A Ghost Story - The Hotel Leger, Wine, Women, and Whoopie

By Paisley Kirkpatrick

In 1851 newcomer George Leger left Hesse Castle, Germany and came to the hamlet of Mokelumne, California. An entrepreneur with lots of cash in his pocket, and someone who loved to have a good time, he was thought to be different from the often crass and always dirty miners. He made some shady and sane dealings in the community and ended up with enough cash to build a one-story hotel, which he named The European Hotel.

It didn't take long for Leger to add a second story to be used for room and board. He converted the first floor into a general store. He still wasn't satisfied with his hotel, so he added a lavish dance floor to hold his parties in. The hotel soon became known as the most elegant place for entertaining in his part of the country. Its lavishness drew many of the elite and famous from the world of arts and politics.

George had an eye for rich and beautiful women and loved to party. The best alcohol and food was always on hand. He was in his element in this world, but it didn't last. In 1879 a portion of his hotel burned. Undaunted, he rebuilt and renamed the place Hotel Leger for good luck.

Women, women, women! He loved them all. Even being married didn't interfere with his conquests. His much younger bride died two years after they married. Her death didn't stop him from continuing his lifestyle as he had before and during her time in his life.

He was a dashing figure of a man, standing six-foot tall, with dark hair and a moustache, in his sexual prime, and wealthy. W.H Adams, Leger's friend and the owner of the stage company that had the Wells Fargo contract between Stockton and Sacramento, had a violent temper. Adams was devastated when he learned the beautiful young woman he had his heart set on was spending her time with Leger during his absences. Adams sent a lone gunman to Leger's living quarters at the hotel. The hired man knocked on Room 7 and as the door opened he shot Leger point blank. Leger fell mortally wounded into the arms of Adams' paramour. The killer walked out of the hotel and was never seen again.

It was said that Adams' sweetheart took off with someone else after Leger died. Adams was the first person up the stairs that fateful day on Leger's behalf and as his friend was laid to rest, he led the crowd in tearful lament for his lost buddy. As a befitting omen, Adams was interred next to his ex-best friend.

Soon after Leger's death it is rumored his spirit began showing up at the hotel. Leger's friends in life started to feel uneasy that he was still overseeing things in death as he had in life, especially Adams because the secret of his death was Adams' alone. No one except Adams was aware of his involvement in Leger's demise until he fessed up years later. Maybe it was on his deathbed. No one knows for sure.

A family with children bought the hotel years after Leger's death. A couple of days after the family moved in, the children ran from their bedroom to their father and cried, "Someone told us to be quiet." Upon investigating, the father couldn't find anyone in the room. Later that day the children went into Room 7, which had been George Leger's bedroom, and where he died. The children ran to their father again. They pointed to a man in an old tintype hanging on the wall. "That's the man who told us to be quiet." The photo was of George Leger. Their father, who always wore a cowboy hat, remarked that he often saw two cowboy hats coming up the stairs in the shadows on the wall. One was his.....

Researched in "The Incredible World of Gold Rush Ghosts by Nancy Bradley and Robert Reppert."

Sierra Nevada Phillips

A Woman Called 'Vade'

By Paisley Kirkpatrick

Sierra Nevada Phillips was an energetic woman called Vade. She was a lady with a warm natural personality who did not know the meaning of the word 'impossible.' During her lifetime, Vade owned and operated many popular resorts in the Sierra. She was one of the best cooks in the area and had a large clientele who followed her wherever she went.

Vade and her parents left their home in Vermont in 1851 and traveled to the gold fields of California via the Panama route. The couple tried mining and then moved to El Dorado County, where they purchased 160 acres of beautiful meadowland near the American River. There was a heavy flow of traffic along the Great Bonanza Road to the Comstock, and in 1863, they built a two-and-one-half-story resort on their property. It was called Phillips Station and became one of the busiest stations along the dirt thoroughfare.

Vade learned to cook from her mother who had the reputation of preparing fine meals. She was determined to be the best cook in the Sierra, which proved to be true after she cooked her first meal one night when her mother wasn't available.

In 1884, she bought the primitive Rubicon Resort and Springs from the Hunsucker brothers, who were unable to cope with the heavy flow of guests. It was located in a wild, remote area with views, and a road that was little more than a mountainous trail. All her supplies had to be brought in by pack mule from barges on Lake Tahoe. Rebuilding the dilapidated resort was a difficult task. Vade, however, was a determined woman, and within three years she managed to erect a new and comfortable two-and-one-half-story hotel in the wilderness.

The establishment had 16 rooms, with curtains at the windows and an elegant parlor with fine furnishings. She renamed the resort, Rubicon Mineral Springs Hotel and Resort, and advertised the mineral water which was said to be 'better than whiskey.' Health seekers flocked in over the hazardous trail, and Vade added cabins and tents. The Rubicon spa was very popular with the wealthy Comstockers, and as the traffic increased, Vade realized the need for a better route to the springs. She went to El Dorado County and persuaded them to build a road to Rubicon. She sold the resort and moved back to her roots.

It took her a year to rebuild Phillips Station into a full-fledged resort with cabins, general store, cocktail lounge and campground. Phillips flourished and became known from coast to coast. The resort catered to families, and many returned every summer. In fact, some came so often that the cabins were named for various families. Among the notable guests listed in the register are former Secretary of State Frank Jordon and former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, who was 12 years old at the time.

Vade had also been a postmistress all of her life. Wherever she went she opened a post office. When Phillips reopened, she went to the postmaster in Placerville requesting a post office for the old station. The name Phillips was taken by another location, so he told her to just call it 'Vade.'

Sierra Nevada Phillips died at 67, in 1921. She was one of the most dynamic women the Sierra had known. During her active lifetime, she went through the horse and buggy era into the mechanical age of today. And, although Phillips Station has been gone for years, a woman called Vade, who was respected throughout the Sierra, as Mrs. Hospitality, is fondly remembered.

Women of the Sierra by Anne Seagraves