Manresa Castle was originally completed in 1892 as the home of Charles and Kate Eisenbeis. Charles Eisenbeis was a prominent member of early Port Townsend (He was the first mayor), when the port was the most active in the pacific northwest. The twelve inch thick walls of his 30 room mansion were made of brick from Charles Eisenbeis’s own brickworks. Locals came to call the building “Eisenbeis Castle.” In 1902 Charles Eisenbeis died, and the mansion was left empty when Kate remarried. In 1925 it was purchased to function as a vacation home for nuns. In 1927 it was purchased by Jesuits who turned it into a training college and renamed it Manresa Hall. It is the Jesuits who built the large extension to the original building and covered the brick walls of the original section to keep it more in line with the new wing. In 1968 the Jesuit’s left and it became a hotel.
Reports are that rooms 302, 304 & 306 are haunted. There are reports of two ghosts in residence. One is about a monk who hung himself in the attic. Sometimes people hear footsteps walking above them, but there is no one in the attic. The other ghost is a young lady who had been waiting for her beloved to return from war. After hearing of his demise, she threw herself out her window.
Also, In the chapel/cafe drinking glasses are know to explode, even when in one server’s hand, & sometimes the empty glasses are know to be turned upside-down. There were many entries in the room journals, that the manager graciously let us read and photograph, that comment on the Castle’s haunting. You can view these photographs here.
Accommodations: Most of the rooms are small with each room being decorated a little differently. The furniture in some rooms is interesting and pleasant, while in others fairly boring. There are a few rooms that have the extra flair to make them something special. The suites in the original part of the Castle have wallpaper by Bradbury and Bradbury and a more Victorian feel.
Breakfast: There was a built-in Restaurant for lunch and dinner. In the morning, the one-time chapel becomes a cafe serving a simple breakfast of muffins & juices.
We stayed here as part of our “Haunted Honeymoon.” You can get more information about our stay by visiting our honeymoon pages day 8 and day 9.
Official Website for Manresa Castle