, you enter through a tunnel, as if you are going back in time.  To an extent, you are.  The town is nestled into a hillside and the feel is of the 1950s – or before.Bisbee was an old mining town.  When the mines closed, the town became a refuge for hippies back in the 1960s.  The crafty – as in “artsy-craftsy” friends of the hippies showed up, so Bisbee became a unique craft center and, consequently, a Mecca for tourism.

Unique Bisbee - their own historic manhole cover

Bisbee has settled down a great deal since its heady miner days when there were 50 establishments serving liquor in town.  The population of 20,000 in 1910 is down to around 6,000, with the census showing a somewhat mature age skew.

Bisbee now

The old mine, the architecture, and the hillsides create an almost surreal environment.

One of the most noticeable things about Bisbee – The natives are friendly!  Actually, it seems that most people in Bisbee are transplants.  While there, we met a woman who moved in after the mines closed. She spoke about the town and how tourism is a major center of employment, as well as the county government, which is located in Bisbee.  It is clear that without the tourism, Bisbee would probably be a ghost town. As it is, Bisbee claims to be the home of many ghosts.  (More on that next week.)

For such a small population, we found people drawn to stay. Our waitress at Dot’s Diner (review coming up next week) came to Bisbee for a visit and has stayed for two years.

Louis, a gentleman from New York City, retired to Bisbee for its climate.  He also discovered a welcoming community where everyone was willing to include you and be friendly.  He was just returning from a trip to Germany and seemed right at home in another favorite regular’s hangout, The Bisbee Breakfast Club.

We found Bisbee friendly.  Wandering into the “fiber guild,” housed in the basement of the YWCA, a group of weavers regularly congregate from their membership of 80!  There had to be at least 20 looms in the large room.  Some of the inventive and recycled fabrics used in the weaving include old jeans, sheets, and other worn out materials.  There were also some really gorgeous knitted hats, gloves and other items for sale, but, since we live in Arizona, our need for those are minimal.

We stayed overnight at the Copper Queen Hotel, a stately old reminder of how hotels used to be.  Service was courteous – rather old-fashioned these days, too, in these times of diffident service – and the rooms were definitely evocative of the early 1900s when the hotel was built to serve the upscale mine management.

A day or two in Bisbee to take the underground Copper Queen Mine Tour and shop, shop, shop were fun diversions.  The very unusual thing about Bisbee – I don’t remember a single chain store in the entire town!  (Finding a gas station was a bit of a challenge until a friendly local told us where to find the Circle K – possibly the only chain in town.)

So, if you’re looking for a unique, old-fashioned experience, join us next week while we explore the food, the mines, the shops and the experience of Bisbee, Arizona.