Haunted hotel guide · Nahma, Michigan
The Haunted Nahma Inn: Miss Nell's Room in a Michigan Lumber Town
A 1909 lumber company hotel on Big Bay de Noc where the inn itself will tell you about its ghost, and you can ask to sleep in her room, Room 16.
The Nahma Inn is the heart of Nahma, a tiny former company town on the shore of Big Bay de Noc in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. It was built in 1909 to house employees of the Bay de Noquet Lumber Company, and today it is a small inn with a restaurant, a lounge and a general store next door that hosts summer concerts. Owner Charlie MacIntosh has run it since about 2008. The inn appears in the book Haunted Inns of America by Terry L. Smith and Mark Jean, and the town of Nahma itself turned up on the History Channel’s American Pickers in 2013.
Unlike many hotels, the Nahma Inn is happy to talk about its ghost. Her name is Nell Fleming, Miss Nell to the locals, and the inn says she was courted by Charlie Good of the lumber company. The best-known telling has her still waiting at a second-floor window for him to come back. Staff told TV6 that Nell’s room is Room 16 and that Charlie Good stayed next door in Room 17. Guests in her room say their things move, staff say she tidies the kitchen and lounge regulars describe footsteps and sliding glasses. Here is what is reported, the town’s history and how to book her room. See all our haunted hotels in Michigan.
The Nahma Inn at a glance
Haunted Rooms Score
- Address 13747 Main Street, Nahma, MI 49864
- Opened 1909, as a hotel for Bay de Noquet Lumber Company workers
- Most haunted spots Nell’s room (Room 16), Room 17, Room 11, the kitchen and the lounge
- Best-known ghosts Nell Fleming, “Miss Nell”
- Booking the haunted room Call the inn on (906) 644-2486 and ask for Room 16, Nell’s room.
- Good to know The inn lists 14 rooms, seven with private baths and seven sharing baths, at about $115 to $125 a night plus tax (a 2021 TV report counted 17). Lodging is available seven days a week; 14 days’ notice to cancel.
The ghosts of The Nahma Inn
Miss Nell at the window
The inn admits there are several versions of its ghost story, but all agree the ghost is Nell Fleming. In the most popular telling, her beau Charlie Good, whom the inn credits with founding the Bay de Noquet Lumber Company, left, and Nell kept watch from a second-story window waiting for his return. People say she is still seen there.
The romance is local lore rather than recorded history; the inn gives no dates for Nell’s life, and the details vary with the teller. The inn’s own history page offers a different version again, describing the spirit as a woman who worked in the kitchen.
Nell's room
Nell’s former room, Room 16, is the one guests ask for. People who stay in it say they come back, sometimes after only a short time away, to find their belongings moved, and even the bed shifted from where it was. Former employee Kelly Carlson told TV6 in 2021 that Charlie Good stayed in Room 17 next door, and that people wrongly think it is only Nell’s room: “it’s the whole thing.”
The tidy ghost in the kitchen
Miss Nell is also said to be house proud. Staff describe things in the kitchen and other rooms being organized and rearranged when nobody has been there.
Footsteps in the lounge
In the bar, patrons describe footsteps when no one is walking, and glasses and dishes sliding off tables on their own. The inn encourages guests to share their own encounters on its Facebook page.
The owner and the staff
Owner Charlie MacIntosh told TV6 that soon after he bought the inn, while fixing it up, he heard a woman singing, crystal clear but with no words he could make out. Staff describe belongings moving, rustling and voices, and one worker’s phone sliding off a counter, flipping over and hitting the wall.
Carlson and her sister Trish Kautz spent a weekend a month investigating the inn for a year. They told local press of knives pulled off a magnet strip, coins falling out of nowhere, Charlie Good’s spirit on the second floor and a grumpy one in Room 11, while insisting that all the spirits are friendly. MacIntosh says he has never felt threatened or unsafe, and that activity picks up when the inn is full or there is a concert next door.
The most haunted rooms and places to look
- Room 16, Nell's room: Her old second-floor room, where belongings and the bed are said to move. Request it by phone.
- Room 17: Next door to Nell’s, and the room staff link to Charlie Good.
- Room 11: Where investigators say a grumpier presence lives.
- The lounge: The bar where footsteps and sliding glasses are reported. Open in the evenings when the restaurant is.
History of The Nahma Inn
Nahma was founded in 1881 by the Bay de Noquet Lumber Company of Oconto, Wisconsin, as the base for its Upper Peninsula operations. Over about 70 years the company processed more than 2.5 billion board feet of lumber and employed over 1,500 men at the mill and in its camps. It even ran its own railroad, the Nahma and Northern, with seven locomotives and 75 miles of track. At its peak the town had more than 800 people.
The company built the hotel in 1909 for its employees, and it stood at the center of town life for decades. The last log was cut and processed on July 26, 1951.
That same year an Indiana playground equipment maker bought the entire town, planning to turn it into a resort. It never raised the money, but the sale made national news: Life magazine ran it under the headline “Sold-One Town.”
Nahma is now a quiet community of commuters, retirees and summer residents, with 468 people at the 2020 census. The inn carries on as its hotel, restaurant and gathering place, with summer concerts, the Nahma Music Fest and an annual bass tournament.
Tips for a haunted stay
- Call (906) 644-2486 to book and ask for Room 16, Nell’s room, by name; online booking cannot guarantee it.
- Check food service days before you go; the inn runs shorter winter hours, and the restaurant has closed early in the week outside summer.
- Ask whether your room has a private or shared bath when you book.
- Visit in summer for the concert series, the Nahma Music Fest and the bass tournament; staff say a full house brings more activity.
- Nahma is remote, east of Escanaba off US 2, so fuel up and check winter road conditions.
Want to investigate, not just sleep?
Sleeping in a haunted hotel is one thing. Investigating one after dark is another. On a Haunted Rooms ghost hunt our team takes you through the building with professional ghost hunting equipment, runs EVP sessions and lets you explore on your own during free roam.
- Ringling House Ghost Hunt & Sleepover, Baraboo, WI: Investigate Charles Ringling’s 1901 mansion, then stay the night.
- Mortuary Manor Ghost Hunt, Toledo, Ohio: Investigate a former funeral home just south of the Michigan line with the Haunted Rooms team.
More haunted hotels nearby
- The Landmark Inn, Marquette: the Lilac Room above Lake Superior, about two hours north
- Mackinac Island: Michigan’s most haunted island, east along US 2
- The Terrace Inn, Petoskey: Room 211, across the Mackinac Bridge
- Haunted hotels in Michigan
Stayed in one of these hotels? Tell us what happened
We collect first-hand accounts from guests and add the best ones to our guides, with your first name and the date of your stay. We read every story before it’s published.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Nahma Inn haunted?
The inn says so. Its ghost is Nell Fleming, Miss Nell, said to wait at a second-floor window for her beau. Guests report moved belongings in her room and footsteps and sliding glasses in the lounge.
Who is Miss Nell at the Nahma Inn?
Nell Fleming, who the inn says was courted by Charlie Good of the Bay de Noquet Lumber Company. In the best-known story he left and she still waits for him.
Can you stay in Nell's room at the Nahma Inn?
Yes. Staff say Nell’s room is Room 16. Call the inn on (906) 644-2486 and ask for it.
When was the Nahma Inn built?
In 1909, as a hotel for Bay de Noquet Lumber Company employees in the company town of Nahma.
Was the town of Nahma really sold?
Yes. After the mill closed in 1951 an Indiana playground maker bought the whole town, and Life magazine covered it as “Sold-One Town.”
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the hotel’s own website, historic records and news coverage. Ghost stories are reported as guests, staff and local historians tell them. Read how we rate haunted hotels.
- The Nahma Inn: Nahma ghost
- The Nahma Inn: History
- The Nahma Inn: Accommodations
- WLUC TV6: The Nahma Inn, known for great food and haunted rooms (2021)
- WLUC TV6: The Nahma Inn looks ahead to full summer schedule despite ghost activity (2023)
- UP NOW: Nahma Inn's haunted reputation explored
- Wikipedia: Nahma, Michigan
- UpWord Michigan: American Pickers visits U.P. (2013)
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About the authors
The Haunted Rooms Team runs public ghost hunts and overnight investigations at historic venues across the United States. We research every hotel in our guides using hotel histories, local archives, news coverage and the accounts of guests and staff, and we review each guide regularly so you are not booking a hotel that has closed or changed its name. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.
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