Haunted hotel guide · Three Forks, Montana
The Haunted Sacajawea Hotel, Three Forks: The Builder Who Never Checked Out
A white railroad hotel with a long columned porch, built in 1910 by the man who still, according to Montana’s tourism office, makes sure everything is in order.
The Sacajawea Hotel stands on Main Street in Three Forks, near the headwaters of the Missouri River and about 30 miles west of Bozeman. Railroad agent John Q. Adams built it in 1910 for passengers on the Milwaukee Road, and it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a member of Historic Hotels of America. After a full restoration by the Folkvord family, it is one of the most comfortable haunted hotels in Montana.
The hotel’s own website does not talk about ghosts, but the state tourism office does. Visit Montana says visitors still see Adams roaming the halls, and local writers add a maid who vanishes into a third-floor wall and footsteps heard by staff in the empty winter months. Here are the stories and the history behind them.
Sacajawea Hotel at a glance
Haunted Rooms Score
- Address 5 North Main Street, Three Forks, MT 59752
- Opened 1910, by railroad agent John Q. Adams, designed by Fred Willson; incorporates the 1862 Madison Hotel; on the National Register since January 24, 1980
- Most haunted spots The third floor, the stairs and the upstairs halls
- Best-known ghosts Builder John Q. Adams on his rounds, a maid who vanishes into a third-floor wall, and footsteps on the empty third floor
- Booking the haunted room The hotel does not sell a named haunted room. Any of the 29 rooms puts you on Adams’ rounds.
- Good to know Two places to eat and drink, Pompey’s Grill and the Sac Bar and Grill. Three Forks is about 30 miles west of Bozeman.
The ghosts of the Sacajawea Hotel
John Q. Adams
The Sacajawea’s ghost is its builder. Visit Montana says the hotel is known to be haunted by John Q. Adams and that visitors still see him roaming the halls, making sure everything is in order. Guests quoted by Outside Bozeman describe a very tall man with white hair and a white beard, which they say fits Adams. A Bozeman Magazine writer who stayed at the hotel in 2010 said she saw him walking ahead of her on the stairs and was woken by him in her room.
It is a gentle story. Adams ran the hotel he built for the railroad, and the version people tell is of a proprietor still doing his rounds, not of anything frightening.
The vanishing maid
Visit Yellowstone Country, the regional tourism office, says legend has the hotel haunted by a vanishing maid as well as by Adams. Bozeman Magazine’s 2010 account is more specific: guests have felt an icy presence on the third floor and seen a maid walk into a wall that was once a linen closet, again and again.
The third floor in winter
Outside Bozeman interviewed the hotel’s maintenance manager, who said that in winter, when the hotel is quiet, staff hear footsteps on the third floor and the radio coming on at 2 a.m. A chambermaid told the same writer she found a bed pushed against the only door of a third-floor room from the inside, moved it back, and came back to find it blocking the door again.
A call to the police
Our original guide said police were once called to the hotel over strange noises. Bozeman Magazine also reported that Three Forks police had been called to the hotel about one of its rowdier ghosts. No police record has been published, so treat it as local lore.
What the hotel was not
One rumor you may hear is that the Sacajawea was once a brothel. Local historians quoted by Outside Bozeman say no: it has only ever been a hotel. A madam called Laura Adams, no relation to John Q., was murdered in Three Forks, but her house was a different building, the Western, which burned down in the 1960s.
The most haunted rooms and places to look
- The third floor: Footsteps in winter, a radio switching on at 2 a.m., a bed that blocked a door from the inside and the maid who walks into the old linen closet wall.
- The stairs and halls: Where Adams is said to walk, checking that everything is in order.
- The front porch: Not a ghost spot, but the best place to sit at dusk before walking the halls.
History of The Sacajawea Hotel
Three Forks takes its name from the meeting of the Jefferson, Madison and Gallatin rivers, which Lewis and Clark reached in 1805 and which form the Missouri. The hotel is named after Sacagawea, who traveled with them, and its original building was older still: the Madison Hotel, built in 1862 on the first Three Forks townsite.
When the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, known as the Milwaukee Road, came through, Three Forks became the end of its line, a role it kept until 1927 when the line was extended to Gallatin Gateway. The old Madison Hotel was rolled on logs about a mile to its present site, where it now forms the eastern part of the building.
In 1910 railroad agent John Q. Adams added the main lobby and 29 rooms, hiring the architect Fred Willson to design something grand but welcoming. The result is the Colonial Revival hotel you see today, with its long columned front porch.
By the 1990s the hotel had declined badly. Smith and Jane Roedel owned it from 1991 to 1997 and replaced the plumbing, wiring and cedar roof, and it was up for sale again in 2002. In 2009 the Folkvord family, owners of Wheat Montana, bought it, closed it for seven months of renovation and reopened it restored.
Tips for a haunted stay
- Sit on the long front porch at dusk, then walk the third floor, where most of the stories are set.
- Ask the staff if they have any stories of their own. The hotel does not advertise its ghosts, so be polite about it.
- Walk or cycle the trail built on the old railroad line through town, and ask at the desk about bike loans.
- Visit Missouri Headwaters State Park, a few minutes away, where the three rivers meet.
- Virginia City is about 70 miles south, so pair your stay with our Fairweather Inn ghost hunt and sleepover.
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.
- Fairweather Inn Ghost Hunt & Sleepover, Virginia City: investigate an 1860s gold rush inn, then sleep in it
- Old St. James Hospital Ghost Hunt, Butte: an old Sisters of Charity hospital, about an hour west
- Old Ravalli County Courthouse Ghost Hunt, Hamilton: a historic courthouse in the Bitterroot Valley
More haunted hotels nearby
- Fairweather Inn, Virginia City: an 1860s inn where we run sleepover ghost hunts
- Chico Hot Springs, Pray: Percie Knowles and the rocking chair
- Boulder Hot Springs: Simone’s Suite and geothermal pools
- Haunted hotels in Montana
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 Sacajawea Hotel in Three Forks haunted?
Montana’s tourism office says it is haunted by its builder, John Q. Adams, who is still seen roaming the halls making sure everything is in order. A vanishing maid is also part of the hotel’s lore.
Who haunts the Sacajawea Hotel?
Mainly John Q. Adams, the railroad agent who built the hotel in 1910, and an unnamed maid said to vanish into a third-floor wall that was once a linen closet.
When was the Sacajawea Hotel built?
Adams built the lobby and 29 rooms in 1910. The eastern part of the building is the older Madison Hotel of 1862, rolled to the site on logs.
Is the Sacajawea Hotel on the National Register?
Yes. It was listed on January 24, 1980, and is a member of Historic Hotels of America.
Who owns the Sacajawea Hotel?
The Folkvord family, owners of Wheat Montana, who bought it in 2009 and restored it.
Was the Sacajawea Hotel a brothel?
No. Local historians say it has only ever been a hotel. The town’s murdered madam, Laura Adams, ran a different house called the Western.
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.
- Wikipedia: Sacajawea Hotel
- Visit Montana: Haunted hotels come alive
- Visit Yellowstone Country: Spooky tales from Montana's Yellowstone Country
- Bozeman Magazine: Top 3 most haunted spots in the Gallatin Valley (2010)
- Outside Bozeman: Ghost town
- Sacajawea Hotel
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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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