Haunted hotel guide · Asheville, North Carolina
Blind Tiger Asheville, the Former 1889 WhiteGate Inn: The Ghost of the Robert Frost Room
For years Asheville’s 1889 WhiteGate Inn was known for one quiet ghost, a former owner who favored the Robert Frost Room. Since 2024 the same Queen Anne house has been Blind Tiger Asheville.
Blind Tiger Asheville is a 14-room boutique guest house at 173 East Chestnut Street, in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood a few blocks north of downtown Asheville. It occupies a shingled Queen Anne house from 1889 that, for many years, was the 1889 WhiteGate Inn & Cottage, an award-winning bed and breakfast whose rooms were named after American writers. Lark Hotels, a boutique hotel group from the Northeast, reopened it under the Blind Tiger name in 2024.
Under its old name the inn was one of the best-known haunted hotels in North Carolina, thanks to a single story: a former owner of the house, a nurse named Marion Bridgette, who was said to have stayed on in her favorite room, the Robert Frost Room. The new owners have renamed every room and do not promote the ghost, so this guide explains the story, what is and is not known, and how to stay in the house today.
Blind Tiger Asheville at a glance
Haunted Rooms Score
- Address 173 E Chestnut St, Asheville, NC 28801
- Opened House built in 1889; for years the 1889 WhiteGate Inn & Cottage; Blind Tiger Asheville since 2024
- Most haunted spots The room long known as the Robert Frost Room
- Best-known ghosts Marion Bridgette, a nurse who made the house her home in the late 1920s, known in the old inn as Mrs. B
- Booking the haunted room The writer names are gone and the rooms now carry new names. Ask the hotel which room was the old Robert Frost Room.
- Good to know Check-in runs 4 pm to 6 pm, there are no TVs, and two rooms take dogs. Breakfast is grab-and-go.
The ghosts of Blind Tiger Asheville (formerly the 1889 WhiteGate Inn)
Marion Bridgette, the nurse who stayed
The house’s ghost story centers on Marion Bridgette, a nurse who bought the building as her home in the late 1920s. Accounts differ on the exact year: one ghost directory gives 1928 and a 2024 Cardinal and Pine roundup says 1929. The original version of this guide called her Mrs. B and said she died in 1928, which does not fit those accounts; the safest reading is that she came to the house around then.
She is said to have been fond of the house and to have never quite moved out. Visit NC’s haunted stays guide says she is often seen in Victorian dress, wandering the halls or appearing in mirrors.
The Robert Frost Room
When the house was the WhiteGate Inn, every room was named after an American author. Mrs. B was said to prefer the Robert Frost Room, and most reports came from there: doors slamming, footsteps when the room was empty, lights flickering and, in guests’ photos, floating orbs.
One haunted-house directory goes further and says she seems displeased that strangers now sleep in her old room. That is interpretation rather than evidence, and nothing in the reports describes anything threatening.
What has changed since 2024
Blind Tiger Asheville gave the rooms new names, such as Kress, Vireo, Cypress, Five Points and Blue Ridge, and the hotel’s own pages make no mention of ghosts. No new accounts have been published since the change of name, so it is not known whether guests still notice Mrs. B.
If the story matters to you, ask the hotel when you book which of today’s rooms was the Robert Frost Room. Staff may or may not know, and they are under no obligation to put you there.
The most haunted rooms and places to look
- The former Robert Frost Room: The room at the heart of the story. It has a new name today; ask the hotel which one it is.
- Five Points and Cypress: The two rooms with a daybed, sleeping two adults and a child. Most other rooms take two guests at most.
- Curate and Table: The two dog-friendly rooms (dogs under 70 lbs, up to two per room, with a nightly pet fee).
- Eden: The accessible room in the house.
History of Blind Tiger Asheville (formerly the 1889 WhiteGate Inn)
The house dates from 1889 and is built in the Queen Anne style that was popular in Asheville as the railroad brought wealthy visitors and new residents to the mountains. It stands on East Chestnut Street in Chestnut Hill, one of the city’s oldest residential neighborhoods, a short walk from the shops and restaurants of downtown.
Very little has been published about the house’s early owners. The one name that has survived is Marion Bridgette, the nurse at the center of the ghost story, who made it her home in the late 1920s.
In later decades the house became the 1889 WhiteGate Inn & Cottage, a bed and breakfast with a separate cottage, gardens and rooms named after American writers. It was a well-known Asheville bed and breakfast for years, which is how its ghost story reached so many guests, and Visit NC still lists the house among the state’s haunted stays.
Lark Hotels took over and reopened the house in 2024 as Blind Tiger Asheville, one of a small group of Blind Tiger guest houses. The name is old slang for a Prohibition speakeasy. The house was redecorated with antiques, contemporary pieces and art by local makers, and each room has a letter from an Asheville resident with ideas for things to do. The Michelin Guide awarded it a Michelin Key.
Weeks after the reopening, Hurricane Helene hit Asheville in September 2024. Cardinal and Pine reported that the guest house had power back but still no running water at the time, and that the owners hosted a community gathering for neighbors in early October.
Tips for a haunted stay
- Ask which room was the Robert Frost Room when you book, not at check-in, so the hotel has time to check.
- Arrive between 4 pm and 6 pm; after that you need to arrange late check-in with the hotel in advance.
- There are no TVs, so bring a book. Robert Frost would approve.
- Walk to downtown for dinner, then compare stories with a drink at the Omni Grove Park Inn, home of Asheville’s Pink Lady, ten minutes’ drive away.
- Bringing a dog? Request Curate or Table, the two pet-friendly rooms.
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.
- USS Battleship North Carolina Ghost Hunt and Tour, Wilmington: Investigate the World War II battleship after dark.
- Roanoke Island Inn Ghost Hunt and Sleepover, Manteo: Hunt all night at a historic Outer Banks inn, then sleep in it.
More haunted hotels nearby
- Omni Grove Park Inn, Asheville: the 1913 stone resort and its Pink Lady, ten minutes away
- 1927 Lake Lure Inn & Spa: a mountain resort hotel with a legendary Room 217, under an hour southeast
- Balsam Mountain Inn, Balsam: a 1908 railroad hotel in the Smokies, about 45 minutes west
- Haunted hotels in North Carolina
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 1889 WhiteGate Inn still open?
The house is still a place to stay, but not under that name. Since 2024 it has been Blind Tiger Asheville, a 14-room guest house run by Lark Hotels at the same address, 173 E Chestnut St.
Who haunts the 1889 WhiteGate Inn?
The story is about Marion Bridgette, a nurse who made the house her home in the late 1920s and was known at the old inn as Mrs. B. Guests reported slamming doors, footsteps, flickering lights and orbs, mostly in the Robert Frost Room. These are reported experiences, not proven events.
Which room is haunted at Blind Tiger Asheville?
The room that used to be called the Robert Frost Room. The rooms have new names now, so ask the hotel which one it is.
Does Blind Tiger Asheville talk about its ghost?
No. The new owners do not mention the ghost on their own pages, and no new accounts have been published since the 2024 reopening.
Is Blind Tiger Asheville pet friendly?
Two rooms, Curate and Table, accept dogs under 70 lbs, up to two per room, for a nightly fee.
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.
- Lark Hotels: Blind Tiger Asheville
- Michelin Guide: Blind Tiger Asheville
- Hospitality Design: Lark Hotels debuts Blind Tiger Asheville
- Visit NC: Haunted hotels and spooky stays
- North Carolina Haunted Houses: 1889 WhiteGate Inn & Cottage
- Cardinal & Pine: North Carolina's most haunted hotels
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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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